Best Design Tips to Build Your Ecommerce Website

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Looking at our lives currently, it's easy to see how ecommerce websites have greatly impacted our daily commercial activities. Nowadays, it's as easy to buy a sewing machine online as it is a seasonal fruit.
The ecommerce industry has evolved exponentially over the last decade, primarily because it offers customers the convenience of shopping from the comfort and safety of their homes.
According to Fru Kerick, founder of TechTimez, this convenience factor of ecommerce sites equates to about 22% of the world that currently shops online.
Which brings us to the question: Are you thinking of building a cutting-edge ecommerce website for your company?
Then you've come to the right place. Today we're going to break down some of the best tips to build your site. We're also going to dive into the best ecommerce website builders and share some FAQs on the subject.

Best Website Design Tips for Ecommerce

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1. Storytelling Through Brand Identity

Customers are spoiled for choice; a simple search will yield numerous companies that all appear to be selling the same product. However, the ones they gravitate to are the companies with a compelling backstory.
These are companies that use the power of storytelling and marketing to lure customers. Storytelling also fosters loyalty and develops a lasting impression, leaving customers who visit your ecommerce website wanting more.
To form a cohesive brand identity, ask yourself the following questions:
Why - why did you create your unique product?
How - how will this product impact your life and the lives of others?
What - what does your company/product hope to achieve in the future?
Who - who is your target demographic?
The answer to these questions will help create a strong brand identity that will influence the aesthetics, usability, messaging, and visuals of your ecommerce website.

2. Simplicity Over all Else

Keep it simple - these three words apply to many situations, especially when building an ecommerce website. The aim is to create the best interface and website flow, keeping in mind the people who want to purchase the product/service you're offering.
Call to action buttons, sales assistant chatbots, easy to access product placements, pop-up sales coupons - are all ideas that one can implement. However, too many of these features can distract customers from their main focus: purchasing your product easily and quickly.
Ask yourself - is your website too crowded? Is it easy to use for a new customer? Are my products getting the full focus? Answer these questions and simplify your ecommerce site accordingly.

3. Think Like a Customer

It's important when finalizing your website design to think like your customer. If you want your ecommerce site to succeed, there are a few factors that must be addressed from the customer's perspective:

• Is the site easy to navigate?
• Is it well-designed?
• Is the shopping process easy and hassle-free?
• Is the checkout process secure and straightforward?

Putting yourself in your demographic's shoes will help you answer the questions above and make it easier for you to make necessary design and usability decisions. Knowing, acting, and interacting with your newly designed ecommerce website, will help you anticipate any problems and optimize/ simplify processes.

4. Make Checkout Easy and Secure

There is nothing more off-putting to a customer than shady ecommerce sites where customers feel unsafe sharing their contact and bank details.
No matter how incredible your product/service and website are, if you're not offering your customers a simple checkout process with the topmost security procedures - you will lose the sale.
Do your research when designing the checkout page and integrating payment platforms. Checkout pages should be easy to understand and navigate.
Product information, return policies, and payment options should all be crystal clear to the viewer. Additionally, give your customers easy payment options through secure net banking platforms and reputed fin-tech companies such as Gpay, PayPal, RazorPay etc.
Having multiple trusted online and cash-on-delivery options will build trust and ensure that you get that sale.

5. Choose Strong Colour Choices

Never underestimate a bold colour choice or scheme. Colours have the ability to evoke emotions and create lasting impressions. Depending on your product, it's essential to curate colours that are related to its niche. For example, earthy colours work with upcycled or natural products.
Reds and Yellows are the preferred choices for food products. Do your research about what's the best colour options and practices for your product.
Apart from brand/ product colours, pay attention to common colour practices. For example, Buy Now buttons are often in bold, striking colours to grab attention and incite excitement in a customer.
Banks, universities, and hospitals commonly use Blue - therefore, using Blue in your design or checkout page will instill a sense of professionalism and trust.
These are good tips to consider when designing your ecommerce site because colour choice is a crucial component to sales and brand identity.

6. Add Impactful High-quality Images

Unlike shopping in a mall, where the customer gets to touch and physically see the products, they have to rely heavily upon images when shopping online.
Overly stylized pictures work well for advertising and marketing campaigns; however, accurate, clear, and high-quality product images are an absolute must when selling a product.
Build trust with your customer by showing them precisely what they're paying for. Avoid using stock images, misleading pictures or poorly lit product photos.
Rather, invest in high-quality images and photographers who can deliver aesthetically pleasing yet realistic product images. Doing so will help build your brand and add credibility to your ecommerce website.

