Remember what it was like when businesses used to create ads on TV and sell products in newspapers? Well, nobody probably does. In the age of social media and websites, everything is online. And any ad or commerce you’ll see is  going to be in the digital world, the ones you’ll interact with at least. It makes sense if you think about it. People spend most of their time online, and it’s online where a business needs to target their audience. Yet, to create a website that successfully draws people in long enough to complete the desired action you want them to –– this is called conversion –– is often easier said than done. There are thousands upon thousands of websites out there, and people are exposed to plenty of them on a daily basis. How then can you guarantee a high conversion rate? These are the must have attributes to your website that will increase your website’s conversion.

Understanding of the audience

While this is not an attribute of the website per se, it’s definitely the foundation on which you’ll build the thing. No e-commerce website can hope to succeed without a complete understanding of the market you’re targeting as well as the audience you’re after. This might sound like a simple task at hand, but it really is far from it. Understanding your demographics and audience is hours of research and surveys into what people need, and what’s missing from the market. This doesn’t just apply to just the product; it also applies to what makes the process of selling the product appealing to people. There can be websites out there selling better products than yours, but their interface, for example, is poor so people don’t complete the desired action. These are the type of details you’ll need to dive into, and the kind of fine lines that will lead you to truly understand the needs of your target audience, which will eventually lead to higher conversions.

Simplicity

The end goal of all this is to keep the website visitors in it, and to make sure they come back in the future. A key feature to achieving that is simplicity. Ever heard the saying less is more? Well, this applies exponentially in the website design. Offering a million products in your homepage isn’t simple; it’s overwhelming. When guests feel overwhelmed, they tend to leave the site and end their session earlier than they should have. There have been studies that proved that less products on the homepage with ample description to each boosts sales of said website. When a visitor feels like every question they have or might possibly think of concerning a product is answered, they tend to stay and make the purchase, which is what you want.

Simplicity extends to the design of the homepage and product pages as well. Too many different fonts and using way too flashy colors might distract the visitor and overwhelm them. Try to keep things as simple as possible and use negative spaces, which have been proved to focus the user’s attention on the product. You can’t afford to have the site visitor wander off asking why you chose this background color or that bizarre font.

Videos

Saying videos are important to your website’s conversion rate would be the understatement of the century. Some studies show that adding videos to some of your main landing pages can boost your conversions by over 80 percent! This is due to a simple fact; we process and consume visual information much faster than we do text. People prefer videos because they don’t have to go through the trouble of reading through the text which might be poorly written or too complicated to fathom. Videos, on the other hand, are easy, and they’re simple to consume. So, when you add a video to your product details, people can learn about it much faster and hence are more liable to finish their action on the website.

Images

Images are the next best thing after videos. The problem with online shopping is the fact that people can’t really feel or see the product as they would in real life. If you can use a video, then you should. But images are also a powerful tool you can use. Show the product from all different angles through images so as to create the feeling that the buyer is there with the product. Again, visual media are much easier to consume for people and they make them feel like the website’s trustworthy. Droning on about a product description is the worst way possible to increase your conversion rates.

Accuracy

Speaking of product text, one thing you want to make sure is present is accuracy. Any and all information related to the product has to be present. If it’s related to the product, the consumer will want to know it. Many websites neglect this fact and just add basic information about each product. Needless to say, their conversions are poor. A website visitor doesn’t want to go through the trouble of Googling extra information about the product, nor do they want to contact your website to inquire about something that should have been there in the first place! To avoid this hassle, just add whatever information you can find, and then some, because consumers feel encouraged to complete the intended action when they see that all angles are covered and all their questions are answered. This doesn’t mean you should write essays about the products, though. Keep it simple and to the point.

Professional design

Having a professionally designed website is not a luxury, and it’s not something you can afford to ignore. You need your website to look like it was created by professionals, and you also want it designed to include all the points mentioned in this article to ensure high conversions. Optima Ninja is one of the companies specialized in such services, and they offer an array of products and services designed to help your website get the attention it deserves. They handle everything from the web design and development to printing business cards and posters.

