No matter how big, or small, your retail business, it?s important that your website is fully functioning and provides an optimal user experience if you want to obtain those all-important sales. With events such as Cyber Black Friday, Thanksgiving and Christmas if you have a slow and poorly designed website, then potential customers won?t even give your company a second thought ? even if you are cheaper than your competitors. ?Often, your website won?t need a complete redesign, but by using a few tips and tricks you can give your retail site a much-needed makeover right in time for one of the busiest times of the year.
Check your branding
This is a relatively simple fix to start with. Your company?s branding, such as your logo and colors, don?t just need to be rolled out across stationery and merchandise. If you haven?t made sure that your company?s website is consistently branded then you could be letting yourself down. A customer is less likely to trust a site that looks unprofessional and dated. Factors such as an obvious logo, imagery, and a consistent color scheme are easy to update ? plus, they will have a huge impact on any potential spending power. So if your branding isn?t consistent, then chances are that you have confused customers who cannot fully commit to your business.
Content
Blog posts, long-form articles, and social media posts are all important items of content that you should include in your editorial calendar. Remember, when you put content on your site, you can?t forget about it. Any responsible business will make sure that content is updated and checked regularly, to ensure that it continues to meet with business goals and key retail targets. You could even get any budding writers from your workforce involved too, and ask if they would like to help you create new content for your site. So if you aren?t posting relevant, timely content, then your disinterest will be wearing off on your customers. Make sure you implement a monthly editorial calendar and stick to it if you want to see results.
Easy to use
If you want to ensure that your customers continue to come back to your site, time and time again, then you will want to make sure that it is easy and simple to use. Complex and confusing sites are an instant no-go for potential customers. Similarly, if a user is after a specific item or piece of information, then they will want to be able to find it quickly and easily. Sites such as www.ticketsales.com provide a great example of a simple user interface. So if you are seeing sales drop, and you aren?t sure why then your site could be overcomplicating matters.
It?s easier than you might think to give your retail website a makeover. First, check that your company branding is consistent and used across your site. Next, focus on relevant and interesting content for your website visitors to enjoy and consume. Finally, check how easy it is for a visitor to navigate around your site. Once you have all three of these factors in good shapes, your sales are sure to rise.
