Growing Your Brand in a Digital World - Building Online Sales

It is official: You have completed your business and marketing strategies, your website has been designed and is up and running, and you know that your products and services are top-notch. Yet no one is clicking your Proceed to Checkout button and actually purchasing from your site. Why? Well, some may argue that it could be because your design choices are negatively impacting your online sales.

Listed below are some of the most common design errors, along with their solutions, to help convert your target demographic from virtual window shoppers to paying customers:

Chaotic Product Webpages

Too many options can be frustrating for users, resulting in the decision to not purchase anything. This is often the cause of abandoned shopping carts and a likely indication that your potential customers are choosing to purchase these products and services elsewhere. This clutter can be seen in a variety of ways, including too many product/service options or web pages that have simply been over-designed.

Your website needs to provide an easy, convenient online shopping experience for your users. These issues can be easily fixed by trying to simplify your website. Instead of cluttering the page with 10 photos, try to use only one or two images along with a short description. There should also be plenty of white space visible throughout your website, along with well-placed, inviting imagery. Each of your products should be clearly visible.

Confusing Icons

In many cases, the most important icon is the "Buy Now" icon, and a surprising number of websites are missing this button. Do you have one? It should be next to every single item available for purchase. In addition, do not be afraid to make these icons large and very easy to understand. It is also useful to incorporate bright colors so the icons stand out from the other images and text on a page. Finally, when a customer does select something to put in their cart, it is nice to follow up with a short notification letting them know that the item has successfully been added. You should also provide them with the option to check out immediately or continue shopping.

Mobile-Friendly

Do you have a mobile shopping option on your website? Over 30% of users are shopping on their mobile devices, which is a fairly high percentage of the population. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly in order to capitalize on those sales.

Hidden Shopping Carts

Your customers should always be able to find the shopping cart and the checkout page easily. It should always be visible on every page. If it isn’t, you are probably losing sales. Rather than only text, you should have a visual image that is easy to recognize. Select a shopping cart icon and include the text underneath. Double-check to make sure that you can see it immediately throughout your website (it is often useful to stick this icon in your navigation bar). After all, if a customer cannot find the shopping cart, he or she will not be able to make a purchase.

Less is More

When you're shopping online, do you want to spend an inordinate amount of time reading? The answer is most likely no! Most of the time, people want to get virtually in and out, ideally leaving with the feeling that they have saved money. If you have descriptions that are too long, it can be overwhelming for your users. Instead, try to eliminate scrolling. Your customers should be able to click on a link and immediately see the product, description, and purchase options without having to scroll anywhere.

Bottom Line: Making your website simple, easy-to-use, and inviting are likely to increase your overall sales, thus increasing your bottom line.

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