How to take your traditional business online
Whether you want to offer existing customers another opportunity to engage with your business or get your products in front of new customers anywhere in the world, you understand that succeeding in today’s digital economy requires an online presence. But how can you translate your best-in-class bricks-and-mortar experience into a digital space?
To stand out in today’s crowded online marketplace, you need to start with an efficient, mobile-friendly website featuring design that seamlessly melds form and function. Here are some tips to build a best-in-class online shopping experience that will boost your business and your bottom line.
Design for any and every device
Your customers and potential customers might have an outdated Samsung device, or the latest iPhone; they may prefer to browse the internet on their phone during their commute or on their tablet while sitting in front of the television. They might want to use Chrome, Safari or Firefox. Rather than predicting what most of your customers use or what smartphones will be like in the future, your website needs to be versatile enough to work well on any device, screen size and browser. Expert web designers recommend planning for big — laptop or computer screens — and then hiding items as necessary the smaller the screen gets, also known as responsive design.
Put yourself in your customers’ shoes
A mobile-friendly website isn’t just about a smaller-sized screen — the way we use and navigate around a website is an entirely different experience on mobile than on a computer. Make sure to factor in these changes in human experience and behaviour. How long does it take to scroll through your product offerings? Is your checkout button so small that your customers have to zoom in to click? Consider your demographics, too. If your target market is boomers, their eyesight may require larger text.
Streamline with an omnichannel solution
A great website is less valuable if you can’t convert that superior user experience and added traffic into sales. Your website should try to mirror the same goods and services you sell in your retail store. To optimize your online sales, choose a flexible omnicommerce payment solution like Converge from Elavon that allows you to accept credit and debit card payments as well as newer payment methods such as Apple Pay. Converge has flexible, secure eCommerce options, whether you’re looking for a plug-and-play shopping cart, or if you are a developer looking for tools to incorporate payment acceptance without holding sensitive payment data.
Put security first
It can be easy to get wrapped up in features, cool apps and fun widgets when you’re developing a mobile-friendly website that consumers will love. But even though it’s less sexy, security should be your top priority. An attractive, consumer-friendly online experience will draw your customers in, but you need top-of-the-line security to keep them. After all, would you return to an online shopping environment if your credit card was compromised after a purchase? Ensure that whenever your customers entrust you with their personal information and cardholder data, you keep it safe. At Elavon, we are a leader in upgrading customers to the latest technology solutions standards, protecting your business with secure solutions like encryption and tokenization.