CRO
CRO for eCommerce: The Ultimate Guide to Boosting Conversions
Pritam Roy
Introduction
Imagine offering the most incredible products and attracting millions of visitors to your eCommerce platform, only to see disappointing numbers when it comes to the actual sales. With an estimated 3.6 billion users expected to participate in online shopping by 2029, not bridging the gap between traffic and conversions effectively can lead to a significant missed opportunity.
Moreover, with the global projected market volume for eCommerce set to reach $6,478 billion, are you doing enough to capture your share?
As an eCommerce business owner or marketing professional, the possibilities for you are endless.
However, there is a hard pill to swallow—not every visitor on your site will make a purchase instantly. The average eCommerce conversion rate across different categories ranges between just 0.2% and 1.9%. This means for every 100 visitors on your website, barely 2 are making it to the conversion stage.
If you are struggling with low conversions, too, it might be time to invest in conversion rate optimization (CRO) for eCommerce.
Introduction to CRO for eCommerce
eCommerce conversion rate optimization is the process of nudging your website visitors to take a specific action. This could be adding products to their wishlist, adding an item to their cart, signing up for a newsletter, or making a purchase.
CRO in eCommerce involves identifying friction points in the user journey and fine-tuning them to lead visitors down the conversion funnel as seamlessly as possible. For example, if you have a solid conversion rate for visitors adding products to their carts but nearly not enough conversions for successful checkouts, there might be a problem with your checkout process.
Conversion rate optimization in eCommerce helps you identify and fix these issues to:
Maximize the value of each visitor
Create more engaging, user-centred experiences
Drive conversions and boost revenue
E-commerce conversion rate optimization involves focusing on both new and existing marketing campaigns to optimize the user experience and drive conversions.
"Conversion rate optimization is more than analyzing and optimizing existing campaigns," explains marketing expert Neil Patel. "Imagine you're launching a new marketing campaign. Wouldn't you want to put your best foot forward so you have the highest chance of getting those conversions? Similarly, if you have existing campaigns, you also want to optimize them to maximize your conversion rates."
Why eCommerce conversion rate optimization is essential
eCommerce CRO is indispensable for running a modern online business and staying competitive. It helps marketers improve their website functionality, enhance user experience, and convert website traffic into conversions.
Let us explain.
Every eCommerce business, regardless of its size, has one ultimate goal: increasing sales. However, while the current eCommerce market is ripe with opportunities, it is also highly competitive. A whopping 70% of users abandon their carts without making a purchase. This means simply attracting traffic to your website isn't enough. You must take specific measures to convert them into loyal customers.
But what are these measures? That's exactly what CRO helps you understand.
It enables you to analyze user experiences and conversion funnels to understand where customers may be dropping off and what improvements could be made. Addressing these bottlenecks and optimizing the user journey can streamline the conversion funnel, converting more visitors into customers.
Key principles of effective CRO for eCommerce
Effective conversion optimization for eCommerce websites involves a few key principles to turn casual visitors into loyal customers. These include creating a hypothesis, defining success KPIs, auditing the conversion funnel, conducting regular reviews, and implementing the right tools.
1. Creating a hypothesis
The first and most critical principle for eCommerce CRO is creating a hypothesis. After all, without clearly defining the outcome, how can you measure the impact of your CRO efforts? So, it is essential to identify areas on your website that can be improved. For example, if data indicates high drop-off rates on the checkout page, your hypothesis may be: "Simplifying the checkout form by reducing the number of fields will decrease cart abandonment by 10%."
Your hypothesis must include three key elements:
Observation: Understanding the challenge. In this case, visitors abandon the site on the payment page.
Prediction: Identifying a potential solution. For example, reducing the number of fields required.
Measurement: Determining how you will measure success. For example, decreasing cart abandonment by 10%.
2. Defining success KPIs
While there are several metrics to gauge the performance of your CRO efforts, make sure the KPIs you select align with your hypothesis. For example, an increase in website traffic or products added to the cart may seem like an improvement, but if you are trying to reduce cart abandonments and your efforts are not aligning with your hypothesis, you might actually not be making any progress at all.
