Did you know that U.S. ecommerce sales reached $230 billion in 2013, according to Forrester research? That represents a 13% growth since the previous year. It is increasingly clear that more consumers are turning to the internet to do their shopping, and companies that do not try and cater to this new trend are going to be losing out.
Are you looking for better ecommerce solutions for your website? Now is the time to change what you’re doing. The more time that passes, the harder it will be to catch up to other websites who have already made the necessary changes and are honing in on what it takes to keep consumers on their site.
Here are three things every company should know about the current ecommerce market, and how they can orient their website to account for this new avenue of traffic and investment.
1. Shopping Funnel Optimization
According to Search Engine Journal, one way you can prepare your website for ecommerce is by optimizing your conversion funnel. They recommend experimenting with alterations to your check-out process to see if that speeds the conversion rate. If you have unnecessary steps, like asking them to add an email address, removing these steps might increase the percentage of visitors who complete a sale. A goal funnel setup in Google analytics can help you figure out which step in your funnel has the highest abandonment rate — analyzing this information can help you figure out what to do next.
2. Small Business Management Software
Why do you need better small business management software? Many companies fail to improve their conversion rates because they have a scattered approach to ecommerce web development. Management software can help you take back to reins to your online campaign.
3. A Better Website Designer
Did you know that website performance frequently affects shopping behavior? About 80% of customers who were dissatisfied with website performance say that are less likely to buy from the same website again, and if a site takes an extra second to load, customer satisfaction decreases by 15%. Because great website design is tied with the profits your site is able to generate, it makes sense to hire ecommerce designers to help you out. Are you using a CMS like WordPress? There are many experienced WordPress developers out there who can help you build your site.
Is your site prepared for ecommerce? Let us know in the comments. Helpful research also found here.
