After creating a WordPress website for your business, the next step is to make its e-commerce capable. Fortunately for WordPress, that does not require any redesign or migration headaches. But instead, you just need to add the Woocommerce plugin to your website and start selling your products.

However, making it e-commerce capable does not mean your WordPress website can achieve your business goals all by itself. To make your website an e-commerce success, there is a certain investment required from your part. In this article, we will share the 10 most important tips to build your WordPress website into an irresistible shopping platform.

Use these as a checklist to work up your WordPress website, review the changes made and then implement them to your e-commerce store. Every improvement can make a huge difference in terms of user experience, rankings on search engines and the revenues you generate.

Write Good Product Descriptions

Product description should be well composed, concise yet engaging. Never put in with the dull copy of the manufacturer, but instead, spice it up with a few fireworks to bring the important features into the spotlight. You can use extensions such as WooCommerce Quick View to display products description quickly. Also, make sure to keep your product description updated with fresh content.

Introduce Quality Images

You need to make sure your images are done in high quality with zoomable functions to enlarge them. They should also be available in multiple angles to the customers can get a better understanding on what they are buying. You can use a DSLR camera to photograph your products. Although DSLR cameras don’t come cheap, they produce better image results and secure even the tiniest of details in the image. Better images mean lower bounce rates and increased engagement.

Add Product Videos

Offer videos to your customers that show your products. Show better visual detail and better angles in the video so that your customers appreciate what they are buying. Since online stores lack the touching and holding feel customers avail in brick and mortar stores, videos are as close as it gets to it so make them count.

Keep Titles SEO Ready

Create titles in accordance with user preferences. They should be search engine friendly so they can be easily searched by customers and ranked by Google. Better ranking always produces better sales for the website. You can also use SEO tools such as Yoast to create optimized keywords for separate products to search engines can easily crawl them. If tools don’t work out, you can always hire a dedicated SEO resource to do the Job.

Show Transparent Policies

Never keep your customers in the dark. Show your company and store policies clear and transparent through FAQs. Everything from Shipping charges, return policies, paid services and other procedures should be shown to the customer. Hiding them or charging them later can not only lose you a potential customer but also reflect badly on your business ethics. Transparent policies facilitate trust and establish a long-lasting merchant-customer bond that benefits both parties in course of a relationship.

Use Simple Registration

Make your user registration process simple and hassle-free. Overly complicated registration processes are the primary reason behind cart abandonment. Adding understandable and unsophisticated fields is a great practice to improve conversions and reduce bounce rates. You can also use plugins to add custom registration fields to acquire important information that your can use later for your marketing campaigns. A simple registration process encourages the customer to make an account on your website and buy the product in the process. 

Checkout Process

The checkout process is a sensitive step to sealing the lead. Any bad move and the customer might abandon the cart. That is why your checkout shouldn’t be a drag. Make it as short as possible to the customer does not lose its interest and patience in the process. There is no discrimination between one step or few step checkout process as long as it covers all the essential fields and does not annoy the user. You can use both on your discretion if your customers are satisfied with it.

Work on Contact Info

Your customer needs to contact you each time they have a query, so make sure your contact info is clear and easy to find. You can show it on the header and footer as well, but it is recommended that you create a dedicated page to display your contact information.

Improve Response Time

Your response time is a crucial factor that determines conversion from a visitor into a customer. All your answers must be delivered adequately on time so you don’t leave your customers who are ready to buy your products hanging. Improving the communication process between your customers not only prevents them from abandoning your website but also gives a valued experience. Also, it is important that you take repetitive customer questions for hints in case of information that needs to be added or edited on FAQs and sales pages.

Add Email Marketing to the Mix

Email marketing has been around for over a couple of decades and still comes as the most effective practice to increase engagement. It helps increase your customer pool and remain connected with those you already have. In order to make the best out of your emails, make sure to segment your email list according to customer types. Format your emails with layout, font, description, images, CTAs and other elements. Also, be sure to include the newsletter sign up on your WordPress website. According to research, email marketing is 40% more effective than traditional social media marketing practices on Facebook and Twitter etc.

Final Thoughts

Selling online is as tough as selling on brick and mortar stores. It requires attention, dedication, mental and financial investment just to keep it alive. Luckily, you now know these 10 tips that will help your WordPress website get in shape for e-commerce and reap tangible results from it.