10 Tips to convert webshop visitors into loyal customers

Anja Bojic | 02. 10. 2024.

Convert webshop visitors into loyal customers by capturing their interest from the moment they land on your website.

Drawing visitors to your e-commerce website is crucial, but it’s just the first step.  

Once they’re there, you need to capture their interest, guide them through your offer, and find a way to turn them into returning and paying customers. And beyond that, building trust and having loyal customers keep coming back for more should be a top priority for any business.  

Let’s explore tips and strategies that will help you convert webshop visitors into repeat buyers. 

Optimize your homepage for first impressions 

Your homepage is often the first point of contact with your potential customers. For about 50% of consumers, the impression of a business depends on its website design. 

This should be reason enough to optimize your homepage (but don’t forget the rest of your website, too!). Make sure it:  

• Clearly communicates your brand’s unique value proposition,  
• Showcases your best products and offer, and  
• Provides easy access to key sections.  

A clean, visually appealing design can make a strong first impression and keep your webshop visitors engaged and willing to explore further. According to one Clutch research, online users pay the most attention to:   

• Easy navigation — 94% say this is the most important feature on a company’s website. 
• Attractive and up-to-date design — 83% say they appreciate it when a website looks appealing and current. 
• Social media links — 67% say they find websites with links to the company’s social media accounts extremely or somewhat useful. 

Leverage product recommendations 

Personalizing the shopping experience with product recommendations is a great way to boost your customers’ engagement and increase sales/conversions.  

For this part, you can rely on recommenders. Different types of recommenders can help you by suggesting products based on what customers have browsed, bought before, or shown interest in.  

With Solver AI Suite, you can create and deliver super-relevant product recommendations

With this approach, you will make your shoppers feel understood and valued, which may encourage them to keep coming back for more. Moreover, our clients report impressive results with recommenders: 

• 35% average sales conversion increase, 
• 20% average click-through rate (CTR) increase, and 
• 30% average purchase value increase. 

Implement effective call-to-actions (CTAs) 

One thing that people truly appreciate about brands is transparency.  

You should have this in mind when creating CTAs for your website — a specific, clear CTA can increase conversion rates by 161%, reports show. 

So, you should make sure your CTAs are clear, compelling, and strategically placed throughout your website. Whether it’s a “Buy Now” button or a prompt to sign up for your newsletter, the CTAs you put on your website should create a sense of urgency and guide your visitors to do what you want them to do.   

If you want to spice it up and provide a better experience for your customers, don’t forget to test different CTA text, colors, and placements. This can help you find the most effective combination and provide more personalized CTAs to your website visitors.  

Let us remind you that personalized CTAs perform 202% better than basic CTAs. So, if you really want to go that extra mile, think about upgrading your personalization efforts even when creating CTAs.  

Simplify your checkout process 

According to Statista, a complicated checkout process is one of the biggest causes of cart abandonment in the US. At least 22% of online shoppers haven’t completed their purchases because of a complicated checkout process.  

Since this seems to be the breaking point, you should really take some time to simplify your checkout process. To convert webshop visitors into loyal and returning customers, make sure to have clear checkout instructions and provide maximum security. Here’s some steps to consider:   

• Reduce the number of steps needed to make a purchase,  
• Offer guest checkout options for those who aren’t willing to make an account just yet, and  
• Make sure to support multiple payment methods.  

Enhance mobile shopping experience 

With a growing number of consumers shopping on the go and with the help of their mobile phones, your website must be fully optimized for mobile.  

To make sure you convert webshop visitors into loyal customers and provide them with a seamless mobile shopping experience, here’s what you can consider:   

• A responsive design adapts to different screen sizes, so whether a customer is using the latest iPhone or an older Android device, their experience remains smooth.  
• Fast loading times are key — no one wants to wait for pages to load while they’re out and about. Easy-to-click buttons prevent the frustration of misclicks, especially when someone’s using one hand to browse and the other to carry their coffee.  
• Lastly, a mobile-friendly checkout process, with clear steps and minimal distractions, makes it simple for customers to complete their purchases without any hassle. 

For example, imagine a customer browsing your e-commerce site to buy a last-minute gift while driving home. If your website is easy to navigate and the checkout process is smooth, they’re more likely to complete their purchase and even consider your store for future needs. They will remember how easy it was for them to buy a last-minute gift while driving! 

But if they are in a hurry and try to get something from your slow-loading website or the buttons that are difficult to click, they will leave their cart in frustration and never come back. 

