Conversion Rate in Ecommerce: How to Convert Visitors to Customers & Increase Conversion in Ecommerce? [2024]

Traffic and customers are the foundation of any online store. The success of a website depends largely on how closely the website traffic and customers correlate with it. 

But how much traffic really gets converted into customers? How many of the visitors on the website actually show interest in the Ecommerce website’s products and services with a desired action? That's what conversion rate is about. 

But what is the “conversion rate in Ecommerce”? How does the conversion rate in Ecommerce vary from other industries? How is it calculated? What's a “good” conversion rate for the Ecommerce industry? How can businesses improve conversion rate in Ecommerce with conversion rate optimization? Let's explore conversion rate in detail in this blog post.

What Is Conversion Rate in Ecommerce? 

Let's understand the term “conversion rate in Ecommerce” in detail. In Ecommerce, a “conversion” happens whenever a website visitor turns into a customer by taking a desired action. 

This desired action isn't just limited to making a purchase. It covers any action that customers do to engage with the brand or decide to stick with the business, its products, and services. A conversion also happens whenever a website visitor fill out a survey, join up for a free trial, fill out a form, or subscribe to a newsletter. 

In the context of e-commerce, "conversion rate" now refers to the speed at which a website or company turns visitors into consumers within a given amount of time. This indicator shows the proportion of visitors who completed the desired action within a certain time window.

Now, why is “conversion rate” important in Ecommerce? It's because it measures how much traffic the Ecommerce business is able to retain. Now imagine the scenario that an Ecommerce store has tons of traffic but a handful of customers actually using their service. 

This means that customers are not engaging with the brand. Although they land at the Ecommerce store but don't actually find their products and services valuable or worthy. Simply said, the brand or business is somehow unable to impress the incoming traffic and address their pain points.

“Conversion rate” is a crucial indicator of the business’s profitability and overall customer satisfaction. The higher the conversion rate, the higher is customer satisfaction and higher is the business’s profitability. Moreover, a high conversion rate also means that the business can retain these customers in the long run thus boosting customer retention.

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How to Calculate Conversion Rate in Ecommerce? 

Here's how one can calculate conversion rate in Ecommerce in three simple steps using one formula. Let's first discuss the steps following up with the formula and its usage.

Step 1: Track the number of 

Any E-commerce store's conversion rate can be calculated by monitoring the amount of traffic that the website or store receives. Use platforms like Google Analytics, which enables companies to precisely track the quantity of people that visit their website during a given time period, for this purpose. It should be noted that the term "visitors" in this context refers to all visitors, including bouncers and those who become customers later on. 

Step 2: Track the number of conversions 

After knowing the traffic count, businesses must focus on tracking or calculating how many of the total traffic actually turned into conversions. The record of conversions achieved during a specific time frame must be regularly maintained and calculated. 

Step 3: Mathematical calculation

In this last step, the business manager can follow the simple formula to calculate the conversion rate (as a percentage) for the particular Ecommerce store. The formula is: {Conversion Rate = (Total Conversions / Total Visitors) x 100} 

For example: An Ecommerce store named ProteinStore recorded 2,00,000 website visits and 300 conversions in March 2024. This, following the formula, the conversion rate for ProteinStore for March 2024 would be: 

Conversion Rate = (300/2,00,000)*100

                            = 0.15%

Good Conversion Rate in Ecommerce 

Stats say that the average conversion rate for most Ecommerce websites and stores range between 2 to 3%. Furthermore, the conversion rate below 2% is considered “bad” and the one above 3% is no less than an “achievement”.

Average E-Commerce Conversion Rates By Industry in 2024 

The Ecommerce rate varies from industry to industry. Some industries receive heavy conversion, and some witness just the bare minimum. Let's have a look at some industries’ Ecommerce conversion rate as of December 2022.

