By some estimates, rates of online shopping cart abandonment hover around 70 percent. Many factors play into the rate, including what device a user is shopping on and what industry you’re in. For most eCommerce businesses, 10 or 20 percent would still be higher than you want.

The fact remains. Online shoppers often don’t convert into sales. As a result, you’re asking yourself what you can do to turn more window-shopping into done deals.

It turns out there are plenty of actions you can take to change the story for your business. Perhaps the most important thing you can do is take a look at your eCommerce conversion funnel. If it’s not already optimized to turn leads into sales, this guide will help you turn things around.

Identifying the Funnel

Before you can focus on funnel optimization, you have to know what your funnel looks like. The majority of small businesses can’t identify their conversion funnel.

That’s why identifying your eCommerce conversion funnel is the first step. If you already have a good idea of what your funnel looks like, you’re ahead of the game.

The sales funnel concept dates back to the late 19th century. It envisions the customer’s journey in four parts:

• Awareness
• Interest
• Desire
• Action

As a sales and marketing professional, it’s your job to make the customer aware of your product or service. You then pique their interest and convince them they want or need what you offer. At the end of the process, the customer takes the desired action: they buy from you.

Over the years, the basic funnel has evolved. Today, most sales and marketing professionals know the buyer’s journey is a lot more complex. Some funnels show extra steps in the process, while others model circular journeys.

The eCommerce Conversion Funnel

The four-step AIDA model can still be seen in most of today’s funnels. Your website funnel is likely no exception. Through your marketing and advertising efforts, you aim to make people aware of what you sell.

These efforts direct people to your site. You may entice the potential customer with sales or discount coupons. You probably communicate the advantages of shopping with you or owning your product.

At each stage, there are many steps you can take to keep the customer moving through the funnel. This is where the concept of sales funnel optimization comes into play. You may be using the funnel concept, but you may not be using all the tools at your disposal.

Optimizing Your eCommerce Conversion Funnel

We mentioned cart abandonment statistics for online retailers are quite high. eCommerce businesses often do a good job of raising awareness and convincing the customer to shop with them.

The problem is closing the deal. People are on your site, filling up their shopping cart, but they’re not converting to sales. What’s happening?

There are many different factors you’ll want to consider here. Some of them are technological, while others focus on company policies. The good news is that almost all are in your control.

Marketing Optimization Tactics

The first thing you should do is take a look at your marketing strategy. Your top of funnel (ToFU) activities have a huge influence on who arrives on your site.

The first question to ask is whether you’re targeting the right people with your marketing. Consider creating some buyer personas to help you see who is most likely to shop with you.

These personas can then guide your advertising efforts. If your products are popular with 35-to-55-year-olds, you might be better buying ads on Facebook versus Instagram. Instagram’s audience skews younger, so you’re less likely to reach your audience there.

Next, take a look at your customers’ pain points. Ask yourself:

• What do they love about your products?
• What stops them from buying your product or a competitor’s?
• What problem does this product solve for them?

Answering these questions helps you address customer concerns, overcoming their resistance.

Pick the Right Techniques (Use Video!)

We’ve already said you want to consider your buyer personas so you can target them more effectively. This will affect where you buy advertising space, and it should also play a role in the kinds of content you create.

For example, you may wonder if it’s better to invest in search engine marketing or Facebook ads. Another consideration is whether you want to use text ads or video advertising. Studies show that visitors were 144% more likely to purchase after seeing a product video than those who did not. Dubb is a powerful tool that allows you to incorporate videos into emails, text messages, and websites.

The best strategies use a mix of platforms and advertising formats. Consider your audience to pick the most effective ones.

Company Policies Can Play a Role in Conversion

Take another look at your customers’ pain points. Then compare how your company policies address those points.

Online shoppers abandon their purchases for a variety of reasons, including:

• High shipping costs
• Problems with checkout
• Return policies

About 60 percent of people read your return policy before they make a purchase. If they don’t like the policy, they won’t convert.

You can often address some of these concerns by revising your company policies. Is it possible to offer customers free shipping if they make a minimum purchase? Maybe you can revise your return policy.

Again, using the right marketing strategy can help you find the leads who are most likely to convert. If you offer luxury products, shipping may not matter much to your core clientele. If you advertise to discount shoppers, those same shipping costs might be made or break.

Take a Look at the Technical

Another component you’ll want to look at is the technology you use on your eCommerce website.

A quick look at mobile shopping illustrates the point. Mobile shoppers are even more likely to abandon their carts. The reason is eCommerce sites often aren’t set up for mobile.

Check if your website is optimized for mobile. You’ll also want to take a look at how easy it is to check out. If the payment process is simple, people are much more likely to complete it.

Start Optimizing Your Funnel Now

As you can see, you have plenty of options when it comes to optimizing your eCommerce conversion funnel. If you need a hand building your strategy, take a look around our blog. We have more great articles loaded with great sales and marketing advice.