The most successful ecommerce development operations are those that leverage data to drive best practices like audience segmentation and targeted email marketing.
When selling online, for example, you can increase your chances of making a sale by following up with customers who have put an item in their online shopping cart and did not complete the transaction.
E-commerce is often defined as the sale or purchase of a physical item online. E-commerce can also refer to the purchase and sale of digital and non-physical products, including services.
Its basically when a company sells online. Some ecommerce retailers only sell online.
Sometimes, the lines between traditional retail and e-commerce overlap. Its difficult to categorize the experience of a customer who compares products on her smartphone to a traditional retail store.
What is Ecommerce Customer Experience ?
The totality of all interactions, interactions, ideas, or sentiments between your brand and the customer as they are felt by the customer constitutes the ecommerce Customer Experience.
Though intentionally broad, this definition is.
The customer experience includes everything from when a person hears about your brand to when they decide to stop working with you.
As a provider, you need to know that the ecommerce experience comprises several staples.
Pre-Purchase
The ecommerce sales experience begins long before a person becomes a paying client. As we have said, it begins the moment a person notices your brand.
The customer experience begins when they first notice your brand. Its not very impressive if the only thing they know about your brand is its existence.
If you can make the value of your brand clear to the mildest-interested prospects, you have a good chance to convert them.
The pre-purchase experience for the customer should answer key questions such as:
- What is your brand offering?
- Whats the benefit to me?
- What are my options?
Look back at some of the previous examples. The answer to the three questions can be found by simply clicking on a mouse or tapping a screen.
There are many ways to provide this information to online prospects. Its important to find out which one works best for them.
By providing a warm and informative pre-purchase experience for your prospects, you achieve three important things:
- Your brand will gain their trust if you provide them with value first.
- You help them make the purchase that best allows them to achieve their goals, strengthening their trust in you and your brand.
- You are laying the foundation for future growth and success, leading your customer to achieve goals that they may not even be aware of.
Experience Shopping And Buying Online
The ecommerce experience is also defined by the moments that surround the actual purchase. Keeping your almost-converted clients informed is crucial to convincing them to purchase.
The prospect is now in need of key information.
- Pricing, product specifications, and availability.
- Transactional policies (e.g., returns, exchanges, shipping fees, etc.).
- Brand/Company Policies (e.g., info on ethical operation, etc.).
This information -- and much more -- could be a deciding factor in whether a prospect converts. Dont forget: If you dont provide this information, the customer experience will be over before they become a client.
It would help if you also delivered value and offers that are laser-focused to your future customers. Upsells and cross-sells can help your prospects maximize the value of their purchases.
If the prospect is unaware of these high-value offers and products, they may stick to your basic offer, which might not provide the experience that they hoped for.
Even if the prospect is satisfied with your basic offer, they are still missing out on all your brand has to give.
This final stage is the processing of the order. Youll want to make sure the customer can complete their purchase with minimal friction.
Customer Experience After Purchase In Ecommerce
Your work is finished once a client has purchased! Your brand will be a favorite for the rest of their lives, and you wont have to lift a single finger.
Your work is only just beginning. Your focus should now be keeping the new client engaged and returning for more.
Your goal is to encourage your customers to buy more often from your business. Youll have to keep in touch with your customers.
This means:
- Delivering updates, promotions, announcements and more regularly (and proactively) through various channels
- Develop programs, events, and other initiatives that will add value to your audience
- You should always seek feedback (and take action) from your satisfied and unhappy customers.
It would be best to treat someone as a lifelong customer once they give you money. Theyre not guaranteed to return, and they dont have a reason to unless you provide one.
It is important to know how to keep adding value over time to deliver a great ecommerce experience.
Ecommerce Customer Experience Vs. User Experience
We need to clarify the differences between Ecommerce Customer Experience & UX before moving forward. User experience is the overall functional structure and aspect of the ecommerce experience.
UX, on the other hand, is concerned with how efficiently customers can perform their intended tasks.
Here are some examples.
- Find the exact product youre looking for easily.
- Accessing and digesting brand content.
- Making purchases and other transactions.
If the customer cant perform these tasks, they will not be able to experience the brand to its fullest. With a streamlined and optimized experience, your customers can immerse themselves into their brand experience -- and enjoy it to the fullest.
A website analytics tool that includes heat mapping and session replays, form and funnel analytics, and custom-triggered surveys can be used to improve the overall user experience of your site.
What is Ecommerce Customer Service Management?
Ecommerce Customer Experience Management is a process that allows you to gain and maintain full control of the interactions your ecommerce success clients have with your brand.
We dont necessarily mean you will try to dictate every customers move.
You should always be ready to provide what the customer wants at any moment, even if the customer doesnt know it yet.
A proper approach to Ecommerce Customer Experience Management will ensure that your team is never scrambling to meet the needs of a customer.
Optimizing your approach to Ecommerce Customer Experience Management means that you can always go above and beyond to satisfy your customers, no matter what.
In other cases, your job will be to help your customers complete whatever task they have. Ecommerce Customer Experience management involves putting in place structures and failsafe to help your customers reach their goals.
You may have to step in when you face challenges or setbacks for your customers. In these situations, you must provide some added value to re-engage your struggling customer or convince them to continue on their journey to success.
Every interaction is important when crafting a good customer experience. This includes everything from emails sent to customer support software for your social media engagement to how your customers interact with your online store.
You dont need to spend much money to create a better customer experience. Learn about the benefits of a better customer experience throughout the buyers journey.
Also, learn what factors you should consider when crafting your customer experience digital Strategy.
How To Improve Your Ecommerce Customer Experience
Improving the ecommerce experience for your customers is crucial to your success and growth. There are several tactics that you can employ to enhance the digital experience of your audience.
Before you implement these specific tactics, take a moment to consider the best way to reach your customers.
Customer-Centricity And Alignment
Your team must first and foremost become data-driven and customer-centric. You must change how you research, make decisions, and interact with customers.
It is not enough to use data to justify a decision, but you should also rely on customer data and other data to help make decisions.
Design And UX Audit
Youll be able to better understand your customers perspectives once you can see the world from their point of view.
Consider the following factors:
- Content - Is the content on your site engaging in terms of informational and aesthetic value? Is it in line with the "feel" of your brand to create an integrated ecommerce experience for customers? Does it help the customer move forward in their journey?
- Site Navigation & Functionality - Can customers do what they want on your site? They can easily find products, content, or other information. Can they streamline transactions?
- Immersive Shopping Experience - Combining all of the above, can your customers immerse themselves in your shopping experience on-site? What do you do specifically to "lock them in"? What parts of your website might help them snap out of the experience theyre having?
This will help identify areas that need improvement on your website, from the homepage to the product pages. It can also assist you in creating a better balance of aesthetics and functionality.
Customers Are The Best Source Of Information
It is impossible to overstate the importance of listening carefully to your customers. Before you ask your customers to speak up, please take a moment to review what they have already said.
Brand monitoring and social listening are two tactics that can help you determine what your target audience has said about your brand, competitors, and the industry in general.
The content created by users can provide a wealth of information about the digital experience your customers have with your brand.
Look at the analytic reports of your website to find out where there is most engagement and friction. When you dig deeper, you will get a better idea of where to focus your efforts.
Youll have to ask your customers to provide more information to dig deeper. You can get a lot of information from your existing customers about their experiences on your eCommerce website development.
Youll need to create multiple surveys that focus on different aspects of your experience to uncover this information.
You may send a survey out to the entire audience or a specific segment. You may want to reach out to a particular customer who made a recent purchase or engaged with your brand in a certain way.
To learn more about your new customers needs and expectations by observing them. Youll get a better understanding of how well you engage new followers and what you can do to improve your efforts.
You want to make sure that you are as open as possible when asking for feedback or conducting surveys. There are times when a concise response is sufficient, but you want to allow your customers the opportunity to elaborate whenever they need to.
You should note that simply surveying your clients can improve their experience of your brand. By implementing improvements to your Ecommerce Customer Experience based solely on the feedback of your customers, you will demonstrate to them how much you appreciate their business.
Theyll be more inclined to stay with you for a long time.
Use Projective Techniques
You can go a little further by using projective techniques in order to get a deeper understanding of your customers psyche.
You can ask your volunteers to describe how they perceive your brand by using symbols, feelings, and/or ideas.
Some example prompts you might provide include:
- What would your brand be saying if it was a character in this comic?
- What would your brand be if it was (a car, an athlete, food, or another common "thing"?
- What would be the weakness of your brand if it was a superhero?
You will also ask the respondents to elaborate on their answers. This open-mindedness also allows you to explore their perceptions of your brand.
You can analyze these metaphorical answers (and compare them to other survey results you collected previously) once you have them.
You can also ask respondents for more information if needed. This will allow you to make practical and laser-focused changes based on the initial abstract data.
Consider The Customer Journey When Planning Your Marketing Campaigns
Understanding your customers journey to purchase and beyond is key to optimizing the ecommerce experience.
Consider your customers lifecycle.
- What are the different micro-moments (and stages) of the cycle?
- Where and how will they get the things they need? How can it be best delivered?
- How can you add even more value to these moments in order to ensure further engagement?
- How will they proceed after they have what they need?
Read More: Benefits of Custom ECommerce Development Services
What Are The Advantages Of E-Commerce?
1: Low Financial Cost
eCommerce solutions have lower startup costs.
Renting a store location can cost up to thousands of dollars for physical retail stores. There are also several upfront costs, such as the cost of store signage, store design, purchasing inventory, selling equipment, etc.
Not to mention, store owners must hire employees to run and work at each location. Depending on the value of the products in the store, they may need to hire additional security personnel.
Shopifys virtual rent is only around $3192 per year for ecommerce shops. Shopify offers a simple platform, free Shopify Themes, great apps, and other benefits.
You may not need to hire staff until you reach a certain size, depending on the type of online business you operate.
These employees can work from home as your online store is virtual, which makes it easier to hire staff who will fit your business.
