Improve Home & Garden Webshop

Online shops that focus on home and garden products offer everything from furniture and decorative items to garden tools and plants. These products can range from affordable decorations to luxurious garden sets. Customers are looking for products that can transform their living spaces both indoors and outdoors. That is why it is important that an online store in this category not only has a diverse range, but also offers styling advice and inspiration to help create the perfect atmosphere in their home or garden.

In this article, we explore the specific challenges faced by merchants in this sector and provide targeted strategies to address them. Particular attention is paid to an element that is crucial for this industry. We also introduce an innovative idea that can improve the sustainability impact, supported by practical examples from practice.

Challenges

Due to their wide range, the home & garden products industry faces unique challenges when it comes to converting visitors into customers.

• Visualization: One of the biggest challenges for home and garden web shops is convincingly displaying products. Customers want to see what furniture and decorations look like in an actual living environment.
• Specifications: Products within this industry often have complex specifications such as dimensions, installation requirements and maintenance. Presenting this information clearly and accessible is crucial, because ambiguities often form a stumbling block for the conversion.
• Logistics: The size and weight of many home and garden products pose specific logistical challenges, from shipping to home installation.
• Trend-sensitive: This market is highly seasonal by nature and also quite sensitive to trends, which leads to fluctuating demand and inventory management challenges.

Tips

Below you will find tips that are relevant for web shops in home and garden items to increase their conversion. It is important to realize that not all advice is applicable to every webshop, as they differ in matters such as digital maturity and available budgets. It is therefore recommended to validate these tips through A/B testing before they are widely deployed.

• Use augmented reality: Offer customers the ability to virtually place products in their own space via AR. This helps customers better visualize how furniture and garden items would fit in their own home or garden, which can reduce doubts and therefore increase the likelihood of conversion and reduce returns.
• Include comprehensive specifications: Provide highly detailed and accurate descriptions of products, including dimensions, materials used, maintenance instructions and installation requirements. Clear, professional photos from multiple angles and videos showing the product in use can also help customers better understand what they are purchasing.
• Offer a variety of delivery options: Give visitors delivery options that suit the large and sometimes heavy home and garden products. Consider same-day delivery, installation services or the option for payment in installments for larger purchases. Clear communication about delivery times and costs can help customers make a purchasing decision.
• Respond to seasons: For example, offer special promotions on garden products during the spring or offer discounts on interior decoration during the winter months. This can not only help boost sales during peak periods, but also prevent overstock in the off-season.

Highlighted

Customization options are an important aspect for web shops specialized in home & garden products. Customers are often looking for products that exactly fit their specific spaces and needs. In the home and garden sector this can vary from custom-made cupboards and worktops to personalized garden sets. Offering customization options can differentiate an online store from competitors by catering to the unique preferences and dimensions of the customer's living space. Web shops that simplify this process of personalization and communicate clearly not only help to gain customer trust, but also to increase conversions. An example of this is Green Building Supply. This can be achieved by offering interactive tools that allow customers to visualize their choices and by providing customer service that offers expert advice on product customization. This creates a shopping experience that is more personalized for the visitor, which is essential to be successful in this industry.

Sustainability

Promoting landscape conservation and native planting is an interesting method to increase the sustainability of a home and garden webshop. This highlights the importance of choosing plants that thrive naturally in local environments, which not only reduces the need for water and pesticides but also supports local wildlife and contributes to biodiversity. Online shops can promote this aspect by offering a range rich in native plant species and providing customers with detailed information on how these plants contribute to sustainable gardens. The product offering can be supplemented with tips for water conservation and natural pest control, helping customers make environmentally friendly choices. By offering products that are both aesthetically and ecologically responsible, online stores in this industry can not only increase their market share but also have a positive impact on the environment.

Examples

• HomeOutside: This webshop offers the option of placing the offered trees, plants, shrubs and flowers in your own garden via Augmented Reality (AR). For this they use built-in AR support that mobile devices offer.
• Made Trade: This lot shows many details about the products. They not only provide information about the dimensions and weight, but also about the origin and sustainability of the materials.
• Gardeners: In addition to 'regular' shipping, other options are also offered, such as extra fast delivery or cheaper delivery where the products may take a little longer to arrive.
• VivaTerra: Products are offered here that suit certain seasons. For example, there are special decorations for spring and autumn, as well as for holidays such as Halloween and Christmas.