A question that is so often asked and not so well understood by even experienced business people, “why do some e-commerce websites fail to produce sales?” All too often it is a host of reasons that have very little to do with the product itself.
When it is not the demand or quality of the product, what are the reasons that cause a business and e-commerce website to fail? Often, it is a combination of things that can drastically lower the chances of success for any e-commerce website and industry.
To help entrepreneurs understand how their online sales can be negatively affected, here are the top things that cause e-commerce websites to fail in producing sales.
Home page design mistakes cause websites to fail.
The home page is the most important page of any website. That does not mean that other pages are not critical such as shopping pages and landing pages. Yet, the home page is the most mission critical page of a website, especially e-commerce websites. Most visitors land on the home page and from there, they either leave the site right away or are motivated to “click” on something else. The home page has to be carefully architected to convert visitors into shoppers, and loyal fans. Home pages of e-commerce websites should be designed and created by experience professionals for best results. Successful home pages have all the right elements, in the right place, with the right colors, and incentives.
Without the right incentives e-commerce websites fail.
Online shoppers expect to get a deal. It is as simple as that. Everyone loves to get a deal, but online consumers that shop on e-commerce websites expect to get a better deal. Online retailers understand this well, which is why successful online retailers offer the proper incentives through their e-commerce websites. Those incentives vary, but often include free shipping offers, discounts, specials, bundled items, and other promotions such as giveaways, contests, and much more. The point is, e-commerce businesses need to cater to the consumer’s expectations when it comes to incentives. To produce sales, the proper deals have to be offered online. All e-commerce websites should offer some incentives to produce sales.
Complex and lengthy checkout procedures hurt online sales.
The checkout process of an e-commerce website is often dependent on the software application used for the shopping pages (the e-commerce portion of a website). Entrepreneurs and online retailers have many options, when it comes to what technology will power their shopping pages. For best results, the checkout process should be as short as possible and easy. Complex checkouts loose potential customers quickly. The shopping cart abandonment rate is already at average around 60% for most e-commerce websites (people starting the checkout and cancel the process without completing the sale). Successful e-commerce websites have simple and short checkouts. They also do not force the shopper to register before they buy something.
Simply not enough website traffic to produce sales.
Very often the reason for a website not to produce sales is straightforward. There is simply not enough website traffic to produce sales. Most e-commerce websites convert visitors into shoppers between 2-5% across most industries. Now, add the bounce rate of a website (how many people land on the home page and jump out without any action taken), shopping cart abandonment rate, and so on. For an e-commerce website to generate sales, lots of website traffic has to be produced. Not just any traffic, but quality traffic (relevant traffic to what is being sold). To generate site traffic, online retailers use marketing services and methods such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media Marketing (SMM), Content Marketing, and Paid Advertising.
Conversion Optimization is the service used to improve an existing website. Professionals through the service called Conversion Optimization can analyze e-commerce websites that are failing and not producing sales. Then, advice and suggestions are made for changes that will improve the conversion rate and online sales of a website.
For best chances at success, e-commerce websites should be designed and developed by professionals who understand the importance of conversion and generating profit. Professional digital agencies with plenty of experience and skilled staff should be able to produce results oriented e-commerce websites for any industry.
