The Most Overlooked Features on Your Ecommerce Website That Are Costing You Sales

When running an ecommerce store, it’s easy to focus on the big-ticket items: conversion rate optimization, product descriptions, and marketing campaigns. But often, the smaller, less glamorous features are quietly eating away at your bottom line. Let’s explore those overlooked aspects of your website that could be costing you sales and discuss actionable strategies, including tools and AI-driven approaches, to address them.

404 Pages: Turning Dead Ends into Opportunities

A 404 page is often treated as an afterthought, but it can disrupt a user’s journey and lead to frustration. Instead of letting it be a dead end, turn it into an opportunity to guide users back on track. A well-designed 404 page should include a friendly message, a search bar, and links to popular categories or products. Tools like Hotjar can help you analyze how often visitors encounter your 404 page and identify broken links. GA4 can also help spot 404 pages, by identifying pages with 404 in the title. 

With tools like ChatGPT, you can create engaging and personalized copy for your 404 page. For example, you could prompt ChatGPT to draft lighthearted, on-brand text that keeps visitors engaged while directing them back into your sales funnel. Some ecommerce stores, such as Yeti, excel in this area by using witty copy and links to trending products, ensuring users stay on their site rather than leaving out of frustration.

Internal Linking: The Hidden SEO Goldmine

Internal linking is a powerful tool that many ecommerce websites fail to fully utilize. Effective internal linking improves SEO, enhances user navigation, and keeps visitors engaged longer. Yet, it’s often overlooked in favor of external link-building strategies.

Tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush can help you audit your internal link structure and identify opportunities to strengthen it. AI tools can also assist—for example, you can ask ChatGPT to analyze a list of blog topics and suggest internal links to connect them with relevant product pages. By strategically linking a blog post about winter skincare to your bestselling moisturizer, you can guide users naturally toward a purchase. This approach ensures users find what they need and boosts your bottom line. Look into your most visitied content pages in your preferred analytics tool and start from there. 

About Us: More Than a Page, a Connection

The About Us page is often dismissed as a minor part of an ecommerce site, but it plays a crucial role in building trust. Generic content here fails to create the connection that can turn casual visitors into loyal customers. A compelling About Us page should tell your brand’s story, highlight your mission, and introduce the people behind your business.

To refine your About Us content, tools like Grammarly can ensure your writing is clear and polished, while Jasper AI can help you craft engaging and on-brand narratives. For instance, you might use Jasper to write about your commitment to sustainability or your unique approach to customer service. Brands like Cotopaxi excel at using their About Us pages to convey their values and mission, inspiring trust and loyalty among their customers.

Microcopy: The Tiny Text That Makes a Big Difference

Microcopy—the small bits of text on buttons, forms, and error messages—is easy to overlook but has a significant impact on user experience and conversions. Thoughtful microcopy can reassure users, clarify next steps, and even inject personality into your site.

Start by auditing your existing microcopy for clarity and consistency. Tools like Optimizely can help you A/B test different versions to see what resonates most with users. You can also use ChatGPT to brainstorm creative microcopy ideas, such as playful text for an add-to-cart button that emphasizes the joy of shopping. For example, for an outdoor store, a button labeled “Add to Pack” feels more relevant than the generic “Add to Cart.”

Blog/Content: Your Silent Salesperson

A well-maintained blog is one of the most underutilized tools in ecommerce. It can drive organic traffic, educate customers, and establish your brand as an authority. Yet many ecommerce managers treat blogs as an afterthought.

To maximize the potential of your blog, identify content gaps using tools like BuzzSumo or Ahrefs. With ChatGPT can help you brainstorm and draft articles that align with your products and target audience. For example, a fitness store could use ChatGPT to create a blog post outlining “5 Essential Items for Beginner Workouts” while linking to relevant products. By providing value to readers, your blog can act as a silent salesperson, guiding users toward purchases while building trust.

A store with a great blog is The Sill. Their content focuses on plant care, which is highly relevant for their audience of plant buyers. Their articles answer common questions their audience search for online. This is also useful content for their email marketing strategy to keep customers engaged. 

Accessibility: Inclusive Design Boosts Sales

Accessibility is not just a legal requirement in many regions but also a way to make your site usable for a broader audience. Unfortunately, it’s often overlooked, resulting in lost opportunities to connect with customers who have disabilities.

Conduct an accessibility audit using tools like WAVE or Axe to identify and address issues such as missing alt text, poor contrast ratios, or non-functional keyboard navigation. Don’t fully depend on those tools though, as they’re not totally comprehensive. If you’re serious about making your site accessible, get more information about our accessibility audits. 

AI tools like Microsoft’s Seeing AI can help simulate how users with visual impairments experience your site, providing valuable insights. By ensuring your site is inclusive, you can build trust and loyalty while expanding your potential customer base. Brands like Target have successfully prioritized accessibility, earning them positive press and a devoted customer following.

Bringing It All Together

Overlooking these features can cost you more than just sales—it can erode trust and drive customers to competitors. Addressing your 404 pages, internal linking, About Us section, microcopy, blogs, and accessibility can dramatically improve both user experience and revenue.

Start by prioritizing the areas that will have the most immediate impact. Use the tools and strategies mentioned to make incremental improvements, and integrate these tasks into your team’s workflow. With AI tools and data-driven insights at your disposal, even the most neglected areas of your site can become key drivers of success.

In ecommerce, it’s often the details that set you apart. By giving attention to these overlooked features, you’ll not only boost your bottom line but also create a better experience for your customers.