20 online store mistakes that kill sales: a checklist
Light SEO · Self-check checklist
Checklist: 20 online store mistakes that kill sales
Getting traffic but no orders? In 9 out of 10 cases, the cause is on the website itself. Run through this checklist for your store: every item is a real reason why visitors leave without buying.
4
zones: from the home page to checkout
10 min
for a full self-check
Zone 1
First impression: home page and catalog
It is unclear what you sell. Within 3 seconds on the home page it should be clear what kind of store this is and why to buy here. "Welcome to our website" answers nothing.
The site takes longer than 3 seconds to load. Every extra second costs 7-10% of conversion. Check your site in PageSpeed Insights.
A mobile version made "just for show". 70%+ of shoppers come from a phone. Tiny buttons, a broken layout, horizontal scrolling – and the person is gone.
There is no search, or it does not work. A search that trips over typos and offers no suggestions or synonyms: the buyer did not find it = did not buy it.
Messy categories. "Products", "Miscellaneous", "New-2" – the structure should follow the way buyers search; what is convenient for you to arrange comes second.
Zone 2
Product page
One low-quality photo. At least 3-5 photos from different angles. The buyer cannot hold the product – photos do the job of their hands.
The description is copied from the supplier or empty. Specifications that do not answer the question "will this suit me?" do not sell.
The price is hidden or says "ask us". No price = no order. People do not write in to ask – they open the next website.
Unclear availability. "Made to order, 2-3 weeks" after checkout guarantees frustration and a cancellation.
No delivery terms next to the "Buy" button. Delivery cost and time are the buyer's second question after the price. They should not have to look for it in the footer.
Zone 3
Cart and checkout
Mandatory registration. The fastest way to lose half of your orders. Guest checkout is a must-have.
A 15-field form. Name, phone, city, delivery branch – that is all you need. Every extra field filters out some of your buyers.
No online payment. Only "pay to a card using bank details" – less trust and fewer impulse purchases.
Surprises at the last step. An extra fee or pricier delivery on the final screen is the classic reason for an abandoned cart.
The cart sends no reminders. The person got distracted and forgot. Without retargeting and an email reminder, this order is lost for good.
Zone 4
Trust and traffic
No contacts and no "face". Phone, address, company details of the sole proprietor (FOP) or LLC. An anonymous store looks like a scam.
No reviews. Social proof is the strongest purchase trigger. Collect reviews and show them, even if you only have five so far.
Analytics is not set up. Without conversion tracking you do not know which ads work and which ones drain the budget.
SEO "for later". Meta tags, SEO-friendly URLs, structure – the later you start, the longer competitors will collect your free traffic.
A single traffic channel. Only targeted ads or only SEO is a dependency. Resilient stores rely on at least two sources.
How many items did you count on your site? Even 3-4 mean orders lost every day
We will audit your store against these items and fifty more technical checkpoints: we will show exactly what drains your conversion and give you a prioritized fix plan – what to tackle first so that sales grow this very month.
📝 Order a store audit
Free consultation. We will name the most critical mistakes right on the call
