Let’s talk about engagement!  Well…more specifically… getting people to order products from your website.

I’ve had a few different people, from a few different perspectives, ask me similar questions that I can sum up as:

“Bob, how do I get more orders?”

Some folks are getting consistent orders and want to continue their growth. Others have cracked those first couple orders and want to boost order frequency/consistency.  Then, I’ve spoken with people who are waiting to process that first order.   Regardless of the situation, you’re all asking for the same thing – You want to do better – I would like to offer you some ideas that will allow you to improve your situation.

We’re going to discuss a few strategies that can increase engagement, improve the customer experience, and more.  These are techniques and gameplans that will expand on what you’re already doing without forcing you to go too far out of your existing comfort zones.

Quick disclaimer – Although these strategies have been proven in the past, results will vary. Every one of you is different and I’m doing my best to speak to include concepts that can appeal to as many people as I possibly can.
Unfortunately,  I still don’t have that crystal ball that allows me to see the future, so I can’t make promises that your specific situation will change by implementing the following ideas. 

Sales are basically retail chemistry.  You need to combine a person with money, a desired product, a safe space to conduct business, and some form of motivation to get the results you’re looking for.
-There are elements we can control, like providing a safe space to shop.  Other elements are beyond our reach, like whether a shopper has the money to spend.
Some elements can be influenced, like motivation or product availability.
We’ll do our best with what we have to work with!  The ideas we cover are designed to enhance the environment a customer shops in while building on their motivation for coming to us in the first place.

A call to action

Calls to action can present themselves a few different ways.   Most often, we think about the literal/classic call to action buttons like “Shop Now,” or, “Click Here.”  Today, I’m thinking of something a little more…subtle.
“Customers who purchased this also bought [that].”
You’ve seen this before on some really big shopping websites.  This particular idea might be geared a bit more towards people who have started seeing online orders trickle or those of you seeing consistent orders, looking to kick things up a notch.  However, at it’s core this is just a form of engagement and exposure so don’t think, “this isn’t for me,” if you haven’t made your first sale, yet.  This is a cool opportunity for ANYONE who features products on a website.

When you have someone, on-site, who’s super interested in product X and you’re showing them how well product Y compliments or pairs with a select product, you create opportunity.   Opportunity that wasn’t there before.  This new potential can impact you and your customer in a variety of ways:

• Rather than selling just one product – You’ve created an opportunity to sell 2+ products.
• Perhaps the customer was just browsing for Product X and didn’t know that you had Product Y. They weren’t looking for Product Y, but now they’re somewhat interested. Increased product exposure.
• Customers are staying on-site longer, engaging with more products. This can have a lasting impact in a number of beneficial ways like site-sharing, return shopping, familiarity and trust, etc.

If you don’t want to do this on the product pages, themselves, you can try doing this in a blog.
Let’s punch our tickets to the land of make-believe here for a moment and pretend that we’re running a pet supply store (unless you are running a pet supply store…welcome to the land of reality).
Think about creating a blog where you review not one, but maybe 3 or 4 of your products at once.  Almost like a “buyer’s guide for [purpose/occasion]” or something similar.

Example:  “Thinking of getting a dog?  Not sure what you need to get started caring for a dog?  Let’s break down some of the best products for new dog owners!

XYZ dog bed is great for A B and C!….
(write description, give examples, link to product, product image, etc.)

123 Dog and Pet brush will help keep them clean and…..
(write description, give examples, link to product, product image, etc.)

Always make sure you have a sturdy collar like this one….
(write description, give examples, link to product, product image, etc.)

Of course, with a collar, you’ll need a leash!….”
(write description, give examples, link to product, product image, etc.)

You get the same benefits as the “People who bought this…” feature but you’re getting some added benefits on the SEO/content end of things.   If you’ve been to my blogging seminars – you already know.  For those of you who haven’t – Session 5 – Blogging Basics.

Another call to action is The Coupon.

For those of you who weren’t around for the extreme couponing life that ruled the 1990’s, coupons are special promotional codes or tickets that will offer some sort of savings for the shopper; adding incentive to shop (usually) for a limited time.

