21 design guidelines that will help you increase the conversion rate, sales and revenue of your eCommerce store.

1. 21 CRO Best Practices
for
eCommerce

2. About VWO
VWOisaleadingA/Btestingplatformusedbymorethan3,700brandsin75countriestooptimizetheironlinesalesandrevenues.
CompaniessuchasShoeDazzle, Groupalia,JustFabandUnibetuseVWOtounderstandandanalyseonlineuseractivityandbehaviour.
VWOoffersmarketersaneasy-to- implementanduse,buthighlyeffectiveA/Btesting,multivariate, behaviouraltargeting,usabilityandheatmaptestingsolutionthatrequiresnocodingknowledge.
START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW!

3. Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER 1
Reduce Form Fields
CHAPTER 2
Use A Contrasting CTA Button
CHAPTER 3
Get Rid of Automatic Image Slider
CHAPTER 4
Don’t Use Cheesy Stock Photos
CHAPTER 5
Test CTA Button Text
CHAPTER 6
Place CTA Above The Fold
CHAPTER 7
Add a Video
CHAPTER 8
Craft a Clear Headline
CHAPTER 9
Create Urgency
CHAPTER 10
Display Phone Number

4. Table of Contents
CHAPTER 11
Change CTA Link to Button
CHAPTER 12
Use the Magical Word ‘Free’
CHAPTER 13
Add Value to Your Offer
CHAPTER 14
Flaunt Testimonials
CHAPTER 15
Identify and Communicate Your USP
CHAPTER 16
Show Off Award Badges
CHAPTER 17
Add Trust Badges
CHAPTER 18
Use Recognizable Security Seals
CHAPTER 19
Add Live Chat Widget
CHAPTER 20
Give a Price Match Guarantee
CHAPTER 21
Use Better Images on Product Pages
CONCLUSION

5. Introduction
IfyouownaneCommercewebsite,youknowhowchallengingitisforyoutosqueezeoutrevenuefromyourwebsitevisitors.ConversionRateOptimization(CRO)helpsyoudopreciselythat!
CROisessentiallythescienceandartofgettingahigherpercentageofyourvisitorstotakethedesiredactiononyourwebsite.ForaneCommercebusiness,thisdesiredactioncanbegettingmorevisitorstoclickonthe‘Buy-now’button.Inthiscase,everysingleclickcountssinceitdirectlyaffectsthebottomlineofthecompany.
Gettingmorevisitorstoyourwebsitebecomesfutileonceyourealizethatthosevisitorsarenottakingthedesiredaction.Moreover,focusingonyourexistingvisitorbaseandgettingthemtoconvertmoreisafarmoreeffectivestrategythansimplygettingmorepeopletovisityourwebsite.Inthemostsimplisticterms,CROhelpsinbridgingthegapbetweenavisitorshowinginterestinyourproductandaninterestedvisitorfinallybecomingacustomer.Ithelpsyouridentifywhatvisitorsarelookingforwhentheyarriveatyourwebsitesuchthatyoucanoptimizekeyparametersonyourwebsitetosuittheneedsofyourvisitors.

6. 21 CRO Best Practices

7. 1. Reduce Form Fields
According to a research, forms with only 3 fields receive 25% higher conversions.

8. 1. Reduce Form Fields
FlyingScott,anairportcarparkingcompany,conductedatestontheirwebsitewheretheyremovedallunnecessaryformfieldsfromtheirdetailspageoftheirbookingprocess.Asaresult,theysawa35%increaseinformsubmissions.

9. 2. Use A Contrasting CTA Button
Thereisnoone-color-fits-allrulehere.ThebasicideaistohaveyourCTAattractattention. Usingcolorsandimagesthatareincontrastwiththepagebackgroundusuallyhelpsthepurpose.
Flipkart.com,onlineretailstore,usescontrastingCTAsonitsproductpagestodirectvisitorstotakethedesiredaction.

