Frederick Jace
Online shopping is the trend of the times. Long gone are the days of waiting in a queue or going to brick-and-mortar stores. Now, every product is available at your fingertips from the convenience of a computer or smartphone. If you are running an online business, an eCommerce website is an integral part.
Essential Elements for a Successful eCommerce Website
- User-friendly interface:
If your website is easy to browse, it decreases the bounce rate and increases visit duration. A navigation-friendly website will attract more customers, which means you will have a greater chance of making good sales right from day one.
The homepage should have basic information about the services your business is offering. Ideally, the website should also have self-explanatory categories. They should further be organized into sub-categories to help shoppers find what they are looking for. There should also be a search bar that helps customers quickly search for available products instead of scrolling through numerous items.
- Well-defined shopping cart and a smooth checkout process:
Some customers, while shopping, prefer adding items to the cart, as they might want to buy more than one item. This process should be easy. The cart’s design should be such that the customer can view the items in the cart while they continue shopping.
The checkout process is where the customers shell out their money and become loyal patrons. The checkout should be basic and to the point. Use a clear call to action, as the conversion rate depends a lot on it. The customers should feel confident instead of being confused.
- A proper payment gateway:
The eCommerce payment gateway should be one that has multiple payment options. Earlier, only credit cards were accepted on eCommerce websites. These days though, customers prefer a variety of payment methods like debit cards, United Payments Interface (UPI), digital wallets, or even coupons. Cash on delivery, too, is another popular option among buyers.
All of these must be accounted for while choosing a payment gateway. Many payment gateways in India accept all these payment options and more. Zaakpay is one such leading eCommerce payment gateway that is preferred by multiple businesses.
- Digital security:
With the increase in digital traffic and online shopping, in particular, there is a growing concern for the safety of shoppers. If your eCommerce website is to thrive, you need to reassure your customers that their data and various payment details are in safe hands. It might be a good idea to keep the following measures in place:
- Make it mandatory for users to have a strong password.
- Use Security Socket Layer or SSL for data encryption. This will keep all the private data safe. Additionally, payment gateways in India too have the SSL certification.
- Make sure your site’s security system complies with the regulatory authorities in your region.
- Use a secure payment gateway like Zaakpay that collects payments with all safety protocols in place.
- Impeccable customer service:
Since customers do not have a brick-and-mortar store to go to in case of complaints, having a proper communication channel for the convenience of customers is an inevitable element. A responsive customer service that resolves doubts promptly helps win the confidence of consumers, which helps in roping in regular patrons. It is essential to make the customer feel connected to you. Good and prompt communication is useful in making and sustaining long-term relations with your customers.
- Ratings and reviews:
One of the most significant aspects of an eCommerce website is a ratings and reviews section. As customers not only buy products from your website but also recommend it to others, good ratings go a long way in attracting other customers. If, as a business owner, you are skeptical about adding reviews, the least you can do is go for ratings. That way, you can use the evaluations of your products to make filters. Customers then might select the highest rated products.
- Images and descriptions:
Shopping is all about visuals. One of the main reasons that deter customers from shopping online is because they are not sure about the quality of the product, as they cannot physically see or touch the items. Therefore, it’s important to have images from multiple angles and various contexts. Also, allow customers to zoom in on the image, as people tend to examine a product before purchasing closely.
It also helps to describe items in detail. Cover all aspects like colors, textures, sizes, etc. Once a customer is confident about knowing the product inside out, they will purchase it.
- Wishlist:
A wishlist comes in very handy when customers do not want to buy a product now but want to save it for the future. This way, the user becomes a potential customer. In this situation, the customer does not have to remember what he or she liked during their previous visit. A wishlist helps them recall that. You can also send customers reminders about the price drop of any items on their wishlist.
Conclusion
A good and catchy eCommerce website is a great way of expanding your online website. As the online business is evolving day by day, it is a good idea to be aware of trends in order to make the website more attractive. All the elements mentioned above of an eCommerce website are not everything you can do with your website but the minimum requirements for a successful eCommerce business.
