The Biggest Mistakes to Avoid When Selling With WooCommerce
WooCommerce is one of the best open-source e-commerce plug-ins for building online shops on WordPress. It is the go-to solution for business owners who want to set up an online purchasing platform. Even though this plug-in has many benefits, it is not that easy to set it up. That is why we want to talk about the biggest mistakes to avoid when selling with WooCommerce. Here is everything you need to consider to build a successful online shop.
Do not forget to update the WooCommerce version
When you first create your website and install the WooCommerce plug-in, it will run on the most current version. However, as time goes by, the new version will come up and fix the errors and glitches of the previous one. You may expose your websites to hacker attacks or lose plug-in support if you don’t have the most current version. The best solution is to run a test version of your website, install the plug-in, and ensure it works as intended. Then you can deploy the change in your production environment.
Do not use outdated plug-ins
Besides WooCommerce, you might be using other plug-ins on your website. Suppose you don’t keep them updated to the most current version. In that case, your website will not be safe for your customers. Cybersecurity is a serious issue today, and we have plug-in updates to patch errors in the previous versions. Just as WooCommerce should be up-to-date, that applies to all plug-ins you use on your website. This is especially important for online shops because people leave their credit card information with you. You want to ensure the customer data’s safety is always on the top level.
Not using Google Analytics is a mistake
No matter what type of online business you are running, Google Analytics always makes it better. This is especially correct if we are talking about online shops. With the help of Google Analytics, you can keep track of the following:
- site traffic;
- bounce rate;
- conversion rate;
You should not stop here. Make sure you are using all of the data your website generates. The best approach is to install the WooCommerce Google Analytics plug-in, which will allow you a 360 degrees view of the entire process.
Do not ignore system status reports
WooCommerce comes with a built-in system status report. It reports on various elements and activities on your website, such as the version of WooCommerce, PHP version, web server version, active WooCommerce themes, and much more.
If you notice a red notification on the top of the page, always take time to review the report and make sure you fix any issues the system found.
Do not focus solely on the selling process
Once you install the WooCommerce plug-in and the orders start, you might lose track of other vital parts of running a business. Just because you are doing well with sales does not mean you should not use other opportunities that your selling platform provides. For example, you can embed a feature to collect customer contact information after every sale.
WooCommerce has a custom product add-on, so use that feature to ask for the visitor’s email address. This way, you collect valuable data supporting your future email marketing campaigns.
Do not forget to pay attention to the shipping locations
Websites that have a high volume of online sales generate more profit. However, website owners might feel overwhelmed with the number of purchases, especially if they have to ship the products independently. Do not forget to set a selling location on the purchase form because it will help you in the long run. If you are not shipping to a specific location, you should disable sales for that location in advance. This way, you save yourself a lot of trouble if a customer purchases a product but cannot deliver it. At the same time, you may create location-specific offers to attract more buyers from your area.
Do not forget to brand your emails
It is customary to send an email to a customer after every purchase. While this is good practice, do not make this a generic process. Each email should be customer specific and written in such a way that it promotes your brand.
To make things better, you should change the default email settings that come with WooCommerce. Use the WooCommerce email customizer to tailor the emails based on your customers.
Poor checkout process leads to poor sales
The checkout process is the most critical part of online sales. You want to grab your users’ attention throughout the entire experience and keep it until they complete the checkout. If the checkout page is built unattractive, they might lose interest before committing to a purchase. This usually happens if the page has errors or is too complex. The sale should be finalized quickly without dragging out the procedure. Keep in mind that the design of the website affects customer retention.
Luckily, WooCommerce plugging has a checkout field editor you can use to optimize the customers’ experience during the checkout phase.
Do not forget to purchase the SSL certificate
An SSL certificate is proof that the customer data on your website is safe and secure. When a customer inputs their credit card information, an HTTPS request is created, and customer data is encrypted while traveling to the server and back. Security is a big concern, and securing your WordPress website is an absolute must for everyone who wants to make money online.
Never keep your website live while re-designing it
As a last piece of advice, make sure to make the changes offline whenever you make any changes to the website. If you keep the website live, you are risking ruining the customer experience. If any updates happen during a customer’s purchase, they might lose interest in repeating the purchase. Even though you may have improved the customer experience for later use, you can lose a customer immediately.
Mistakes to avoid when selling with WooCommerce made simple
These are the most serious mistakes to avoid when selling with WooCommerce. Make sure to create a clear, safe, and smooth shopping experience for your customers. WooCommerce is a fantastic platform, you just need to make sure to maintain it regularly, and it will deliver 100%.
Photo Credits in the order as the image appears in this article: Not Applicable as free license images from Google search.
