This SlideShare was originally published on LinkedIn’s SlideShare site created by Jordan Crown.
E-Commerce Problems & Solutions Guide by Jordan Crown.
E-Commerce Problems & Solutions Guide
- Problem No. 1: Your website doesn’t inspire customers to return multiple times. Earning customer loyalty is a matter of building trust and making the shopping experience as easy and pleasant as possible. Unless your e-commerce site establishes why customers should trust it and creates a seamless shopping experience, customers will seek an alternative for the next time.
- • Add a live chat option to enhance customer service. • Build loyalty programs that reward customers for repeat business. • Add customer testimonials to boost credibility. • Include profiles of your staff to add a human element. • Always emphasize customer service as your highest priority. Here are some tips for inspiring your customers to come back again and again:
- Problem No. 2: Your website design is weak. A poorly designed website can do more than make your business look bad — it can sabotage your e-commerce efforts by confusing customers and making their shopping experience more difficult. Even if your e-commerce website looks attractive, you’ll risk losing customers if they can’t navigate it to find what they want.
- Here are some basic tips for ensuring your website’s design doesn’t work against your business: • Use drop-down menus to keep your page design clean. • Invest in professional photography to make sure your products put their best faces forward. • Keep the checkout process as simple as possible, with no more than three pages necessary before customers complete a purchase. • Don’t overwhelm customers with flashy animations that could slow down your pages’ performance. • Make sure your products are organized in easy-to-understand categories that will make it obvious for customers how to find them.
- Problem No. 3: Returns and refunds are too difficult for customers. You may not want your customers to return their purchases. However, making the returns process as simple as possible for your customers is an essential part of creating an optimized e-commerce experience. If customers are confused or discouraged by your e-commerce returns policy, they may think twice about purchasing from you.
- Here are some ideas to keep in mind when it comes to creating the returns and refunds policies for your e-commerce site: • Make sure your returns and refunds policies are easily found on your site. • Don’t use impenetrable legal-speak when writing your returns policies. • Give customers multiple options for getting their money back and returning the merchandise to you. • Be sure your staff knows and understands your policies.
- Problem No. 4: Shipping costs too much and takes too long. Part of the appeal of e-commerce today is how easy shopping is for customers. Major online retailers such as Amazon have created the expectation that customers can have their purchases almost overnight. That puts a lot of pressure on e-commerce sites to keep their shipping costs down and improve the service they offer their customers. Asking customers to spend a lot on shipping and wait more than a few days for their merchandise can be a deal-breaker for many people today.
- Here are some tips for improving shipping to your e-commerce customers: • Distribute inventory to major fulfillment warehouses. • Automate as much of your fulfillment process as possible to speed the process. • Take advantage of technology such as RFID tagging to create greater efficiency in your inventory. • Offering as many unique products as possible creates incentive for customers to purchase from your site.
- Problem No. 5: Your e-commerce site is vulnerable to fraud. One of the biggest potential problems e-commerce retailers face is the possibility of fraud. If e-commerce sites fall victim to fraud — whether through identity theft or a criminal taking control of a customer’s account — they may be financially responsible for the loss. Protecting themselves and their customers should be a top priority for e-commerce retailers.
- • Ensure your e-commerce site adheres to Payment Card Industry Security Standards. • Use fraud tools that can verify a customer’s credit card information by checking it against his or her physical address or requiring the CVV code on the back of the card. • Employ strict password requirements that will reduce the risk of accounts being stolen. • Always keep your software up to date. Here are a few ideas about how e-commerce sites can protect themselves:
- Problem No. 6: You’re not taking advantage of social media. There’s far more to establishing a successful e-commerce presence today than simply having an e-commerce website. Consumers expect a lot more connectivity and interactivity with the brands they buy from every day. That means, social media needs to be part of your e-commerce strategy.
- Here are some suggestions for building your e-commerce brand on social media: • Use your social media feed to highlight your staff as well as your products to help put a human face on your brand. • Encourage customers to reach out to you on social media by including links to your profiles in a prominent spot on your page. • Monitor social media throughout the day for customer service inquiries and respond to them promptly. • Create hashtags for promotions to encourage your followers to share them and make it easy for customers to find them. jordancrown.com
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