7. Add Real Reviews

Another trust-building technique is to add a review section to your ecommerce website. Seeing other real and authentic customers review your product greatly impacts sales, loyalty, and trust.
When designing your website, find ways to show potential customers the positive feedback you've received about your product.
Consider adding a rating key to your product page so that customers can rate and review your product. You can also include a dedicated review section on the home page.
Having these reviews visible on multiple pages will make your product and company appear trustworthy and as a result, your conversion rate will go up, as well.

Related : 8 Reasons Why Customer Reviews are Important for Ecommerce

8. Categorize Your Products

Allow your customer to find what they're looking for with easy-to-follow categories.
Avoid fancy or contextual categories, label items with simple terms or common names to quickly identify a customer's desired product.
For example, if you're a lifestyle brand and sell high-quality carpets, label the main category 'Home' and the subcategory 'Rugs & Carpets.'
Additionally, include sorting filters to the categories, such as colour, price, popularity etc.- this will further tighten the search, allowing your customers to find your product with ease.
Design your website with clear categories that are simple to navigate and watch how quickly customers will make their purchases.

9. Optimize for Mobile

Since the invention of the smartphone, it's common knowledge that people spend less time on their desktops or laptops.
According to Lyfe Marketing, a little over 50% of people open or access websites from mobile devices, and that percentage will naturally rise with the advancement of smartphone and tablet technology.
Don't miss out on the opportunity to grab and engage 50% of your customers; ensure that your ecommerce website is optimized for mobile and tab devices.
Additionally, consider creating an app, which would be an added advantage and give your brand more credibility.

10. Integrate Social Media

Ad campaigns you run on your social media platforms can entice customers when they view them on your website.
Seeing followers comment and like posts adds to the overall credibility of your brand identity. It's also a good way to drive traffic from your website to your social media to grow your following.
Additionally, having social media links on your website will boost website ranking on search engines.
Make sure your social media links open in a new browser tab, so your customers aren't taken away from your product and their potential purchases!

Best Ecommerce Website Builder

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Don't know anything about building an ecommerce website? We suggest hiring an experienced team that can personalize the whole process and help you create the website of your dreams. However, if that's out of your budget, we've listed a few of the best ecommerce website builders that are available to you.

1. Wix

New to the world of website building?
Then, Wix is for you. This website building platform is incredibly popular with non-designers because of the ease at which you can create your ecommerce website.
For starters, they offer you a free domain name, an easy drag-and-drop site editor, and numerous templates for any aesthetic or product imaginable.
They also have a mobile optimization tool, which makes it easy to take the WIX website you've created and optimize it for various devices.
Additionally, Wix doesn't charge any added transaction fees; therefore, you keep what you earn from the website. Packages start as low as US$ 80/ month.

2. Shopify

Bumping into snags when trying to build an ecommerce website is inevitable; therefore, customer support is crucial to your process. That's where Shopify comes in. It's one of the best platforms that offers its clients 24/7 customer support.
Apart from that, their drag-and-drop page builder will make launching your online store a breeze, even if you're inexperienced. Armed with hundreds of customizable and responsive themes, you can create just about any look for your brand.
Additionally, more than 1 million customers trust this brand, making them an attractive option for companies and local businesses. Shopify packages start as low as US$ 29/ month.

3. SquareSpace

Squarespace leads the pack when it comes to businesses, artists, and professionals who rely on imagery to sell their work. The ecommerce builder is explicitly created for showcasing talent and work that users can't interact with, such as art, videos, photos, films etc.
Like the other website builders, we mentioned, Squarespace has many templates with a strong focus on a visual and aesthetically pleasing way to display content.
Their drag-and-drop editor makes changing colours, adding logos, creating a listing or uploading images/videos easy.
If you're an artist, photographer, art gallery, choreographer or personal trainer, consider Squarespace to design your website. Packages start as low as US$ 12/month.

4. Weebly

If your primary intent is to sell products online, then Weebly is the best choice without too much fuss or complications. Its design functions are limited, but it's simple and easy to set up, making it ideal for small businesses, home-based entrepreneurs, and hobby sellers. Adding new products, removing old ones, or tracking inventory is easy to do using their platform.
Weebly's main focus for their clients is to allow them to concentrate on running their business rather than running their website - this is what draws startups and budding entrepreneurs to Weebly.
Consider this platform as your top choice if you want a hassle-free ecommerce site where you can concentrate on growing your business by selling your products to clients.
The best part, their basic package is free (transaction fee of US$3), and the next package, a level up from that, starts at US$ 5/month.

