As the digital landscape continues to evolve at a rapid pace, so do the expectations of online customers. With the explosion and convenience of mobile commerce and omni-channel shopping experiences, purchase behaviors have shifted.
In order to keep up with consumer demand for quick and painless online shopping flows, businesses must change the ways in which they interact with customers on an individualized level to prevent a decrease in conversions.
Let’s explore three common pitfalls that negatively impact conversion rates, and overview strategies businesses can utilize to increase online conversions while forming authentic relationships with modern-day consumers.
Lengthy Registration Forms
Facing a tedious registration process can be quite daunting for customers, likely resulting in site drop-off from users wary of inputting an abundance of personal details. In fact, more than 80% of US and UK consumers have attested to abandoning a site after being bombarded with too many registration fields.
Allowing customers to register using their existing, pre-verified user accounts eliminates this barrier to entry. Users who prefer to shop and make purchases over mobile will rejoice at the simple, two-step registration process allowed by social login, as well as not having to create yet another username and password combination.
According to Gigya’s most recent Privacy & Personalization Survey, more than 65% of respondents say they use social login “often” or “always” when given the option, compared to just 35% of respondents in 2012.
Furthermore, filling out traditional registration forms no longer has to be an arduous undertaking for customers. By employing a registration flow which utilizes progressive profiling, businesses can gather customer data over time instead of burdening the user all at once with lengthy forms.
Lack of User-Generated Content
As forums and microblogging platforms have gained immense popularity, it comes as no surprise that 90% of users rely on product reviews from their peers when considering purchasing an item (Marketing Land). Customer reviews not only have an influence on short-term purchase decisions, but also on long-term buying habits.
By not providing an outlet for shoppers to view and contribute to product feedback, businesses risk missing the opportunity to foster brand advocacy. According to AdAge, 74% of millennials believe they impact the buying decisions of those around them. Additionally, without a ratings and reviews system in place, brands can lose out on conversions from referral traffic generated by review syndication on social networks.
Consider encouraging customers to share out product reviews post-purchase through a triggered message or personalized email. This will increase word-of-mouth marketing, as well as establish brand recognition.
eCommerce powerhouse Amazon, for example, has a dedicated “Customer Reviews” section on every product page. With ratings based on a star system, verified customer reviews, and reviewer levels based on purchase history and review frequency, Amazon has created an interactive way for customers to learn from one another.
Irrelevant Communications
Digital Trends reports that 73% of customers admit they’d rather purchase from a site that utilizes individual preferences to create customized experiences. Creating a personalized user experience extends far beyond site content to include email, banner advertisements, direct mail, and more.
Irrelevant messages are frustrating for customers, and can lead to all future communications being marked as spam. In fact, after receiving irrelevant information or products from a brand, 43% of consumers admit to ignoring future communications from the company. Businesses need to be sure they’re effectively leveraging customer data in order to deliver highly relevant messaging, boost clickthrough rates, and drive referral traffic back to the website.
In order to reap the benefits of customized messaging campaigns, consider implementing a customer identity management solution that integrates with leading marketing automation software to deliver content based on users’ behavioral and psychographic data. By measuring customers’ on-site actions and collecting permission-based identity data such as relationship statuses, occupations, and locations, organizations can segment users with laser-focus. This 1-to-1 relationship can extend to create relevance across multiple channels.
Online charity DonorsChoose.org sends its donors tailored messaging revolving around current projects accepting donations based on factors such as the users’ locations and previous donation histories. This effort to ensure relevance keeps donors engaged and, most importantly, helps the community.
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