Fundamental characteristics of an Ecommerce Website
Displaying Associated Products
Users will be more inclined to stay on your website when they see products similar to their search displayed on the bottom line of your website. This feature is sure to influence the users in spending more time and cash on your website. You should also add a social media share function on the product pages, this way people will be influenced to share your products on different social media platforms. With this, their friends and family members will be inclined to trust their judgment and will surely shop for products from your website.
Filter Option
For any website it is essential to have tools that provide the ability to the users to filter out the products based on popularity, price, color, etc. Customers do not want to surf through the endless products so to make it easier for them to find specific product, you should include the filter option. If a customer is interested in a particular product then you can have a quick preview option available for them. This way, the customer will be able to make a quick decision if they want to buy the product or not.
Product Details
Every product on your website should have a clear and concise description so that users are sure about the product that they are purchasing. If any of the products are out of stock then you should allow the customers to sign up for email notification. The customers will then get an email notification whenever the product becomes available on your website. This way, the customers are less likely to purchase the product from a competitor. It also indicates that you care about serving the customers’ needs.
Dynamic Shopping Cart
The shopping cart should be displayed on every product page which dynamically fills according to the product that the customer is adding. This is so that the user is ensured that the product has been successfully added to the cart. Many a times, a user may add a product to the cart without intending to purchase it. For this, you can add an extra option that will allow them to save it for later purchase.
Different Shipping Options
It is imperative for any successful eCommerce website to have different shipping modes so that customers can select according to their preference. Some customers may want their products to be delivered immediately, while others may be fine with slow delivery and may not want to pay the extra shipping cost. You should provide them with options to choose from for the shipping of their preference.
Payment Confirmation
People may worry while they are making the payment online. You can calm their nerves by showing them a payment confirmation page and also send them an email that confirms that payment has been made. Give them an option to track their order when it has been shipped. This way, the customer will be eased during the final transaction.
Offering Different Suggestions
If the users are interested in some products then it is vital that there is search flexibility. If the search bar on your website recommends suggestions, it will aid you as this, sends more traffic to those particular categories or products. You should also highlight certain promotions during seasonal holidays; this will push more traffic to the precise parts of your website.
Factors for Building a Thriving Ecommerce Website
Set Clear and Concise Goals for All Pages
Having a defined purpose for each page of your website is quite imperative. For instance, a new user should be enticed enough to your homepage that they browse through your categories and also through your product page. If the users have any lingering doubts then they should be answered by your product page and the users should be influenced enough to make a purchase. The checkout process should be simple and have the feature of follow-up email. This reassures the users that the transaction has been completed successfully.
Easily Accessible Contact Information
The contact information should be displayed on your website in such a way that it is easily accessible to your customers. Never put your contact information in a place where the customer has to search the entire website, as you may lose a sale. You can also provide product reviews, FAQs, and display satisfied customer testimonials on the website.
Build Brand Loyalty
You can bring the customers back to your website by sending them timely emails that announces the seasonal sales or the arrival of new products. You can ask the users to provide their email address if a popular product is out of stock and then notify them whenever the item is back in stock. This shows that you care about the user’s experience shopping with you. Additionally, you also get their contact details for any future email campaigns.
A Stress-Free Checkout Procedure
The checkout process of your eCommerce website should be hassle-free. If the checkout process is complicated and cluttered the customer is less likely to complete the purchase and exit the website. You should make sure that the customer knows about any extra cost such as shipping charges. Ease the fears of the customers by displaying symbols like McAfee to symbolize that the checkout process has been verified.
Function properly all the time
Only when your website is functioning correctly it is a helpful eCommerce tool. You need to confirm that your hosting plan is dependable and has the capability of handling any future requirements that your website could have. Your hosting plan needs to be up-to-date so that it does not restrict any potential sales or delay your shipping. If your hosting plan is not able to handle the numerous orders, then it will affect your reputation negatively and decrease your sales figures.
Designing an Efficient Ecommerce Website
User-friendly Elements
Keeping the website design as simple as possible is quite important. You should make it easy for the users to browse through your website easily by adding features like dropdown menus and breadcrumb navigation. The shopping cart should be always visible and you should not add excess information in a small area as it will look cluttered.
Building Brand Recognition
Every corner of your website should have consistent branding, that is, the layouts, colors and style guidelines should be in sync with each other. This is so that it does not confuse the users of your brand and they get attracted enough to your website to make purchases.
Effective Calls-to-Action
Adding a call-to-action on each page of your website is required as it indicates the next phase to accomplish the goal on that particular page. Examples of call-to-action are: Checkout, Add to Cart, Submit Payment, etc. Every page should have a primary as well as secondary call-to-action as some users might not be prepared to complete the primary goal of the page. For instance, some people are not always ready to download the software but are open to download the demo software. This way, you will not lose visitors as they will have secondary options to choose from.
Back-end of a Well-built Ecommerce Website
Meta Data Control
It is essential that you have the capability of controlling your meta data if you are trying to raise the rank of your website. You must be capable of easily creating rules for different pages for handling the title tag creation and also be able to personalize the title tag of each page. Uploading a robots.txt file should be allowed by your content management system and you should also be able to edit the file if necessary.
Adding and Editing the Existing Code
Sometimes a website is continuously adding new content and to make this task easier you need to have some setup done in advance. Having this done in advance helps you, when you need to make slight modifications to the existing code to provide your business with easy functionality.
Website Management
As a website owner it is necessary to have a place that contains all the relevant data about the performance of your website so that you can review it. The dashboard of your website should contain all the summarized information about sales figures, information requests, eCommerce performance metrics and stock items. If you have all the necessary information at hand, then you can update the data on your website effortlessly.