Having trouble turning your website visitors into paying customers? If you’re seeing a lot of abandoned shopping carts online and want to improve conversion rates for your website, here are five common E-commerce mistakes to avoid.

1. Poor user experience

Online shoppers are looking for a smooth and simple retail experience. That means your E-commerce site should be easy to navigate and optimized for both mobile and desktop users. Put yourself in your customer’s shoes — is it difficult to locate a specific product? Do webpages take more than a few seconds to load? Are the top-selling items buried on the site? Make it as easy as possible for shoppers to browse your inventory and find what they’re looking for by ensuring products are catalogued logically and accompanied by detailed, keyword-rich descriptions. A good E-commerce site will also include helpful (but unobtrusive) related product recommendations that can increase sales.

2. Unprofessional images

Customers can’t touch your products when shopping online, so they rely heavily on product images to decide what to buy. Populating your website with bad, low-resolution photos is a big mistake that will lead to poor E-commerce sales. Investing in professional, high-quality product photos or videos will give shoppers a clear visual and improve your E-commerce conversion rates. Add at least three pictures to each product page, display items from multiple angles, and include a zoom function to give customers a closer look at what they’re buying.

3. Hidden fees

Shopping on the web requires a lot of trust, which means E-commerce customers want to know exactly how much they’re spending before they check out. Adding unexpected shipping costs, handling fees, and duties at the checkout stage will make visitors second-guess their purchase decision. Avoid this common E-commerce mistake by being upfront about shipping prices and processing fees. Your website should also include detailed information about your company’s return policy, which will give visitors peace of mind when shopping.

4. Complicated check-out process

Once your customers have reached the purchasing stage of the sales funnel, you want to make it as easy as possible for them to pay for their goods quickly and securely. A complicated, multi-step checkout process will make users frustrated, leading them to abandon their cart before they’ve completed the purchase. Here are a few ways to streamline your E-commerce checkout process:

• Don’t force users to register for an account before they buy.

• Only ask for information that’s absolutely necessary.

• Add security symbols on the checkout page to demonstrate your site is secure and trustworthy.

• Provide multiple payment options to help close the sale quickly.

5. Poor customer service

Customers depend on small business owners to be there for them at each stage of the sales process, whether they have questions about a product before they buy, issues with checking out, or follow-up concerns once they receive their purchase. Ignoring customer inquiries or taking a long time to respond to questions is one of the biggest E-commerce mistakes to avoid. Offering great customer service is a critical part of managing your brand reputation and will help you convert site visitors into loyal customers.Contact a Yellow Pages expert today to learn more about complete e-commerce solutions. Our Media Account Consultants are ready to take your call at 1-877-553-6883.