Importance of Design for an e-commerce website

In the ‘world of web’, we are in the era of e-commerce. If you are an e-commerce business, you can’t simply rely on your products to do well. You need to provide a well-designed user interface and good user experience. Keeping this in mind is what makes the buying process easier and encourages them to buy more often. Website design is not just restricted to the overall look but extends to how a customer feels and what they experience while browsing through an e-commerce store. In this article, Luxeveda talks about the importance of design in e-commerce.

The success of your website depends on various factors; Design being one of them. This is the field where designers and business experts work as one team for the target audience. There are times when shopping online is confusing as well as frustrating. In order to avoid clutter on the e-commerce page, the visual interface must be well organised. This is why while designing the e-commerce page designers must consider aspects such as, 

• operational simplicity
• strong branding
• descriptive data representation via menus, catalogues, etc
• visual elements
• design that supports the value proposition

The other crucial elements contributing to a customer’s first impression are the business name, products sold, business type, location, brand quality and so on. If these factors are ignored during website designing, it will result in poor user experience, cart abandonment and increased bounce rate. Design in e-commerce paves way for a successful e-commerce business. 

Business perspective

Design portrays the unique selling point, target audience, positioning, tone and voice of the brand. How do you describe your brand? Is it friendly? Fun or serious? Mass or Luxury? Design factors visually answer all these questions and set the tone of your brand image. The design also plays an active role in setting and strengthening marketing and sales. The visual representation of the items, landing pages and product videos attracts customers to the platform improving chances of conversion. The decisions about layout, colour scheme, typography, transitions and interactions, all need to have the global objective to make the process of shopping easy, quick and enjoyable.

Mobile responsiveness

As we mentioned in our last blog users today spend more time on their phones as opposed to their computers. Hence brands need to make sure that their e-commerce webpage loads well on a handheld screen such as a smartphone. What makes mobile responsiveness possible is the design of the site. This mainly refers to designing the website keeping mobile users in mind from the very beginning. For instance include large CTAs that are easy to click, condensed menu to save space or using icons for cart and account pages. For more details check out some of the best responsive design websites here.

Improves Conversion

Bad design is one of the reasons for a bad conversion rate. If you have an e-commerce platform that takes forever to load, has poor visuals and complicated flow you will lose customers. Good design makes the shopping experience seamless. Moreover, web design is the digital face of your business. A well-designed website is equivalent to a friendly interface that greets your user and makes them feel welcome on your website. Bad web design may not be the sole factor that drives sales down in an online store but improving the design is a positive step forward in improving the conversion rate.

To conclude, website design for an online store is closely intertwined with its conversion rate and overall appeal. For a great online store with a low bounce rate and where people spend more time browsing what you need to do is invest in design. Aim for a highly functional design aesthetic to keep customers around and generate sales. Need help with your e-commerce website? Get in touch.