Shopify has many underutilized tools at its disposal. Much like the human brain, many people don’t realize its full potential. If you want to avoid missing out, this list has fourteen of the best ways you can improve conversion rates on Shopify.
14 ways to improve conversion rates on Shopify:
1. Use affiliate marketing apps like UpPromote to grow conversion rates
Affiliate marketing leverages influencers to drive conversions and prioritize honesty and trust. According to research, 56% of consumers make purchases based on influencer recommendations. Transparency about the affiliate-advertiser relationship boosts trust, with 66% of consumers relying on product recommendations when this relationship is clear. Consider using affiliate marketing software like UpPromote for effective management and tracking of affiliates.
Affiliate marketing also benefits search engine rankings through backlinks from bloggers and publishers. These backlinks contribute to your online presence and Google’s preference for user-friendly content.
Furthermore, affiliate marketing can boost & improve conversion rates on Shopify by attracting new and repeat customers through special promotions. Influencers’ recommendations, combined with exclusive deals, increase the likelihood of customer purchases. This strategy reaches a wider audience and drives conversions from both new and existing customers.
2. Use apps to Upsell and Cross-sell
You have a 70% chance of selling to existing customers. When targeting existing customers, the best time to do it is as they are buying something.
Both upselling and cross-selling are selling to customers who have already decided to buy your product. Since your product is ideal for solving a problem, they might have another similar problem another product might sell. Otherwise, you might have an accessory that makes that problem even more approachable.
Shopify has upselling apps you can use to make this easier. Here are some examples:
Try to avoid being too pushy with the upsell, as you want customers to feel like it is their decision. So avoid popups at all costs.
3. Speed up your site (Especially the Mobile Version)
Over the past two years, there are two aspects of Google’s search engine dominating the news:
- Mobile-first indexing
- The importance of page speed
Google has made it clear that both are high priorities to gain a decent search ranking. Both involve the importance of improving the user experience of your visitors.
If you rely on bloated, old-fashioned web code, it’s time to upgrade. Also, if you don’t have a mobile site, you should know that more than 80% of the world’s population uses smartphones.
So, not only do you need a mobile-friendly site, but you need a fast one. Thankfully, many Shopify themes are ready for this. For further speed, you might consider upgrading to Shopify 2.0 (if you haven’t already).
4. Boost user-friendliness by improving the interface
Many website users determine whether they will leave within the first 50 milliseconds. So if those users cannot understand what your website does immediately, your bounce rate has just gotten higher.
While milliseconds are a bit overkill, it isn’t too far off (usually a few seconds). Having a simple website that doesn’t do too much is crucial.
If your competition is doing well, look at their website and take notes. Ask yourself what you want customers to do or feel when they first see your landing page.
Conduct surveys from people you don’t know about your website. Ask them what they think it is about. If there is no consensus among them, you might want to consider a site redesign.
Yes, a site makeover can be time-consuming and complicated for non-techies, but it doesn’t have to be that way. As one of the most powerful page builders for Shopify, GemPages allows you to build, design, and optimize your store pages without coding.
To get started, take a tour of its extensive library of templates and elements. Then choose your favorite template, drag and drop any element you want and customize it to your specific needs. Moreover, all these elements are responsive, meaning your pages will look great on any device which can help to keep customers on your site and spending money for longer.
5. Avoid popups & spammy practices
The conversion rate of popups is about 3%, which is low compared to most attempts to monetize your site. While there is a right and wrong way to do popups, it comes down to this: your entire website needs to provide value.
If you do a popup, make sure it means something to the viewer. For example, many popups offer a small discount or a free eBook. Once the user declines the popup, that should be the last time they see it. Good popups can have higher than average conversion rates (up to 10%).
Repeating popups is one way to drive away users. The same habits will ruin newsletters and blogs. If everything you post does not value the user, they won’t stick around much longer.
6. Use review apps like Judgeme or Trustpilot to increase social proof
Nearly 90% of purchases end with online research. Knowing this, establishing your authority is something you need to do quickly. There are two significant sources you can use both on and off Shopify:
While other online resources you can use (Google My Business, Yelp, etc.), Trustpilot and Judge.me are the two most common when advertising online stores. This is because Trustpilot is a well-known business known not to skew reviews.
On the other hand, Judge.me is a method to gain direct feedback on Shopify. Displaying the customer experience at the bottom of your product establishes immediate social proof. Doing both works as a form of online reputation management, social proof, and quickly addressing user feedback.
Using Judge.me, you can also add reward medals to your pages. These can’t be skewed and are brought in directly from their site.
