Businesses that operate online stores on dedicated platforms like Shopify often focus on getting the customer on their site above everything else. Leads are definitely an important part of the equation, but we must also consider the other part of the equation, the conversions. We need to be able to convert browsers into customers.
The product page is the final stop of the customer before they place an order. This point can make or break a sale and influence the total amount, if any, the customer is willing to spend.
As the final step before the actual sale, the product page is a point that deserves a lot of attention in order to provide the best possible conversion ratios. From simple aspects like the quality of the copy, the feel of the brand, and the features of the product itself, to things like the ergonomics of the design, which information is included, and the overall quality of the user experience, many factors need to be carefully considered when tweaking and optimizing a product page.
Tons of product page optimizations can provide incremental benefits for a Shopify store and every business has to choose what is appropriate for them. To get started, here’s a list of the most common ways to optimize product pages.
1. The Right Product Images
There are no set rules regarding the right product images. Each product is different, coming with its own specific particularities. One thing to keep in mind though is the fact that images are a major factor in buying decisions.
Providing quality samples, showcasing the product in the best light possible, showing it from multiple angles, and allowing customers to zoom or even to rotate the product is always a good idea. When possible, videos of products are even better.
2. Provide Information before the Customer Needs It
In the fast-paced world of online commerce, letting a customer scour through endless pages in order to find the information he needs means failure. The product page should always be set up in such a way as to provide the shortest path for the customer towards the information he needs regarding the product.
A clever balance must be put in place between the amount of information displayed and its readability. Some products need a lot of accompanying text. Most don’t.
3. Address the Concerns of the Customer before They Arise
When a customer looks for a particular product, he or she does so to fulfill a specific need. Furthermore, regarding that product, the customer has his or her own concerns — for example, for a sports watch, the user needs to know if it’s waterproof, if it’s comfortable enough to wear, and at the same time rugged enough to withstand shocks and scratches that are inherent when doing sports.
The product page, in this case, must be optimized in such a way as to show the product solving the customer’s problem while putting his or her concerns to rest in a clear, direct manner.
4. Use Descriptions Geared Towards the Customer
Every online store should know its client base and its language. Product descriptions that are bland to the point where they feel as though they have been written by a robot fail to make conversions while a product description that speaks the language of the customer will always make a good impression and drive sales.
5. Social Validation
In this social-media-driven day and age, more and more customers want to validate their decision of whether or not to buy a product by looking through what others had to say about the same product.
While normal on-site product reviews and opinions/feedback are still a thing, social media opinions provide a much more personal and trustworthy buying decision validation tool for the potential customer.
6. Call to Action
The human mind works in mysterious ways and for this reason alone a clear, easily visible call-to-action will do just that — call on the customer to click on it to perform an action. It seems like such a minor detail but professional analysis shows that getting your call-to-action buttons right is an incredibly powerful tool for increasing conversions.
7. Live Chat, When and Where It’s Needed
Pop-ups inviting potential customers to chat immediately as they open the homepage of the store can be extremely annoying and intrusive. However, a carefully set-up and minimalist live chat, placed on the product page and popping up just at the right time is a more than useful optimization that can turn around a lost customer or increase the amount of a sale. To be used wisely!
8. Personalized Notifications
Customers these days don’t go for generic. They want identity, they want branding. For this simple reason, optimizing the product pages towards proper branding that reflects your business provides the customer with an enhanced shopping experience and the seller with the benefit of in
9. Offering Product Customization
The need to be unique is real and should be addressed by every Shopify online store owner when it comes to his clients. Providing the customer, where possible and applicable, with ways to customize the product they are looking to buy makes the customer feel like he or she is buying something truly unique and tailor-made, this way improving both customer satisfaction and conversion ratio.
10. Up-Selling Optimization through Product Recommendations
Understanding customer behavior on product pages and optimizing them accordingly is a key factor in the quest to increase both sales and conversions for a particular store. Systems like DataCue can record the behavior of customers and offer them personalized product recommendations. The smarter your personalization, the better the results.
Related product recommendations are key in up-selling to a customer. Imagine someone has just placed a laptop in their shopping card. Recommending to this client in a clear, visible, and attractive way a laptop bag, a wireless mouse, or even a numeric keypad is likely to get him to order at least one of these items, thus increasing the total checkout amount.
Similar product recommendations on the other hand play a major role not only in up-selling in cases such as someone buying some t-shirts and being shown other t-shirts that also match his or her own particular tastes, but also in providing valid alternatives to customers which are on the fence regarding a particular product, alternatives which are very likely to act as the final push towards said customer proceeding to checkout.
Cover photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash.