Here are some typical success KPIs for eCommerce websites:
Conversion rate
Average order value
Cart abandonment rate
Customer lifetime value
Click-through rate
3. Auditing the conversion funnel
Did you know 96% of website visitors are not ready to make a purchase and need nurturing through the sales funnel? So, just creating an effective funnel and hoping for the best will not help. Therefore, an essential eCommerce CRO principle is auditing your conversion funnel to understand the customer journey and determine why they may be dropping off.
To run an audit, break down each stage of the customer journey:
Awareness
Consideration
Decision
Purchase
Analyze how users interact with each stage, what friction points exist, and how you can reduce bounces to nurture users further down the sales funnel.
4. Conducting regular reviews
Conversion rate optimization is an ongoing process. It requires regular reviews and adjustments to ensure your eCommerce business aligns with evolving market trends and customer preferences. Regularly reviewing your CRO efforts helps you adapt to these changes and ensure your website is optimized for conversions.
Here are some simple steps to review your CRO efforts:
Create a review schedule
Revisit your hypothesis
Evaluate key metrics
Analyze funnel performance
Incorporate user feedback and industry trends
5. Implementing the right tools
We live in a digital world where there is no dearth of AI-powered CRO tools. In fact, 51% of eCommerce businesses are already actively working on implementing AI solutions. With the right CRO tools, you can streamline data collection, analyze user behavior, and implement your strategies more effectively.
From tracking user journeys to running A/B tests, these advanced tools can provide data-driven insights to optimize your website for conversions.
How to increase the conversion rate for eCommerce websites?
eCommerce business owners can increase their website conversions by optimizing landing pages, reducing loading time, offering personalized recommendations, optimizing for mobile devices, and simplifying the checkout process. These tactics can help create a seamless user journey, encouraging visitors to take action.
Let's explore them in detail:
1. Optimizing landing pages
Optimizing landing pages is one of the most effective ways to increase conversion rates in eCommerce. After all, it is often the first point of contact between your business and a potential customer. While landing pages are the least popular type of sign-up forms, they surprisingly have the highest conversion rate of 23%.
But how exactly do you optimize your landing pages? Here are 5 tips from marketing experts Rand Fishkin, Oli Gardner, and Peep Laja to up your landing page game:
Use photos of customers along with their testimonials to build credibility and make the reviews more relatable.
Avoid video backgrounds, as they can be distracting.
Determine CTA placement based on the value you offer. Place the CTA above the fold if you offer something for free. But if your offer is not free, build a case before asking visitors to commit.
Create a crisp, clear, and benefit-driven headline.
Communicate your unique value proposition clearly to show how you differentiate from your competitors.
2. Reducing loading time
Research suggests that 40% of consumers will abandon your site if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load. A slow load time can frustrate visitors and hurt their overall experience. And if you won't have enough visitors in the first place, how will you convert them into customers?
This is why reducing your page load time is essential to optimize your CRO efforts. Here are some ways to do this:
Optimize images to compress large files without compromising quality.
Reduce the number of elements on the page to lower HTTP requests.
Transfer videos to third-party platforms like YouTube, Vimeo, or Wistia.
Implement a CDN to distribute your website's content across multiple servers worldwide, reducing the distance between the user and the server.
Reduce CSS, JavaScript, and HTML to remove unnecessary spaces, comments, and characters.
3. Offering personalized recommendations
Personalization is one of the most effective methods to increase conversion rates in eCommerce. In fact, eCommerce marketers have reported an average sales increase of 20% by offering personalized experiences.
By understanding user behavior and preferences and recommending products that resonate with them, you can enhance customer experience and increase the chances of a purchase. You can do this by:
Delivering product recommendations based on the user's browsing history.
Creating personalized email campaigns to drive traffic to your site.
Displaying trending or bestselling products.
