Online is a more important channel for retailers than ever. But far too many businesses are still making mistakes that irritate customers and hinder conversion. Retail Week highlights seven of them

For bricks-and-mortar retailers, online is a more important part of their business. For a three-month period earlier this year, most retailers, others than those deemed essential, were rendered pureplays.

With shoppers reluctant to head back to the high street, online continues to be pivotal for retailers. Non-food online sales accounted for 40.1% of sales in September, according to the BRC-KPMG retail monitor. 

Despite the growing importance of online, many retailers are not maximising the opportunities that ecommerce brings. In fact, many are making fundamental errors that are hindering conversion rates and annoying customers.

Retail Week examines some of these all too common errors.

1. Slow loading pages

This is a perennial bugbear and one that is a surefire way to lose shoppers.

Olivia Lacide, senior account executive at digital agency Anything, says: “It’s well documented that it only takes two seconds for a user to click away from a website that isn’t loading, so online retailers need to ensure their speed is fast to capture customers as soon as they click on the link to the site.”

Edge Testing Solutions carried out research into 258 UK online websites and found that the average first-page load speed was seven seconds. Sixteen per cent of sites took 10 seconds to fully load and three took more than 20 seconds.

To improve loading speed Lacide advises that retailers properly size images, minimise code such as JavaScript and CSS, which slow down a site, and avoid loading lots of different fonts.

 

2. Out-of-stock items still listed

search results example for RW

Is there anything more infuriating to shoppers than finding the perfect item only to click through and discover it’s out of stock? 

The simple fact is that, after spending time searching for the product they covet, many fed-up shoppers will simply click away from the website if the item turns out not to be available and some will never return.

“This won’t help conversion rate or relevant page views,” says Cheil ecommerce strategist Duncan Howe, who recommends retailers follow the lead of online estate agents.

“Take more of the Rightmove/Zoopla approach: ‘Here is everything that’s available. Didn’t find what you want? Look at what we’ve already sold/sold out of’. 

“Then customers see exactly what they can buy, followed by what they’ve already missed out on.”

Howe also suggests retailers promote when they are going to get more stock soon and encourage shoppers to sign up for stock notifications. 

3. Putting style over substance in imagery

Zara_homepage

There was a trend a few years back to make retail websites more like a magazine, packed full of stylised images with stories attached.

While this type of content may be appropriate for designer brands, some shoppers feel it is over-the-top for high street retailers.

One UX expert highlights Zara as a brand that has taken this too far and says the stylised imagery does not showcase the products well.

“As a rule, online retailers should ensure that the product shots show the products clearly, in detail and from many angles to help the customer know exactly what they are buying,” she says.

4. Insufficient or confusing categories

Splitting products into categories can help make site navigation easier for shoppers. Rather than searching through all trousers, customers can click ‘women’, then ‘trousers’, then ‘jogging bottoms’.

However, product categories need to be intuitive to the user. Do people actually look for formalwear or are ‘going out clothes’ or ‘suits’ what they are scanning for on the navigation?

Retailers should make sure their categories are in a language that shoppers actually use to avoid irritating time-poor shoppers.

5. Not enough product information

While in-store shoppers can ask customer service assistants for more detail about products, online the web page is it. Far too many retailers do not give enough information on product pages.

bullet point details

Look at this product page on Very. The retailer has helpfully added bullet points to its product page to summarise the garment. But what do you really learn from those bullet points?

Its name, colour, fit and that its end use is hiking? Is this not all obvious? Meanwhile, we learn nothing about what materials it is made from and whether or not it is waterproof.

Meanwhile, poorly designed – and duplicated – cookie messages overlay the product description further impeding the shopper’s experience and understanding of what the product actually does.

Howe says: “Try to remember that not everyone knows your products as well as you do. That amazing new patented fabric you’ve got – no one knows what it’s called. Explain it upfront in one of your introduction bullet points; don’t just reference it by name. You risk alienating people unfamiliar with your terminology. Say what you see; your customers will thank you.”

6. Poor naming conventions

Example of poor naming convention

Too many retailers still make the mistake of using ambiguous product names or, worse still, product codes in descriptions. This makes it nigh-on impossible for shoppers to find such items.

Take this example on Amazon. The product page is entitled ‘PPC108’. There is no mention of what the product is – nowhere does the word amp, speaker or PA appear, or even the brand name.

The ‘About this item’ details are not much better and do not give the shopper any idea on how they use the amp and what it is compatible with.

7. Not correcting search typos

Shoppers that actually search for a product on a website are 200% more likely to convert, according to research by WebLinc.

However, many retailers are not making the most of their on-site search capability. 

Sites that do not populate search boxes with autosuggestions, which make it quicker and easier to find you’re looking for, and those that do not correct spellings mistakes, leading to customers getting the dreaded ‘zero results’, are both frustrating shoppers and hindering conversion.