Today I'm going to take a closer look at e-shops and tell you what mistakes I see most often in them. And believe me, some of them are really "pearls". I want this article to be understandable even for those of you who are just starting out in online sales. So let's get started!
1. Same labels for all products:
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Imagine going to a brick-and-mortar store and seeing every product labeled "Great Product." That probably wouldn't appeal to you, would it? It works the same way in an e-shop. Every product deserves a unique description that explains to the customer why they should buy it.
2. Wrong logo size:
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The logo is the calling card of your e-shop. If it is too small or too huge, it looks unprofessional. The logo should be placed in a visible place and have an optimal size. Not to mention that the wrong size or placement of the logo can also ruin the rest of the appearance of your e-shop and the first time you open the e-shop, you will see "disorganized chaos".
3. Poor quality product photos:
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On the Internet, the customer cannot touch the product. That is why quality photos are key. Blurry, dark or small photos will not appeal to anyone. Invest in quality photography, or at least good lighting. In addition, an article on the topic of photos in e-shops has already been published. If you would like to read it, it is available here
4. Complex navigation:
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A customer should be able to find everything they are looking for in an e-shop within a few clicks. If the navigation is complicated and unclear, they will quickly be discouraged. It is good if you try to show all the categories of your products, but sometimes less is more. In addition, you can use subcategories or display collections directly on the page.
5. Missing contact details:
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The customer needs to feel safe. That is why it is important that they find contact information on the e-shop – phone, e-mail, address. If this information is missing, it looks untrustworthy. If any of us come across an e-shop and it doesn't seem right to us, we go and see if there are any contacts listed or how the e-shop works towards the customer in terms of support.
6. Hidden shipping costs:
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Nothing annoys a customer more than finding out in their cart that shipping costs more than the product itself. Inform them about the shipping cost early in the shopping process. Some online stores already offer an "abandoned cart" feature (for example, Shopify, where I build online stores), but none of us want a customer to close their browser after they've already decided to buy the product.
7. Long delivery time:
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Nowadays we want everything right away. If the delivery time is too long, the customer will buy from the competition. The question then is what kind of product it is. If it is a custom product, it is clear that delivery will take longer than something we have in stock.
8. Missing product reviews:
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Reviews are an important source of information for customers. If they are missing from an e-shop, the customer is not sure about the quality of the products. However, it is important to collect real reviews and not place advertisements written by AI or by someone who has not even seen the product from afar.
9. Cluttered basket:
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The shopping cart should be simple and clear. The customer should easily see what they are ordering, how much they are paying, and what their shipping and payment options are.
10. Lack of mobile optimization:
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Most people shop online via mobile. If your e-shop is not optimized for mobile devices, you are losing a lot of customers and that is a big exclamation point.
I hope this article helped you and you will know that the most common mistakes in e-shops will not affect you.
At the same time, in conclusion, I would like to inform you that if you are not sure whether your website or e-shop is in order, whether it does not contain any errors and everything is functional - you can perform an "audit" of the website.