In today’s competitive online marketplace, merely having a website is not enough. With countless brands vying for consumer attention, distinguishing your site from the competition is crucial for attracting and maintaining customers.
One ecommerce site that is leading the pack in that respect is Ladders UK Direct, a UK-based retailer of ladders and other height access solutions for use at work and in the home.
Here are six top tips to help you enhance your own ecommerce website and, like Ladders UK Direct, become a stand-out success in today’s crowded online marketplace.
Design a Website That Looks Great
Creating an attractive website with high-quality images, a cohesive colour scheme and intuitive nagivation is essential for attracting new customers to your brand. In fact, more than 90% of consumers say they pay more attention to visual appearance than other elements when making a purchase. If you want to make a good first impression on potential customers, create an engaging and eye-catching web design so that your ecommerce site stands out from the crowd.
It is also essential that your website loads quickly and smoothly, even on smartphones. Google has been known to punish sites that have poor mobile compatibility and slow load times – so don’t let your lack of mobile optimisation lose you vital traffic and sales!
Increase On-Site Brand Trust
Trust is incredibly important in any customer relationship; however, trust can be something that’s hard to build online.
One way you can build the customer’s trust in your online company is by strategically showcasing social proof like Trustpilot ratings and customer reviews on your homepage. This will help your site to appear credible and safe, and thus encourage buyers to make a purchase.
Another way you can help to build trust in your ecommerce site is by having a good returns policy and FAQ section. A good returns policy assures customers that they can return items for a refund if they are not satisfied.
Ladders UK Direct, for example, have utilised both social proof in the form of Trustpilot reviews and a detailed returns policy to help their customers feel confident when placing an order. These features help to reduce purchase hesitation and improve customer loyalty, leading to increased sales overall.
Build Engagement Through Multiple Channels
Customer engagement is crucial for creating happy customers who are more likely to keep coming back. An effective way to increase engagement is by marketing to customers through multiple channels simultaneously. This could be through social media, blogging, promotional emails or paid Google Ads.
Utilising a combination of different marketing channels should help to increase your ecommerce site’s reach, boosting customer engagement, brand recognition and overall sales.
Offer a ‘Price Match’ Guarantee
Offering a ‘price match’ guarantee against your ecommerce site’s biggest competitors is a great way to boost customer loyalty and trust. Customers are far more likely to purchase from a site if they know that they are getting the best possible price, as this reduces their need to compare prices elsewhere.
Ladders UK Direct offer a price match guarantee as part of their commitment to customer satisfaction and fair pricing. This is one factor that has helped them to enhance their brand perception and remain a top competitor in their sector.
Get Seen in Different Parts of Google’s Results Page
In order for your ecommerce website to stand out from the crowd, you want its visibility to be maximised across different parts of the Google SERP (Search Engine Results Page). This means getting your website into not only the standard organic search results, but also the image results, map pack, shopping panel, and so on. This will help you to capture a larger portion of the search traffic, leading to more clicks and potential sales.
To show up in the traditional organic search results for keywords that are relevant to your business, you will need to optimise your key pages with well-written content that gets straight to the point and gives the user exactly what they are looking for. But other parts of the SERP require different strategies: for example, you will need to set up a Google Business Profile in order to appear in the map results, while signing up for Google Merchant Centre is a prerequisite for appearing in the organic shopping results. You could also consider running Google Ads if you want to show up at the very top of the most popular search results.
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Offer Exceptional Customer Service
Delivering exceptional customer service is crucial for survival in today’s competitive ecommerce market. So crucial that 86% of customers would be happy to pay more if they were guaranteed to receive great customer service. Promptly answering questions, resolving issues and offering support will help your brand build trust with customers, increasing brand loyalty and conversion rates and ultimately driving your sales.
Prioritising proactive communication about orders by keeping customers informed about shipping updates and any potential delays will also lead to higher customer satisfaction levels. Satisfied customers are then more likely to recommend your business to others, helping you generate organic leads and sales. So, set yourself apart from the crowd with your excellent customer service experiences and watch your ecommerce site grow!