The online ecommerce business climate has always been harsh but with the economic recession on in full swing, things are bound to get worse for online retail store owners. So what should you do to prevent a drop in sales? Learn from previous mistakes, of course! Here are some of the biggest mistakes online retailers have made in the past and how you can avoid such pitfalls.
1. Wrong Products
Probably, the biggest mistake any ecommerce site owner can make is to sell the wrong products. Locally available products might be cheaper and can incur significant shipping charges when sold online, meaning that these are not suited to ecommerce store sales. Another example would be high-end and designer garments. Most people would want to try clothing on before the purchase (especially when it’s outrageously expensive), so such products may not be viable for an ecommerce business.
2. Improper Marketing
Merely having an ecommerce site and a viable product does not entail that people will flock to the site and/or start buying immediately. It takes years for a startup to break even in the online space and even more to get online visibility. To ensure that your online retail business is successful, you need to pursue aggressive marketing strategies which will help draw attention to your site, create a buzz around the product, and ensure better brand recall. Your marketing efforts should be online and offline.
3. Poor Website Design
Proper aesthetics and functional navigation are critical elements to the website design of any ecommerce store. Many startups are in too much of haste to start making sales and therefore tend to overlook the web design aspect of the site but this is a big mistake. Since customers receive first impressions about your brand based on the web design, it is folly to overlook this aspect. Clear photographs, product descriptions, professional appearance and good clean navigation are crucial to ensure online retail success. The site should also include a search function to enable users to search for specific products they wish to purchase.
4. Outdated Information
The landscape of online retail business changes everyday. If you do not keep your website updated, you risk leaving the impression on customers that your site is no longer being maintained and they will look elsewhere. To retain customers and attract new ones, ensure you keep the content on your ecommerce retail store current and updated.
5. Tedious Checkout Process
Too many ecommerce sites make the mistake of having a tedious checkout procedure. Checkouts need to be easy, minimalist and quick or else customers get irritated and are likely to abandon the transaction altogether. Never make the mistake of getting your customers to answer questions during the checkout process. It is one of the biggest contributing reasons for abandoned sales on online retail sites.
6. No Privacy Policy
The savvy customer of today always wants to ensure that they are dealing with a site, which will not divulge their personal information to third parties. This is where the privacy policy of your online retail business will help assure your customers. While most of the customers tend to skip reading the privacy policy, you do need to have one in place and make sure it is available within the landing page of the site.
7. No Site Testing
There is nothing more frustrating than for a customer to visit a link only to find it does not function. Always ensure that when you have an online ecommerce business, that you test out all product descriptions, links, shopping cart, photographs, feedback as well as other aspects of the site to avoid glitches with customers.
Chillibreeze's disclaimer: This is a contributed article and was published on Chillibreeze in March, 2010. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article. The relevance of the facts and figures cited (if any) could change after a period of time.
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—About our writer:
Amrita Radhakrishnan has 8 years experience freelancing as a business content developer/business writer. She has in-depth expertise in writing articles on e-commerce, health and fitness, SEO content for websites, real estate and mortgage, lifestyle, fashion as well as travel.
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