Imagine walking into a busy retail store for something you’re interested in purchasing. You have an idea of what you’re looking for and you walk into a specific section where they display the products you’re looking to buy. However, the specific type of product isn’t visible. You look at different racks and sections hoping to find exactly what you’re looking for. Eventually, you give up and go to another store.
Believe it or not, this scenario is what happens in eCommerce stores. People land on your eCommerce store looking for specific products or simply window shopping. They end up getting frustrated with their shopping experience and leave your site knowing they can find another one in a matter of clicks. If you want to make sure that your eCommerce site is performing optimally, you need to focus on improving your user experience (UX) design. Here are some essential UX tips that you need to know.
1. You Need a Well-Designed User Interface (Navigation Menu)
The first thing you need is a clean navigation menu with a good site architecture. The days of long navigation bars with multiple hierarchies are done. Build your navigation menu based on what your audience is typically looking for and organize it in a way that helps them hone in on the exact products they’re looking to buy. You want to redesign your navigation later on when you have the data that shows you what your customers are buying and why people are coming to your site.
2. Checkout Needs to Be a Breeze
Too many eCommerce sites make the mistake of using a checkout process that requires too many steps. Try to be as efficient as possible with your checkout process. Simplify everything as much as possible. Also, make sure that the shopping cart is saved if the cart is abandoned. This will allow you to reach out to users and remind them to complete their purchase in case something went wrong. Don’t rely on free checkout software that web hostingproviders bundle into their service. Invest in an eCommerce suite that really allows you to customize the checkout process.
3. Your Site Must Be Optimized for Mobile Visitors
More people are using mobile devices to shop online. You need to make sure that your site is mobile friendly and optimized. Your mobile site must load fast, compress images, use mobile friendly navigation and use a layout that enhances the mobile experience. You can hire a responsive designer to help you design a site that’s works for all devices. If you can’t afford to pay for a new design, find a web hosting provider that offers free responsive templates. Alternatively, you can buy CMS themes/templates from many online template design stores.
4. Offer Personalization Options
Once you’ve acquired a customer, one of the best ways to encourage them to purchase again in the future is to personalize their experience. Allow your customers to build wish lists, save purchases for later and revisit their order history. Provide them with product recommendations based on their purchases and offer them upsells at discounted prices. All of these personalization tactics contribute to a great experience and makes customers want to come back.
5. Simplify and Organize Your Product Pages
If you want to enhance user experience and improve conversion rates at the same time, the best thing you can do is to work on your product pages. Many eCommerce sites make the mistake of trying to condense too much information in one area. Instead, simplify the product pages to that they are brief while providing all the information the consumer needs. Use tabs, adequate white space, large buttons, widget boxes and icons to clarify and organize your content.
6. Improve Search and Filtering Functions
If you have a large eCommerce store with multiple products, you need to make sure that users have an effective and efficient way to find what they’re looking for. In these cases, a simple search bar often won’t be enough to get the job done. Build search functions that allow users to find what they’re looking for and also give them the option of filtering what they want. For example, the user may want a T-shirt for men that’s available in XL. They quickly filter the search results by checking off the men’s and XL size boxes.
7. Collect and Display Reviews and Ratings
Consumers have a hard time figuring out if an online product really delivers on its promises. Usually, a picture is enough to sell them on the purchase. To help them make a buying decision, set up a function where customers can rate and review individual products. Not only does this enhance their shopping experience, it also gives them more confidence in making a purchase. If a consumer is looking at two competing sites and one site has ratings/reviews for their products, it’s likely that the consumer will go with the store with the ratings/reviews.
This is just a small collection of eCommerce UX design tips that can help you enhance the shopping experience, improve conversions and generate more repeat sales. You have to approach your site from the eyes of the consumer and start testing different designs to see if it results in an improvement. A little goes a long way when it comes to UX design, so it’s worth it to test meticulously if you want to create a successful eCommerce site.
