How To Increase The Conversion Rate In E-commerce

Increase the conversion rate on an online store

The e-commerce conversion rate is defined as the ratio of the number of transactions to the number of sessions, expressed as a percentage.

For example, a ratio of one transaction for ten sessions would be expressed as an e-commerce conversion rate of 10%.

Across industries, the average landing page conversion rate was 2.35% , but the top 25% convert at 5.31% or more. The ideal would be to rank in the top 10%, i.e. landing pages with a conversion rate of 11.45% or more.

There is nothing more frustrating for a new online merchant than a website that generates traffic without generating a purchase. But then how to increase the conversion rate of an e-commerce site? Ergonomics, online payment, elements of reinsurance or content marketing, many factors influence this famous conversion rate. Discover our practical advice to optimize your online store so that it makes Internet users want to fill their shopping cart and increase sales on your e-commerce site .

But by the way, what is the conversion rate?

The conversion rate or conversion rate is simply the percentage of visitors who will take action after visiting a website. Your goal: to turn an Internet user who surfs your online store into a buyer. Thus, the conversion rate on an e-commerce site is measured by the percentage of customers who have made a purchase, compared to the total number of visitors.

The conversion rate is calculated like this: number of purchases / by the number of clicks = the % of the conversion rate.

You should know that in France, the average conversion rate is 3%.

Why do you need to increase your conversion rate?

While e-commerce SEO errors are to be avoided, the conversion rate is not directly linked to website traffic. Many e-commerce beginners believe that the more traffic and visitors they have, the more revenue they will generate. But the increase in visits is not necessarily proportional to the number of sales made.

Before working on increasing traffic to an online store , it is essential to think about all the factors that will increase the conversion rate. It can be the ergonomics of the site, the elements of reinsurance or even the technology of online payment.

Your objective is therefore the following: to be able to capture customers, keep them on your site and make a sale. To do this, you must be able to identify the obstacles and levers that influence the transformation and conversion of visitors to your e-commerce site.

Simply put, the more secure your site looks and makes a good impression on visitors, the more likely you are to sell.

8 levers to increase the conversion rate

1. Use reassurance elements to incentivize buying

When starting out in e-commerce , one of the main objectives when designing your site is to seek to reassure future buyers. Even when notoriety is not yet available, the reassurance elements on an e-commerce site can strengthen the confidence of visitors with the objective of triggering a sale.

Update your contact info

All of your contact information should be fully visible and up-to-date . Visitors to your e-commerce store should be able to easily find the customer service phone number and email address, the headquarters mailing address, and a contact form.

Being able to contact customer service to obtain product information or track an order is essential in an online store. Otherwise, you must offer at least an efficient and responsive chat service.

Create an optimized “About” page

It is essential to write your “About” page carefully . You must present the history and activities of your company. This page must be completed with the General Conditions of Sale and the legal notices.

You can hire a storyteller to help you write this about page. This will certainly allow you to capture the attention of visitors and attract their sympathy or at least their interest.

Update your site and its content regularly

Your e-commerce site must be alive , it must evolve over time and offer a lot of content and news. A site that moves is a site that reassures potential customers, don't forget that. You can highlight certain products on your home page according to the seasons, launch promotional campaigns, communicate about a new collection, etc.

Write a Frequently Asked Questions or FAQ

The FAQ page allows visitors to your e-commerce site to easily find answers to the most frequently asked questions, without having to contact customer service.

This FAQ section is of course evolving and will be updated over time, based on questions and requests made to customer service.

The advantage of the FAQ is that it relieves your customer service of the most common calls and that it allows the Internet user to immediately find the answer to his question, without having to leave the website, which could put an end to to the online ordering process.

Clearly display reinsurance pictograms

Don't forget to think about the use of pictograms to reassure your customers. You can display them for:

• Guaranteed delivery
• Return of goods
• Customer service
• Reimbursement
• Secure payment
• Product quality

Be active on social networks

An active presence on social networks also helps to reassure customers of the seriousness of your online store. In addition, they allow the creation of new communication channels useful to after-sales service. So remember to create your Facebook Business page and your Twitter account. Depending on your industry, an active presence on Instagram can help capture the interest of potential buyers.

2. Use content marketing to drive conversion

Using content marketing in e-commerce content marketing is part of an inbound strategy. Its goal is to attract and convert new prospects through the creation and promotion of online content.

