E commerce has come a long way and it seems it has no intentions to stop. With more and more people shopping online rather than in person, It's essential to have an e commerce store that looks super professional. Standing out is everything. There are lots of e commerce stores selling similar if not the same products. How do you make sure that your online store will be on the forefront? There are quite a few things that we could mention here, but let's talk about design. Let's explore what you can achieve with a good design so that your store will be the one users choose to shop on.

Responsive Design

Most of the users will reach for their mobile phones every time they want to buy something. No one is carrying their laptop around these days and of course no one will wait with online shopping until they get home so that they can fire up their computer and look for the items they want. My point is? A design that's made for all screen sizes and all devices is a must.

Call - To - Action Buttons

There are a lot more to this than just “Click”, “Add to Cart”, “Checkout” or “Sign up”. It does matter how these buttons look like in terms of colour, size and also where they are located within a website.

Easy Navigation

Clutter does no good to nobody. You know how the saying goes “Clear desk = clear mind”. Having an e commerce store that's all around the place will result in your business loosing out on customers. Keep menus simple, categories clearly defined, and search functionality efficient. The quicker a user can find what they’re looking for, the higher the chances they'll make a purchase.

Product Images

It's important to use product images that are high quality since users cannot physically touch and lift off the product from the shelves. Offer multiple angles, zoom-in functionality, and perhaps even a 360-degree view. The more visual information they have, the more confident they'll feel about making a purchase.

Detailed Product Descriptions

It's simple and logical. Imagine you are looking for an organic hand cream and you are really cautious about the ingredients. Which one you will buy? The one that has a good picture or the one that has a good picture and also tells you everything you want to know? It's important to include things like: size, materials, care instructions, and anything else that's important. Avoid technical jargon and keep the language simple and engaging.

Loading Speed

Even a delay of a few seconds in page loading can lead to potential customers abandoning their carts. Optimise images, leverage browser caching, and consider using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) to ensure your site loads quickly.

Payment Options

When it comes to making a payment online, the first thing we all check is whether the site is trusted. Make sure the site is secured with SSL encryption and of course it's even better if you offer a variety of payment methods especially Apple pay or Google pay.

Checkout Process

A complicated checkout process is one of the main reasons customers are abandoning their cart. Make sure checking out is easy and seamless as possible. There is nothing worse than spending all that time adding products to the cart only to abandon in the end because of a horrible checkout process. Things that matter:

Reduce the number of steps → Make it as quick as possible
Offer guest check out → Not everyone wants to spend time to register, especially if this is just a one off occasion
Make sure there are no distractions → it's great to encourage customers to sign up for your newsletter or upsell one of your products, but make sure you do it after they are done with checkout
Variety of payment methods → We touched based on this earlier but it's important to offer a wide variety. It's super easy to check out via Apple pay or Google pay instead of typing in the card details.

Reviews

Most people will read the reviews before making a purchase. Make sure you encourage your customers to leave reviews and let those starts speak for your shop and products.

Customer support

Make sure you have a responsive customer service. FAQ's are also a great way to answer your customer's questions.

SEO

Beyond the design elements, make sure that your e-commerce site is optimised for search engines. This includes using relevant keywords, meta descriptions, and high-quality backlinks.

Remarketing

Sometimes, customers need a gentle reminder. Tools like email campaigns for abandoned carts or retargeting ads can bring back potential customers and boost sales.

By providing a user-friendly, attractive, and functional platform, you can significantly increase the chances of a site visitor becoming a loyal customer. Your e-commerce store is a reflection of both your brand and the needs of your customer base. With the right design strategies in place, the sky's the limit for your online store's success.