Your ecommerce website is your very own online shop-front and is also a sales tool. It needs to be able to deliver a power-packed performance in order to convert. It needs to justify its existence and efficiency through increased sales. It’s only sales figures that are the clear determinants of the success or failure of an ecommerce solution.

So what separates ecommerce solutions that work and those that don’t. While some give credit to the online marketing efforts of the marketers, the real reason behind the successful performance of such solutions is the custom design. The greatest designs act as a trigger to draw out a positive reaction from the viewers. This fact assumes tremendous importance in ecommerce website design; where the objective is to encourage a positive reaction in the form of a ‘purchase’.

Let’s take a look at some design tips

Brilliant Product Images

Both underrated and overrated at the same time, there is no doubt that product photography is a crucial component of any ecommerce website. As a design element, it is underrated by those designers who think great product images don’t make for successful website design. On the other hand, it’s overrated by all those who think that such images are the only designing aspect that must be accorded importance. What actually needs to be done is make product images an important part of your overall design strategy.

An online shopper is unable to touch, hold, taste or smell the product on the site. The only interaction they have with the product is through its image. They need to feel confident about purchasing the product and a major chunk of this confidence is a result of the aesthetic quality of the images. It is this confidence that has a direct impact on your conversion rate. So, do not compromise on the image quality of the product. By ensuring that your product comes to life through its image is a perfect way of creating the right impression in the minds of prospective customers.

Avoid offering Numerous Choices

Wait a minute! How does, not offering a lot of choices contribute towards a successful ecommerce website? Your surprise, shock and doubt are duly noted. But, have you heard of a condition called ‘choice paralysis’. It’s a condition that affects the best of shoppers, when they are presented with a long list of choices. Instead of making their life easier, such plethora of choices makes their lives difficult.

Let me clarify. There is no problem in giving your customers a choice, but too much of a good thing is always bad. When your customers land on your website, they need to be able to decide what to buy in a given time frame. If they spend a lot of time in the process of selection, they can experience cognitive dissonance. When this happens, they might avoid buying any product on your site. So the design must be such that it helps your customers find the product. One of the ways of doing this is by using visuals to highlight the popular products and ensuring that the design guides customer towards these products.

AIDA oriented Design

Most website designers are perfectly aware of this design strategy. AIDA stands for A- Attention, I- Interest, D- Desire and A-Action.  A custom ecommerce solution should ensure that it first grabs the attention of the customer, then it must develop the customer’s interest for the product/service; once the product/service has captured their interest, they must be made to desire it; it is only if they desire a certain product/service that they will act to buy it.

The key here is to ensure that your design helps deliver the message of the website in the strongest possible terms. It must be able to focus the attention of the website visitors on your products and through the use of visual highlights must be able to trigger a desire for the said product. The final action that leads to product/service purchase can be accomplished through an effective mixture of call-to-action buttons and marketing copy.

Like all design tips, even these are great if you use them well. But, if you don’t, these tips are like the millions of others that you will come across on the internet.