5. Shift4Shop

Shift4Shop is excellent for a company with an in-house website developer or someone ready to build an ecommerce website and has experience in this area. If having complete control over your website sounds attractive, then that's what you can expect from Shift4Shop.
This ecommerce website builder gives you the freedom to fully customize your website from scratch, but it also has templates. You have the choice to code and develop every aspect of your online store so that you can offer your customers a unique shopping experience.
Unlike other website builders, one of the main features of Shift4Shop is the ability to customize the checkout page. If there are specific features/processes you want to add to the checkout page, this can be done with ease using Shift4Shop. Packages start at US$ 29/month.

Related : How to Choose the Best CMS for SEO?

FAQs - Building Your Ecommerce Website

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Q 1: What Are the Best Ecommerce Development Companies in India?

According to our research from platforms such as Goodfirms, Value Coders and Clutch, we can ascertain that the following list of Ecommerce development companies is most reputed and reviewed in India.

• Magneto IT Solutions
• Pixel Crayons
• Emizen Tech
• Infinijith
• India NIC

The companies above take on clients from all around the world, but they also offer their services to local clients. The ranking above is based on the lists from the firms mentioned, who have looked at variables such as - years of experience, no. of projects completed, reviews, pricing and company size.

Q2: How to Learn Ecommerce Website Design?

If you wish to learn ecommerce website design online, you can choose from two reputed platforms below:

• Udemy - This online learning platform offers 'The complete Ecommerce website developer course 5.0' where one can learn how to become a web developer using PHP, SQL, CSS and HTML.
  
  The course will give you a firm foundation to create your own ecommerce website from scratch through 12.5 hours of video lectures led by industry experts.
  
  Currently, with 95% off, you can enroll in this course for Rs. 455. Additionally, you will be rewarded with a certificate after completing the course and have lifetime access to the materials and videos.
• LinkedIn Learning - This platform has Ecommerce Development Tutorials; which experts teach through video classes. They have many tutorials such as 'Ecommerce Fundamentals' or more targeted ones like 'WordPress: Ecommerce' and 'Shopify Essential Training.'
  
  Additionally, once you've completed the course, you will earn a LinkedIn Learning certificate. The first month of the LinkedIn Learning subscription is free, after which packages start at Rs 1400.

Q3: What Things Should Be Considered During Ecommerce Website Design?

Creating a good ecommerce website can be a daunting task, but it doesn't have to be. We have discussed many factors already in this article; however, here are a few more key factors to keep in mind.

1. Design

• Aesthetics - the overall look and feel of your website, keeping in mind fonts, colours, layouts, artwork, visuals etc.
• User Friendliness - website speed, smooth interface functionality, easy to use, easy to find products, optimized checkout process etc.
• Responsive design - website should be easily accessed and optimized for mobile devices and other devices.

2. Content

• Brand identity - creating a compelling backstory and strong brand image give your website credibility and authenticity.
• Product/Company info - clear and honest information about founders, the manufacturing process, the company etc.
• Outreach - lead clients to newsletters, social media platforms, community pages.
• Customer service - should list updated contact info and clear and concise rules and regulations of returns/exchanges/damages etc.
• Legal - should clearly list company licenses, legitimacy of payment portals etc.

3. Performance

• Ecommerce SEO - website should have a clear SEO plan so that it ranks high on search engines.
• Navigation - Easy to navigate through links, categories and have a strong orientation.
• Search - proper data management so that clients can easily search for a product through a toolbar. Implement Ai or suggestive search algorithms that lead clients to more products based on their preferences.
• Speed & Bandwidth - be mindful of page loading times, overall page size etc.

Q 4: Does Your Brand Need An Ecommerce Website?

A report published in 2019 by Aaron Orendorff indicated that the ecommerce industry would be valued at $4.9T this year - a considerable growth from 2014's $1.3T valuation. Those statistics alone are reason enough to have an ecommerce website.
Shopping for products and services online is easy, budget-friendly, convenient, and has become an expected standard.
Customers nowadays prefer to shop online and will, in most cases, search for the product online before venturing to the brick-and-mortar options.
Therefore, it's imperative for brands to have a well-designed ecommerce website, not only for their customers but also to outshine other companies in the same space.
Armed with all the factors, tips and information we’re delivered in this article, you are now ready to build an Ecommerce website. Bookmark this page, so that you can refer to it at any stage during your design process.
Happy website designing! Get in touch with us if you have more queries.