Most price comparison sites have a fundamental problem - they don't concentrate on offering the user the actual information they came for. Too many simply act as a glorified listing service for merchants and don't adhere to the basic comparison principles.
From our research in producing
simple2compare, users want to get at the price quickly, be able to trust the prices they see, be able to compare the price from all the major retailers in one place and be able to make like for like comparisons. All are basic and obvious requirements. Yet, so many 'major' comparison sites fail in one or more of the above. Here are our top 5 easy to implement tips for achieving this:
1: Compare prices of the same item together - list prices from all merchants together, ideally in one table and for one product e.g. hardback with hardback and paperback with....you get it.
2: Sort your results by price, NOT 'popularity' - after all the user's come to a price comparison site, not a popularity one, especially not one that looks clearly like it's a 'paid for' type.
3: Include the complete price where possible - what's the point in advertising a product listed for 10p, if the mainland UK delivery takes it to 5. Provide prices that give the user a true and complete picture. If you're worried about your international users not getting the correct price - don't! They're probably 0.001% of your business and surely not worth sacrificing accuracy for the rest? You can always put a comment to explain your assumptions.
4. Save the user time, clicks and brain power - make sure the primary purpose of your site is obvious on your home page, works quickly and offers all the relevant information in the least number of clicks. Remember the 2 'threes':
- You have 3 seconds to capture the user's attention - if they don't spot what they're after on each page load, they won't spend longer searching for it
- You have 3 clicks to present what the user wants - if they still don't have that price after three clicks, they'll tire and move on back to google with one more
5. Build a niche and your reputation - remember, maximise the business you already have before spreading yourself too thin winning new business. There's no point comparing more categories before you're trusted for the ones you already compare. Most online buyers will buy many different types of things online. If they've used your service before and trust it, they'll then trust your new category comparisons. Remember, you've already done the hard work bringing them to the site in the first place - now maximise it with repeat business.