If you offer a coupon that saves shopper X% on orders over $X for a limited time, it can potentially tap into that user’s fear of missing out or FOMO.
FOMO + Savings/Deals = a powerful motivator for online shoppers.  It’s one of the biggest tools in the retail toolbox for turning “lookers” into “shoppers.”

This is also a great way to create engagement for the brand, in general, as most of the coupon code promotion will likely take place on social media where word can spread.  Coupons can be used as rewards for sharing and assisting with promotion of your brand.    If you’re running WooCommerce on WordPress, you should be able to create and share coupon codes with your community on social media, blogs, newsletters, and more.

Similar to the coupon code is a generic Sale.  You can temporarily lower prices on select products or categories to encourage purchasing.  Less exciting than a coupons, sure, but just as impactful.
Both have their advantages and quirks.

Pricing

Let’s step away from trying to influence the shopper and start looking internally.  When was the last time you did a price audit?

There’s a chance that your products or the prices on said products have fallen out of favor with the general shopper.  Perhaps you’re still asking $20 for a product that has dropped in price, with your supplier, as warehouses make room for the new version of that product.  All of your competition reduced price to $15, but you haven’t taken any action.  This can directly impact your ability to sell THAT product.

Maybe your prices are too low.  That’s a real thing!  Now, for me, if I see a price that looks too-good-to-be-true on some big-name website, I’m jumping on it.  I’ll happily take advantage of a pricing “oopsie” on a big company website.  But that’s on a BIG name website.  When you’re a small business, you’re already tasked with building trust and value.  It can be tough.  Now combine that walking on eggshells mentality of a customer who never heard of you with a suspiciously low price on a product they want and…you can spot the potential “red flag,” right?

Check on your prices.  Check on similar products from other websites.  Do your research and ask your teams for advice when you need help.  Start with your favorite or featured products and branch out from there to make this task easier to stay up-to-date on.

Looking to the Data for Signs

Maybe you’re doing everything right but you’re still not bowling a strike, here.  It’s possible that you’re actually knocking over all the pins….in someone else’s lane.
Let me explain – and to do so, we need to hop back on the train to Scenario-Ville:
(I’ll stick with Pet Supplies as my example)

You have your website with your dog collars, cat beds, bird cages, etc – Maybe the people finding you for “pet supply stores” don’t own dogs, cats, or birds.  Maybe they own fish.
Some analytics tools can tell you exactly what your audience is into.  Sometimes, you may need to conduct a survey on social media or on-site to get customer feedback to find out such things.
If you discover that you are getting traffic, but maybe don’t represent that particular category, yet, then it might be time for us to make some changes and introduce new categories or products that will appeal to the traffic you are getting.

I’m not saying that you need to change your drone site to a pet store because people who like fish are showing up. but if you’re running pet supplies and you don’t feature fish products…there ya go.

It could also be a case of where customers are landing on your website.  Using Analytics, we can determine what your most active pages are.  If you are seeing that people keep landing on specific product pages, because of your social media shares, and those product ain’t cutting it, try changing the kinds of products you’re sharing or try sharing broader information for a bit.
Example – Rather than sharing a cat bed that isn’t converting, try sharing the Cat Products category in its entirety. Encourage cat lovers to come hang out, explore or share with their friends and family.  See if this helps create stronger engagements or opportunities.  Zooming out shows us where people go when left alone after getting people on-site.  This will allow us to refocus our efforts around the products/pages they naturally gravitate towards.  Rather than pick and hope we have an interesting product to promote, we can center efforts around the things that seem most interesting to real people.
*For whatever reason, people can feel like they’re boxed in on specific product pages. They’ll often leave the website rather than check out other products or pages therein. Give them room to stretch out and explore once in a while.  

Now, there’s obviously no perfect solution here.
Again, I’m speaking from a universal perspective to each and every one of you.
Sales or not.
Novice or advanced.
Young or old.
These are strategies designed to engage potential shoppers head-on while positioning us for continued growth.

Good luck, everyone!
-Bob