Business First Family Business, Accounting, Finance, Investing, Marketing And Management
Show me an online store that’s successful and I’ll show you ten others with low sales revenue. Owning an online business looks good on paper but the sheer amount of work that goes into making a store successful can be overwhelming.
Some entrepreneurs sign up for online courses to learn a few crucial skills. Others outsource the tasks they can’t handle themselves. But many ultimately want to just give up.
If the last three sentences are you and you’re struggling to drive up sales, here are three things you may be doing wrong and how you can fix it.
1. Vague Product Descriptions And Blurry Photos
Customers form a first impression of your store within the first milliseconds of viewing your online business. Of course, they expect a personalized ecommerce website experience. So, if the product photos are blurry? The customer exits your website. If the font size in the description is too small? The customer exits your website. What if your typeface is too extended and contrasts with the imagery …?
You guessed it: the customer exits your website.
Most sellers believe that once a buyer clicks on their ad, they’ve made a sale. But a sale is only complete when payment is received. And for that to happen, 30.8% of customers research the product.
Going to your store’s website. Looking at your blurry pictures. Reading your descriptions. Which give no indication of size – for appliances or clothes. Don’t say which measuring chart you use – US, UK, or China – for stores that ship globally. And to cap it all off – your descriptions talk about what the product is and what it does. There’s no mention of what it can do for me, your customer.
Suggested Solution:
The first step to taking a good photo is having a good camera. But you don’t have to buy a Nikon D780 with on-sensor autofocus, cutting-edge live view, and optical viewfinder – your iPhone will do.
Use the gridlines to balance your shot and tap the screen where you want the camera to focus. Include a lot of empty space in your photo so your product stands out more. And if you’re still having trouble taking great shots, sign up for a free class.
Selling benefits in your product descriptions rather than features makes product descriptions more effective. Check out top selling stores and study the sales pitch on their website. But if you’re stretched on time and want results right away – either think like a copywriter or hire a good one.
2. High Prices And No Discount Sales
Other than convenience, the other reason customers choose to buy from online stores is low prices. A whopping 69% of customers leave a site because of high prices. You customers don’t understand why. After all, online storefronts have low overheads – no utility bills or rent for a physical store to pay – so profit margins are higher.
E-commerce stores can afford to charge lower prices and run discount sales. If you’re charging a higher (or the same) price as a physical store. Customers only have convenience as an incentive to buy from you. And two things happen- they save items to buy later or look for vendors with lower prices. Either way, you won’t be making a sale right away.
Suggested Solution:
First off- don’t lower your prices just yet. Research your competitors and how much they charge for the same products. Do your prices compare favorably? If not, adjust them accordingly.
But if you still want to stick to your prices, you’ll need to give your customers other reasons to choose you. Like, a 30-day return policy. Or free global shipping. Or even a 30% discount for buying more than 4 items. Remember to make the incentives obvious to your customers. Highlight “Free Shipping”. Or put an implicit link on your sales page. Something that tells customers, “Hey! I’m expensive but I also have …”
3. They Do Not Trust You
One of the major reasons consumers may not be buying from you is simply because they do not trust you. Before customers commit to a purchase, a certain level of trust is required. This is especially the case when making making large purchases on high-ticket items. Failure to establish trust with your customers from the very beginning can greatly impact their willingness to buy. While building customers trust is not always quick, easy, or immediate, a strong sense of trust is essential to growing your business.
Suggested Solution:
One major strategy is to offer customers warranties or buy-back programs. This is an essential way to earn consumer trust naturally. This proves to your customers that you are highly confident in your product quality and are willing to bet that they will like it. These incentives create a strong first impression for your brand. Simultaneously, they provide a sense of longevity and stability for your small business. Also, think about how you package your product. Remember that what you ship your product in can help build your brand while safeguarding the goods until they reach your customer’s location.
