9 essentials of a well-designed e-commerce website for enhanced sales

Unlike other types of web design, e-commerce web design and development process delivers some unique challenges for a web designer. For e-commerce sites that are primarily meant for selling products online, users can directly jump in to conclusions regarding the success of a website based on the number of products sold online from the respective e-commerce site. However there are several factors that contribute towards the success or failure of an e-commerce site and understanding the strength as well as weaknesses is not that easier as one might think it to be.

Let’s go through the 9 most important essentials that are visible on e-commerce sites that are making good sales.

Easier navigation is something that every online store should provide users with. As users visit an online store with the purpose of purchasing products they wish for, it is the responsibility of the online store to make it easier for the shoppers to find the product they are looking forward for. It is desirable to have a clear and logical navigation as an effective navigation is considered to be an important aspect that would determine the sales forecast of an online store. Visitors who abandon the website due to lack of smoother navigation is almost a lost sale for the online store.

Most of the online stores go through challenges when it comes to navigation because of the growing number of products being included within the online store. The more the number of products included within the online store, the more challenging finding of products can become. There is a need for sufficient user testing before concluding the design to be included within the e-commerce store for smoother navigation. This is because a designer might think in one way and the user might think in another aspect to search for a product.

More focus should be provided on the products rather than design as the ultimate purpose of an e-commerce site is to encourage customers to purchase products from their online store. However if the design is too extravagant, then it can distract customers away from the products. This means an extravagant design is more likely to do harm rather than advantage for the e-commerce store. Try to keep the design as simple as possible instead of competing to gain attention from the visitors.

The user experience matters a lot in e-commerce sites. A confusing or complex checkout process is not recommended as users might feel annoying when there are too many steps involved during the checkout process. This can lead to instances wherein shoppers could abandon the website without purchasing the items. Therefore it is a greater necessity to ensure the checkout process is simpler and should be comprised of only minimum number of steps.

Brand identity matters a lot in influencing the purchase decisions of shoppers. Therefore it is essential for a brand to engage in online selling as well as offline selling. However an e-commerce website is only one aspect of the overall branding strategy and brands should include other branding efforts so as to provide a user-friendly shopping experience for customers within the online store.

There are several different and attractive design styles available for e-commerce sites similar to other websites. But when it comes to an e-commerce site, designers and brand should give enhanced attention to the product style that is made available on their e-commerce site. This is more applicable especially to start-up online stores that are dealing with the selling of a specific product or a company which has established a unique identity for its business. A design that has nothing to do with the products will make the site visitors confusing and they will have to spend more time in determining whether the products mentioned within the web page is the right product for them.

Most of the e-commerce websites ensure they display the items that are of interest for the customers. In most of the e-commerce sites, the main home page would be designated to include information, new product launches, deals or discounts about the items that are likely to generate significant interest among the customers. The home page would be the most updated web page in an e-commerce site and even slideshows are also included within the home page of the e-commerce website.

Suggesting related products in the online store which matches the customer requirements is another way of achieving success for an e-commerce brand. These kinds of suggestions would be visible whenever customers add a particular item to their shopping cart or during instances in which the related products would be displayed below the item detail pages of a specific product. Irrespective of the approach being used, it is very important to ensure that the right products have been promoted for the customers.

Online selling of products is entirely different compared to a customer purchasing their desired product from a physical store where they can see and touch the product before buying. It is desirable for online e-commerce stores to include product images in a precise way wherein customers can zoom in the products to have a detailed view. This helps overcome the obstacles and thereby making the buying decisions easier for the visitors.

Easier navigation alone cannot resolve the needs and requirements of the website visitors. There are circumstances wherein a customer might still find it difficult to find a specific product even after an easier navigation is provided for them. There are customers who do not have the time to move through several link layers and wish to get their desired item being displayed after a simple search. Brand should provide customers with the ability to find their item in the easiest possible way by narrowing the search based on the size of the website or based on the availability of the items.