Last month, we kickstarted a new KPI series and looked at a number of key sales KPIs. In part two, we delve deeper into what metrics you can set-up to gain as much information from your KPIs as possible.

Before you pass Go and collect your $200 (any other loyal Monopoly fans out there?), click here to read last month’s first entry into our new KPI series. Doing your homework with that blog first will help you to maximise the information you’ll find here.

To recap quickly, last month, we introduced our new KPI blog series and explored a number of key sales metrics that most online retailers either are or should be utilising. This time around, we’re revisiting each KPI and explaining how you can set-up the tools you need to generate valuable information from your site.

Conversion rate

The most successful businesses are always trying to increase their conversion rates. Knowledge is power so before you can increase conversion rates, you need to know what they are and then continue tracking and measuring them over time.

There are a number of ways to enhance your website for conversions including:

  • Use strong and clear call to actions (CTA) to direct people on your site to take action. Only 2% of your total web traffic will result in a sale on the first visit so your aim is really to capture an email address at the very least.

  • Have a good UX/design with:

    • Easy navigation

    • Large add to cart buttons

    • A clear conversion funnel, which makes it easy for customers to get what they want by getting where they need to go on your website

    • Ensure copy on your site and especially headlines is clear and communicates value at a glance. So place any important page elements like forms or buttons above the fold.

  • Make sure your site is mobile-friendly (you’d be surprised at how many sites are underperforming because they’re not viewable across multiple devices). Take a look at what ranks as being important to mobile users.

  • Offer bonus value that doesn’t cost the business. Some easy wins include:

    • Same day/next day shipping

    • Blogs, advice, whitepapers, reports

    • Online help and Live Chat

  • Create urgency

    • Limited time only pricing

    • Low stock

    • Countdown clocks

    • Buy now and receive free shipping (content that creates urgency results in higher click to open rates - 14% to be exact. Meanwhile, it also sees a 59% higher transaction to click rate and twice the conversion rates when compared to other marketing emails)

  • Speed optimisation - if your site takes more than 3 seconds to load, that’s bad news considering 40% of people abandon sites that take this long. Look into your CDN and investigate increasing your server’s capacity.

  • A/B test different elements on your pages to test which variations lead to the best conversions. So don’t forget to A/B test your call to action buttons!

  • Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) allows you to make assumptions about those browsing through your site and then go one step further and test these assumptions. By researching, testing and analysing behaviour, you’ll start to pick up patterns and understand what works better with your target market.

Shopping cart abandonment rate

Security is a vital component of any successful website. To decrease shopping cart abandonment rates, you need to establish trust in your transaction forms. Remember, customers are trusting you with their personal information and payment details when making a purchase so use this opportunity to establish and build trust between your brand and its customers. Wherever possible, include security logos in prominent positions to reiterate a secure solution. Another way to increase trust is to have a SSL certificate to protect your customers.

Some other simple ways to reassure customers include:

  • Offer a full money back guarantee

  • Be crystal clear about all costs involved in any purchase upfront (especially shipping!)

  • Offer free shipping, even if it’s only for orders over a certain amount. According to Brandon Eley, President of 2Big Feet, did this and increased conversions by 50%.

You can include a progress indicator on all checkout pages. This feeds customers information about where they are in the checkout process and how many more steps to go until they complete their transaction.

It’s also a great idea to set-up your cart so that people can come back to it easily to continue finishing their payment. It is best to show stock availability before customers make it to the cart - stats prove the number one reason for cart abandonment is the shock people get when it comes to shipping costs.

Additionally, opt to:

  • Offer multiple payment optionssuch as Buy Now, Pay Later (think OpenPay, Afterpay, zipPay and so on).

  • Allow people to checkout as a guest and without having to register with your site

  • Remind customers that they have items sitting in their cart - you can use call to actions on checkout pages as well as remarketing to target abandoned carts (in other words, send a reminder email that their purchase is yet to be finalised - this could be part of a three state follow-up process:1 hour, 1 day, 1 week).

