Online business has come a long way since its inception. Only a decade ago, eCommerce represented the emerging market that is now running the world. Everything has transformed with the development of technology; the most dominant influence had the emergence and widespread use of smart devices, which have changed the way we access online content.

Classic stores are increasingly faced with the choice to either introduce an online sales option or disappear. Consumers are looking at ways to make everything done easier and faster and finish everything they can in just a few clicks. Time is money, and going to brick-and-mortar stores can take a lot of time.

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However, before making a purchase, the consumer goes through several stages. The most desirable outcome is a purchase, but it doesn’t always happen.

Internet users first need to get to your website and to take the most favorable action for you, which is spending money on your product or service. This sales cycle is called eCommerce funnel, and its optimization is a must if you want a profitable business for a long time.

Why the Name ‘Funnel’

A comparison of this order of events with the funnel refers to its graphical representation. This shape shows a decrease in the number of Internet users at each step – seeing an ad, visiting your store, retaining a website, selecting the ‘add to cart’ and ‘buy’ options.

At the top of the sale cycle are people who have received information about your business or product, and this is a vast circle of online users. They saw your ad, banner, or sponsored blog post. In the next step of your sales cycle, you narrow down this number by specific methods because not everyone who saw your product is interested in buying it.

As they go through the sales funnel, some Internet users will give up the idea of buying your product. From the initial number of those who came into your sales funnel, only a small percentage will make purchases. They are at the bottom of the funnel, and that part is graphically shown in the narrowest part.

Understand Why Not Every Visitor Becomes Buyer

Ecommerce funnel optimizing should help you understand users and their problems when they become part of that funnel. If the percentage of final conversions is small, there is something in that flow that disturbs online users to take a favorable action.

Maybe it’s bad advertising, low page load speed, not so user-friendly interface, complicated purchasing process, etc. All of these can be reasons why people stop buying or leaving your website. When you discover the weak point of this process, you will be able to access optimization.

Conversion rate is what you, as business owners, should be most interested in. The right online marketing approach is a significant part of the proper eCommerce funnel. A good advertising strategy generates website traffic. From there, sales funnel takes over and tends to make the number of those who make the purchase (and re-purchase) as large as possible.

Fix the Bad and Improve the Good

Optimization is about repairing what is not good and improving what is bringing satisfying results. For example, if the majority of users reach you via social networks, your marketing team has done an excellent job in this step. But if that number drops drastically in the next stage, it means that there is a problem with your online presence, creative or technical.

By testing and using analytics tools, you can easily reach the weak points in the eCommerce sales funnel. Some tactics, such as product page SEO optimization and various call-to-action methods, have proven to be very successful. You can also use sales techniques, such as offering free shipping or a rebate discount. Learn more here.

The good thing with eCommerce is that everything can be tracked and somewhat corrected on the go. If your site’s analytics shows you have many visitors but few customers, then you should see where your funnel leaks. If you set goals well in the beginning and target them to the right audience, you are on the right way to make sales funnel productive and profitable.