• Baby & Children: 0.87% – 1.43% 
• Sports & Fitness: 1.18 – 1.62%
• Food & Beverages: 1.00% – 2.01%
• Health and Wellbeing: 1.87% – 4.20%
• Fashion & Accessories: 1.01% – 2.20%
• Kitchen & Household Appliances: 1.72% – 3.00%
• Agriculture: 0.62% – 1.41%
• Pet Care: 2.53% – 2.20%
• Home Accessories & Gifts: 1.55% – 2.34%
• Automobile & Motorcycling: 1.35% – 0.65%
• Electrical & Commercial Equipment: 2.49% – 1.31%‍
• Arts & Crafts: 3.84% – 4.07%

7 Factors Affecting Conversion Rate in Ecommerce 

Conversion rate in Ecommerce depends on a range of factors which are listed below. Let's understand how each of these factors affect this crucial Ecommerce business metric. 

1. Website Design and User Experience (UX) 

The first thing a visitor (potential customer) notices on landing on an Ecommerce store is the website design. Even before landing on the home page, the loading speed of a website is notices by the visitor. 

Ecommerce users prefer websites which have high loading speed and are well designed. With that being said, “a well designed website” means a clean and impressive landing page which is easily navigable for the users. 

Moreover, before the products reach the customer, it's the website and how its presented to the customers on the website which decide if the customer is going to buy them. Thus, a clean and navigable website design is crucial for delivering a seamless user experience which forces website visitors to trust you and become potential customers.

2. Page Loading Speed

According to Skilled.co, around 47% of customers prefer to wait for just 2 seconds for loading any webpage. The customer retention power of any webpage drops significantly with even a second delay in the loading speed. 

Customers prefer pages with high loading speed. They choose to skip pages which take longer time to load. It's because they don't wish to keep waiting to discover a particular page. Thus, Ecommerce businesses must focus on optimising their page loading speed for improving their overall customer experience and conversion rate.

3. Product Descriptions and Imagery 

In the Ecommerce world, customers have little to no option to touch or feel their wishlishted product. It's the product description and images which is their sole reference to know more about the product ultimately moving it from the wishlist section to their cart. Thus, Ecommerce businesses must ensure that the descriptions and images they use for their products must be clear and easy to understand.  

4. Clear and Transparent Pricing 

Pricing is byfar the most importantly factor which Ecommerce users notice before grabbing their favourite product. If they grab the product elsewhere at a better deal, they will eventually move there. 

Mostly, websites don't have clear pricing. The pricing on the product page doesn't include hidden charges such as shipping charges, delivery fees, platform fees etc. Thus, when a customer finds these charges in the checkout page, they look for better pricing plans at other Ecommerce stores.

5. Trustworthiness and Security 

Before becoming a customer, a website visitor looks for signs and indicators which assures him/her that they can trust the Ecommerce business. This is why trust badges, privacy policy and other such details are crucial. When such crucial security details are missing, a visitor will choose to walk away from the particular product or service which they can grab elsewhere without comprising their security. 

6. Customer Reviews and Testimonials 

While discussing about security and trustworthiness, we can't ignore how important customer reviews and testimonials are. These are crucial social proof, which make the customers believe in the product or service and the Ecommerce store as a whole. A customer prefers buying a product with higher ratings rather than the one with low ratings.

7. Mobile Responsiveness 

Customers prefer websites which are mobile responsive as this allows them to get crucial updates right on their mobile phone anywhere and anytime. It's why a website must be mobile friendly in order to gain traffic and customers.

What Is E-Commerce Conversion Rate Optimization?

The success of an Ecommerce store depends largely on how successfully it's able to convert website visitors to loyal customers. All e-commerce business want to increase their conversion rate in order to attract more clients.

Thus, Ecommerce conversion rate optimization is the process of raising an online store's conversion rate.Now, why is optimising conversion rate in Ecommerce important?

Ecommerce conversion rate optimization not just boosts the conversion rate but also allows the Ecommerce business to understand and serve their customers better. This process provides businesses with valuable insights on how they can improve their customer interaction and convince website traffic to become customers. Furthermore, it helps Ecommerce businesses acquir more customers from their traffic which also boosts their revenue.

‍7 Ways to Optimise and Increase Conversion Rate in Ecommerce 

Ecommerce conversion rate optimization is a gradual process and not a sudden change. Business must use specific strategies to improve their conversion rate gradually. Below listed are 7 such ways recommended by experts.

1. Optimise the Website for Mobile Users

As of 2024, around 58.22% of Ecommerce users were mobile based. This statistic clearly reflects how users prefer the convenience of mobile phones in Ecommerce. 

Thus, every Ecommerce store must ensure that their website is mobile friendly. This means that all the features available on desktop version must be available in mobile version too. The website design must be clean and easily navigable. This allows the website visitors to easily browse the website and land at their favourite product in no time. 

2. Boost Page Load Speed

Optimising your website's loading time can increase conversion rate & reduce churn rates in Ecommerce. Pages that load slowly can result in elevated bounce rates. Compress images, use browser caching, and minimise HTTP requests to improve speed. 

Studies suggest that even a brief one-second delay in a webpage's loading time can lead to a 7% reduction in conversion rates. Specifically within the realm of Ecommerce, conversion rates exhibit a decrement of approximately 0.3% with each extra second it takes for a website to load.

3. Ensure Clear and Compelling CTAs

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For Ecommerce conversion optimisation, use clear and persuasive Call-to-Action (CTA) buttons. Make them stand out with contrasting colours, and use compelling copy to encourage users to take the desired action. 

Specialists recommend utilising larger call-to-action (CTA) buttons, as they can potentially boost conversion rates by 10 to 25%. Additionally, the strategic placement of the CTA holds significant importance in optimising its effectiveness.

4. Streamline the Checkout Process

Simplify the checkout process. Reduce the number of steps and form fields and offer guest checkout options. The goal is to minimise friction and make the purchase process as smooth as possible. Providing a streamlined one-page checkout or incorporating a progress indicator can lead to a substantial boost in the conversion rate in Ecommerce platforms. 

According to research conducted by ConversionXL, eliminating extraneous form fields resulted in a remarkable 160% increase in the checkout conversion rate.

5. Ensure Transparency in Pricing and Policies

Clearly display product prices, shipping costs, and return policies. Hidden fees or unclear terms can lead to cart abandonment. Providing clear and upfront pricing can enhance a company's reputation, foster stronger connections with customers, and positively impact overall financial performance.

6. Add Social Proof and User Reviews

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Around 93% of customers check customer reviews before making a purchase. These reviews act as social proof thus making the new users believe that the product or service it addresses their specific pain points. 

Thus, Ecommerce business must focus on showcasing reviews and testimonials from previous customers who have actually used the product. Furthermore, they should also encourage users to leave their remarks and reviews for a specific product.

7. Conduct A/B Testing

Ecommerce businesses must perform A/B testing on different aspects of the website and products, such as call-to-action buttons, product descriptions, and page designs regularly. This allows them to discover the most effective approaches for the audience and optimise accordingly. It also helps them discover the loopholes which can be improved for improving customer satisfaction and conversion rate.

Conclusion 

The importance of conversion rate in Ecommerce is paramount. It has a direct impact on the revenue and customer retention of the Ecommerce website. Furthermore, the ideal conversion rate varies according to the particular Ecommerce business, its niche etc. However, with the right strategies in place, conversion rates can be optimised and improved to increase the number of customers and boost the overall revenue. 

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Their AI concierge & conversational AI agents & chatbots not just converse with your customers but also understand their emotions and respond accordingly. With top notch features and enterprise grade security, App0 makes shopping a seamless experience. Imagine turning processes like reordering and checkout as a simple one to two step process. That's what App0 does for your customers this helping you build an amazing user experience which ultimately boosts your conversion rate. Request a demo now and witness the change yourself!

Conversion Rate in Ecommerce: FAQs