New customer orders versus returning customer orders

Regardless of whether you’re talking about a new or existing customer, it’s best to constantly reach out to people to demonstrate that you’re invested in helping them to have the best possible customer experience on your site.

Returning customer

It’s only natural that repeat customers have a good chance of making future purchases on your site. They may also be more likely to test out new products and services. Nurturing these ongoing relationships with your most loyal customers is vital. Send thank you notes after a purchase is made, personalise your messaging as much as possible and advertise items your data tells you they’re likely to be interested in.

Some facts to keep in mind:

  • Repeat customers spend 67% more on average than new customers

  • 80% of your future profits will come from 20% of your current customer base

  • Generate product reviews or site reviews by giving loyal customers incentives to give reviews

    • These reviews can also improve your trustworthiness perception for new customers

    • Express Watches increased conversions by over 58% by using social proof

  • Offer incentives through referrals – a customer gained through a referral has a lifetime value 25% higher than other customers

  • It’s 68% more expensive to get a new customer than it is to upsell to a current customer

  • Talk about cost of acquisition for new customers and how that marketing spend can be used to reward loyal customers

New customers

On the flip side, acquiring new customers is always beneficial so provide people with the best possible customer experience.

Here are some ways to get some easy wins on the board:

  • Send free samples to social media influencers

  • Reach out to bloggers and the media

  • Get your SEO Strategy in order - 93% of web traffic comes from a search engine. So pay attention to product keywords and consider using tools like this one.

  • Emails captured from your CTA should be sent with promotional emails

You’ve got a range of tools at your fingertips that allow you to measure churn rates and customer lifetime value so that you can see whether new or existing customers are contributing more to your profitability levels. From there, you can adjust your site and communications accordingly to better engage with customers.

Product affinity & relationship

With these KPIs, think about your cross or upselling promotions and overall website layout.

Upselling is all about products that can be logically tied together to increase cart sizes. Need some evidence that it really does work? In its first year, Amazon tested upselling and increased sales by 35%.

Use your product knowledge to showcase your bestsellers and point your customers in the right direction. Remember, you’re trying to make the shopping experience as seamless as possible so that customers can purchase products together before heading to the checkout. Items that are viewed consecutively can drive repeat customers. Look at incorporating a ‘you might like’, ‘match made in heaven’ or even ‘others also looked at or bought this’ section at the end of a product page or even at the beginning of the checkout process.

Customer lifetime value (CLV)

Look at your customer values and then prioritise your resources accordingly. CLV should guide a number of actions including lead nurturing, cross-selling, attitude adjustments, complaint handling, monitoring of customer behaviour, adjustments to existing policies and so on.

Valuing your customers is essential. Ensure they feel a part of your brand with small gestures such as:

  • Thank them for supporting your business by sending thank you notes

  • Place customers in the spotlight with prize giveaways and via blogs, emails and so on. Get creative!

  • Send them something complimentary that they didn’t know they wanted

  • Listen to their advice and credit them for it when you make improvements

  • One up your competitors by offering your customers something different

  • Be more convenient and make quality a priority

Churn rate

You don’t want to be churning through customers faster than Adam Richman churns through a burger (Man vs Food anyone?).

Avoid this by deliberating implementing strategies to keep your customers such as:

  • Focusing on customers most likely to walk away: work your marketing so that they keep on coming back for more. Remind customers of the problem you help them to solve so they’re less likely to leave. Of course, doing this successfully involves monitoring and improving upon existing onboarding processes.

  • Keep those lines of communication open to show you truly care about people getting the most from your product/service.

  • Ask people who have no experience with your brand or site to test how easy it is to navigate around your website. People need a clear path that drives them towards what they’re after, otherwise, they’re likely to lose interest pretty quickly.

We’ve summarised a number of easy ways for your brand to start maximising sales. Of course, there are many more where these came from so reach out if you’d like advice that is customised to your business and its goal. Look out for our next blog into our KPI series next month.

For help in regards to your business’ unique KPIs, Contact Us today.