Chart of the Day: Average Product Page View, Add-to-cart and conversion to sale rates for eretailers

In our compilation of average ecommerce conversion rates we compare different sources, showing the challenge of converting retail site visitors to add-to-basket sessions and sale. I'm sharing this funnel-based view of the conversion process since it also shows the conversion rates to product page views which aren't published so often: As would be expected, the number of sessions with product page views is much higher than the other micro-conversions, approaching 50 percent. This provides a useful benchmark and prompts retailers that it's useful to track conversion to product page views when making site design improvements. It also reminds us of the value of following up on interest in specific products and categories via sending personalized browse abandon emails which is the focus of the post where I…

Chart of the Day:A comparison benchmark of add-to-basket rates with conversion rates?

Do you call it add-to-cart or add-to-basket? It depends where you are based - cart is most common in the United States, basket is more common in the UK and Australia. Regardless of what you call it, adding an item to the cart is an important micro-conversion step to measure and benchmark for retailers. While it is common to compare conversion rates, naturally this measures the efficiency of the overall process including both category or product views, basket adds and checkout. Add-to-basket rates give additional information about how appealing individual products are based on description and visuals on the product page. It shows intent to purchase by interactions with the site (Act in the Smart Insights RACE Planning conversion funnel). Google has several definitions in its Enhanced Ecommerce tracking and they neatly avoid the use of basket or cart. These measures include: …

When you operate an ecommerce store; you’re either losing or making money. Sales are either up or down. Whatever your situation, you can always increase your store’s conversions to stop the bleeding or make even more money

One of the most accurate methods to help you do this is by digging deeply into your store’s analytics. Analytics can help you find out what on your web pages isn’t working, or can still be improved further. Unfortunately, the stats on how ecommerce stores use their analytics is rather dismal. 80% of online stores don’t use Google Analytics properly, which breaks down to: Just half of all ecommerce stores even bother tracking their main conversion points 67% of stores haven’t integrated social-media tracking with their analytics …

Chart of the Day: Multiple purchase history customers have higher add-to-cart and conversion rate than single purchase history customers.

This is really not that shocking - returning loyal customers (8.55%) have a higher a conversion rate because of their previous experience with the brand. A new shopper to an ecommerce site will have questions they want answering first: Is this product reliable? Is this the cheapest price? Can I find a similar product elsewhere with better reviews? How much is P&P? Among others, it is also possible that first-time customers to your site are more wary about buying your product without social proof, or persuasive copy. Returning customers are returning because they like your product, would recommend it and are happy with the quality and customer service - more new shoppers need to be converted into returning customers. Source: Monetate Sample size: 2.5 million eccomerce…

How to assess the value of blogs to your site and business

For most businesses, blogs are part of the online furniture - every office is expected to have one. Occasionally though, their value may be called into doubt, whether it's by a client or your sales director or marketing manager. The purpose of this article is to help you not only answer these questions with some confidence, but also demonstrate the hidden value of this type of content in an online sales environment. [Editor's note: Although Sam's useful post focus on E-commerce, the concept of proving the business value of a blog through analytics are similar for other types of business including B2B. Expert members can learn more in our post and guide on Measuring Content Marketing ROI]  

Showing value

The arguments for blogs are well known. Showing your audience that you have expertise in your field, or giving yourself space…

Google's new shopping insights tool offers useful data to ecommerce marketers

It might feel too early for a lot of people but the holiday season has already started for the retail industry. Lights are being turned on by celebrities, merchandisers are arranging fancy new window displays, and a new Michael Bublé record is heading to the top of the charts. While the attention might be on the bright lights of every high street and shopping centers, the real winner will be the ecommerce industry with continued growth expected. I was browsing for the must-have toys of 2016 and stumbled across an amazing tool from Think with Google - Shopping Insights. This tool is still in beta but has a wealth of data allowing you to explore trends and popularity of consumer products across the U.S. As you…

Users are changing devices across the customer journey - marketers need to recognise this.

Mobile, mobile, mobile. It's all about mobile. Be mobile first. Do everything mobile first. That's pretty much what you hear from eCommerce or search thought leaders these days. In fairness, they do have a point. Not only do mobile sessions now outstrip desktop sessions across the web, but they do so by a big margin on eCommerce sites. 59% of sessions on eCommerce sites are on some form of mobile device, according to a study of 87 million web sessions by Wolfgang digital. But the picture isn't that simple. When it comes to revenue by device, it's actually desktop that still dominates. A massive 63% of revenue comes desktop, 3 times what comes from Smartphones. So can eCommerce marketers breath a sigh of relief and stop worrying about those pesky mobile visitors that they've always struggled to engage with? -…

Read your customer's digital body language to discover what they really want

This year has seen big companies make emotional measurement a regular part of their product planning. Marketers around the world can no longer afford to ignore this simmering trend. It's time to sit up and take notice of what’s sure to be the next big thing in community reach and conversion. Think about having a conversation with your partner. They’re telling you that they’re fine, but their tone is abrupt, arms are folded and they’re avoiding eye contact with you. They may be saying they’re ok, but everything else is telling you what they’re really feeling. And it’s just the same for marketers and digital entrepreneurs when it comes to their audiences. Likes and views may give you some insight, but you’re missing the bigger picture – the real feelings behind the computer screen.

Communication is 93% non-verbal with body language and…

Does your SaaS business measure these key metrics?

New research from Totango reveals the metrics that are being tracked by most Saas businesses. Their survey of over 300 SaaS businesses found that whilst the vast majority measure basic metrics like churn and web visitors, surprisingly few measure customer retention cost. Retention cost is important for SaaS businesses, because churn rates make a huge difference to long-term profitability. It's good to see 80% of SaaS businesses measuring churn, as this is crucial to long growth, as this post on ideas to reduce SaaS churn shows. Really that figure should be closer to 100%. If you're not measuring churn then your setting yourself up to fail. For reviewing benchmarks of actual performance there are some great compilations including these SaaS business metrics in an updated Google Sheet from Nathan Latka…

China to drive growth of global eCommerce sales

eCommerce has been a booming sector for several years now. The good news is that isn't about to stop. Global retail sales are expected to  almost double between now and 2019. However if we look at the data for established markets like the US, we see a less exciting picture. eCommerce will still grow, but the growth has pretty much plateaued. The big growth is in emerging markets, and China with over 1 billion people is the biggest emerging market of them all. Chinese eCommerce sales are already enormous yet are predicted to more than double between now and 2016. This will present enormous opportunities to international eCommerce businesses. That said, China is a tough market to crack so don't rush off too fast to established a Beijing office. Dip your toe in before taking the plunge. …