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Archive for the ‘E-commerce’ Category

One of the surest ways to increase website conversions is by optimizing website forms. Whether website visitors purchase through a shopping cart, download white papers, or submit an email address, each of these actions requires a customer to fill out a form. Here are 18 little known tips for optimizing website forms.

Minimize the number of fields: Conversion rates decrease with each additional form field added. For a white paper or newsletter sign up, a first name and email address are all that is necessary. For e-commerce sites, company information should be optional, not mandatory.

Clear the clear button: A ‘Clear’ button next to a submit button makes it easy for people to accidentally delete what they’ve entered. Once annoyed by this unnecessary feature, submission rates decrease by over 30%.

Clearly define required fields: Label all required fields with an asterisk, bold lettering or similar label. Submission rates are highest when people don’t have to return to complete a form. Describe the form field next to the field, instead of using text within the field. Text within the field can save space, but if a customer forgets what the field is for it can be confusing.

Use persuasive Call to Action buttons: The word “Submit” is weak and unoriginal. Use words which are specific and action oriented on form buttons. For a newsletter signup, the wording could be, “Send me the free newsletter!”

Avoid silly password requirements: Requiring passwords to be formatted in a specific manner (minimum and maximum number of characters, numbers, etc.) might help improve security. The downside is it discourages repeat visits since visitors need to remember an unfamiliar password.

Keep it simple, Simon: It’s easy to design creative text boxes, but creativity doesn’t encourage people to take action. Keeping form fields simple ensures visitors understand a form field’s purpose and they won’t confuse the form with design elements.

Show field formatting examples: Some fields should have notes showing how to format them, depending on database requirements. For example, phone numbers could be formatted with or without area code parenthesis; dashes between the prefix and last four numbers, etc. Keeping these formatting requirements to a minimum makes it simple for visitors and encourages action.

Build forms for your target market: Forms which require an address will generally be different for different countries. If your target market is international, ensure address form fields apply to people from any country, not just your home country.

Can the captchas: Captchas are great for blocking spam, but they also block conversions. Losing conversions to prevent spam is seldom a good tradeoff. If you insist on a captcha, make sure it’s easy to read.

Allow easy navigation, especially forward and backward: Visitors seldom maneuver through websites the way webmasters intended. The back, forward, and refresh buttons are all commonly used. This could cause error messages for your website visitors such as “This page has expired”. Test the forward and backward flow of all multiple page forms to ensure maximum conversions.

Use Point of Action references: Visitors may get confused by the information needed in a particular field. Including a small information note within a popup link helps clarify requirements. A common Point of Action reference is the explanation of the three-digit CVC or CVV code found on the back of credit cards.

Logical tab sequencing: When visitors hit tab, make sure the cursor goes to the next field, instead of somewhere else on the page. Make sure forms tabs flow in a logical sequence to prevent visitors from accidentally skipping fields.

Cancel the cancel button: For long or multi-part forms such as checkouts, don’t give visitors the option to cancel any decision. Doing so negates the positive, action-oriented elements of the page. With conversion rates on many e-commerce sites less than 5%, it makes no sense to give a visitor any reason to stop making a purchase.

Indicate the number of steps: Forms which span multiple pages should include prominently displayed progress indicators. Letting visitors know where they are in the process increases conversions and reduces shopping cart abandonment. These are commonly seen during checkout and can be defined as “Page 1 of 3” or “Shipping Info > Payment Info > Receipt Confirmation.”

Clearly define error messages: When customers enter invalid data, make sure the error messages are clear, specific and prominently placed. If a visitor enters an invalid email address, an error message stating “Please enter a valid email address” is far more effective than “All form fields are required.” A best practice is to return them to the field with the incorrect data and display the error message next to it.

Remember me feature: Allow customers to choose a “Remember me” option when filling out forms. The cookie used to fill in their login information will save them time on subsequent visits. When site visitors don’t need to remember passwords, the odds of them returning increase significantly.

Show them where to go: When a visitor lands on a page containing a form, automatically send the cursor to the first required field. This prevents users from having to click into the field in order to start typing.

Logical list order: For drop down lists or radio button lists, order them in a logical way, listing items higher if they are selected more often. For example, if 95% of your customers are from the USA, show USA as your first option instead of listing countries alphabetically.

2 seconds isn’t a lot of time. If you run an e-commerce website and your web pages don’t load in 2 seconds or less, you will lose 40% of shoppers (survey conducted by Forrester Consulting).

The key findings of this survey included:

* 47% of shoppers expect to wait no more than 2 seconds for a page to load. 52% said fast load speeds are important to site loyalty.

* 88% of shoppers would return to an e-commerce website if it’s easy to use, especially the registration, log in and checkout procedures. This is over a 35% increase since the last similar survey in 2006.

* 74% of shoppers demand online security. They need to be confident the private information they enter is secure. This is a 19.4% increase from the 2006 survey.

The Holiday Shopping Season Is Coming

For e-commerce websites, it’s crunch time right now. September sees an uptick in sales and even more so in October. By November it’s in full swing and everybody knows what December is like.

A slow loading website will cost you in many ways:

* 79% of online shoppers are likely to stop buying from a site if they experience a dissatisfying visit.

* 44% of e-commerce shoppers will tell friends and family about their experience. With hundreds of millions of people on Facebook and Twitter, it can be all but impossible to repair a damaged reputation.

* You’ll lose your most affluent customers. Those who spent over $1500 per year shopping online were 41.8% more likely to leave a slow loading website, compared to those who spent $150 or less per year.

Website and Shopping Cart Abandonment

The survey also asked for the reasons why shoppers left a website prior to completing a purchase or why they abandoned the shopping cart. In order, the reasons were:

1. Product price and/or shipping costs were too high.
2. Shipping and handling problems (costs too much or was unclear).
3. User did not want to register with website.
4. Website was frustrating or confusing to use.
5. Website was slow or took too long to load.
6. Website asked for too much information.
7. Checkout process was too long or confusing.
8. Technical problem – website crashed or froze.

Each additional problem increases site and cart abandonment rates. Multiple problems affecting sites generally led to a closing of the website business. The solutions to most of these problems are fairly simple.

Fixing The Problem

* The use of a speed testing tool is essential. Gomez.com offers a free instant test.

* During checkout, reduce the number of required form fields to a minimum. Asking for company name, work phone number or anything not essential to the checkout process is self-defeating. Keep it simple works best here.

*Do not require registration to complete an online sale. Instead, give incentives to register such as free shipping, coupons or inclusion on a waiting list for items in short supply.

* Clearly state the number of steps in the checkout process. Don’t let users guess how many steps it takes. If your checkout has four pages, mark them page 1 of 4, page 2 of 4, etc. The reduction of confusion increases sales.

For a free evaluation of your e-commerce site, contact Luke Brown Marketing toll free at (877) 877-1507.