In this guide, you will find 7 practical tips for optimizing your online store’s conversion using the CRO method.
What is Customer-Centric Online Store Conversion Optimization?
Conversion optimization (CRO) is a practical approach to increase the percentage of users who complete a targeted action on a site. Targeted actions can be: buying a product, subscribing to a service, clicking a link, etc. The disadvantage of this definition is that it focuses on the numbers and distracts from the users behind those metrics.
Customer-centric conversion optimization means that you focus on what stimulates, stops, and motivates customers. You take care of the user experience and the value to the user, and through this, you increase the conversion rate. So, there are a number of factors that precede a conversion:
● Incentives that bring users to the site;
● Obstacles that stop or make them go away;
● Motives that motivate them to perform targeted actions.
Working on improving conversions by web testing services, it is worth bearing in mind that not all problems can be expressed in numbers or supported by figures, and there is not always an unambiguous solution. Sometimes, an obvious error is the cause of 80% of failures, and fixing the problem can save the business.
But it also happens that the site, in the opinion of the business, solves all the problems, but sales are negligible. And that’s where you need to dig deeper to understand what’s wrong and focus on users. This is what CRO really should be focused on.
What should be the Average Conversion Rate of an Online Sore?
Depending on sources, the conversion rate for e-commerce ranges from 1% to 4%. Here, for example, according to data from the ADI 2020 report, the average online store conversion rate is 3%. But when focusing on the average CR, there are a number of factors you should consider:
● CR can depend on different targeted actions (ad clicks, checkout completion, newsletter signups, etc.);
● Each site, page, product, and consumer are unique and has its own characteristics;
● The average CR rate will vary greatly from niche to niche. For example, for a hypermarket, a 1.1% ratio is very good, but for food delivery, a 15% ratio is extremely low;
● Most companies do not share actual conversion data, which affects the overall statistics.
7 Practical Tips for Optimizing Online Store Conversion
Tip #1:
In reality, an effective methodology is not about changing some element on the page but a well-defined and systematic approach to CRO. It’s based on a simple but correct idea: develop an empathic understanding of your users.
Tip #2:
Pay attention to what the market really needs.
Not what you want to offer it.
Not what you think it needs.
Not what your boss wants to market.
Not what your manager says to offer.
But what the market really needs.
Tip #3:
The main mistake that everyone makes sooner or later is that while designing the interface, at some point you forget that you are doing it for another person who will interact with the site. Not a robot, but a real person.
A one-time conversion isn’t always a win in the long run. Make sure you continue to communicate with your customers in the same way you would in real life. Just like in a non-online environment, it all depends on how you relate to those around you, and they will relate to you the same way.
Tip #4:
Conduct a survey or research. From my own experience, I can tell you that anyone trying to optimize conversion rates is often overconfident and thinks they know exactly what their audience is and objectively evaluate their offering. We rely too much on analytics data, ignoring the people behind the numbers. A productive conversation with users and loyal customers will always be the fastest route to audience insights and, unfortunately, the most often ignored.
Tip #5:
We saw the highest peaks in conversions when we emphasized the value of the offer to the user. For example, by emphasizing free delivery, the information about which was written in too small a font. Or highlighting certain product features that were hard to find, etc. The best way to optimize conversions is to learn how to identify what the value of your offer is to the user.
Tip #6:
I would recommend starting with a specific area and scaling up from there. Identify the areas where CRO is best initiated. Take into account the general principles of the PIE approach:
● Potential – how much improvement it can give;
● Importance – how important this page is;
● Ease – how easy it is to test and implement changes.
Tip #7:
The more you test, the more information you gather about what works and what doesn’t. Keep only the effective options, remove the rest. Repeat this cycle over and over again.
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