When it comes to online retail, whether it’s your site consumers are visiting and shopping at, or someone else’s, there are a few proven fundamentals.
• First, there’s the look and feel of your site. Does it leave the customer with the feeling you’re a professional outfit with the capacity to back up what you say in your offer?
• Second, does it make the customer itch to get a hold of your product or service?
• And finally, are your e-commerce facilities and online systems water tight, simple and fast to load?
Get these three things right and you’re well on your way to having a website that enhances your brand and boosts your profits!
If your company is using the internet for its business then getting the systems right is critical to your bottom line.
In the case of an online storefront, think about everything that’s going on in a person’s mind before they enter their credit card details and hit the send button:
• Is this website reputable? Is it professional in its appearance and content? Amateur looking websites make people wary. If you want a sale, then your website needs to look professional to win the customer’s trust.
• Can I contact them easily if I need to? Provide lots of touch points so customers know you can be easily contacted if things go wrong.
• How often is the website and stock list updated? If your website has time specific content then make sure that it’s up-to-date. This shows you’re alive and well and that you treat your website with the same importance as you do other parts of your business.
• Do I get real time updates as to the status of my orders? Customers want to know what is happening with their orders. If your systems don’t tell them automatically, then they’ll be contacting you–an administration headache you don’t need.
• Do I need to register to place an order, and why is the checkout process so long-winded? Make it easy for customers to place their orders. Clever tools like one-step checkout pages and fast loading forms will keep a customer in the buying cycle and stop them giving up.
• Why is the site so slow? If customers have to wait, forget it. Successful sites that are doing lots of transactions with lots of customers are still fast. Look for quality technology platforms—such as the Bizexpress eRetail platform.
Case study: Playing the retail game
GAMEHEAD.com.au is one of Australia’s leading online video games and DVD retailers. The online store process hundreds of orders everyday. GAMEHEAD.com.au constantly updates and improves upon the sites usability and maps this directly to the stores conversion rates. The site is running on Bizexpress eRetail platform which provides enterprise level robustness and scalability. As GAMEHEAD.com.au traffic demands increased the eRetail platform was able to scale accordingly.
GAMEHEAD.com.au is an Australian success story; this company started from some very humble beginnings , revenue through high conversions, top rankings on search engines and the Bizexpress eRetail ecommerce platform all combine to make this store a leader in its field.
Bizexpress is a software house specialising in corporate online solutions.
Bizexpress is based in Sydney and services clients Australia wide. If you’re keen to boost what your website is doing for your business please contact us on +61 (2) 9372 5100 www.bizexpress.com.au
