The way of the web has transformed almost every aspect of our life today, and will continue to do so throughout the foreseeable future. In fact, the evolving internet has become the lifeblood of businesses and consumers; the consumers are able to research an almost unlimited quantity of products and services while the businesses are able to utilize their industry knowledge to appeal to a wider audience range. With that said, if you are selling products through your company there is one online aspect from which you may benefit: an online shopping cart website.
Why You Need An Online Shopping Cart Website
Businesses consistently spend countless marketing dollars each year to discover more efficient methods of creating revenue. One of the most effective means of marketing is through an online shopping cart website. You have the ability to allow the customer the accessibility they desire, you allow the customer to attain the information they want, and you allow the customer to experience the high level of service they deserve. All of which create an outstanding customer service relationship with the clientele. And, the best part about the shopping cart website? There is no overhead; you do not have to pay employees to stand in your storefront and try to make the sale.
Shopping Cart Tips, Tricks, and Examples
Utilize full page shopping carts as well as mini shopping carts. A full page cart provides more information (taxes, shipping, etc) and more options to the user whereas the mini cart allows easier browsing and less intrusive shopping. However, the best practice for businesses is to include both the mini cart and full page options and allow a click-over button to go from one to the other. An outstanding example of this is Under Armour’s setup. You are able to access a mini cart as well as click over to the full cart page:
While the shopping cart styles are important, the style of checkout is also a pertinent feature. It is a difficult decision to choose either a one-step checkout or a step-by-step process. Utilizing a step-by-step process allows the customer to feel more support and is significantly easier to follow while using a one-step checkout page gives the impression that the checkout process is easier. A great example of a step-by-step process is Amazon.com:
Both the shopping cart style and the checkout process discuss the process of the shopping cart, but the layout of the site is also important to determine. Typically, the best structure is a readable table-based layout. Avoid complex backgrounds and font families that are difficult to read. Instead, utilize standard fonts and place an emphasis on the product they are buying. A prime example is Overstock.com:
Utilize organization to help users navigate the text fields. Be sure to avoid unnecessary fields, and group similar fields together using headers and page breaks. Remember, you want this to be a seamless process for the consumer which will entice them to return for future purchases. A good example is how the Apple Store adds sample text in their fields:
Supporting the customer is extremely important as you don’t have an employee face-to-face providing direct help. However, you can include a number of help elements to supplement that experience. Remember that the small things matter, so providing an example field next to the actual field, or simply provide sample text within the given field is a significant help to new customers. A common example of this is the image of a credit card to display where the CVC number is located:
Once you have your general cart layout and idea of the processes, it’s time to spice the shopping cart up a little bit. One of the better ways to do this is through a click and drag cart feature. With this feature, you are able to have a full or mini cart where the customer is able to click on the product they want to purchase and drag it over to the cart icon. This also allows the customer to continue shopping with more ease. Take a look at the example below:
Overall, shopping cart websites can be effectively implemented to significantly alter the shopping experience that your customers have. However, it’s important for you to know and understand the pro’s and con’s of shopping carts before you move forward so stay tuned to this series as tomorrow will talk about that exact topic.
IMPACT has the ability to create and implement a cutting edge online shopping cart for your company. Should you be interested in talking about the possibility of adding a shopping cart to your website please don’t hesitate to contact us today.