4. Optimizing for mobile devices
With 60% of all eCommerce sales coming from mobiles, optimizing your website for smartphones isn't just an afterthought but a necessity. It enables customers to browse your site on the go, making it easier to complete a purchase.
Make sure your website has a:
Mobile-responsive design
Seamless navigation
Optimized images and media
Mobile-friendly checkout process
Touchscreen-compatible elements
If you're just starting with your eCommerce business, it's best to build a mobile-friendly platform right from the start instead of optimizing it later.
5. Simplifying the checkout process
If you are attracting enough visitors and seeing decent conversions for adding products to the cart but struggling with low checkout rates, review the process to determine what's going wrong. According to a Baymard Institute study, 22% of users abandon their orders due to a long or complicated checkout process.
Some other reasons for low checkout rates include:
High shipping fees, taxes, or extra costs.
Long delivery time
Limited payment methods
Technical issues with the website
Too many form fields
Here are some steps you can take to avoid these issues and enhance conversion rate optimization for your eCommerce website:
Allow guest checkouts
Enable one-click checkout
Offer multiple shipping options
Provide multiple payment options
Clearly highlight the pricing and shipping cost
Reduce form fields and only ask for essential details
Leverage autofill capabilities
Now that you know the key principles of eCommerce CRO and ways to increase conversions, let's look at some best practices that will help you amplify your efforts.
Best practices for eCommerce conversion optimization
If you're looking to optimize your eCommerce conversion rates, don't just stick to a trial-and-error approach. Follow tried-and-tested best practices like writing compelling product descriptions, optimizing product pages, incentivizing users through rewards, cross-selling, and surveying visitors.
1. Write compelling product descriptions
One reason your visitors might not be converting into customers is inadequate information about the product they wish to buy. A compelling product description must include the benefits, features, price, and other essential details about the product, enabling visitors to make a purchase confidently.
Digital marketing expert Neil Patel suggests a 7-step framework to nailing your product descriptions for higher conversions:
Step 1: Start by defining your buyer's persona. Determine their demographics, age, interests, income level, and more.
Step 2: Highlight features and benefits that motivate their buying decisions.
Step 3: Make sure the product descriptions reflect your brand's tone of voice.
Step 4: Use bullet points to make the descriptions easily skimmable.
Step 5: Use influential words like amazing, quick, sensational, etc., to improve persuasiveness.
Step 6: Optimize your copy to rank on search engines.
Step 7: Use images, icons, and mixed media to showcase products.
2. Optimize product pages
An optimized product page offers a seamless user experience, allowing customers to access all information and ultimately purchase a product. So, besides writing compelling product descriptions, you must also focus on:
Using high-quality product images
Sharing transparent pricing details
Adding strong CTAs
Clearly highlighting return and shipping policies
Ensuring seamless navigation
3. Incentivize users through rewards
Offering rewards and incentives is an age-old practice of building customer loyalty and encouraging repeat orders. So, if you haven't leveraged this eCommerce CRO tactic yet, it might be time to do so.
Look at Taylor Stitch's website, for example—an eCommerce business selling men's clothing. As soon as you arrive on their website, you get a pop-up offering a 20% discount on your first purchase. All you need to do is enter your email ID. This is a great way to build a loyal customer base.
You can also reward users in other ways, such as:
Rewards for leaving reviews
Accumulating points on purchases
Running seasonal promotions
Providing a limited-time offer
Encouraging referrals
4. Cross-selling
Cross-selling is another effective way to boost your conversion rates. In fact, this technique can increase sales by 20% and profits by 30%. Cross-selling encourages customers to buy additional, complementary products along with the items they are already looking to purchase. It not only provides more value to the customer but also drives revenue for your business, increasing the average order value.
For example, you can suggest:
A phone case when a visitor is purchasing a smartphone
A pair of socks when a visitor is browsing shoes
A wireless mouse when a visitor is buying a laptop
5. Surveying visitors
Another best practice for eCommerce conversion optimization is surveying visitors to gain valuable insights into their experiences, pain points, and preferences. While analytics tools can help you understand what users are doing, surveys help you determine why they're doing it. This is also an excellent technique to gather customer feedback and identify friction points.
