eCommerce websites have one main objective: to help customers complete a purchase. Everything available on your site should contribute to that goal. Keeping it simple, receptive, and accessible is definitely preferable to cluttering it with unnecessary features. Filters, comparison options, categories, purchasing options, and more should be user-friendly, so as to keep your customers from growing frustrated and abandoning their cart.
To ensure your site stays on the cutting edge, our eCommerce web designers here at CloudMellow have come up with a list of 5 must-have features:
1. Multiple Payment Options
Your website should be integrated with different payment gateways, and not just PayPal and Amazon. Make sure you integrate modern options like Apple Pay, Google Pay, WeChat Pay, and more. This lets shoppers from different countries complete their orders in a single click.
While diversifying your payment options is important, it isn’t necessary to integrate every single one out there. Your goal is to make things easier for your core group of patrons. There’s no sense in offering a payment gateway that consumers do not use. Before you choose payment gateways, understand your target market and narrow the list down to the ones they frequently use.
2. Order Management System
You need an order management space so your customers have a place to review their cart before they move to the checkout stage. Make sure you have a flexible shopping cart—one that can be used by both guests and registered users. Studies have shown that offering guest checkout increases conversions by as much as 45%.
If you’re opening your site to third-party sellers, you will need to include options for COD verification, refunds, updates on exchanges or cancellations, and other similar activities.
3. Data Protection
Online transactions are an indispensable part of life today. Every time a person purchases a product or service online, they leave their data in the hands of the website owners. Having strong data privacy protection measures in place is not only the right thing to do, but it also brings business value. CloudMellow’s eCommerce website development team considers customer security and privacy a top priority.
The platform should have an SSL certificate in place and be done through a recognized vendor. Plenty of eCommerce stores use Symantec. Additionally, two-factor authentication and firewalls can help protect your site from malicious activity. Be sure to include your privacy policy link in the footer of your website.
4. Delivery Tracking
After a customer has placed an order, they shouldn’t be left in the dark. Website reach is important, but so is being able to deliver customer orders on time. Providing a variety of delivery methods or partnering with logistics providers is a good idea and something that should be planned out before your site goes live.
Furthermore, you have to provide customers with shipping information before they reach checkout. Having a shipping charge calculator or providing that information with each item will help them figure out how much is due. Offering free shipping, especially for items to be delivered nearby, can help you build a loyal customer base.
5. Legitimate Reviews
Products will sell more if there are real people vouching for them, and in eCommerce, that directly affects sales. Include a space for reviews on your website. When the testimonials start rolling in, let people say whatever they want to about the products. A product with mostly positive reviews and a few negative reviews is seen as more reliable than one with nothing but five stars.
eCommerce Website Design by CloudMellow
Your eCommerce website will need to deliver on the promise that it will bring quality products to your customers. Conceptualizing everything from order fulfillment to security and reviews is essential when it comes to making a quality website. If you want to succeed in selling items online, partner with us – CloudMellow, a US-based eCommerce marketing agency and we can guide you through that process. Call or contact us today to get started!
