10 Reasons Why People Are Leaving Your eCommerce Website
To ensure that your web application is not losing its visitors, we’ve collected some of the top reasons why people leave eCommerce Websites.
Why People Leave Your eCommerce Website
Slow Page Load Times
Perhaps the most common reason users leave a web page is because the pages take too long to load. Today web performance must be top notch, in the range of 4 seconds or less, in order to meet user expectations. Unfortunately, the average display time for an eCommerce website remains around 7 seconds. There are dozens of techniques to employ for performance, including optimizing images, and sequencing assets.
An Over-Complicated Checkout Process
Ever hear the term “Keep it simple, stupid”? It absolutely holds true in the world of eCommerce. If you over complicate your checkout process, there’s an increased risk of abandoned shopping carts. According to Kinjal Adeshara, a blogger and digital marketer at Cygnet Infotech, “If you make the user fill out too many forms or perform too many complicated or repetitive actions, the impatient customer will abandon the cart and leave.” You can avoid this issue by making the process more visual and limiting a number of steps it takes to complete the checkout process.
Confusing Page Navigation
Simplicity is bliss. If a user finds your application too confusing to navigate you can kiss them goodbye. According to Joshua Adams of Rock Paper Simple, a web design, and development agency, “If you have to sit down and show your prospect how to navigate your site, you are doing it wrong! It should be easy and fast to navigate your site. Don’t let a confusing navigation ruin an otherwise great website.” While there’s something to be said for originality, there’s an even more compelling argument for giving users an experience that feels familiar and easy to use.
Mobile Unfriendliness
Ever hear of “Mobilegeddon”? Google’s recent Algorithm update changed how applications are ranked in search engine results. Those organizations that have made their web content mobile friendly will rank higher on search engines than those who have not optimized for mobile. Mobile optimization is no longer an option; it is a part of life. Custora, among others, have found that one-third of all eCommerce purchases are now made on a smartphone. Want to increase sales? Cater to mobile users by making your application mobile friendly.
Different Device, Different Experience
Seeing mobile traffic rise but conversions on mobile stay low? We know that 90% of customers use multiple devices during the online buying process. Given this fact, a common issue that comes up while trying to optimize web content for a mobile device is that the experience is not close enough in design and layout to the familiar desktop (or vice versa). One solution to this issue is using Responsive Web Design. Sabuj Kundu, the Founder and CEO of Codeboxr said “Google states that responsive web design is its recommended mobile configuration, and even goes so far as to refer to responsive web design as the industry best practice”. Responsive web design ensures the user experience is at least similar across devices, making users feel comfortable when revisiting sites.
Lack of Customer Reviews
Online customers love the opinions of others and want to see what people are saying about your product or services. By not incorporating a customer review element on your application, you may appear to be hiding something. Using a customer review section will show that you organization is transparent and trustworthy. It also gives you a chance to really brag about your products and services. If people love what you do, why not share it?
Stale and Outdated Content
Constantly updating your web application’s content is a good way to keep customers coming back for more. Leaving your older, stale content on your application will take away the legitimacy of your page, and can result in lower rankings on search engines. You want to show your visitors (and Google) that you are there for them with new and exciting information. According to Enfuzed, a web design, and graphic design blog, “Having outdated content will not only turn visitors away, it will turn away search engines as well.”
Not Knowing Your Audience
In order to deliver fresh content that people want to see you must do persona research. It is hard to give your customers what they want if you don’t know what they want. There’s a phenomenon known to designers and developers as HiPPO — short for Highest Paid Person’s Opinion. When this is the driving force behind development it leads to assumptions about users that are often off-base since user behavior can be counter-intuitive. To counteract the HiPPO effect, any decisions you make, whether it is a design idea or content idea, must be based on research — whether its through analyzing behavior of users on your current site, surveys, or A/B testing.
Forgetting to Add an “About Us”
Believe it or not, many organizations forget to put an “About Us” page on their application. If you do not provide clear details on what it is you are providing a visitor why would they stay on your eCommerce page? Adam Kreitman, the owner of Words That Click, said,”People care about themselves. They want to know how your company, your products/services, and your employees can improve their lives”. You must spell out to your visitors what it is your do, why you do it, and why you are the best choice for the job.
Using Sales’y Redirects
When a user is on a website and clicks a link that redirects them somewhere other than they wanted to go, you have lost all of their trust. Allow consumers to navigate your web application the way they want. Redirecting visitors from a regular page to a sales page will infuriate them. Remember, user experience comes first. If your application visitors are not enjoying their user experience, they will leave your page.
For more information on why people are leaving you’re website and what you can do about it, try downloading our Free Guide: “How to Identify 10 Performance Problems in 10 Seconds” to deliver a more inviting user experience.