10. 3.GetRidofAutomaticImageSlider
AusabilitystudybyNeilsonNormangroupconfirmedthatauto-forwardingcarouselsannoyusersandreducevisibility.Thestudyhighlightsreasonswhythesedesignelementsareactuallynotgoodforyoursite’susabilityorconversions:
1.Automaticrotationmakestheuserlosecontroloftheirinteractionwiththesite.
2.Theycreatebannerblindnessandareofteneasilyignoredbyusers.Theeyetrackingexamplebelowfromanothersourcealsovalidatesthis.

11. 3.GetRidofAutomaticImageSlider
Hereareafewalternativestotryinplaceofcarousels:
1.Focusyourhomepageonyourprimaryoffer
Prioritizeyouroffersandletyourmostrelevantoffergetthemaximumshareofvisitorattention.BenSherman,anonlineclothingstoreandimplementedthisverywellontheirhomepage.
2.ConvertEachSlideintoaTargetedHomepage
Let’ssay,youhaveaglobalclothingstoreonline.Youcansegmentyourvisitorsonthebasisoftheirgeographicallocationwiththehelpofpre-setsegmentsinVWO.Onceyouhavesegmentedyourvisitors,showthemthehomepagethatpromotesanofferaboutthemostpopularclothingtrendintheircountry.

12. 4.Don’tUseCheesyStockPhotos
ConversionScientistBrianMasseycallsstockphotos‘businessporn’.
Usingimagesforornamentalreasons(likethebelowexampleofTMobile)doesmoreharmthangoodtoyourlandingpage.

13. 4.Don’tUseCheesyStockPhotos
Thenextbigquestionisifnotstockphotosthenwhat?Tryreplacingstockphotosonyourhomepagewithrealhumanimagesandtestitoutforbetterconversions!
MedaliaArt,anonlineartstore,decidedtotestwhathappensifthepaintingsontheirhomepagearereplacedbytheartists’photos.Replacingthepaintingswithhumanphotosledtoa95%increaseinconversionratefrom8.8%withpaintingsto17.2%withartistphotos.
ControlVariation

14. 5.TestCTAButtonText
Thisisoneoftheeasiestteststosetupandcandrasticallyliftyourconversions.TherelevanceofyourCTAcopyinfluencesdecisionmakingattheZeroMomentofTruth(ZMOT). Itessentiallyanswersthemostcriticalquestion“WhyshouldIclickthisbutton?”
Pcmbtoday.com, an online learning book store, experimented with a more culturally relevant CTA on their product page.

15. 5.TestCTAButtonText
HereareafewthingsyoushouldkeepinmindwhilecreatingthecopyforyourCTAbutton:
1.Don’tusetheword‘Submit’!It’sbeenoverusedanddoesn’tconveyanyvalue.
2.Useavaluableandactionablecopy.LetyourCTAtellthevisitorswhattheyshouldexpect.
3.AddurgencytoyourCTA.TheideaistomakeyourvisitorsclickontheCTAthereandthen.
4.BeginyourCTAwithanactionverb.
5.MakesureyourCTAcopyisrelevanttotheprimarygoalofyourlandingpage.

16. 6.PlaceCTAAboveTheFold
Don’taskyourvisitorstoputinextraefforti.e.scrolldownbelowthefoldtoreachyourcalltoaction.Placeitabovethefold,ataprominentpositiononyourpage.

17. 7.AddaVideo
Accordingtoastudybyeyeviewdigital.com,usingvideoonlandingpagescanincreaseconversionby80%.Usingavideoonthelandingpagenotonlyoffersamoredetaileddescriptionofyourproduct,italsohelpsengagesvisitorsforagreaterperiodoftime, allowingyourbrandmessagetosinkinwell.
Here’salistofdifferentwaysinwhichyoucanusevideosforyourecommercewebsite:
1.Create a personalized product advice video for your visitors.
Morrisons, the online groceries store, added a video survey to its wine section to help shoppers identify what kind of wine they like.

18. 7.AddaVideo
2.Useinstructionalvideosforcomplexproducts.Forproductsthatrequiresetupandinstallation,addahowtovideotoyourproductpage.
3.Educateyourvisitorsaboutanewproductcategorywithoutmakingthemgothroughhugechunksononlinecontent.
4. Use a simple product video to give your audience a live experience of the product.
Simply Beach, an online store for swim and beachwear, embeds a video on each of its product pages allowing visitors to see a brief clip of a model trying out the clothing item.