The most classic formats for e-commerce sites are blog articles or reviews.

But today there are many other media or formats suitable for content marketing:

• Practical Guide
• How to and tutorial
• Infographics
• Podcast
• Webinar
• Livestream
• Contest game

3. Reduce the loading speed of the e-commerce site

Did you know: the loading speed of a website has a direct influence on the conversion rate and its natural referencing . According to a Google study published in 2018 , 53% of users leave a web page if it has not loaded in less than 3 seconds. And in more than 75% of cases, people who left your e-commerce site for this reason will never come back to you. As you can see, the loading time of an online store and the conversion rate are therefore closely linked.

4. Work on the design and ergonomics of your online store

The design of your online store is an essential element to take into account to improve its conversion rate. Indeed, it has an influence on the purchase decision in nearly 90% of cases.

Beyond the general ergonomics of your online store, remember to present attractive and quality product visuals. Indeed, the potential customer decides in just a few seconds and he will always be more tempted to buy if he discovers beautiful product photos. Thus, offering several visuals taken from different angles can increase your sales by more than 50%. Avoid blurry photos!

Here are some other ways to improve the ergonomics of your e-commerce site:

• Set up clearly identifiable calls to action that encourage you to click;
• Display a breadcrumb trail and/or a progress gauge so that the customer can follow the different stages of purchase;
• Propose clear validation steps and a payment procedure;
• Display a “back” or “return” button to help the customer modify their order more easily.

5. Promote customer reviews and product ratings for your online reputation

Setting up a rating of the products sold on your site and the possibility of leaving a comment after purchase are among the best practices to implement on an e-commerce site. In fact, nearly 9 out of 10 customers consult reviews and ratings before making a purchase ( IFOP study ).

You can also highlight some customer comments or offer your best customers to talk about their experience with your products or services on video.

See the impact of customer reviews on online reputation.

Don't Forget Certified Reviews

To further reassure visitors to your e-commerce store , you can also install a certified review module. Several web solutions such as Trustpilot or Verified Reviews allow you to set up this option.

6. Reduce cart abandonment

Cart abandonment has a direct impact on the conversion rate of an e-commerce site.

Different factors can explain why a customer abandons his purchase process at the time of the basket validation stage:

• Too high additional costs (including delivery) in 53% of cases
• The obligation to create an account in 31% of cases
• A purchase process that is too long in 23% of cases
• A site that does not inspire confidence when paying in 17% of cases
• Delivery time too long in 16% of cases
• A bug or a technical problem in 15% of cases

Your mission as an e-merchant is to reduce shopping cart abandonment.

A word of advice, when launching your online store, carry out test orders to check that everything is working correctly. In the event of errors or technical problems, remedy the problem quickly.

7. Optimize online payment and payment solutions

To reduce shopping cart abandonment and increase the conversion rate, it is therefore essential to optimize the payment stage. Start by clearly displaying the different stages of online payment. Then, remember to visibly display the logos of the means of payment and the “secure payment” pictogram to reassure your customers even more.

Do not forget to offer several e-commerce payment solutions . On the internet, there is not only payment by credit card. Today, more and more Internet users use PayPal and will not buy on your site if the option is not offered.

8. Pay attention to costs and delivery times.

Finally, delivery is the last link in the purchasing chain . This step is decisive and directly influences the conversion rate of an online store. Indeed, if the delivery costs seem too high, the buyer will abandon his basket and will seek from the competition. Similarly, if you are unable to deliver your customer within a reasonable time (less than a week), the latter will be tempted to shop elsewhere.

Think of practical delivery solutions like Mondial Relay or home delivery.

BONUS: don't forget the promo codes!

To promote visits and conversion of your customers , here is a bonus technique to implement: the promotional code. It is a formidable weapon to convert! Admittedly, you will have to cut back a little on your margin, but in return you will garner higher sales volumes.

And by giving this promotional code a limited duration, you will create a sense of urgency and exclusivity among your future customers. And we know that limited offers tend to encourage purchases. So it's up to you to find the right compromise between reduction, profitability and sales volume.

You now know what the conversion rate is and especially how to increase it . By applying our various tips and methods to your online store, you will reassure visitors and encourage them to buy.

For best results, remember to implement all the techniques we have presented in this article. You will see, the conversion rate of your online store should quickly increase.