There are five steps which ecommerce website designers need to take to make visitors press the ‘buy now’ button.

Telling customers where they are

It’s not easy to get lost when shopping in shopping malls orsupermarkets as there are signs which help customers find the necessarygoods.Ecommerce websites are supposed to make shopping easier soeffective navigation is crucial. Websites designed to sell need to beclearly structured and have clickable links redirecting to the requiredcategory. If a website has a complicated structure, customers shouldknow where they are. It can be achieved through section titles,navigation menus, headlines and breadcrumbs.

Narrowing the search

Assisting customers in finding the necessary products is another task ofecommerce website designers. When browsing for goods in shopping malls,customers turn to shop assistants who can provide information on goodsand help them make the right choice. When there are dozens of productsin sub-categories, it might be tough to search for products so searchengines are a must for ecommerce websites. Apart from that, productsshould be supplied with detailed descriptions, multi-angle pictures andaccurate prices.

Emphasising the products, not the design

Ecommerce websites are designed to market products and services so it’simportant not to overdo with visuals and sound effects.Websitesfeaturing complex design may take longer to load which makes purchasehungry customers switch to competitors’ websites. Professional ecommercewebsite designers know that flash, images and sound effects are good insmall doses when it comes to ecommerce websites because they mightdistract potential customers from products.

Keeping the checkout process easy

It’s a common thing that there are online shoppers who drop out justbefore they click ‘pay now’. There are various reasons why they do sobut mainly it’s due to hidden charges, impossibility to purchase withoutregistration, unclear delivery terms, unsecure payment procedures andthe long checkout process. Letting the cat out of the bag at the lastminute is not a good solution for ecommerce website owners; all thenecessary information should be provided before shoppers reach thecheckout stage. When paying by credit cards, customers want to be surethat credit card transactions are secure. To sum up, ecommerce websitedesigners need to make the checkout process as easy and transparent aspossible.

Making the website easy to manage

In any shop a range of products is updated on a constant basis soecommerce websites should be easy to manage. Well-designed ecommercewebsites are both simple to buy from for customers and easy to managefor administration.Websites which feature up-to-date information aboutproducts in stock and accurate prices may help reduce customer dropoutrates and turn more clicks into sales. As Jakob Nielsen, the author ofDesigning Web Usability, said ‘give users a good experience and they’reapt to turn into frequent and loyal customers’. Taking these five steps,dedicated ecommerce website designers may create efficient ecommercewebsites and improve conversion rates.

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