Increasing AOV is as simple as 1,2,3

Okay so increasing your AOV might not be THAT simple, but it doesn’t have to be as difficult as some make it out to be. Here I’ll layout a plan that is sure to get you on the right path to generating that extra revenue.

As any good marketer will tell you, there’s always a way to generate more. AOV, or average order value, is one that most people save for last. Most will take a look at their conversions and when they feel they’ve reached the best possible conversion rate, they’ll begin to look at ways to generate more. The downside to this is that once you begin to make changes to increase that AOV, you will

likely see a decrease in conversions. So how can you increase AOV without hurting those conversions? What is more important, higher revenue or more conversions? Is it possible to attain both increased conversions and higher AOV? Higher AOV doesn’t always mean more revenue. Let’s look at some options for ways to make some small changes to steadily increase your AOV and determine if it truly is possible to get more from both conversions and AOV.

“FREE SHIPPING!” Did that grab your attention? Sure it did. This “free shipping”

offer can be utilized for more than one purpose. First, yes, “Free Shipping on all orders” can be a great offer, but if you’re looking to increase your AOV it might do you some good to create a free shipping threshold. For example, let’s say you sell athletic wear and your current AOV is $36. You currently offer Free Shipping on all

orders. You could start by changing your free shipping to, ”FREE SHIPPING ON ALL ORDERS OVER $49.” This creates a couple of new scenarios for you. 1. Your shipping costs will reduce because on average the standard shipping rate would be less than the $49 total, in the event someone didn’t find a second item to purchase. 2. This creates a chance to sell multiple of the same item on the product detail page, and creating an offer 1 for $35, 2 for $50, etc. 3. You can strategically place a pop up after the Add to Cart button has been hit if someone hasn’t hit the threshold. This is just an example, and you should look at your own data and business to determine what the threshold should be. Remember, you can always play around with this offer, and should continually monitor it to ensure you’re maximizing the potential.

Let’s say you don’t want to offer free shipping, ever. That’s perfectly fine, there is another option for getting more from the promo bar. we’ll continue to use the athletic wear site as an example. What if the current offer shows “SAVE 10% on orders over $50” and your current AOV is still $36. You still aren’t even close to getting your AOV to that $50 threshold. This should tell you that this offer needs to be adjusted or changed because it is not creating the result you’re looking for. Here are a couple of offers you could try: “BUY 1 GET ONE 1/2 OFF,” “SAVE 20% ON ORDERS OVER $59.” You could even create a dollar value off. There are several scenarios that can come into play that can determine what is the best offer for your targeted audience. You may also take into account that what once worked 6 months ago, might not be working and needs to be adjusted. My personal recommendation would be to A/B test several different offers and determine what type of offer your audience responds best to, then adjust the offer to maximize the potential.

Earlier I mentioned using a pop-up to increase AOV after an item has been added to the cart. In general, most platforms automatically have the cart auto-pop or pull out from the side. Most online purchasers are prepared for this to happen. Instead of having the cart pop-up you could have your offer pop-up. In the case of the athletic wear company, let’s say we are using the free shipping offer for orders over $49, and someone has only selected 1 item to total, $30. You can create an offer to pop up with, “ADD A 2ND ITEM (insert the item purchased) to receive FREE SHIPPING.” Below the image have two CTA’s “ADD ITEM” or “Continue Shopping” below the CTA’s have a link that says, “No thanks, I don‘t

want additional items.”

As any e-commerce specialist would say, you must continue to sell through your entire funnel. The cart/checkout is a great way to increase AOV. This is a great place to upsell. Most people will utilize this area to showcase recommended products. It’s important to be consistent, so in this case if someone had one item totaling $36, you could showcase recommended products that would qualify for free shipping. You also would want to note “Add Any of These Items to Qualify for FREE SHIPPING.” The key is consistency here! I cannot tell you how many sites I’ve been to that the promo in the promo bar, doesn’t match the offer in the cart. Again, you’ll want to showcase that they are missing out on a great offer.

So these are some basic ideas to get you started on the path the increasing your AOV. I’ll dig further into different offers on your product detail pages in another article. Keep in mind, every audience has different wants and needs. Be sure you are leveraging the knowledge you have from understanding your target audience to help determine the best offer. If you already have these ideas on your site, and you aren’t seeing the revenue generated from your offers, it’s important you are continually adjusting and monitoring your data. I would never recommend making changes to what you have in place, unless you are certain your data and reporting are accurate.

Thanks, Elizabeth OK