So, if you’re truly eager to keep your visitors close and make them come back for more, go above and beyond to provide them with an exceptional mobile experience. It’s not that hard.  

Build trust with reviews and testimonials 

If you haven’t already, you should display customer reviews, product ratings, and testimonials on your website.  

This is a powerful way to influence purchasing decisions and build trust with your visitors. For instance, 72% of customers trust a business more after reading positive reviews and testimonials.   

Positive feedback left by your existing customers has the power to reassure new visitors about the quality of your products or services. About 92% of buyers read reviews and testimonials before making a purchase, which clearly highlights their importance in the decision-making process. 

In addition to helping you convert webshop visitors into loyal customers, displaying reviews and testimonials can also improve your sales efforts. Incorporating these reviews can significantly impact your sales — some studies show that displaying reviews and testimonials can boost sales by up to 270%. 

Offer incentives for first-time shoppers 

One of the biggest challenges for businesses is the cold start problem.  

How can you attract someone (visitor) if you don’t know anything about them and turn them into your friend (loyal customer)?  

The good news is that you CAN DO SOMETHING about it — especially if you get some recommenders involved. Even with minimal data about your visitors, you can use recommenders to analyze their behavior in real time and create more personalized offers.  

For example, you can convert webshop visitors into customers by offering discounts, free shipping, or exclusive deals based on their initial interactions with your website. Just think about what would motivate you to come back to a website — use that for your visitors, too.  

Offering unique incentives can be the final push your hesitant visitors need to convert into buyers. Make sure these personalized offers are visible on your homepage and throughout your website to capture their attention and encourage them to take that next step. Good luck! 

Use retargeting to re-engage abandoned visitors 

Not every visitor will convert on their first visit, but you can bring them back with retargeting ads that remind them of the products they viewed or motivate them to complete their purchase. We know it’s not easy to convert webshop visitors into loyal customers, but you can try retargeting ads.  

To make your retargeting efforts even more effective, Things Solver’s Broadcast Studio offers powerful tools for running direct marketing campaigns in just 3 clicks!  

With Broadcast Studio, you can easily create and set up personalized campaigns that target the audience you choose and increase conversions through different channels, including email, Viber, or SMS. 

Things Solver’s Broadcast Studio

The user-friendly interface makes it super easy to create high-converting emails and templates in minutes. And the best thing is there’s no coding required.  

Plus, the platform automatically selects the most effective campaigns, helping you scale what works best for you and achieve real ROI from your marketing activities. 

With this approach, you can easily optimize your sales funnel and better understand how your customers behave, making sure your retargeting efforts are both smart and successful. 

Invest in proper customer support 

One aspect many sometimes overlook when trying to convert webshop visitors into loyal customers is accessible and responsive customer support. This can truly make all the difference!  

According to the latest Zendesk CX Trends Report, more than half of customers will go to the competitor after only one bad experience with the brand. Ouch! 

Even if you haven’t been doing it until now, start working on providing exceptional customer service to build trust with your visitors and turn them into returning customers.  

It would be great if you could afford to offer multiple contact options, including live chat, email, and phone support. But even if you can only make room for one or two communication channels, focus on ensuring quick response times and effectiveness in resolving customer issues.  

Remember, no one likes to wait when they have a problem with a product/service.  

Nurture your relationships with post-purchase follow-ups 

Converting webshop visitors into loyal customers is just the beginning of your relationship.  

To keep that relationship alive, you must keep investing in it. Here are a few ideas that might help nurture these relationships better: 

• Follow up with your shoppers using personalized emails, thank you notes, or special offers to keep them happy and taken care of. 
• Encourage feedback to get insights on how much they like your offer and use it to improve where there’s room for improvement.  
• Offer custom-made loyalty programs for your most loyal shoppers.  
• Always provide valuable content to keep people coming back.  

Whichever way you choose to nurture your relationships, make sure it is aligned with your customers’ interests and preferences, and you’ll see tangible results.  

Need help to convert webshop visitors into customers?  

Wanting to convert webshop visitors into loyal customers is essential for the growth of your business, but it can be challenging to navigate all the strategies and implement all the tips on your own.  

Luckily, we’re here to help you! If you’re looking to optimize your efforts and see real results, Things Solver is here for you.  Whether you need help with retargeting campaigns, creating more personalized product recommendations, or any other part of your sales funnel, reach out to us via email at ai@thingsolver.com or book a free demo! Let’s work together to convert your visitors into lifelong customers.