7 Deadly Sins That Could Destroy Your E-commerce Store's Credibility

7 Deadly Sins That Could Destroy Your E-commerce Store's Credibility

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Pride - an excessive belief in ones own abilities and products
Product descriptions must entice the reader, absolutely. But if there is a huge gaping hole between the product youve described and what they open in the mail two days later, youll lose their custom faster than a snowball in hell. And thats only after theyve returned the goods and bad-mouthed you to all their friends.

Envy - the desire for others' traits, status, brand identity and customers
A strong brand identity and a consistent tone of voice are essential qualities for any successful e-commerce store, but many businesses reject this advice. The temptation is to copy the formula of a more successful brand rather than find your own niche market. The result? A diluted brand identity, confused product range and, worse still, a competitor that does everything you do, but better.

Gluttony - an inordinate desire to oversell
Customers are flighty: fact. So, when they land on your homepage or browse your product pages you need to keep it simple. Bloated product pages, over indulging in banners and an excessive number of cross sells only confuse customers and hide important messages such as your call to action or even the shopping basket. The only person who should be working hard for your products is you.

Lust - an excessive craving for your customers and their personal info
Forcing customers to login to place an order is quite possibly the most annoying habit of any e-commerce store, second only to those that make you register a million personal details when you do finally sign up. A persons phone number and date of birth is the kind of knowledge we pass on to friends and family, not some company weve just met. OK?

Wrath - the desire of a person who opts for fury above all else (such as an angry customer)
A no-hassle returns policy thats a whole world of hassle, no-reply emails and an unreachable customer service team are all common vices that instil rage into the hearts of otherwise reasonable customers. The solution? Make your returns policy clear, your contact details easy to find, and ensure that someone friendly and efficient is on the receiving end to snuff out problems before they start.

Greed - the unquenchable desire for material gain or ignoring the needs of your customers
Youre a business and you want to make lots of money, right? Well thats great, its good to be ambitious. Just make sure you tread carefully. Theres a fine line between a good sales pitch and an aggressive one. So when you make sales and get new customers, look after them. Spamming customers like the worlds about to end kills any good thing you have going. Theres just one word for this ... stalker.

Sloth - the avoidance of physical work or upkeep of your website
So, youve published your site and your store is up and running; dont stop now. Search tools need to be up to date and pull up relevant products; the homepage must be refreshed, and new products must be added. No-one wants to return a month later to see the same old stuff and nor should searching for a product feel like wading through a jumble sale. The hard works done, so dont blow it.

About the Author:
Pat Wong works for Serif, which specialises in software for small businesses. Serif's range includes prefessional website design software, photo editing software and graphic design software which enable small businesses to develop and maintain a fully-functional online store.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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