Now more than ever, eCommerce seems to be ruling the retail landscape.

The digital world is a rewarding place to be, with business owners starting their digital brands and competing with larger brands in a level playing field. But it isn’t always easy to be a success online. You have to know some trade secrets to make it to the top. While large marketplaces, like Amazon and eBay, downplay merchants’ branding to maintain their homogenous image, sellers with their online stores don’t have this limitation. They have complete control over their brand positioning and customer experience. But with so much freedom, online store owners must know the factors that determine success in eCommerce.

1. Simple navigation

Online users like quick, simple and easy to access information. Therefore, a focus on effective navigation is vital. If a first-time user gets confused on your site and they do not find what they are looking for, chances are they might never return to your site.
Your site must have clear navigation and nomenclature. The display of the products and categorisation should be intuitive and focused. The data should be up to date always.

Before making your website live, conduct thorough user testing to identify navigation hiccups.

2. Quality images

Images are the first experience that buyers have with your product, so make them attractive. Your site must have good quality images so that the user can get a good idea of the product. Provide multiple pictures of the product so that users can see all the features. You may also include a photo of the product being used, which will make customers identify with the experience of using the product.

Also read: Why visuals are everything

3. Drive traffic and improve conversion rate for your site

Once your eCommerce store is ready, you need to start driving traffic to your site and convert those visitors into buyers. CRO is a process of continuously optimising specific pages (landing and product pages mainly) to lead to higher conversions on your website. It determines whether people coming to your store are driving revenue, or are they simply window shopping? Here are tips to increase conversion rate on your online store.

Also read: How to drive more traffic to your eCommerce store

4. Leverage Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

Search engine optimisation improves the quality and quantity of website traffic to a website from search engines. As the eCommerce sector grows, more and more businesses will be entering this increasingly crowded space. That means it will be more important than ever to harness SEO to stand out from the competition.

5. Mobile-first

If you aren’t building eCommerce businesses with mobile in mind, you may be irrelevant sooner than later.

People are increasingly using their mobile devices to purchase products online. Research shows that there are close to 3 billion mobile users worldwide. Smartphones have been a complete gamechanger when it comes to people accessing the internet. Having a mobile-friendly eCommerce website is crucial. Remember to use a simple and straightforward mobile-friendly design to enhance easy browsing and navigation.

6. Effective content strategy

The right content can improve the overall traffic to your eCommerce store. Content thus becomes a powerful tool to engage and retain your customers to your eCommerce store.

Customers long to be connected with brands and products. They love to feel part of an ongoing conversation. If the content on your eStore does a good job connecting, it will boost engagement and brand loyalty, thereby increasing sales. It is believed that content marketing boosts your conversion rate by nearly six times. Some of the smart content strategies include creating captivating blog posts, using the right keywords, using catchy titles to boost click-through rates, etc

Also read: Power of content: How to generate traffic to your eStore using content

7. Easy checkout

A poorly designed checkout is the prime reason for cart abandonment in eCommerce. You risk losing more than 60% of your customers if the checkout process is long and confusing.

To prevent this, make the checkout process simple, intuitive and short. Do not present additional costs at the last minute as this annoys customers. Give shipping information clearly and make sure that your site loads fast.

8. Convenient payment options

When it comes to an online business, online payment plays a crucial role in the overall success. Ensuring that you have multiple payment options available would surely satisfy your customers. Currently, buyers have access to various payment systems, such as credit cards, Google Pay, debit cards, net banking, or mobile wallets, to make purchases.

Hence, multiple payment options are vital to your eCommerce success. You must also ensure that your website is secure, and customers feel confident making transactions on your site.

9. Clear return policy

When outlining a return policy, first minimise chances of returns. Make sure that the products on the site are clearly described to the customers.

A return policy should be customer friendly. Its purpose is to make the client feel confident that they can buy the product and get a refund; they are not satisfied with it.

Write the policy in a simple and straightforward language and avoid jargon. Clarify the terms of a refund. Eg, Cash, credit or only exchange is accepted.

10. Focus on social

It’s essential to include social elements on your eCommerce site. Things like product reviews, testimonials, follow buttons and even social login options all help the conversion rate.

Many customers land on your eCommerce store via social media. Therefore, social media is the heartbeat of your business as it gives you insight into your customers' preferences. Many eCommerce businesses have grown exponentially by marketing on social media.

Also read: Why and how to add floating social media icons to your online store

Focus on these sure shot success factors to create a winning eCommerce store.

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