What is the Key to Checkout Success?
 
The key to e-commerce success is a fast, user-friendly check out process with as few steps as possible to make it easy for your customers to get it right the first time. If they get it right, their confidence in your site will increase & they will return again & tell others about your site.
 
With this in mind we propose the following features:
  • Each checkout screen should have a clear statement informing the customer about what is required and why. It will also provide information about what to expect when they click the Next or Submit buttons.
  • A form that requires only the information needed to complete the order
  • An optional help button for each form field to explain exactly what is required so that customers don't repeatedly get error messages saying "please enter a valid email address or telephone number" without telling them what is required.
  • The facility to display each item separately and update the total
  • Choice of delivery methods & costs where appropriate
  • Links to the products page to allow customers to get more details about any items in the basket
  • Customers should always be able to see what is in their shopping basket
  • The product page should indicate if an item is already in the shopping basket
  • The Shopping basket should allow customers to easily change quantities and remove items.
  • A "Return to Shopping" link
  • Choice of payment options where appropriate – credit/debit card, bank transfer, account, pay by phone or cheque.
  • Customers should be able to save the shopping cart and return to it later that day or later that week. Research shows that customers often browse at lunch time but do not buy until later in the day or week.
  • The opportunity for customers to review the entire order, including delivery and VAT, before being asked to provide payment details.
  • In a single shopping session, customers should never have to re-enter checkout information they've entered previously. All fields will pre-populate for repeated information.
  • A simplified way of dealing with delivery vs. billing address: a check box to indicate when they are both the same - to save customers time and hassle.
  • Option to enter multiple delivery addresses
The "Thank You for Your Order" page should include:
  • An order confirmation number
  • A customer service contact number
  • An itemised receipt of what was ordered
  • A reminder for customers to "Print this page for your records."