What Makes A Great Ecommerce Website?

• By Sarah
• General News
• 1555 Views
• 30th May 2022

An ecommerce website—that is, a website designed specifically for the purpose of buying and selling of goods—is now a must-have for the vast majority of business-to-consumer organisations. Whether it is selling physical goods, services, or digital products, an ecommerce site has a massive role to play in the success of the business.

Here’s a look at the elements that make up a well-designed site, and help to convert those casual browsers into repeat customers!

 

Understand the customers’ goals

A mistake that even major brands make on their ecommerce sites is to talk too much about themselves: the customer already knows what they want, and it isn’t to read a page of marketing hype. This is not to say that the brand identity needs to be toned down, but it should be used to facilitate the customer journey, and not get in the way.

For example, if a sports retailer knows that footballs are the biggest selling product on the site, then the home page should feature a prominent link to the relevant product page, where the customer can make their selection of football with one click, rather than lots of photos and stories about the brand ambassadors; there’s room for those later.

 

Responsive web design is a must-have

In 2022, customers use multiple screens to browse over the course of a day. They expect to be able to have a consistent viewing and purchasing experience, whether they are using a mobile, a tablet, a laptop or a desktop. It is essential that the website is specifically optimised for each device, and not simply shrunk to fit.

 

Search engine rankings matter

A site with clunky outdated code, multiple security issues, and stale content is not going to rank well in search engines. Customers use search engines to research products, browse, and narrow down their options. Use tools such as Google Analytics to test how well your site performs with a variety of search queries.

 

Clear navigation

Excellent navigability is crucial to customer retention. They should be able to make a linear journey from landing to purchase, with as few clicks as possible. Keep the design simple, and the navigation bars prominent and clear.

If it is a large site selling hundreds of products, make use of filters, so that customers can narrow down their search by colour, size, style, and so on. Know what the most commonly searched for products are, and group these together in a separate bar if possible.

Keep the product descriptions easy to scan, with the most important points first.

 

Pain-free check out

We have all decided to make a purchase online at some point, only to abandon our virtual shopping cart in disgust when we encounter a frustratingly complicated or slow checkout page. Avoid making it compulsory for the shopper to register their full details first; let them checkout as a guest if they want to.

Be upfront about the shipping costs, and the returns process, and make sure that the customer sees a confirmation page when the payment has been processed.

 

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