Dropshipping online allows you to save money by not having to purchase bulk inventory.
Ecommerce also makes branding cheaper. A store sign is more expensive than your store logo. Graphic designers, yes even the best of them, are often cheaper than a paint job.
The business expenses you incur are usually lower, and this is a great benefit for new entrepreneurs.
2: Potential 24/7 Income
Online stores are open 24/7. You can reach people in any country with Facebook ads. The majority of physical stores are open from 9 am to 9 pm, which gives you an advantage.
You can draw in customers who would have picked up the product at a store if it were open.
Consider your audience, who may not work regular hours or are too busy to visit a store to purchase something. You can attract customers who have irregular work schedules and dont have the time to go shopping in person.
What about the customers who place orders at night? You dont have to hire employees to work a night shift to meet their needs.
You can automate your order systems to send a confirmation email to customers when they place an order.
3: Selling Internationally
The next benefit of ecommerce is the ability to sell to customers around the world. You can find your target audience, whether they are in the U.K.
or South America.
Selling internationally is an amazing feat, as it allows you to build your brand much faster, expand your market exponentially and see profits long before local competitors.
With our tips for international shipping, you can avoid some of the hassles that come with shipping goods across borders.
4: Its Easy To Display Bestsellers
Its easier to showcase products in an online store with ecommerce features like bestsellers. Online stores make it easier for customers to find best sellers.
While brick-and-mortar stores can be designed to encourage people to purchase certain digital products, they have to navigate through multiple aisles and shelves.You want your customers to buy them because they are proven.
Customers who have bought the products are satisfied with their purchases. You can showcase new products in your email marketing campaigns, retargeting ads, and upsells.
5: A Personalized Online Experience
Personalization of websites can enhance the online shopping process. You can create landing pages that are personalized for different audiences.
This is one of the greatest advantages of online businesses.
It can encourage them to purchase from you with a little extra effort on your part. You dont have to nurture customers who walk into your store from the very first moment.
After you have done all the work to prepare for a campaign, you can relax and start marketing your product.
Email marketing campaigns can be used to personalize your experience. Segment your email lists by location, purchase history, or amount spent.
Retargeting customers who have visited your online shop by showing them ads for products they forgot to add to their cart is another recommendation.
You can use a welcome message if your online business offers a login option. For example, Welcome Back (name).Bundles of products can encourage customers to buy more at a lower price, increasing their average order value.
Upsells can be personalized based on what the customer is interested in or what you believe they will like based on their purchasing behavior.
What Are The Disadvantages Of Ecommerce?
1: No One Can Buy During A Site Crash
If your website crashes, the worst ecommerce disadvantage is that no one will be able to buy anything from you. Its, therefore, important that your website is hosted by the correct platform.
If you pay the minimum hosting fees and your website crashes because of a spike in traffic due to a TV shout-out or an ad that converts well.
Shopify custom development, for example, offers free hosting as part of their monthly fees.
This allows you to use one of the most powerful servers available. Only one site was down in recent memory. But ecommerce sites werent the sole ones affected.
This crash affected Twitter, Spotify etc. This issue was resolved on the same day. Site crashes on platforms such as Shopify are rare enough that theyre unlikely to cause any problems for your business.
2: Customers Cant Try Before They Buy
This is a short-term issue for retailers. More stores are adding elements to their stores to let customers try on products.
Businesses can create an interactive experience for their customers by using augmented reality ecommerce. But customers cant try before buy.
3: Ecommerce Is Highly Competitive
Another of the biggest disadvantages of ecommerce is that it can be difficult to attract customers. In reality, the most niches can be the most competitive.
This is why they are so attractive to entrepreneurs. The more competitive a market is, the higher the cost of ads in that particular niche. You can get around this in a few ways.
You can first implement a marketing tool strategy that is different from your competitors.You might consider Instagram marketing if your audience is very visual.
If all of your competitors are using Pinterest, you could try it if they use the platform.
You might consider Instagram marketing, especially if you have a visually-oriented audience. If your competitors use Pinterest, then you should try it if you are a visual marketer.
4: Customers Can Be Impatient
A salesperson will be on hand to answer any questions a customer may have. A disadvantage of ecommerce is the delay in responding to inquiries from customers.
Most customers expect to receive a reply from a company within an hour via social media.
You may make them angry if you take too long to respond. They might shop elsewhere instead. You must be online at all times.
Conclusion
The projected growth of ecommerce website solutions revenues is 14.56% per year, which will result in a market volume of around 1,365.00 billion dollars by 2025.
This shows that ecommerce wont be a passing trend.
Digital buyers can expect seamless shopping and browsing across devices and multiple commerce platforms.
The following are other trends to look out for in the future of online commerce:
- Personalization and robust customer journeys.
- Artificial Intelligence enables shopping.
- Shopping for social causes
- Mobile commerce.
- Digital currencies such as mobile wallets, cryptocurrency, and digital currency.
We must remember that, in terms of the overall retail picture, ecommerce is relatively new. Future opportunities are endless, but their success and continued existence will be largely determined by the preferences of future buyers.
