If you’re an Australian who likes to shop from the comfort of your own home, you’re far from alone. In fact, eCommerce sales have been growing exponentially recently, with online sales figures going up by about 24.4% in a given year. That’s why you’re making an awesome choice when you decide to design and run an eCommerce store. However, in order to remain competitive in such a large market, you’re going to need some eCommerce web design tips to ensure that you get clicks that lead to sales.
It’s easy to make mistakes here, and avoiding these mishaps is what we’re going to discuss here today. Read on to learn some of the biggest eCommerce web design mistakes to avoid so that your page stands out to customers.
1. Too Much Text
One mistake that many eCommerce online stores make when creating their websites is incorporating too much text. It’s easy to get caught up in long-winded product descriptions and about sections for your store. However, the average person has a short attention span and will only stay on your website for about 15 seconds before getting bored if they aren’t engaged.
Nothing is as disengaging as walls of unreadable, boring text.
Instead, you’ll want to have a clear and simple website design that’s based mostly on images and graphics. Short and sweet product descriptions are a good idea, but they should be secondary to a larger image of the product that you’re selling. These pictures are what will draw people in and get them to check out your visually appealing product.
When you do need to incorporate text for product descriptions, about pages, or online check-out, make sure that:
- You use bulleted lists to break up long-winded text into easy-to-read fragments
- Your text is large, bold, and clear
- You have high contrast between the text and background; many websites are opting for black text on white pages to make it easier on the eyes
These are good ways to ensure that people actually read the text after you’ve engaged them with visuals.
2. Not Using Video
Speaking of visuals for your website, it’s essential that you incorporate video into your web design. Although 73% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase after seeing a video on a product, many websites have not hopped on the bandwagon and started filming yet. Being part of the percentage that has implemented video frames on their sites is one way to make your online store stand out and rise above your competitors.
There are a couple of types of videos that you can choose from.
Explainer videos are testimonials as to how your product has brightened up the lives of customers. In these videos, a person will speak to the camera about their experiences with your store and products. Seeing another human being speak about a service allows potential customers to form a person-to-person connection with your store. They’re more likely to choose your brand over others if they connect with the person in your video.
If you have a lot of facts or data to convey, an animated video is probably the option for you. These videos are basically moving graphics that convey data in a visually appealing way. Unlike a wall of text that customers will likely click away from anyway, people are more likely to remember the movement of videos. Animation also can be really engaging and humourous!
3. Cluttered & Unorganised Navigation Menu
As someone who has likely shopped online for a variety of products in the past, you know the frustration of a poor website navigation system.
Many eCommerce shops have text-based navigation, which, as we established, isn’t the best way to go. Other stores have navigation that makes it difficult to find the product you’re looking for. Generally, these pages simply throw all of their products together on one page and hope for the best. As you can imagine, this is not an efficient navigational system for the user.
But what is? Well, you’ll want to:
- Divide products up into categories (for example, a fashion store should have separate sections for jumpers, jackets, trousers etc.)
- Have small thumbnail images of every item
- Allow these thumbnails to take the consumer to more information about each item when they click on the image that they like
- Have a search function that makes it possible to search for items by keyword
- Include a system that saves recently viewed products (or, better yet, starred ones) so customers can buy them later
- Make it easy for the customers to view their cart and check out directly after browsing
By ensuring that your site performs these functions, you will stop consumers from becoming frustrated and taking their business elsewhere.
4. Overlooking Web Security
As a new business, you likely have a lot on your plate. Securing your website may be the last thing on your mind. However, forgetting to install security features such as an SSL certificate on your page can lead to huge problems for both yourself and customers.
A lack of antivirus software can cause hackers to install viruses onto your site. Malware can then take your information – and the information of customers that have shopped with you on their credit cards. Talk to your web development professional on how you can keep your page safe from malware and hackers.
5. DIYing Your Web Page
Many new eCommerce owners think that they can create their own website themselves. While they likely can, they shouldn’t- nothing is more unappealing to a consumer than an unprofessional website is. Even if you’re decently talented at graphic design and can figure out a Shopify or WooCommerce template, it still will appear amateurish when compared to your competitor’s professionally designed web pages.
Luckily, it’s easy to hire professional designers to help build your eCommerce site. Experts will give your web page a unique flair that a self-made template can’t match up to. This means that you can build a website from scratch that looks individualistic and accurately represents your brand.
It also means that you’ll have more time and energy to focus on innovative product designs, customer outreach, streamlining communications, and more!
More eCommerce Web Design Tips
While web development and creation can be a challenge, getting expert assistance and ensuring that your eCommerce page is up to par has never been easier.
Now that you know the biggest eCommerce web design mistakes to avoid, it’s time to reach out to us. Our web team of gurus will help you avoid these don’ts and help you to assemble a user-friendly online store. You’ll be involved in every step of the site design process, but we’ll do all the heavy lifting.