11 Tips for E-commerce Website Design and Management
How to design an effective e-commerce website.
A lot of people seem to be looking at what’s going on with today’s economy and getting worried about what the future holds for their company. Who could blame them? Our nation – and the world – is going through something unlike anything else that we’ve experienced before. It will get better, but it’s going to take some time. That’s why continuing to develop creative marketing strategies is more important than ever. If not, you may fall behind and never be able to catch up.
There’s plenty of good things happening right now, of course. Many products and services are in high demand, providing wonderful opportunities for business owners from those just starting out and starting the brand development process to seasoned veterans who are making service upgrades to keep up with their competition. These companies are turning to new revenue streams, which is a big reason why e-commerce has been thriving throughout the pandemic.
If you’ve been considering the use of selling products or services online or have felt that it’s time to revamp the site you’ve been working with, then you definitely need to lean heavily on proper e-commerce website design to make things happen. Today, we’re going to take a bit of a deep dive into the subject of e-commerce web design in Clearwater to make sure everything goes smoothly as you create or redesign your site.
Start with a Simple Website Design
There are so many different options available with website design that it’s easy to get carried away. Too many companies try to pack as much as they possibly can into just a few pages, and that’s very often a disaster. You want a site that’s visually appealing but doesn’t overload the senses or appear too “busy.” This goes for the overall website and the ecommerce portion as well (if they’re separate entities).
Add Good Images – But Don’t Overdo It
The best websites on the internet are often those that make great use of engaging images. We’ve said in prior discussions that human beings are visual creatures and it deserves repeating here. The use of great images can immediately draw customer into your site, which can get then to stick around and learn more about your products and services. Plus, this just reflects well on your business as a whole.
Don’t Make Prices Hard to Find
If you’ve ever visited a website to discover that the prices for products or services are buried, then you already know how frustrating that can be for a consumer. This is often done with shipping because that additional cost can be a turn-off for customers who were excited about your products before learning how much more it will cost to received it. All you’re doing is delaying the inevitable and making your company look a bit deceitful.
Use High-Quality Photos for All Products
You’d think that we could just skip right over this tip because it’s so obvious, but many companies do seem to have a problem with providing high-quality photos of the products they’re selling. Not only does this make you look unprofessional, but it also does a disservice to the products themselves. You could be offering a fantastic product, but the website visitor won’t know that because the image will be grainy or lack detail.
Focus on Responsive Website Design
With the steady increase of online ordering through tablets and phones that we’ve seen in recent years, plus the huge insurgence of food and product delivery since the pandemic began, your e-commerce website design must be responsive. This means that your site will function properly whether it’s been accessed on a 24” computer monitor or a 4″ smartphone screen. If you fail at this, many of today’s users will pass you by.
Connect Your Social Media Platforms
Most of today’s online consumers automatically expect businesses to have some kind of social media presence. When you’re building your e-commerce site, it’s important that you connect your social media platforms by including a link to each account. After all, you’ll be using social media platforms for lead generation, so the connection must go both ways. This will also allow you to communicate more effectively with existing and potential customers.
Add Some Reviews and Testimonials
Believe it or not, but reviews and testimonials get a lot of notice when customers arrive on your site. Most visitors will take what these people are saying at face value and will be interested in their opinions. A common way to approach this is to include an image of some kind, whether it’s a picture of the person or a cartoon representation, along with a short quote, their first name, and last initial.
Make Categories Clean and Crisp
Navigation is a very important part of proper e-commerce website design. You want your categories to appear clean and crisp. This means that they should be well-thought out and presented in an organized fashion. If visitors can’t easily find what they’re looking for, they may miss out on a product that they really want or could leave your site entirely. Also, allow site visitors to filter the products and maybe even add a comparison option if that applies to the products or services you provide.
Simplify the Checkout Process
If you’ve been surfing the internet (people still say that, right?) for a long time, then you’ve probably noticed how much better the checkout process has gotten for many companies. This is an important aspect that you can either model after your competition or an e-commerce site with a similar-looking feel. The checkout process should be concise and to the point, with as few pages involved as possible.
Include an Easy Way to Contact You
It is absolutely infuriating to visit an e-commerce site and not have a very clear way to contact the staff with questions or concerns. How you want to go about this is up to you and will often be determined by what your company is capable of offering. You may want to include an email address and/or phone number. Or, if possible, you can offer a live chat option during specific hours. Regardless of what you choose, make sure that you indicate an accurate response time.
Have Friends Test the Site First
Before you launch the e-commerce site, you’ll want to test it and make sure that it appears to be working properly. You can test it yourself for some of the technical aspects, of course, but involving a few friends will give you a better overall picture of how it’s working. Tell them to send you any notes, whether it’s about the site’s appearance, images, ordering process, links, checkout, search, item descriptions, or anything else.
Contact the P3 Agency for Superior E-commerce Website Design
With proper e-commerce website design and management, your company will be able to compete with similar products or services and truly stand out from the crowd. The marketing services offered by the experts at the P3 Agency can assist you with e-commerce website design, lead generation, content development, web development, brand growth, local SEO services, and other exciting initiatives to take your company to the next level of success. To learn more about our customized inbound marketing system or to receive a free marketing assessment, call our marketing team at (800) 515-9422.