Companies aim to optimize their eCommerce effectiveness as online sales grow faster than brick-and-mortar retail sales. But beyond offering competitive pricing and high-quality products, what can brands do to increase the likelihood of that next sale?
eCommerce Factors that Impact Internet Shoppers’ Decisions
Let’s examine some of the more unexpected factors influencing shoppers’ decisions online and how you can adapt.
Speed
The fact that internet speed can affect online shopping may not be surprising. However, the extent to which that manifests itself in decision-making is impressive.
By tracking users who added items to a cart and then did not buy them at the checkout loading stage, research firms have been able to split-test how loading time affects purchase abandonment. For example, in results published by Radware, a loading time increase of two seconds caused more than a 15% increase in canceled transactions.
This holds up even more internationally: a U.K. study found that more than 50% of U.S. consumers and 65% of those in the U.K. would abandon a planned purchase due to an annoyingly slow website.
As a business, ensure your websites and eCommerce platforms load smoothly and quickly. Redesigns of your interface and site map can lead to faster loading without investing money in more bandwidth or hosting capabilities (although that can also be a wise investment). In addition, many businesses avoid speed issues by going through preexisting online marketplaces like Shopify.
Design
Website design is another factor that matters much more than people think.
A lack of trust and comfort with online shopping is a major reason why online sales have thus far not surpassed retail figures. On the other hand, this is partly why unified online marketplaces like Amazon have a leg up; people are comfortable using them and thus trust the service more.
What can businesses do about this lack of trust? Invest in better design.
Studies have linked better website design to increased trust in the Internet shopping experience and higher purchasing rates. Therefore, businesses can significantly boost internet sales by having an online shopping platform that makes it easy to find information, navigate where users want to be, and look good.
Good design also means making it as fast as possible to save items to a cart, check out, and pay. Each one of these steps is a potential stumbling block for an online transaction and should be bypassed as easily as possible.
An important note on design: since web browsing is now more prominent on mobile devices than computers, all eCommerce platforms must be mobile-friendly and aesthetically functional. The millennial market share is growing, and impulse and on-the-go buys happen exclusively via smartphones.
Shipping
Shipping is a major hold-up for the new breed of internet consumers used to free two-day Prime shipping and on-demand streaming.
An offer for free shipping over a certain price point, a practice used by many online retailers, is a clever way to capitalize on this need for fast, free shipping. The same consumer might pay more for an item in the first place to make the shipping “free” later on to avoid the hassle of not knowing the full payment amount upfront.
Hidden fees bother consumers who deal with them in the extreme when buying concert tickets or fights. So for companies trying to get into online consumers’ good graces, advertising a code for free shipping in the website banner, as a pop-up, or even as part of a loyalty program may pay off.
Raising prices overall to enable transparent pricing and “free” shipping, although it may seem like moving costs around, will likely lead to more traffic and sales.
Endorsements – eCommerce Factors that Impact Internet Shoppers’ Decisions
Peer pressure works not only in social situations but in internet shopping. However, the impacts can be significant regarding a greater online community endorsing a product. This kind of peer endorsement can come in three main forms.
First, an organic recommendation from a friend or colleague who has used the product significantly influences online shopping decisions. However, this direct recommendation is hard to come by means other than just making an excellent product or service, potentially giving out free samples, and hoping people like it enough to recommend it.
A second social factor affecting online shopping decisions is whether celebrities or similar high-impact figures have affiliations with a product and have recommended it.
In the last decade, this has meant the rise of partnerships with social media influencers and brand ambassadors, who use their organic following to promote a particular product. In addition, many companies turn to online event staffing agencies to find influential Instagram personalities or other online demi-celebrities to endorse a project.
The last peer-endorsement factor may be surprising: user reviews, even generally mediocre or negative ones, boost sales. Consumers prefer to buy products online with some peer review, even if that’s three out of five stars.
The reasons for this are similar to the design-related ones: trustworthiness. Knowing that another internet shopper has ordered, received, and used the item can increase trust that the transaction may be worth it.
In Summary – eCommerce Factors that Impact Internet Shoppers’ Decisions
Many factors play into online shopping decisions, but some often-overlooked ones can be surprising in their effects and magnitude.
Online interface speed and design play a huge part in internet shopping behavior. With ever-increasing competition for e-consumers, online businesses are often distinguished by their ease of use and navigation and the time it takes to get from a search result to the payment page.
Free shipping, or a lack thereof, is another significant singular factor that can sway consumer decisions. Companies with free shipping options are likelier to seal the deal due to a lack of last-minute costs and draw in modern consumers used to near-immediate gratification and two-day shipping times.
Lastly, whether organic or via brand ambassadors and promo models, peer endorsements greatly affect internet shopping habits. Businesses that open themselves to feedback via user reviews have a much better chance of gaining new business than those that don’t.
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Katherine (Tori) Lutz is a graduate of Florida State University and a current student at Columbia University. Her professional experience surrounds freelance work in writing, editing, and marketing. She lives in Brooklyn, NY, and aspires to be a journalist.