19. 8.CraftaClearHeadline
Makesureyourheadlineiscrispyetdetailedtoinstantlylettheprospectsknowwhattheycanexpectonyourwebsite.There’snoscopeforambiguitysinceyouhaveonly10-20secondstomakeanimpactwithyourheadline.
Movexa,ajoint-supplementmanufacturerthatsellssupplementsonline,experimentedwithmakingitsheadlineclearerbyaddingtheword‘supplement’.Thischangeledtoan89.97% increaseinconversions.

20. 9.CreateUrgency
Peopleusuallytendtoplacehighervalueonanobjectthatisscarceandalowervalueononethatisavailableinabundance.WhencombinedwithUrgency,thetwomakeforapotentweaponforincreasingeCommercesales.Here’showyoucancreateurgencyamongbuyerstomakethemactnow!
1.StockScarcity
DisplayingyourstockmeterontheeCommerceproductpageisalwaysagoodconversionpractice.Notonlydoesitensuretherearenolast-minuteheartbreaksforthecustomer,italsospeedsupthebuyingprocess.
Boticca.com, an online store for fashion accessories, almost urges visitors to complete the purchase right away. The use of an active verb like ‘Act’ is used to drive immediate action.

21. 9.CreateUrgency
2.SizeScarcity
Intimatingthebuyerswhenaparticularsizegoesoutofstockiskillingtwobirdswithonearrow.Notonlyisitahugefavourfortheprospects,theinformationalsoworksasapositivereinforcementoftheproduct.
Zappos.com,anonlineretailstore,showshowmanyitemsareleftforaparticularsizeandcolorcombinationtoinducevisitoraction.

22. 9.CreateUrgency
3.Time-BoundPurchaseforNextDayShipping
Whenyouaskthevisitorstomakethepurchaseinaspecificamountoftime,younotonlymakethemmoreproactivetowardsthepurchase,italsoeliminatesanykindofconfusionattheirendastowhentheywillreceivetheorder.
Amazonshowstheexactnumberofhours/minuteswithinwhichthepurchaseneedstobecompletedtoqualifyfornext-dayshipping.

23. 9.CreateUrgency
4.Limited-PeriodDiscounts
Thefearofmissingoutisalegitimateone.Itistheanticipatedregretofnotbeingabletoseizeanopportunity.Alimited-timediscountworksexactlyatthatlevel.Itmakestheofferlooksotemptingandfleetingthatoneiscompelledtoseizetheopportunity.
MakeMyTrip.com,anonlineticketbookingplatform,showsanalertwhenthelastfewdiscountedairlineticketsareleftinstock.Seehowtheyusecolorpsychologyheretoinstilurgency.Theuseofthecolor‘Red’isassociatedwithenergy,increasedheartrateandisoftenusedinclearancesales.

24. 9.CreateUrgency
5.Limited-TimeFreeDelivery
Thisworksthesamewayaslimited-timediscounts.Thedesiretoavailfreedeliverycouldpossiblyoffsetthevisitors’tendencytoprocrastinatethepurchase.
6.SpecialDiscountHours
Aspecialdiscounthourcanbeusedtogalvanizeexcitementaroundthatspecifichour.Zivame, anonlinelingeriestore,sentoutthismailertosubscriberstobuildupcrazeforitshour-longsale.

25. 10.DisplayPhoneNumber
Itisusuallyagoodpracticetoaddyourcontactnumberinyourhomepageheadersothatitisn’tmissedbyyoursitevisitors.Thisaddscredibilityandalsoassurespeoplethatyouareeasilyapproachableiftheyhaveanyproblemsorconcernsduringtheirpurchaseprocess.
SeehowOzScopes,anonlinetelescoperetailer,hasitsphonenumbernoticeablydisplayedonthehomepage:

26. 11.ChangeCTALinktoButton
Incaseyourcall-to-actionisembeddedasalinktotext,youshouldchangeittoaclickablebuttonrightaway!Textlinksareoftenlostwiththerestofthetext,makingitdifficulttospotthemonthepage.CTAisthemostimportantelementonyourwebsitetoachievehigherconversions.
UnderwaterAudio,aneCommercewebsite,changedtheirtextlinkstoCTAbuttonsandsawimprovementinconversions.

