Shopping online is convenient and easy, which is why so many people are forgoing trips to the store in favor of being able to shop from their couches. So there’s no better time than right now to break into the eCommerce world. However, there’s tons of competition, so you need a website that stands out and can help you make more sales. No matter what you sell, whether you have a brick-and-mortar store or not, you should have an online store that allows you to earn more customers from around the world. Building an eCommerce site can help you reach more customers and build your brand, but you need the right design and development to provide users with a good experience.
Web design is an essential aspect of a website. However, it can be hard to grab your customers’ attention without the right colors, fonts, and visual elements. So instead, follow these tips and tricks for building your eCommerce site to begin earning more customers.
Think Simple
Websites don’t need fancy colors or designs; they just need to be clear to the users. Keeping your website simple will help your customers easily understand what your website sells. Meanwhile, the more elements and fancy fonts on the page, the more distracting it can be for potential customers, who might just choose to leave the website when they get confused. Websites don’t need tons of elements just to stand out. Instead, let your products and your brand’s mission stand out instead of the way you design your website. Keeping your eCommerce store simple is the best way to allow visitors to browse and shop your selections.
Consider Your Branding
You need a well-established brand to help build trust with your target audience. If your eCommerce site is faceless, doesn’t have its own personality, or has no branding such as a logo, it could appear like some type of scam, making people less likely to trust you which can lead to fewer sales. Branding is a great way to drive sales with your website, no matter which eCommerce platform you use. Luckily, you don’t need custom website development to make your website more unique and trustworthy. Instead, you just need to decide who your brand is, including your logo, brand colors, and messaging elements like your value proposition.
Once you’ve decided on your branding, your website must match those elements. Building a brand can help you connect with potential customers and help them remember your brand. So even if someone doesn’t make a purchase immediately, they might later see a branded advertisement for your eCommerce brand and come back.
Think Like the Customer
When designing and developing your website, think like the customer instead of as the business owner. Your website must connect with your audience. Your website visitors expect easy navigation, good design, and an easy and convenient shopping process. When designing your website, consider what type of elements your audience wants to see. You can consider how you’ll design an easy-to-navigate layout, organize products, and simplify the checkout process to make it quick and trustworthy.
Use High-Quality Images
Your customers need clear expectations for what they’re buying. If you don’t use high-quality images, customers won’t know what to expect when their order arrives. Images also increase conversions, especially for eCommerce businesses. Your customers want to know everything there is to know about a product before they make a purchase. High-quality photos of your products can help build trust to make potential customers more confident when purchasing from your website.
Get Social Proof
Every eCommerce website needs customer reviews and testimonials to help build trust with potential customers. If you don’t have reviews on your products, your customers won’t know what to expect. Reviews can be incredibly helpful during the buyer’s journey to help customers determine whether or not they want to make a purchase. Reading reviews from other customers can help buyers make decisions. However, without social proof, you may miss out on sales. Most modern shoppers always read reviews to determine the right product for them. Without reviews, you can’t instill trust in your customers.
Integrate Your CRM
Every eCommerce business needs a CRM to help build relationships with customers before, after, and during their journey. However, if your CRM doesn’t work seamlessly with your website, tracking customers and creating workflows that help you sell more products can be difficult. Integrating your CRM with your website is easy, especially if you use platforms like Shopify and WordPress. With integration, you can easily send new customers emails about their orders, birthdays, and even deals to help you earn more sales.
Make Checkout Seamless
Every eCommerce website needs a seamless, easy checkout process to prevent cart abandonment. If your checkout process takes too long or becomes tedious for customers, you’ll lose them quickly, even if they want the products in their cart. When designing your checkout process, it’s best to clarify it, including telling your customers the information they should gather to check out quickly.
Your customers should also have an easy way to find your customer service phone number if they run into problems checking out online. If you don’t provide them with contact information, you will lose sales if something goes wrong with your website. Your website should also easily confirm a customer’s order has been received, so you should always ask for their email so that you can provide them with shipping updates even after they’ve seen the purchase confirmation screen.
Takeaways
Building an eCommerce website may seem easy because many platforms allow you to choose pre-built themes. However, if your website isn’t simple and easy to use, your visitors may not convert. So whether you’re just starting your business or taking your brick-and-mortar store online, the one thing to keep in mind when building your eCommerce site is to make it easy for customers to find the products they’re looking for and check out. There’s no reason to use fancy fonts or outrageous colors when designing your store; instead, consider a simple design that’s elegant and can keep customers coming back for more.