As a dropshipper, you are competing against numerous other online retailers that might even sell the same products as you from the same suppliers. To distinguish yourself, your brand and your customers’ experiences are critical. Why should a consumer do business with you if your website looks like a scam? Why should anyone transact with you for a second time if there were impediments that obstructed the first? To make your customers’ shopping experience as positive and seamless as possible, here are a few things you might be doing that are frustrating them:
Not including enough information
Not providing enough information upfront about your products or contact information is a risky move—it might even deter people from becoming customers in the first place (and who can blame them? A lack of info is one of the principal signs of a fraudulent website).
Be sure to post as many contact details as possible, including your phone number, email address, mailing address, social media links (for direct messages), an “About” page, and when you are available. Your product descriptions are also something you need to put careful thought into: are they redundant? Too obvious? Descriptions taken straight from the manufacturer do not help customers imagine what it would be like to own said product, and they do nothing for your SEO.
Making the checkout process too long
Let’s pretend you are a customer for a moment: you find an online store that sells products you love. You are excited to make your purchases. You click the “checkout” button—and then you have pages and pages to go through of entering sensitive information before your transaction is complete. At this point, you are so frustrated that you decide the work is not worth it, so you leave your digital cart abandoned.
According to BigCommerce, seven out of ten shopping carts are abandoned. This is a serious yet avoidable profit loss for dropshippers. Your checkout process might not even be that long, but people are right to be wary of entering credit card information on sites that are not secure. BigCommerce also reports several other reasons why people abandon their carts, which include: additional costs that were too high and unexpected (such as taxes and shipping fees), not wanting to create an account, their total price was not calculated upfront, website crashes and bugs, and more.
Do not make your customers feel uncomfortable or need to jump through hoops just to buy from you. Their time is precious, and consumers hate when their shopping experience—which should be smooth—induces a headache.
Not providing a seamless website
On a related note, customers deserve to see well-designed websites with top-quality UX and UI. Do your best (work with a developer if necessary) to blend beauty with functionality. Even if your site is pleasing to look at and makes customers comfortable purchasing from you, they still have good reason to turn away if said site is challenging to navigate or has too many glitches. Features should work cleanly, and your content (such as listings and blog posts) should be easy to access.
Not giving them enough to work with
One of the caveats of shopping online is that you cannot touch an item on a shelf and feel its texture, which helps you envision the role it would play in your life if you took it home. Consumers have to make do with visuals, so ensure that your product images are high-quality and show off each item from different angles.
You do not have to stop with pictures, though: video is an effective way of showing your products in action, which helps shoppers imagine how they would use them. You can publish said videos on YouTube, Instagram Stories, Facebook Twitter, and other platforms (ideas include how-to guides, behind-the-scenes peeks, and interviews with figures in your industry). Do not worry if you lack technical skills; just search “which software is best for video editing free download?” to find some of the best editing tools available for creating high-quality content.
It is also crucial not to underestimate the power of reviews. You can tell your customers anything you want, but you have your own interests at heart, so why should they believe you? Furthermore, why should they believe celebrity influencers that you hire? People trust what their peers say, so remember to display testimonials on your website from real customers that talk about legitimate buying experiences with you.
You want your customers’ experience to be the best, so put yourself in their position and fix any issues that make shopping a bigger hassle than it’s worth. As a customer yourself, what are some things online retailers do that frustrate you (and that you will avoid with your own shop)?