You can use different types of surveys like:
Brief pop-up surveys when users are browsing products
Post-purchase surveys to understand their checkout experience
Email surveys for more in-depth feedback
Advanced eCommerce CRO strategies for higher conversions
If you've covered all the basics and are looking to level up your CRO efforts, implement advanced strategies like running A/B tests, using AI-driven CRO tools, and tracking CRO success. This will help you make data-driven decisions and lead customers seamlessly through the conversion funnel.
1. Run A/B tests
A/B tests are one of the most effective strategies when it comes to optimizing eCommerce conversion rates. Research suggests running A/B tests on landing pages can boost conversion rates by 30%. Bing, the leading search engine, recorded a 12% increase in revenue by A/B testing its ad headlines.
This strategy allows you to experiment with two versions of a page or specific elements on a page to determine what drives the most conversions. For example, you can experiment with different images, CTA buttons, colors, product descriptions, etc.
2. Use AI-driven CRO tools
In today's digital-first landscape, you can't ignore the power of AI. Using AI-driven CRO tools can help you analyze large volumes of user data, identify patterns and pain points, and implement changes to maximize conversions.
For example, Shopify's Shop Pay boosts conversions by 50% compared to guest checkouts and outperforms all other accelerated checkouts by 10%. Moreover, with tools like Fibr AI, you can personalize landing pages at scale so the message mirrors the ad it came from.
3. Track CRO success
Finally, make sure to measure your eCommerce conversion optimization success. Revisit your KPIs regularly and continuously monitor performance data to determine if your CRO efforts are bearing fruit.
Advanced AI-driven tools typically come with features like heatmaps, session recordings, click and scroll monitoring, and comprehensive reporting capabilities. These features can help you understand where users spend the most time, where they drop off, and which elements receive the most engagement. Let's look at some key metrics that you must look out for.
Analytics and metrics for tracking eCommerce CRO success
To measure the performance of your eCommerce CRO efforts, you must track metrics such as bounce rate, exit rate, conversion rate, average session duration, add-to-cart rate, cart abandonment rate, average order value, and customer lifetime value.
Bounce rate: This metric highlights the percentage of visitors who leave your website after viewing only one page. You can calculate it using this formula: (Single-page sessions / Total sessions) x 100.
Exit rate: This is the percentage of website visitors who leave your site from a specific page, regardless of the number of pages they viewed. You can calculate the exit rate using this formula: (Exits from a page / Total visits to that page) x 100.
Conversion rate: The conversion rate is the percentage of visitors who successfully complete a desired action, like making a purchase or adding products to the cart. You can calculate the conversion rate using this formula: (Conversions / Total visitors) x 100.
Average session duration: This metric helps determine the average time users spend on your page during a session. You can calculate it using this formula: Total time spent on site / Total sessions.
Add-to-cart rate: This is simply the percentage of users who add a product to their cart. You can calculate the add-to-cart rate using this formula: (Add-to-cart actions / Total visitors) x 100.
Cart abandonment rate: This metric highlights the percentage of users who add poducts to the cart but don't complete the purchase. You can calculate it using this formula: (Carts abandoned / Total carts created) x 100.
Average order value (AOV): This metric helps determine the average amount spent per order. You can calculate it using this formula: Total revenue / Number of orders.
Customer lifetime value (CLV): This is the total revenue your business earns from a single customer over the entire relationship. You can calculate the CLV using this formula: (Average order value x Purchase frequency) x Average customer lifespan.
Common mistakes to avoid in eCommerce CRO
While eCommerce conversion optimization can help you convert more visitors into customers and boost revenue, it is essential to be mindful of certain mistakes that can impact user engagement and lead to missed opportunities. These include not displaying shipping costs early, not setting clear KPIs, running tests without a clear plan, and making too many design changes at once.
