Create customer account. To do or not to do?

Having a customer account with your favorite webshop is very normal for consumers these days. All major brands have it and make full use of it. Besides the standard data for your customer account such as your name and address, for example, you are also asked to fill in your date of birth. For a nice gift with your birthday. You fill out everything once, then you can order from the same webshop and skip all that filling out.

As an entrepreneur, you can also use the option to create a customer account at the wholesaler where you regularly place an order. Is this also something for your own webshop? Are you considering offering this option to your customers? We have listed the advantages and disadvantages for you.

The benefits

Having a customer account can speed up the checkout process considerably. Visitors to your webshop can skip a number of steps, such as filling in the address. The customer can also easily view previous orders. And that in turn makes it easier to order the product again.

When customers have an account, you can approach them with special offers. Think of a discount or keeping a loyalty program. This could include an extra discount after spending a certain amount for an order, or multiple orders together. Based on previous purchases, customers can also receive personalized recommendations. This personalized approach also helps retain and return visitors.

For customer service, it is also easy to work with already registered data. This saves a lot of time when the customer calls regarding a question or complaint about a purchased product. It is annoying if a customer has to answer many questions first.

The challenges

Creating a customer account once does take some time. And it is not always set up in a customer-friendly way. If it takes too much effort to register then people give up pretty quickly. Once everything is filled in, a password must also be created. Logically, that password must meet a number of conditions, but that doesn't make it any easier to remember for the next time. Fortunately, then again, this problem can be solved with OTP. With this plug-in, there is no need to remember a password.

And then there are consumer privacy concerns. Registering requires some important information such as a name and a (delivery) address. Often the phone number is also asked for. The idea that this data could fall into the wrong hands doesn't sit well with many consumers. Ordering without creating a customer account makes them feel safer because no data is stored.

Simple creation

Sites exist that if you don't already have a customer account, you almost MUST create one. One pop-up after another or the option to skip creating a customer account is almost unfindable. Our advice is not to do that. It can cause irritation and you are obviously forcing someone in one direction. It's best to leave the choice with the customer.

We've listed a few more tips for you below:

1. Minimize the number of required fields: Ask only for essential information. Too many fields discourage potential customers.
2. Offer social sign-up options: Make it possible for customers to register via Google, for example. This speeds up the registration process.
3. Indicate the steps well: Clearly state which steps need to be completed and the customer's progress. Make sure your registration process is broken down into clear, small steps.
4. Demonstrate the benefits of registration: Inform customers of the benefits of having a customer account. Faster checkout, view order history and exclusive discounts.
5. Don't make password recovery too difficult: Clearly state the procedure customers must follow if they have forgotten their customer account password.
6. Optimize for mobile: Make sure the registration process also works well on a mobile device. When consumers store online, it is mostly on a smartphone or tablet. A user-friendly mobile experience is important here

Customer accounts within your Magento environment

Creating customer accounts is a basic functionality of the Magento platform. You can find and manage this functionality through the backend of your Magento Web shop. Or we can do this for you.

A customer account can provide opportunities that increase your conversion rate. We can look with you and help you further optimize that process.

Contact us with no obligation!