Posts Tagged ‘conversions’

Magento checkout extensions have been pretty popular for a long time. For Ecommerce owners the idea of increasing sales just by making the checkout process smoother is a very appealing one.

The problem is that most checkout extensions are actually harmful to conversion rates and checkout usability.

All Magento checkout extensions I’ve seen out there are very bad in terms of load speed, conversions, and stability.

Don’t combine checkout steps into a single crowded step

First of all I have no idea why but all checkout extensions I’ve ever seen combine the checkout steps into a crowded 3-column design and promote this as if it’s a positive thing.

Here’s a screenshot taken from one such extension to illustrate what I mean:

Even the savviest users get confused with such a layout! Not to mention most internet shoppers eager to complete their purchase quickly and move on. I mean – which fields are you supposed to fill out first? Why are there so many options everywhere? It’s really overwhelming – especially if you’re just buying a shirt or a pair of shoes!

There are a ton of checkout extensions but somehow they all combine all checkout steps into one crowded page with 3 columns. It doesn’t get any worse in terms of usability and conversions!

Don’t overwrite Magento’s functionality

These extensions also completely overwrite Magento’s checkout functionality which is a big no no in terms of upgade-ability, stability and security.

What that means is that you’ll run into countless issues and problems with new Magento verions, and other 3rd party extensions (such as payment methods, shipping methods, etc).

Don’t weigh down your checkout page

In  addition these extensions add their own style files, template files, and layout files to the checkout page which will affect  load speed and page performance – actually slowing down the most important page of an online store!

Don’t trust anything but numbers

If you’re trying out a Magento checkout extension, you should make sure to test conversion rates with A/B testing (you can use Google Website Optimizer for that if you want a free and quick implementation). One company did test conversion rates and saw a huge decrease in conversion rates when compared to the original Magento checkout process!

Well, that’s expected to anyone with any sense of design and usability.

Look for an alternative

You can stick with the native Magento checkout functionality and that’s fine. Except for the very first step which is very confusing to users:

Fortunately this first step can be easily and seamlessly removed with the Optimized Checkout Extension without affecting any of the checkout functionality and all its possible scenarios.

If you want users to sign up for your newsletter at checkout you can incorporate this very simple extension which adds a newsletter check-box with a bunch of possible scenarios you can configure in the admin.

Links mentioned in this post:

• Google Website Optimizer
• A/B Testing the One Step Checkout Magento Extension
• Magento Conversion Rate Optimization – Cart and Checkout
• Optimized Checkout Extension
• Newsletter Checkout Extension
  

I’m really happy to say that Ultimento has become Noam Design‘s flagship product! The fastest loading Magento theme on the planet is also the fastest growing eCommerce product on the market . With new features and exciting improvements literally every couple of weeks!

We released Ultimento 1.3.1 a few days ago and here are the highlights for this minor release: (more…)

I’m really excited about a new product we launched today: the Optimized Checkout Extension for the Magento CE eCommerce platform.

It’s a very simple module that can make a huge difference in the checkout process of your eCommerce store and boost conversion rates by a whooping 60%.

I’m interested to see the feedback we get on this Magento extension. For now we already plan on developing it further and include multiple layout options that can be selected directly from the admin. (more…)

We’re exited to introduce our latest product: Ultimento!

Ultimento is the best eCommerce template on the planet: based on the powerful Magento platform, Ultimento is a top-of-the-line, feature-rich eCommerce theme that’s easy to use and customize.

You can get it now and install it in less than 60 seconds!

Ultimento includes our award-winning premium Magento theme as well as over 10 cutting-edge Magento extensions and must-have plugins known to dramatically increase conversions and visitor retention.

Ultimento has been heavily optimized to the latest Search Engine standards, is fully cross browser compatible, is made to be easily customized, and the list goes on!

Oh and yes – did I mention that it’s the fastest loading Magento template on the planet? Take the tour and let me know your thoughts! Keep reading for a way to get your copy of Ultimento for half the price! (more…)

Setting up Google Adwords Conversion Tracking on your Magento store is relatively easy – but it’s not a built-in Magento feature, so you’ll have to edit a template file. Here are the 4 simple steps  that need to be done: (more…)

I was recently interviewed by CNN Money to review a  recently redesigned Ecommerce website.  So I looked at the website and to be honest, the site was still very far from having the potential to become a successful online store (i.e. designed with conversions in mind). And really there are no excuses because in today’s internet, it is so easy and cost effective to get a professional Ecommerce website up and running within a matter of days! There are countless platforms and website solutions out there – many of them are very professional and it is easy to get a website that converts and generate profits.  (more…)

Last week we met with a business owner and his team who had recently been presented by their current Web Design Company with a big quote to promote their web business over one year. We then decided it was time for us to step in and shed some light on one of the most misunderstood aspects of web design and website development: Search Engine Optimization.

In the past 10 years, SEO has become one of the most intriguing internet marketing strategies, drawing much attention from businesses across the Web. Today, these businesses invest millions of dollars in their websites’ Search Engine Optimization. Yet, in any given industry, only a handful of companies successfully promote their business and get a good return on their SEO investment. So what is the Big Secret? What techniques are available today to optimize a website? And what is the most efficient way to promote your website with SEO? Oh and what exactly makes us experts in the field? (more…)