Being
online is a requirement nowadays. You cannot get away with not putting your
company online, because at the very least it means that locals who are
searching for your store to drive to cannot find you. You will be passed over, and
you will lose that sale. On a greater
scale, it means shutting yourself off from the chance of another revenue stream
and the chance to better manage your store’s reputation.
You need an online store, but designing one can be tricky. You need to know what your customers are
looking for and how to wow them. To do that, all you need to do is follow this
Have a Compelling Home Page
Bounce rate is one of the most frustrating metrics to deal with, especially when you are using Google AdWords or other pay-per-click marketing schemes. That is why the first step to creating a customer-centric store is to ensure that the first impression they have of your site is great. Some questions to ask yourself, then, are:
- Is it attractive?
- Does it look modern?
- Does it have the information they
are looking for?
Your home
page should have everything that your visitor is looking for in a glance. If it
doesn’t, improve it. If it looks old,
ugly, or unprofessional, improve it. Your
home page will make or break you.
Make it Easy to Use
Now that you have customers going beyond
the first page you need to ensure
the rest of the experience is seamless. There should be no broken links or other problem stopping them from
finding the information they need.
Know What Your Customers Are Looking for
Use Analytics to determine where your customers are going. Are they trying to shop your sale? Are they looking for contact information? Know what they are looking for and see if you can make it easier for them to find it.
Have a Powerful eCommerce Platform on Your Side
Most content
management systems like WordPress will allow you to easily integrate a powerful eCommerce platform directly into it.
Shopify and BigCommerce, for example, can help you take your online store
design to the next level, but only if you know how to set it up professionally.
If you don’t, then all you need is to hire specialists like those at blackbeltcommerce.com
to do it for you.
Make it Fast, Safe, and Secure
All
websites need to be fast and secure. This
is important for customer satisfaction and safety. It is also critical for
Google’s search engine algorithms, as site speed, security, and general
performance are some of the key factors they look for when it comes to ranking
your website.
Every
website must be made with the customer in mind.
If they cannot find what they need, have a hard time using their site, or in
any way dislike or distrust you, then you are done. They will click away and
never think of you again. It takes a lot of effort to be trusted and bought
from online, so start today by ensuring your online store ticks all the boxes in terms of aesthetics, user-friendliness, and security.
