Embracing the digital storefront

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

As part of our plan to inspire you to be bolder, we’re keeping you updated with the latest intel on trends and movements within the online landscape. With the majority of consumers passing their days at home, the digital brand home shifted into a new gear, so to speak. It’s evident that online purchases are far outpacing sales from their brick-and-mortar counterparts, making eCommerce stores an undeniable part of any functional business.

WHY THE TREND IS HERE TO STAY

An optimised eCommerce store becomes the consumer’s paradise. From the comfort of their homes, consumers can purchase almost anything they desire - and simultaneously eliminate the hassle of finding parking, fighting crowds, and slow-moving queues.

COMMUNICATION IN 2021

As stay-at-home orders were issued, tech was given an additional requirement: to offer social interaction and understanding on an empathic level. (Don’t overlook the everyday, personal interactions that have an impact on the bottom line.) It’s worthwhile to think about what may be lost in an online shopping experience and trying to mimic a similar level of consumer engagement to fulfil this need.

UP TO SPEED WITH BEST PRACTICES

To join the ranks of the best eCommerce stores, you’ll need to provide consumers with a seamless online shopping experience. So we’re breaking down the anatomy of an optimised eCommerce store, offering insights and best practices on how to ensure consumer engagement.

• CREATE A COMPELLING HOMEPAGE
  Ideally, the homepage needs to have a strong hook to increase traffic, encourage consumers to browse, and make a purchase. This is the first port-of-call for both new and long-term customers and should demonstrate the benefit of your products to increase conversions.
• HAVE AN EVER-PRESENT SEARCH BAR
  Ensure that when the user scrolls down, the search bar moves seamlessly into the navigation bar, thereby moving with them. Users should not need to scroll back up the page to search for something else.
• CREATE TAILORED CONTENT
  Saving a given user’s purchasing history on your site can offer valuable data needed to ensure a personalised online shopping experience. Previous purchases can inform the banners, info, and visuals displayed to a given user and are an effective means of increasing consumer engagement.
• MAKE YOUR VALUE PROPOSITION FRONT AND CENTRE
  Use a centred banner to make your value proposition clear. This is also an ideal space in which to display incentives or discounts for first-time shoppers.
• ENSURE EASY NAVIGATION ON EACH PAGE
  The user-experience is almost directly related to easy site-navigation. Ensure a simple online shopping journey through a simple, logical site layout that is easy to follow.
• MAKE USE OF A VISUAL PROGRESS INDICATOR
  Assist your consumer to track where they are in the purchasing phase by including a progress indicator on the check-out page. By showing the site visitor their form-filling progress, you’re able to offer the consumer a sense of achievement and simultaneously make this painstaking process more engaging. It also serves as a digital means of mimicking the in-store process that often serves as a guide during purchases.
• ENHANCE THE CHECKOUT EXPERIENCE
  Call-to-actions (or CTAs as they’re more fondly known) are a direct prompt to incite a specific action from the website visitor. By placing a CTA within close proximity to the actual product, you have a sure-fire way of influencing customer behaviour. Accommodating your site-visitors by offering different payment options is another strong means of converting long-term consumers.

UP NEXT

Overall, an optimised eCommerce store is a powerful tool that can be harnessed to capture interested users, and convert them into long-term customers. In our next article, we’ll be looking at best practices for effective design and consumer trends. Stay tuned for more thoughts and insights!