Get email addresses

Email marketing is one of the most important, and often overlooked, digital marketing methods. To invite people and send them emails with custom made shopping lists and so on, you need their emails. To do that, you have to get those emails while they’re still on the website. You can do this by creating gateways from which you can obtain the user’s email. When that happens, you can create targeted email marketing campaigns inviting them to go back to your website. The best way to capture visitors’ emails is by offering them something in return. This can be a free book or something that wouldn’t cost you anything, or a chance to review a product or the page. When you give people something in return, they’ll be much more inclined to give you their emails. And having those emails is crucial for your website conversions.

Benefits

People just love benefits. One of the strongest motivators on an e-commerce website is something as simple as free shipping. It’s so much recognized and expected in the world of online shopping that it’s not even an option anymore! No matter what you need to do, benefits like free shipping are why people shop online, and you need to provide them at all costs.

Offers

Offers are another thing that will just have people flocking to complete their actions on your e-commerce websites. Sure, you have your typical worldwide deals like Black Friday, but you’re going to have to try a little harder than that to get people’s attention and time. Making discounts and giving your users' limited time coupon codes drive them to finish their purchase as soon as possible, and they’ll always come back for more, because who doesn’t like free things or discounted products? When the coupon has an expiry date, this motivates shoppers to get the process done with as soon as possible, which would do wonders for your conversion.

Reliable

One of the most important attributes in an e-commerce website is reliability. People need to know they can trust your website and that they won’t be scammed on it. This is why you have to flash testimonials and reviews from different users, because nothing reassures a user like the experience of a fellow shopper and their experience with the website. Other than reviews, things like images of your staff and accreditations you got, also go a long way into gaining people’s trust and respect. Try to make it very easy for people to review products as well as the website service, because if you play your cards right and people write positive reviews, this will only serve to increase your conversions because people will start trusting you.

Easy checkout process

Remember that one time you were making an online purchase and they wanted to know what your grandfather did for a living? Some websites go to hilariously extreme lengths to make the checkout process complicated and secure for people, which is a big mistake. Yes, people want a secure process, but they definitely don’t want a complicated one that would take hours to complete. They could just as easily go to a store instead of wasting time shopping online. Checkout processes like these see a lot of people leave in the middle and never go back, just because the process was too exhausting. So, make sure your checkout process is short and sweet, and it also has to suit your brand and style.

Competitive

One attribute that will separate your website from others is how competitive you are, and when you talk about that, it’s all about prices. If you have two e-commerce platforms that have got everything right down to the tiniest of details, people will always go back to the one with more competitive prices and that is generally cheaper. Know which audience you’re targeting and base your pricing on that. If you’re going after the rich kids, you’ll definitely not follow the same tactics you use with your average Joes. In any case, you need to make people want to use your website, not the other guy’s.

Security

You cannot stress the importance of security for your website visitors. If they even get a whiff their personal information might be compromised or that their financial information is in danger, things will definitely go bad for you. Make sure you invest in getting the best and most secure software, because it’s your first line of defense out there.

Live chat

You’ll find that many experts agree than installing a live chat software is an excellent way to increase conversions to your website. The immediate response they generate helps people make up their minds and know the answers to questions that have been wandering in their minds. It’s naturally preferable that there’s someone always there to respond to the chat, because people prefer interacting with humans to machines.

Good customer service

Saying customer service is crucial to a website conversion is definitely putting it lightly. People need to know you’ll be there for them if something goes wrong, and they also need to know if any deal went sideways, they can easily fix it. One of the reasons Amazon is one of the most successful ecommerce websites in the world is the fact that they have outstanding customer service. Whatever your problem is, they’ll fix it. If a product is malfunctioned, they’ll replace it and let you keep the first one. If your shipment is wrong, they’ll immediately reship it and cover the shipping expenses. Things like these are why Amazon is very popular with consumers, and why they, naturally, have excellent conversions.

Make it easy for the people

At the end of the day, it’s all about the user experience. Make it as easy and seamless for people as humanly possible. People go online shopping to take their minds off things and because it’s fun. So make sure you don’t suck the fun right out of that by making their experience an unpleasant one, and keep it simple. The most fun and easy to use your website is, the more people will come back and the better your conversions will be. And they’ll increase in time if you keep doing the right things.