You already know the products you sell inside out. But what happens when you start shopping on your own site? You start to experience your customer journey firsthand. A flawless customer experience can not only keep buyers coming back for more, but also helps your brand stand out from the competition.

Here at Kubix, we regularly order from our clients to find out what goes on behind the scenes. Doing this enables us to give invaluable feedback to our clients about key areas of the customer experience that need improvement.

So what can you learn from shopping on your own website? We’ve broken down the key markers that you should be paying close attention to in order to experience, and feel, exactly what your customers go through each time your product arrives at their door.

You Can Audit the UX of Your Website

Your customers don’t just become so when they click ‘Buy Now’. Just as your dinner guests’ journey begins when they step through your door, your buyers’ journey begins the moment they set virtual foot onto your website. Are they greeted with a clear and inviting homepage? If they already know your brand, chances are they know what products they’re looking for. But are your products easy to find? Test yourself. If you're experimenting with a new navigation, grab your team and get them to search for items - half of your team using the old navigation and half using the new one.

Take yourself through your website from ‘Add to Basket’ right the way through to ‘Order Complete’. You’ll know exactly how buyers are experiencing the checkout process, highlighting anything that might be holding them back from converting.

You’ll Receive Your Own Email Marketing

Once your order has gone through, you’ll be landed right into your own email flow. Weird to see the other side of it, right? Here you can identify if you're being sent the right emails and placed in the correct segments. Are you being asked to review the product? Is your email content engaging when you're reading it, not writing it? And - most importantly - are your preferences being taken into consideration further down the line? A vegan who has ordered from a food brand is going to be less than impressed if they’re being sent meat or dairy recommendations straight to their inbox a week after ordering.

(Need inspiration for how to up your email marketing game? Here's 5 types of newsletter content to captivate your audience.)

You Can Check Your Delivery Times

If your party invite claims that dinner will be served at 7, seeing your plate emerge from the kitchen after 9 can turn even the most patient of diners hangry. After placing your order, time how long it takes for your product to arrive. Are you on time? And are you delivering what you promise when it comes to your customers receiving their order? Do you know how your chosen courier works and do they provide the same service you are offering to your customers? It is always better to over deliver than under deliver - if your customer receives their order before they were expecting, it’s always going to spark a little bit of joy. If your order arrives late or has problems getting to you, it's worth auditing your couriers to see if there's a better option out there for you.

Need help with this? Our Operations team can make recommendations based on your needs.

You’ll Get To Unbox Your Own Packaging

That first look is more important than you might think. It’s the hors d'oeuvre before you taste the main dish. For first time customers, it’s their very first physical experience of your brand. Analyse your labels, any branding on the outer packaging, if the product is wrapped correctly, and any added extras you might be including such as flyers or free gifts. If you’re claiming to be an eco-conscious company on your website, is your packaging in line with this value? Invested customers will pick up on each of these things, and if the first look makes them feel good, it means extra brownie points for your brand.

You Can Run Quality Control

The final destination on your customer journey: the product itself. This is particularly important for you to experience if you’re drop shipping as you won’t actually have seen the products first-hand. Does your product live up to its description on your store? Does what you're serving look like the pictures the menu promised? If YOU are happy with the service your product is providing, chances are your customers will be too.

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Ready to be a guest at your own dinner party? It’s time to set the table and place your order.