Retail, in the eyes of the everyday customer

For a majority of shoppers buying online is still a strange new experience.  When I walk into Best Buy I don’t have to worry about the company’s credibility which helps focus on the buying process.  But when I click on a Google result and visit a site for the first time there is no way to know if they offer good service, what other shoppers think about them or how they back promises.  Some companies have reviews and others virus free security seals, but there is no real standard, which leaves the shopper to assume the retailer is cherry picking.  I personally like using bbb.org but unless the etailer has a BBB link on their homepage looking up info is a multi-step process (translation: people will not use it).

BBB should develop a browser plug-in which shows company ratings when I land on a site (or reveal if the company is not listed).  The reason BBB is my recommended solution is because it is a trusted source most consumers already know about.  The other benefit is that BBB is two sided, customers can complain and companies can respond:

Yes, if you make them worth reading…

Cover Plug is an innovative baby safety product and is available at the following etailers:

– thebabysgallerie.com
– chelseasroom.com
– wrapables.com

Each of these retailers has a different selling style.  Here are the three product pages:

– thebabysgallerie.com

– chelseasroom.com

– wrapables.com

Pick the design, layout and content you like best.  Now let’s see comparative traffic trends:

Now I know this is an isolated example and wrapables.com might have more traffic for a number of reasons (paid search spend, product depth, pricing strategy etc) but I am willing to bet that good design (and content) drives repeat visits.  Even if I didn’t buy the product today odds are I’ll remember wrapables.com over the other two.  That makes all the difference.

Related article: Same Product, Totally Different Brand Experience

For me, generating the first time sale trumps all metrics.  Therefore I would expect First-Time Buyer Free Shipping to be a popular strategy.  Unfortunately, I’ve never found a retailer that offers this.  Now, let me qualify, I typically spend 7-10 seconds on a store (this is what most first time visitors do, thus the title of my blog) so if free shipping is buried chances are I wouldn’t find it.  Backroad Hobbies Primitive Decor is an exception.