It's easy for the average user to surf the internet while lounging on their couch, just like you're probably doing right now.
As you probably know, internet culture has exploded in the past few decades.
However, this growth is not always positive for everyone.
Because of the growth of ecommerce, competition is also increasing steadily, and this can be bad news if you're an online retailer. That's precisely why you have to stand out when you create your own ecommerce site.
Good website design is more than having a visually appealing website and a clean design. It also has something to do with providing a great user experience (UX) to your site visitors and potential customers.
In this post, we will be discussing the best ecommerce web design practices that you can apply to step up your game and reach your business goals.
- Keep it Simple and Scannable 💻
- Make Branding a Priority 💯
- Use Color to Your Advantage 🧐
- Use Clear and Beautiful Product Photos 📷
- Offer Inclusive Filters 👏🏼
- Group Products Together 🧢👒
- Consistency Matters 🗓
- Optimize the Purchase Process 🛍
- Include Testimonials and Reviews 💌
- Optimize for Mobile 📲
- Protect Your Customers 🗝
Important disclosure: we're proud affiliates of some tools mentioned in this guide. If you click an affiliate link and subsequently make a purchase, we will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you (you pay nothing extra). For more information, read our affiliate disclosure.
1. Keep it Simple and Scannable 💻
A lot of people do not want to browse through blocks of texts when searching for products online. If there is too much going on on your site, your audience can be easily distracted.
Keep in mind that the main purpose of your ecommerce site is to generate more sales. You can also use ecommerce analytics tools to get valuable information from your customers that you can later apply toward improving your online store.
While it is great to place helpful information about the product or brand, make sure that it is not there to distract your audience from your products.
- Navigation: A clear navigation menu lets prospects easily browse through your site and find what they are looking for. You can utilize your drop-down menu to help organize your navigation and prevent it from looking too crowded.
- Search box: Users do not want to spend a lot of time browsing through hundreds of products. This is especially true if they already know what they want right from the very beginning. A search box feature will allow customers to filter through results based on pricing, color, and size categories. If prospective customers cannot find what they are looking for, chances are, they are probably going to look for it somewhere else.
2. Make Branding a Priority 💯
In the world of online shopping, most people want to buy from brands that have already established themselves in the industry.
They don't want to purchase from a faceless ecommerce website that looks as if it wants to steal their personal information.
So, if you want to gain your customers' trust and you're serious about setting up an ecommerce business, then you need to take your branding seriously.
Your branding strategy is the DNA of your ecommerce business. It will showcase who you are as a brand, your brand values, and what makes you stand out from the competition.
It also plays an essential role in establishing a meaningful connection with your audience and driving sales.
3. Use Color to Your Advantage 🧐
Choosing the right colors that go along your ecommerce site is incredibly important.
Your online store’s color is a powerful tool that you can incorporate with your branding strategy and your site.
So, you must understand the psychology behind color and utilize it to drive sales.
Colors can evoke different emotions, feelings, and actions from your audience. Thus, if you want an ecommerce site that converts, you need to know how to use colors to your advantage.
Also, use white space (AKA negative space) to help viewers take in your design elements. White space and bright colors help create a superior online shopping experience for your digital storefront.
4. Use Clear and Beautiful Product Photos 📷
High-quality product photos that are visually appealing will also help you increase your conversion rates.
The imagery that you use for your overall design can play a massive role in capturing the user's attention.
Stunning product images create a sense of identity and can be easily remembered by other users. So, do yourself a favor by incorporating high-quality images of your current product on your site.
Your conversions will thank you later.
5. Offer Inclusive Filters 👏🏼
If you are selling online, one of the main important things is providing your clients with an excellent experience. But sometimes, things can be a bit difficult for the average user.
If you could not immediately provide them with what they are looking for, they will move on to your competitors.
That's why a filter that is well organized is important to keep customers on your site.
You need to provide your clients with a satisfying shopping experience, allowing them to easily find products by providing them with inclusive filter choices.
If they intend to purchase something and cannot find it right away, they will simply move on.
6. Group Products Together 🧢👒
Another way you can boost your ecommerce site's conversions is to simply group relevant products.
You should group these items together, whether it's the same products or related to the product (a belt that goes well with the jeans).
This makes shopping on your site easier and makes it more likely that customers will make purchases.
7. Consistency Matters 🗓
Most users will remember your website design, not just because it's catchy, but because your branding is able to resonate with them.
When it comes to ecommerce web design, it is important how you present yourself to your customers.
Do you use the same fonts and color hues for all your pages? If you don't already, you should start.
Using strong fonts helps plant a more memorable experience in users' minds.
8. Optimize the Purchase Process 🛍
Many people fill in their carts only to end up abandoning them at the very last minute.
Why? The common reasons are a complicated checkout process and shocking additional fees.
That said, your purchase process must be simple, direct, and without the unnecessary distractions.
Ideally, there shouldn't be more than two pages from the moment the customer adds the product to their cart to clicking the “Buy” button to proceed with the checkout process.
Also, avoid having to let your customers register on your site before they can successfully make a purchase. Sometimes, getting your customer's contact info could run the risk of driving them away.
9. Include Testimonials and Reviews 💌
You should also showcase customer reviews on your ecommerce site.
A lot of modern shoppers these days trust reviews of satisfied and happy customers. Without them, they might be hesitant to make a transaction with you.
By enabling these customer reviews on your product pages, you can drive more sales to your ecommerce site.
Remember that you need to provide high-quality customer service to maintain a healthy ratio between positive and negative reviews.
Also, don't forget to use trust badges to build a stronger brand reputation and earn trust from the audience.
10. Optimize for Mobile 📲
Not all your customers will be using desktops to navigate your ecommerce website. A lot of shoppers these days shop online using their mobile devices.
Therefore, if your ecommerce site isn't compatible with a mobile device, then you might have a hard time converting these users into customers.
Fortunately, many ecommerce platforms like Shopify, WordPress, and BigCommerce provide mobile-friendly templates and themes.
As an alternative, you can ensure mobile compatibility on your site by adopting a more responsive framework.
11. Protect Your Customers 🗝 📲
Trust plays a key role in conversions.
A Secure Socket Layer (SSL) is a type of protocol that will ensure the safety of your site. Usually, this shows up as a green lock icon beside a webpage's URL.
Now, if your customers do not see this green bar, they might avoid making payments on your site. That’s because no one wants to buy from an unsecured site.
To make your prospects and customers feel more protected, showing your site's SSL or other trust badges significantly decreases your site's bounce rates.
This green bar will encrypt a user's personal and other banking information, making it almost impossible for hackers and other malicious individuals to steal their data and other sensitive information.
Google prefers secured websites. Hence, they rank significantly better on search results.
You can also incorporate trust badges in your website design, usually showing at checkout. This will help reassure your customers that the transaction is protected.
Creating an ecommerce site does not require a large budget.
You just need to work hard and persevere and trust the process. Sooner or later, you would see the results.