Three Hallmarks of a Successful E-Commerce Website
In our new The Brand Journal series, The Agenda, we ask design industry professionals to share their thoughts on important topics that should be on our radar. In this week’s post, we ask Caitlin Hill, the Founder of C&C Consulting, to share her thoughts on what makes a successful E-commerce launch. Read on to learn more.
Why is it important to invest in e-commerce, and what are the hallmarks of a successful e-commerce site? An e-commerce platform is a critical extension of one’s brand. Aside from its function to sell a product or service and its ability to provide a business with a revenue stream, it delivers an experience all on its own. It’s another opportunity to engage with your customers and invite them into your world while demonstrating your value.
Considering the Customer Journey
Shopping can be an emotional behavior and a visual reprieve — great e-commerce brands must take the proper steps to honor this. The site’s design should be compelling and immerse the customer in your brand experience. But beyond being visually appealing, every aspect of the site must be designed to achieve the most seamless and optimized shopping experience across all devices. The ease of navigation and search to high-quality photography, personalized content, and a streamlined checkout experience are critical to the online store’s success. The goal is not just to increase conversions but to deliver an end-to-end positive shopping experience that the customer will want to return to again and again.
2. Aligning the E-Commerce Site to the Overall Strategy
The ultimate plan for an e-commerce site should thread into the overall company strategy you have for your business — and it’s important to note that an e-commerce site should work in cohesion with the brand’s other platforms, such as email marketing and social media. By making the investment in an agency, you are also committing to delivering a comprehensive digital experience to your customers.
3. Front-end Design is only the Tip of the Iceberg
A dynamic and engaging front-end design is just one of the many components behind achieving success in e-commerce. Fluency in the e-commerce platform and selection of the best technological and digital marketing integrations for the business is also fundamental to growth. There are key considerations beyond what the customer experiences, such as identifying a point person to oversee the site or how you will manage inventory, fulfillment, and shipping. Having an individual run point on strategy, for example, can help reveal some of these key operational elements and play a role in the site’s evolution — which ultimately directly correlates to the growth of the business.