27. 12.UsetheMagicalWord‘Free’
Thewordfreeisapowerfulemotionaltriggerandasourceofirrationalexcitement.Themomentyouseethewordfree,there’sanurgencytotakeactioncreatedinyourmind.Sameisthecasewithyourvisitors.Peopleendupbuyingstufftheydon’tevenneedwhenitisofferedforfree.
Inthisworldofuncertainty,‘free’isasure-shotconversionbooster.Waybackin1999, Amazonbeganofferingfreeshippingonordersof$99ormore.Sincethentheyhavebeenexperimentingwiththeirmarketingstrategytobesttakeadvantageofourdesirefor'free.‘
GregoryCiottiofCopybloggerputsinanotherperspectivetothe‘poweroffree’.Shepointstolossaversionandournaturalinstincttogoafter“lowhangingfruit”asthereasonswhywearesosusceptibletosnatchingupfreestuff.

28. 13.AddValuetoYourOffer
Aslongastheperceivedvalueofyourofferisnotgreaterthanwhatyouareaskingfromyourcustomers,youcannotmakethemconvert.Onegreatwaytoincreasetheperceivedvalueofyourofferistoaddbenefitsinyourcopy.Answerthe“What’sinitforme?”questionofyourvisitors,andtheywillhappilyconvertintoleadsorsales.
Urbanladder.com,anonlinefurnitureretailstore,addvaluetoitsofferbyintroducingaluckywinnercontentfornewslettersignup.

29. 14.FlauntTestimonials
Addingtestimonialstoyourwebsiteislikespreadingword-of-mouthintherealworld.Themoreyourhappycustomerstalkaboutyou,thebetterwillbeyourconversions.
Havingbignamesorcompaniestalkingaboutyouisahugeconversionbooster.Itaddscredibilityandassuagesbuyers’fears.
However,inordertoaddtestimonialstoyourwebsite,don’tforgetthattheyhavetocomefromrealcustomersbasedontheirexperiencewithyourwebsite.
Fabfurnish.com,anonlinefurniturestore,beautifullyusescustomertestimonialsonthewebsite.Inadditiontoaddingaquotefromthecustomeronthehomepage,theyhavea‘Shareyourstory’sectionwherecustomerssharetheirstoriesabouttheirexperienceswithbuyingproductsfromthewebsite.

30. 14.FlauntTestimonials

31. 15.IdentifyandCommunicateYourUSP
YourUniqueSellingPropositionistherealreasonwhyyouexist.ToidentifyyourUSP, answerthesequestionsforyourself:
1.Whatisitthatdistinguishesyoufromyourcompetitors?
2.Whatgivesyouanedgeoverthem?
OnceyouhaveidentifiedyourUSP,makesureyoucommunicateitclearlytoyourtargetaudience.
Forexample,Zappos.com,aneCommercestore,identifiedsuperiorcustomerserviceasitsUSPandtheyhavebeencommunicatingitwelltotheirtargetaudiencethroughtheirtaglinewhichsays“PoweredbyService”.
Also,theyprominentlydisplaythe‘FreeShippingandReturns’badgeontheirhomepagetoreinforcetheirUSPofsuperiorcustomerservice.

32. 16.ShowOffAwardBadges
Displayingawardbadgesonyourwebsitehelpseliminatesonlinebuyers’distrust.
Bagservent.com,anonlinebagsretailstore,sawanincreaseinconversionswhentheyaddedtheesteemed‘WOW’trustbadgetotheirwebsite.

33. 17.AddTrustBadges
Therearevariouswaystoaddtrustelementstoyourwebsite.IfyouhavegotgreatreviewsfromGlassdoor,YelporBetterBusinessBureaudon’thesitatetoflauntthem.
ExpressWatches,anonlinewatchretailer,sawa58.39%increaseinsaleswhentheyaddedtheTrustPilotwidgettotheirwebsite.

