Whether you call it a shopping cart, a basket or a bag, the process of completing a purchase on your site has to be as simple and pleasant as you can make it. And you MUST offer the assurances your customers need to reduce their security concerns.
1. Let customers know where they are in the process. Number the steps in the checkout process, and clearly label the task for every step. Allow shoppers to review what they did in previous steps and return to the current step if they do go back.
2. Include a link to the product detail page. Shoppers may want to make sure they selected the right item before they
complete their purchase. They shouldn’t have to navigate using their “BACK” button.
3. Add pictures in the shopping cart.
Including a thumbnail image of the product within the shopping cart has been shown to increase the conversion rate by as much as 10 percent.
4. Make the next step obvious.
Include prominent "Next Step" buttons on every checkout page. Be sure that the button you want shoppers to click on is the most obvious item on the page.
5. Make changes easy.
It should be simple for shoppers to change the quantity or delete items from their shopping cart.
6. Keep it friendly.
If information is missing or incorrect, provide an error message that helps the shopper understand the problem and how to correct it. But never blame him for making a mistake.
7. Reassure your customers.
Shoppers’ concerns increase during the checkout process. If they have a problem with the checkout or feel uncomfortable
using their credit card online, display your toll-free phone number so they can still complete their purchase. Link to
warranties, shipping costs, and return policies.
A clear summary of your privacy practices also reassures shoppers. Nobody reads or understands those endless legal policies, so if you need a legal document, link to it from the summary.
8. Don’t ask for information that’s not necessary. Make the checkout process as brief as possible. If you do request
non-essential information make sure that required fields are clearly marked and placed at the top of the page.
9. Include third-party reinforcement.
Truste, Verisign, Better Business Bureau and credit card logos help customers feel more secure, as do “real” testimonials.
10. Use an exit survey.
If a shopper abandons the checkout process, offer an incentive to complete an exit survey. She may tell you why
she didn't complete her purchase— very valuable information!
About the Author
Barry Harrison is the author of "REDiTIPS"
eMarketing Newsletter and a partner in Resolve Digital,
Web Strategies for the Real World.
Visit his site at http://www.resolvedigital.com or
mailto:barry@resolvedigital.com
|
|
 |
Choosing the Right Online Shopping Cart
Are you a website owner or a web designer/developer? If either applies, I would venture to say that eventually you'll need an online shopping cart for one of your websites. In fact, almost all new websites today need some sort of ecommerce...
...Read More
10 Tips To Safe Online Shopping
The internet has changed our buying habits. Many people have found the convenience of online shopping to be a great experience. You can easily click and see the product. You have a fun time shopping, browsing, reading and getting informed about...
...Read More
How to go about Online Shopping - For newbies
How to go about online shopping: The idea of online shopping has created a major interest in net users. It is simply buying and paying through internet anytime anywhere. You can purchase almost anything online and need not bother anyone. You...
...Read More
Shopping Cart Usability
Usable Shopping Carts Increase Sales E-commerce has been around since 1993 under many different names, but one thing remains constant; shoppers want usable web sites. Without a usable shopping cart the sites typically fail from poor ...
...Read More
Grocery Shopping On a Budget
Grocery shopping is one of the first places you can learn how to be frugal. I am amazed when I go to the grocery store how many times people are spending so much more money than myself and getting half the amount of stuff I have within my cart....
...Read More
|
