Ways To Increase Average Order Value On An Ecommerce Website

Even though visits to your website may be high and the conversion rate is good, it can be a worrying concern to have a consistently low average order value.

Although average order value is a good way of measuring the success of your website as it grows, it is somewhat imperfect. Nonetheless it is still an important number that many ecommerce website owners aim to improve in order to increase their overall revenue.

However, whilst aiming to improve the average order spend is one thing, actually being able to do it is another. It is not something that is a quick and easy fix. It is something that takes a lot of patience, along with some trial and error. Some of the best things that an ecommerce website owner can do in order to increase this metric are listed below.

Create Packages Or Bundle Products Together

An effective way of getting customers to buy more of your products or services is by creating packages or bundling them together at a lower cost than if they were all purchased individually. Doing this works to make the perceived value seem greater and thus making customers more likely to make a purchase, as they believe they are getting some sort of deal or offer.

A good way of doing this is by putting products or services together that create an all in one solution or experience. For instance, if you own a camping ecommerce website, consider putting everything that is essential for the purpose of cooking outdoors together. This allows customers to buy everything that they need in one order whilst also minimising the need for them to do research on the topic. But, best of all, you sell lots of items all at once rather than just a single one, thus increasing the average order value.

Similar to this, you could provide customers with the opportunity to put together products or services of their own choosing in order to create their own bundles.

Introduce A Live Chat Feature For Customer Support

Those ecommerce websites that have a fully integrated live chat system on it can expect to sell somewhere between 10 and 15 percent more per individual order than those ones that do not. This is because it allows customers to have any questions that they may have about your products or services answered right there and then in real time, thus providing much more potential for a sale and less customers abandoning their carts.

An alternative way of looking at a live chat feature is that it helps any high intent buyers that are in your ecommerce website to make a purchase. It provides you with the opportunity to chat directly with people who came to your ecommerce website with the intention of either browsing your products or service, or to actually buy them, but need their questions answered first in order to get the confidence required in order to actually place an order.

This is especially true for those more expensive, big ticket items, such as a piece of furniture or a mattress. Typically these types of products require a certain level of hand holding in order to get the purchase over the line – more so than with a cheaper purchase.

One of the best live chat apps to use on your ecommerce website is the one by JivoChat – read JivoChat’s guide here.

Offer Free Shipping For Large Orders

Although there are lots of ecommerce websites now offering free shipping of their products, it is still a very effective way of encouraging customers to spend that little bit more in order to be eligible for the offer. If using platforms, such as Shopify, then implementing this is a pretty straightforward thing to do.

In order to work out the minimum order price for offering free shipping, you must first determine what the average order value is for your ecommerce website. For example, if the average cost of an order is $25, then you should offer free shipping to those orders that are over $40.

The idea behind setting it at this price is that it makes the offer of free shipping easily attainable. This should in turn work in getting the vast majority of customers to increase their spending, thus pushing up revenue. Setting the free shipping minimum order value any higher than that could potentially cause some customers to abandon their cart – something that should be avoided at all costs.

A variation on this approach is to offer customers a certain level of discount for any orders placed that are over a particular value. For instance, for any order over $40, you could offer a $5 coupon or you could offer them a 5% off coupon. The only problem with the latter of these is that it makes your profits that bit more unpredictable. Failing that, there is always the option of offering a free gift for any order placed that is over a certain order value threshold.

Establish A Customer Loyalty Scheme

Where an ecommerce website sells products or services that are consumable, i.e. requires constant repurchase such as toothpaste or coffee, then establishing a customer loyalty scheme or some kind or another is a great way of not only retaining customers, but also creating a longer lasting relationship with them that keeps them coming back to your ecommerce website over and over again.

When setting one up, it is important that it evolves inline with the preferences of your customers. For instance, given the current economic climate, customers are more likely to prefer cash back or discount incentives rather than free gifts that they do not necessarily even want in the first place. Right now, every dollar counts and so this is what they want back.

With customers being incentivized to spend more on your ecommerce website, expect to see the average order value go up as well. An example of an effective loyalty scheme is Claire’s Rewards, which provides customers with $5 back for every 100 points they earn through making purchases.

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Libby Austin

Libby Austin, the creative force behind alltheragefaces.com, is a dynamic and versatile writer known for her engaging and informative articles across various genres. With a flair for captivating storytelling, Libby's work resonates with a diverse audience, blending expertise with a relatable voice.
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