7. Add your company information (About Us page)
More than 80% of customers agree that authenticity is vital in a brand. You can establish this authenticity through the good old-fashioned “about this company” piece.
While the “About Us” section seems like a relic of convention, people are more likely to engage with companies that have a purpose. Grove Collaborative is one great example where strong sustainability practices are the company’s core.
Think of why you started your eCommerce business in the first place. While making money is great, you maximize your earnings potential when working towards something passionate about. If you are not passionate about what you sell (or do), you might be in the wrong profession.
8. Provide Fast & Helpful Customer Service
The user experience should be a priority to anyone operating in the eCommerce industry. Ideally, your target audience will be pretty easy to deal with, but purchasing decisions often come down to company’s reputation for customer service.
If your company has a prolific history of bad user experiences, it will reveal itself on sites like Trustpilot and Judge.me. Whether there is an issue with the Checkout process or other customer concerns, you need to be ready.
By being responsive to your prospective buyers, you create loyal customers. Customer retention becomes a lot easier if you work with people’s issues.
Often, if the user doesn’t want your product after buying it, it is better to let them have it. If you’re a new eCommerce seller, fighting with your customers won’t start you in the right direction.
9. Make it easier to pay
Believe it or not, some of these issues go back to the checkout experience. Errors by using a low-quality payment processor can ruin your conversion rates.
So instead of working with a cheaper provider, be picky about who provides your payment gateways. Here are some of the best:
- Shopify Payments (the default payment method – Stripe & Shopify)
- PayPal (Really secure and popular)
- Square (great if you also have local sales)
- Afterpay (Awesome if you want to offer split payments)
The best payment provider depends on your needs, so do your best to research settling on one.
10. Provide better offers by understanding the customer
Alex Hormozl, the author of “How To Make Offers So Good People Feel Stupid Saying No,” reminds us to charge high and ensure your product meets those needs. While the book has a few chapters before getting to it, the unbeatable offer boils down to ensuring your product provides more value than they put into it.
When selling products, provide the most compelling offer. You’ll need a deep understanding of what your customers are looking for by using the following resources:
- User reviews (both yours and your competitors)
- Online forums
- Amazon book reviews (of the topic you are selling on)
- Asking your customers directly
This allows you to address the next heading better:
11. Write better copy on pages
Once you completely understand everything the customer needs, it’s time to write about how your product solves all their problems. Ask yourself how it saves them time and money, cures pain, and defeats their problems.
Ideally, your website copy should answer any question about the product. The more information and data you can show, the better you are.
But you will also want to address the emotional appeal side by recognizing their pain and struggle. A complement also helps.
If you struggle, remind yourself that your product is built to help them out. If you aren’t sure about that, you might want to go through some personal testing with the product to see it in action. For example, private label sellers should test their products semi-regularly to maintain quality.
12. Offer Money-Back Guarantee
The better your money-back guarantee, the more confidence you have in your product. Often, sellers are offered 30 days with this, but you have complete control over this offer. You can even offer up to 60 days if you feel confident enough in your product.
Money-back guarantees establish automatic confidence in your product. This is one way to reduce abandoned carts, increase sales, and give people the same belief.
It would be best to have a defined return policy dictating conditions to benefit from a money-back guarantee.
13. Give the customers benefits
Part of creating the most compelling offer (read numbers 9 and 10 above) is offering more benefits. These benefits should be displayed near the end of the purchasing process when the customer has already identified your product as useful.
These benefits might include the following:
- A lifetime warranty
- Discounts on other product accessories
- A one-on-one meeting on how to use the product
- Additional replacement parts
- Incentives on larger cart sizes
The more you give, the higher chance you get a reaction.
14. Recover abandoned carts using Klaviyo or similar apps
Cart abandonment rates are typically around 70%. While not all of those abandoned carts are customers that can buy your product, most are seeking an alternative offer.
Some customers are forgetful, so sending a reminder of their forgotten cart might help. Here are some Shopify apps you should consider for cart recovery:
- Klaviyo (includes email and SMS)
- SMS Text Messaging & Marketing
- Abandoned Cart Recovery Email
- Facebook Messenger – Live Chat
When recovering shopping carts, you might have people already considering your product.
Conclusion
Boosting your conversions involves a combination of activities to improve the user experience and remind people of what they are missing. Overall, your goal should enhance the shopping experience to encourage people to buy from you. You aren’t pushy; you are only providing gentle nudges.
Of course, being too pushy and spammy results in the opposite effect. People tend to void what looks like desperation, so analyze your website copy, email marketing, and popups. Using these 14 tips will also help improve conversions on Shopify.