1. Not displaying shipping costs early
Understand this from a customer's POV. You see an extremely good deal, and the product ticks all the boxes. But as soon as you reach the last stage of the checkout process, you see an added shipping charge. This may discourage you from proceeding.
Studies suggest that 21% of shoppers abandon their orders because they cannot see the total order cost upfront before initiating the checkout. So, make sure to display the shipping cost early to retain potential customers.
2. Not setting clear KPIs
Not defining the CRO KPIs clearly can make it difficult to determine which areas of the customer journey need improvement. They povide a benchmarks to measure progress and ensure your CRO efforts align with the overall business goals.
For example, if your goal is to increase conversions, tracking specific metrics like add-to-cart rate or checkout completion rate can help you better understand what is working and what isn't.
3. Running tests without a clear plan
Before you start experimenting with your strategies, it's important to create a well-designed plan. It should outline the objectives you wish to achieve, the changes you are testing, and the metrics you will use to evaluate success.
Without a clear plan, you'll just be shooting arrows in the dark and crossing your fingers. So, don't ignore the hypothesis to make data-driven decisions and guide your CRO efforts.
4. Making too many design changes at once
Another common mistake that eCommerce marketers often make is making too many design changes at once. While it is important to experiment with different elements to determine what resonates the most with users, it is not the best idea to make all these changes at once.
Doing so can make it difficult to identify which specific change actually contributed most to the improvement or drop in the conversion rate. So, focus on a single element at a time to measure the performance of your CRO efforts.
Case studies: eCommerce CRO success stories
Well, you can either read and read ( and read some more) about the ins and outs of CRO or take a smarter, more efficient approach and look at real-world examples of eCommerce businesses that have nailed their CRO strategies and turned casual visitors into loyal customers. Here are some eCommerce success stories to get you inspired:
1. Somnifix
Somnifix is an online retail company specializing in a single product—breathing strips designed to reduce mouth breathing during sleep. It found a unique way to optimize its conversion rates. Instead of focusing on increasing customers, Somnifix focused on increasing the average order value, encouraging existing customers to spend more.
The brand revamped its entire user interface to highlight the value of its higher-priced packs, gently guiding customers toward these more expensive options. They also streamlined the checkout process to reduce friction and make the transaction smoother. The result? 27% increase in AOV, with sales of the larger, more expensive packages soaring by 200%.
2. Walmart
Walmart's Canadian online store was facing two significant challenges: slow loading time and a non-mobile-friendly website. This was impacting its conversion rates. To address these issues, Walmart redesigned its website, implemented A/B tests on various elements, and conducted extensive research.
And the results were nothing short of impressive. Walmart's overall conversion rate increased by 20%, and mobile orders saw a massive surge, rising by 98%.
Elevate your eCommerce performance with CRO
The modern business landscape is as dynamic as it can get. Evolving customer expectations and new market trends demand eCommerce businesses to stay on top of their games to stay competitive and meet customer expectations.
With AI-powered tools like Fibr AI, you can access advanced features to personalize landing pages at scale and ensure they mirror the message of the ad to prevent visitors from dropping off. Fibr AI helps you go beyond ads and emails and leverage future-focused, value-driven strategies that drive conversions.
Book a demo today to see how Fibr AI's AI-powered CRO expertise can help you generate 2X conversions!
FAQs
1. What is a CRO in eCommerce?
eCommerce conversion rate optimization is the process of optimizing different elements of your website to streamline the customer journey and turn casual visitors into paying customers.
2. What is a good conversion rate for eCommerce?
A good conversion rate for eCommerce will depend on your niche and business size. However, the average conversion rate for eCommerce ranges between 0.2% and 1.9%.
3. How to increase the conversion rate in eCommerce?
You can increase the conversion rate for your eCommerce business by following these strategies:
Optimizing landing pages
Reducing loading time
Offering personalized recommendations
Optimizing for mobile devices
Simplifying the checkout process