Everyone from first-timers to seasoned ecommerce veterans can make mistakes when it comes to launching a site. Lucky for you, we’ve outlined some of the common ecommerce mistakes to avoid so you aren’t left wondering where all your customers are.
Ecommerce Mistake #1: Making Customers Jump through Hoops
Ideally, every customer would create a profile that helps vendors track orders, customer contact information, and buying habits. However, if customers are required to create a profile before they can even add an item to their shopping cart, they will likely decide it’s not worth the hassle and abandon their purchase. This creates an obstacle for shoppers. It also disrupts the natural flow of shopping that encourages buyers to browse the entire site and potentially add additional items to their shopping cart. Keep in mind that buyers prefer to see their true total before submitting payment. This total should include taxes, shipping, and any discounts they might have. Be patient with your customers—allow them to add and edit their shopping cart, only asking their personal information once they are really ready to submit their order.
Ecommerce Mistake #2: Charging Regular Prices for First Time Shoppers
Most online shopping is motivated by two factors—convenience and pricing. The convenience part is already taken care of as buyers never have to leave their home to make a purchase. The pricing, however, is your responsibility. The discounts don’t have to be huge. Free shipping and free returns (no risk) are great ways to entice customers visiting your site for the first time. If you are willing to eat part of the profit from your initial transaction with customers, you will see rewards in the form of return buyers.
Eccommerce Mistake #3: Assuming a Quality Product Will Sell Itself
Having a product, a logo and website is not enough to make it sell. It doesn’t matter how high-quality, well priced and aesthetically pleasing it all is—if nobody has ever heard of your company how are they supposed to buy from you? Launching your website is just the beginning of your journey into ecommerce. The next step is constantly be working to differentiate yourself from competitors in some way. According to Internet Retailer, there are over 12 million ecommerce websites worldwide. But only about 650,000 of those are generating meaningful income (more than $1,000). That means the majority of ecommerce sites don’t see any significant sales. Don’t be part of the majority. Find your niche and capitalize on it—whether that is low prices, handmade products, or innovative design. Figure out early on what you bring to the world of ecommerce.
Do you want to learn more about the world of ecommerce and digital marketing? We recommend Spark, the only ClickBank-endorsed education platform on the web. With over 70 videos that harness the power of two decades of ClickBank expertise, Spark is the best way to shorten the time between now and your first ClickBank paycheck.