How To Improve Mobile E-Commerce Conversions In 2017 http://ift.tt/2yp9sDz If you build or manage e-commerce stores, you’re probably aware that mobile internet use is increasing at a rapid rate. But data clearly shows a higher conversion rate among "traditional" (aka desktop) web users — more than triple that of smartphone browsers. So, that begs the question: How do we improve the average e-commerce conversion rates for smartphones? Barriers And Hurdles For Smartphones Before we get to how we improve mobile conversions, let’s talk about some of the issues that exist today. Despite constant advancement of the technology, many of the following are limitations of the mobile platform that have to be worked around:
My point is not to knock smart phone manufacturers; they’re developing products that have literally revolutionized how modern society works. That being said, there seems to be a pretty big lack of standardization. This causes a huge problem for e-commerce website developers to work around. Improve UX, Improve Conversion Rates The solution is less about UI hacks and tricks than it is about addressing the root causes that impede conversions. How do store owners and store creators make improvements which in turn improve conversion rates? 1. Prioritize website performance above all else.The biggest hindrance for mobile conversions is website performance. Slow loading, laggy mobile experiences kill the user’s drive to engage with the website. Ensuring website assets are as compressed as possible should be a given. Covering obvious things like using tools to shrink images down can immediately create an uptick in conversions. Also ensuring CSS/Javascript/HTML are compressed where necessary is a big deal. What often goes overlooked, however, are the amount of requests a website must make in order to fully render the page. To explain it simply, each request requires the session to loop, drawing on the server and the ISP. Each loop takes time, that time can add up quickly. This problem is often more difficult to fix, as all on-page assets such as images, video, scripts and style sheets create these loops. It’s easy for e-commerce websites to get out of control with these types of assets; after all, your average e-commerce website usually requires many third party tools (shipping, fulfillment, marketing etc.) to run smoothly. It’s also common that over time, this issue becomes exaggerated as things get tacked onto the platform. Careful design and development planning can help combat these issues by prioritizing doing more with less from the get-go. Regular audits of the website's performance should be made over time to ensure that these things are in line and the website is as lean as possible. 2. Optimize your website for browsing.Most mobile users will visit your website with a passive mindset for purchasing. They may be on the move and not have the time to invest in making a purchase within that moment, but they’re interested in what you have to offer. Most mobile websites default to a single-column view of products. This optimizes the size of the product's thumbnail photo, but diminishes the ability to quickly browse through various products. We’ve found that displaying products in two columns rather than one actually increases average session durations overall for our customers. Also, keeping within the mindset of a passive customer, the ability for them to save products and carts easily and effectively on mobile is important. They might find a few things they like on their initial pass through but don’t have the time or availability to make the purchase on the spot. A persistent cart, and better yet an e-mail notification for cart abandonment, can go a long way for catching this customer when they do have the availability to make their purchase. 3. Be diligent with providing clear tactile response.“Tactile response” is a fancy way of saying every action has a reaction. In e-commerce, tactile response ensures that users are being rewarded for their actions on the website. It also has proven to improve order accuracy, in my experience. Tactile response is especially important when it comes to interacting with the checkout process. If someone adds something to their cart, they need an obvious visual cue to ensure that a product has been added successfully. If someone completes form fields, there should be visual indicators that those fields are valid. Lastly, if someone submits their order, there should be clear indication that order has been received. This approach is important for all modes of shopping (traditional, tablet and mobile) but we find it even more important for mobile conversions where you're dealing with an ecosystem that’s limited by poor connectivity. Sometimes an action might fail due to network connection dropping momentarily. Strong tactile cues make it clear for the user when that happens and if they should try to submit their order again. 4. Consider updating your store's platform.In the last 10 years many improvements have been made to improve how e-commerce platforms perform. Modern templating systems provide structural advantages to online stores and improve their benchmarks. If your store was built more than five years ago, it’s most likely worthwhile to consider a re-build. A cleanly built website on a modern platform will most likely have dramatic performance improvements over a legacy system. Since page speed is such a huge factor in buying decisions, this alone could create a solid increase in conversion rates for your store. Business via Forbes - Entrepreneurs http://ift.tt/dTEDZf September 20, 2017 at 08:26AM
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