Copyright Marty Foley,
ProfitInfo.com
Picture this: Your prospect has just learned about one of
your products or services, and is now ready to buy from
you. How you handle the next critical step can make or
break the sale.
Always keep in mind that most consumers are understandably
wary. They won't hesitate to abandon an intended purchase
if they encounter doubts or inconvenient snags in the
process.
I invite you to do a bit of honest self-examination when
considering the following tips, since problems in this
area may be costing you dearly in lost sales, right this
very minute.
Acting to improve on what you discover could very well
help boost your sales immediately.
1) How Easy Is It for Your Customers to Access Information
Needed to Buy From You?
a) For example, does the design of your web site make it
hard to navigate, or is the information needed to complete
a transaction within easy access to your customers, with
minimal mouse clicks?
Poor navigation is but one of many, many different snags
that hinder web site sales. Problem is, most site owners,
designers, and webmasters don't realize how much more a
site could sell, if it were only more user-friendly.
b) While you may wisely reduce the amount of repetitive
customer service issues by answering questions through a
F.A.Q., (an acronym for Frequently Asked Questions) etc.,
some prospects may yet have additional questions not
covered in it.
Do your prospects have a way to contact you to have such
questions answered, and do you have an efficient system in
place for answering them, promptly and efficiently?
Is the form of contact convenient to your prospects?
2) What Forms of Payment Do You Offer Your Customers?
a) Do you require your customers to send payment to you by
check, cash or money order only via regular postal mail? If
you're selling online and not accepting credit cards,
you're likely losing many sales.
b) What types of credit cards do you accept? Virtually any
type of business can increase sales by accepting payment
by Visa and MasterCard.
But even businesses already accepting Visa and MasterCard
may still be losing sales by not also accepting Discover
and American Express, especially in the U.S.
True, Visa and MasterCard encompass the vast majority of
all credit card transactions. But there are many consumers
who instead prefer to use Discover or American Express.
Do you want their business? If so, your existing merchant
account provider is most likely equipped to easily get you
set up to accept them.
3) How Easy Do You Make It for Customers to Submit Payment?
a) Suppose that you do accept credit cards. Even though the
risk of online credit card purchasing has been exaggerated,
and isn't necessarily more risky than offline transactions,
many consumers are concerned about submitting their credit
card data online.
With this in mind, in addition to being equipped to accept
online credit card orders through a secure server, do you
provide alternate ordering options for those who hesitate
(or refuse) to order online by credit card?
What about options to order with check, money order, or
credit card, by phone, fax, or postal mail?
b) Is your online order system simple to understand and
use, even for the most inexperienced users, or are they
inconvenient and confusing? How do you know?
Shopping cart abandonment is a term used to describe
when a would-be online customer abandons, or bails out of,
an online order form or shopping cart, before completing
an intended purchase.
Beware that this commonly overlooked problem robs Internet
merchants of billions of dollars in lost sales each year,
and that the selection and design of your online order
system has a major impact on your profits - for good or
bad!
c) Do you work hard to eliminate guesswork for customers,
provide complete order details, and guide them simply and
gently through the ordering process?
Remember: Any extra hoop you require prospects and
customers to jump through is an extra obstacle in the way
of a sale; another reason to change their minds about
buying from you.
If there's one thing I've learned, it's that there's
always room for improvement - in every business in
existence. So don't feel bad when you find them in your
own business. I guarantee you they exist; you just may
not be aware of them yet.
Unfortunately, there's not enough room in this article to
cover all the obstacles possibly hindering your online
sales, of which there are at least hundreds!
But the basic lesson behind the above tips is this: Make
it as easy as possible for customers to do business with
you. The easier you make it, the more likely they will.
More Helpful Resources...
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