34. 18.UseRecognizableSecuritySeals
Thegreatestbarriertoonlinesalesistrust.Sinceyouronlinestoredoesn’thaveahumanfacethatyourvisitorscaninteractwith,itisimportanttoassurethemaboutthetrustworthinessofyourwebsite.Thebestwaytodoitistoaddtrustbadges.
Incaseyouarewonderingwhichtrustbadgesyoushouldtryaddingtoyourwebsite,here’sareportfromasurveyconductedbyBaymardInstitutethatshowedwhichbadgegivesthebestsenseoftrustduringonlinepayments.

35. 19.AddLiveChatWidget
AccordingtostudyconductedbyForresterResearch,44%ofonlineconsumerssaythathavingquestionsansweredbyalivepersonwhileinthemiddleofanonlinepurchaseisoneofthemostimportantfeaturesaWebsitecanoffer.
Togiveyouareallifeexample,supplygeeks.com,anonlinebusinesssuppliesretailer,addedlivechattotheirwebsiteandsawconversionsincreaseby17%.

36. 20.GiveaPriceMatchGuarantee
Peoplewanttobesurethattheyarenotgettingrippedoff.Assurethemthatyoucangivethemthebestpriceinthemarket.Ifpossible,showthemacomparisonofyourpriceswithyourcompetitor’sprices.
BestBuy.com,anonlineretailstore,offersaselectivePriceMatchguaranteeontheiritems.

37. 21.UseBetterImagesonProductPages
ThebattleofaneCommercesalecanbewonorlostonaproductpage.Visitorstoyourwebsitetaketheirmostcrucialdecisionontheproductpage.Hence,theimportanceofstructuringthepagewellandpresentingproductsclearlyontheproductspagecannotbeover-stated.Whenitcomestoproductpageimages,useproductimagesthatareclearandattractive.

38. Conclusion
Intheend,allmethodstoincreasewebsitesalesandleadscomedowntobetterrelevance, improvingclarity,fewerdistractions,reducinganxiety,andincreasingurgency.Whenyoutakecareofthese,youshouldhavegoodhypothesestostartoffyourtestsandlookforwardtobetterconversionsonyourwebsite.
SomeofthechangesasdescribedinthiseBookcanbequicklyimplementedonyourwebsiteandimmediatelyreapinmoresaleswhileothersmayrequiremoreexpertise.
However,Iwouldrecommendgoingwithonechangeatatimesothatyouareabletoanalyzewhat’sworkingandwhat’snotinyourspecificbusinessscenario.
Youcanstartimplementingthosetipswhichyouthinkaremostrelevanttoyourbusinessneeds.Butbeforeyoudothat,IabsolutelyinsistthatyouA/Btestthem.

39. About the Author
Smriti Chopra is a Marketer at VWO and also helps with VWO’s demand generation initiatives. She's responsible for handling social media and creating content offers, including eBooks and guest posts.
She’s passionate about experimenting with new techniques in the marketing arena.
LinkedIn| Twitter| Google+

40. Built-in Heatmaps
Gain insights about your visitors. Find out what they like/don’t like.
WYSIWYG Editor
Forget spending hours on coding. DIY without any help from your developer.
Super Smooth Usability
Creating tests is a breeze
Quick Integrations
One-click integration available with GA, KISSmetrics, Clicktale
Exploit our Idea Factory
Find A/B testing ideas to improve conversion rate of your website
Intuitive
A/B Testing for Busy Marketers

41. Try out these best practices for yourself
Startwitha30dayfreetrialofVWOtoquicklyimplementthesechangesonyoureCommercestoreandtestwhethertheyworkornot.
SettinguptestswithVWOisincrediblysimpleandtakesminutes. 3700otherdata-drivenbrandsuseVWOtooptimizetheirwebsitesandsignificantlyincreasesalesandrevenue.
GetstartedwithyourFREEtrialnow!
GET STARTED WITH VWO