Imagine walking into a busy, high traffic grocery store. Despite the large
number of customers in the store, you notice abandoned shopping carts strewn
about the aisles and checkout lanes. For many online businesses, this example
illustrates perfectly the predicament many online retailers find themselves in.
Why? For one, I believe many online retailers rarely actually test their own
checkouts from the user's perspective. If they had, they would have identified
stumbling blocks. Below I've compiled a fairly comprehensive list of ideas on
improving the checkout process.
Eliminate pages, eliminate scrolling: Many usability experts decry the
benefits of shortening the checkout to as few pages as possible. While in theory
this works, sometimes the real world provides other factors that must be
considered. For example, suppose you combine your whole checkout into 1 page.
Sounds great, unless the page is a mile tall and requires excessive vertical
scrolling. In my opinion, the basic rule of thumb should be to condense the
checkout into as few pages as possible requiring little to no vertical
scrolling.
Hide the Navigation: Hide both your top and side navigation once the customer
has initiated the checkout in order to prevent distractions. At this point, your
goal should be to finalize the order as soon as possible before the visitor
loses interest.
Hacker Safe Logos: Services from HackerSafe or Control Scan can be a great
way to boost confidence during checkout. For more info on Hacker Safe, check
this post.
Secure Certificate Logos: Most likely, your Payment Gateway and Secure
Certificate provider offer a clickable security logo that you can install in
your checkout pages. This provides an external way of validating the
authenticity of your site.
Progress Indicator Bar: Always show shoppers where they are in the process.
Everyone likes to know there is light at the end of the tunnel.
Prominent 1-800 Number: If you offer a live help line, make sure the number
is highly visible everywhere in the checkout screens.
Live Chat: For those not wanting to call a 1-800 and wait on hold, Live chat
is an excellent customer service feature. I've found it to be very effective for
businesses with high value items such as jewelry.
No Default Credit Card Type: Typically, before or after you enter your credit
card you are asked to select what type of card it is. DO NOT default this option
to one of credit card types as many people will not notice it. I can't tell you
how many times I've neglected to change the default option, and tried to use a
MasterCard with the Visa option selected. Customers then become confused when
they received an error telling them their credit card it invalid.
Auto-Detect Credit Card Type: Many card processors, including Authorize.net
don't even require you to have a credit card type drop down box since the first
4 numbers of the card determine that. Paypal does a nice job of automatically
detecting and showing the credit card type with AJAX.
Don't Up-Sell or Cross-Sell: Resist the temptation to up sell or cross sell
during checkout. Remember, this is not like a supermarket checkout aisle. Users
get distracted and are free to abandon their shopping carts at any time for any
reason.
Gift Receipt / Gift Wrap Option: Customers have begun to expect this,
especially during the holidays. No one wants to send a gift with an invoice
showing what they paid. At the very least, offer a gift receipt with the prices
not showing. Even better, include an option for a gift message.
User Friendly Credit Card Errors: I rarely have seen this done, yet it can
make worlds of a difference. In the complex world of online credit card
processing, it's crucial to simplify any potential problems for the end user. If
their credit card is declined due to an address mismatch, give them a list of
possible solutions. For example, maybe they have moved recently and the
processor or bank still has the old address on file? Or maybe they don't know
where to find the 3 digit security code on the back etsy bijoux of the card.
Don't Require Phone or Email: Though most e-tailors would like to have this
information, you must ask yourself if it is important enough to risk losing the
sale. Many privacy sensitive customers don't like to give out this information.
Email List Opt-Out: Validate Email Address: Always allow people to opt-out.
Though technically this is not required since they are making a purchase, it is
a best practice required by most ISPs in order to be considered for white
listing.
Copy Billing Info to Shipping Info: Most sites have this feature, but I
thought it was worth mentioning. Nothing is worse than having to type the same
information twice for the billing and shipping.
Don't Require Login: Again, certain people will prefer not to create an
account, so don't risk losing the sale over this. Provide a "checkout without
account" option.
Prominent "First time signup" Link: If you're like most businesses, you
probably get a significant amount of online business from first time shoppers.
For this reason, there should always be a prominent "first time signup" link in
the checkout when you ask someone to sign in.
Offer Paypal: While I have doubts about certain online payment methods such
as Google Checkout and Bill Me Later, I strongly believe adding Paypal will help
conversion, especially for international customers or those without credit
cards.
Offer E-Check Payments: Another common payment method is by an e-check. Many
customers who pay this way have checking accounts, but no credit or debit cards.
Security Code Explanation: Always provide a clear explanation of what this
credit card security code is and why you need it. While most sites provide an
image of where to find it, rarely do they answer the question of why they need
it. Many shoppers are wary about giving this out, so provide an explanation of
why it's necessary for an online purchase.
Disable "Finalize Order" button On Click: A lot is going on technically
speaking when the user clicks the "Finalize Order" button. Many users are
impatient, and will click this button again and again until something happens.
Depending on how your checkout is programmed, this can cause serious problems
such as double billing or duplicate orders. Prevent this confusion by disabling
the button after it's clicked.
Show Estimated Processing Time: In addition to the above, show something to
the nature of "please allow up to 60 seconds to process your order." after the
shopper clicks the finalize order button.
Bookmark able Receipt Page: Make sure your receipt page is not the same page
that processes the order via a form post. Shoppers tend to bookmark receipt
pages, but if it's not available later they will be very confused.
Shipping Time Estimates: Usually, the first question on a customers mind
after submitting an order is "when will I get it?" Prevent needless customer
service interactions by providing an estimate of both when the order will ship
and when it will arrive.
Eliminate Insecure Page Errors: A customer should never have to see a "this
page contains insecure items" error right before they enter their credit card.
Usually, this is just a case of the webmaster not using relative links properly
with images (http:// vs. https://).
I hope you found something here useful for your online business. For more
e-commerce conversion tips, please the
Palmer Web Marketing &
E-Commerce blog.
Most internet marketers believe that as long as they have established and initiated their websites on the Internet, they would not have any problem at all. You have to know though, that setting up a website is only the first step before full success can be achieved. It is, of course, true that all customers need to do is visit, browse, decide, purchase and receive their products. However, you must make sure that you have established a website, which uses an efficient shopping cart program and a valuable ecommerce solution that are followed by a consistent marketing promotion.
It may be true that you may be your very own boss when operating an online business, but that does not mean dedication is provided. Before you can start relaxing and wait for the money to roll in, you have to invest time and effort first. You need to maintain a relationship with your clients by making sure that they are satisfied with your service, such as successfully receiving the product you sent and getting immediate answers (within 24 hours) from their posted questions. You need to ensure of things that are solely focused on your clients, not on their money alone. This will, in return, create loyalty in their part.
As soon as you have established your online shop in the market, you must allow your family, friends and even acquaintances to visit. This way, you will be able to get their feedback, may it be negative or positive. Constructive criticisms are, in fact, a good way of improving your business. Use these comments and suggestions for these will help you in achieving success in your business.
Next, you must evaluate your website