What is your store’s conversion rate? We’re not talking missionary work, but rather the number of visitors to your store or web site who are turned into paying customers.  It is relatively easy to measure your conversion rate online, given the sophisticated tracking tools available on the web, while tracking the percentage of shoppers who leave empty-handed may be harder to do. But whether you are interacting with customers online or in person, increasing your conversion rate is a good way to increase sales.

If you’ve browsed any shopping sites lately, you may have noticed that some of them interrupting to offer “chat” assistance if you’ve been on the site for some time without making a purchase. Those have logged in before abandoning an online shopping cart without making a purchase may get an email asking if they need help. Both of these efforts are intended to increase the site’s conversion rate.

It’s good news for store retailers that some of those browsing online are just getting information about products that they plan to buy locally, although the opposite is also true — some of those browsing in our stores are “showrooming” and intend to make a purchase later.  Both of these decrease conversion rates, of course, but that doesn’t mean the rate can’t be improved.

Your approach to increasing your conversion rate depends on whether you  are a bricks or clicks retailer.  When selling online, you might use incentives with expiration dates that make ordering urgent.  Stressing your customer-friendly return policy and offering perks such as free shipping at a certain level increase the likelihood of conversion.  So do customer reviews that help the consumer overcome any reluctancy about purchasing a product. For more online ideas, take a look at this article entitled 53 Ways to Increase Conversion Rate.

Retailers with “brick” locations have more of a challenge, especially when located in a mall or tourist area with lots of browsing traffic.  But in truth, the web sites that interrupt their customers shopping experience to offer live chat assistance are just taking a page from our playbook.  Every shopper in your store should be offered a “live” greeting, preferably with some engagement. (The weather is always  good place to start, especially if it is conversation-worthy like today’s -20° temperatures!).

When you notice someone looking around who is still empty-handed, you might  ask if they are looking for something in particular.  Shoppers who are examining a certain product should be given additional information about its selling points or popularity.  Closing the sale by offering to get one in a box, or to gift wrap the item, can make a difference.

They key point to increasing your conversion rate is to make it clear to customers that you hope they will make a purchase. This sounds simple, but we have all had shopping experiences in which the sales staff seems eager to do anything but ring up a sale. As Mark Ryski says in his article about ways to increase conversion rates, “Getting your store to capture even a few more lost sales can have a significant impact on overall sales results. Improving your in-store conversion rate is not hard to do, but it does take focus and attention.”

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder