Traffic isn’t the only way to increase sales. It’s much more effective to focus on improving conversions. Even relatively small improvements in the conversion rate can have a marked improvement on sales and profits. Making these small – but significant – improvements to conversion doesn’t mean a complete overhaul to your WooCommerce site. Here’s four changes that you can make today to improve your sales conversion rates.
1. Track Your Sales Funnel
What you track, you can improve. This is especially true when it comes to conversion optimisation. Conversion tracking will enable you to see at which point you are losing customers. Once you have identified those leaks you can fix them. Remember, that you can’t add data retrospectively into Google Analytics. So if you haven’t already integrated Google analytics with WooCommerce then you need to start today.
One of the simplest ways to integrate Google Analytics with WooCommerce is to use the official plugin WooCommerce Google Analytics Integration. Once installed you will be able add your Google Analytics ID number in the integration subsection of settings.
2. Enable Guest Checkout
Enabling guest checkout for WooCommerce can increase conversions – albeit with a few caveats. Customers are becoming increasingly reluctant to setting up new accounts. Large scale hacks of eCommerce websites have undermined consumer confidence. This is especially true if a customer is unfamiliar with a particular online store. The time involved with establishing multiple accounts also adds to reluctance to setting up new accounts.
Guest checkout allows people to buy from you without having to create an account and leave their details on record. This can be very convent for customers who may only be buying from you once or want to try you out. The downside is that customers are more inclined to repeat buy from online stores where they have an account. It’s the convenience factor.
If your business does a lot of one off sales it is likely worthwhile considering adding guest checkout. Conversely if you run on repeat business then it may be better sacrificing a slightly lower initial conversion rate to increase long term customer retention. To enable guest checkout navigate to the Checkout sub navigation section and select the Enable guest checkout tick box.
3. Add Product Videos
Customers who watch a product video are up to 85% more likely to buy, according to BufferSocial. The combined selling power of video’s visuals and sound can be extremely convincing. A video allows customers to see a product in detail while having it’s unique benefits explained. Use your sales reports to identify your most profitable products. Consider investing in video to improve conversions on these items.
We recommend installing our very own WooThumbs – Awesome Product Imagery plugin to enable video for your products. Not only can you add video from any site like YouTube or Vimeo, but you can also dramatically improve your image display with zoom, slides, customisable layouts, and more.
4. Simplify The Checkout Process
As noted earlier having analytics integrated with WooCommerce is critical so that you can identify where potential customers are dropping out of your sales funnel. If you notice a high percentage of shopping cart abandonment then this is an area which you will want to address immediately. People who have placed items in a shopping cart wanted to buy. One of the most common reasons that they failed to follow through is because the checkout process was overly complex. Look at the number of fields that you require customers to fill out. See if any of these fields can be removed. Make it as easy as possible for customers to buy from you.
