8 Ecommerce Features to Include on Your Website for a Seamless Shopping Experience
No matter how beautiful your online store looks, or how great your products are, customers will leave if the shopping experience feels like a chore. While you can’t account for every possible way people might want to shop on your site, you can make sure that the most common scenarios are easy to execute, and that each step of the process is simple and intuitive. Here are eight features you should include on your website in order to make it as easy as possible for visitors to buy from you without ever needing to pick up the phone or go into a physical store.
8 Ecommerce Features to Include on Your Website for a Seamless Shopping Experience
1) Accept PayPal and Stripe
What will really stand out to your customers and help them engage with your site? Well, take a look at the features that you have currently enabled. You’ll see that in this list of eight eCommerce features, there are some things like accepting PayPal and Stripe payments that are pretty universally expected by eCommerce shoppers. If these aren’t already listed under Your Website in Settings, it’s easy enough to make these changes.
All you need to do is click the Payment Methods tab, then click New Payment Method and select which payment service you want to offer. For example, if your business only accepts credit cards as a form of payment, then selecting Stripe would be perfect. Now when someone is ready to purchase something from your store they can enter their credit card information right through the checkout process!
2) Offer Free Returns
Online shopping has become increasingly popular in recent years. Consumers are looking for convenience and time-saving, so it’s important to make the experience of buying something online as easy as possible. One way you can do this is by offering free returns, without any additional costs or hassle. If you need eCommerce web design advice or web development services, contact us today! We’re a top web design company that offers an outstanding customer service experience.
3) Showcase Customer Reviews
Customer reviews are hugely important to the success of any e-commerce site, as they offer real-time feedback from customers that can be used as testimonials. Asking customers to write reviews also helps build trust with future customers, who may not have yet made their purchase decision but are considering doing so after reading the review.
If you include social media buttons or links in your customer reviews, you’ll also be able to capture more traffic and increase engagement. Include Coupons: Customers will want to know what deals they’re getting before purchasing an item online and whether there are discounts available. Incorporating promotional offers into your store is essential if you want to stay competitive in today’s market.
4) Order Tracking
Order tracking is one of the most important features your website can offer. It lets your customers know that their orders are still in process, and when they’ll be completed and shipped. It’s great to have something like this, especially because it can alleviate customer concerns about an order that’s been out of stock or delayed.
You should also consider adding estimated shipping dates to your products so you don’t accidentally leave someone waiting for days. Customer Service: Providing a quality customer service experience is always good, even if it doesn’t lead to additional sales.
Customers will appreciate knowing they can get in touch with you any time to ask questions or request refunds, exchanges, etc. There are many ways to do this—an email address at the bottom of each page, contact us button on every page, phone number listed in your footer—so find what works best for your site.
5) Easy Checkout Processes
As we all know, online shopping has been getting more and more popular in recent years. To make the most of this trend, it’s important that your ecommerce store offers fast and easy checkout processes. The following are five tips for building a website with an easy checkout process:
– Offer multiple ways to pay so shoppers don’t have to keep their credit card information stored with you indefinitely.
– Offer mobile apps that allow customers to check out from their phone or tablet device.
Make it easier for customers to create an account by providing simple sign-up procedures and not requiring too much personal information. If possible, offer a guest checkout option which is less likely to require any personal data at all.
6) Secure Payment Options
Oftentimes, security is the first thing consumers think about when shopping online. Not only does it offer peace-of-mind and safeguards against fraudulent activity, but it also gives you the opportunity to offer multiple payment options so that all your customers can shop with confidence.
Your two most popular choices will likely be Paypal and Stripe. These services are user-friendly and make it easy for customers to complete their purchases without having to leave your site.
However, if you don’t want any credit card data stored on your site or in your system (which is understandable), then opt for an ewallet service like Skrill or PayPal’s Bill Me Later. But whichever option you choose, make sure it has fraud protection!
7) Provide Live Chat Support
A lot of people find shopping online very convenient and preferable to going out and being able to browse at their own leisure without pressure. A key component in this experience is customer service. Many customers are likely to put off purchasing an item if they can’t find what they’re looking for or get questions answered while shopping.
Having the option of live chat ensures that there’s always someone available should something come up. The live chat feature allows you to provide quick responses to customer inquiries, as well as offer suggestions about products, answers about shipping times, returns policies, and anything else you might need. It also saves you time from having to wait for phone calls which inevitably get disconnected when it rings during peak hours or trying to call back later only to be told they left work early so your call couldn’t be taken.
8) Show Promo Codes
Promo codes can be used as part of an in-store promotion or a time-sensitive discount, such as Labor Day. The reason we’ve included promo codes is because it’s about giving people discounts! If you’re in retail, coupons and promos are your best friend when it comes to converting website visitors into customers.
They’re often the driving force behind sales and are most effective when executed at just the right time. For example, if you’re promoting this weekend’s sale then offer coupon codes that will expire Sunday night at midnight. One downside to including promotional codes is that they cannot be combined with other offers (such as free shipping).
