Exactly what is e-Commerce design?
Well – firstly we must know that e-commerce is basically commerce that is conducted electronically on the Internet. Like any store that carries out business or trade, it needs to be a place where consumers can shop…a shop front. It is a business and like any business, it needs planning and designing. In a nutshell; e-commerce design is the designing of the business. Any brick and mortar building needs an architect and a shop fitter, as does any Internet business. The owner determines the layout and the features that he would like and the designer using templates will design the layout.
One must bear in mind that to be able to buy anything customers need to see what is for sale. An individual’s website is a place of business that needs visual appeal, just like putting a window display in a shop.
On the whole, entrepreneurs often have no idea on how to design their website. There are experts that specialize in e-commerce design. The experts are trained to understand what the business owner wants and needs. The owner knows what colours or what pictures they want on the walls, so to speak. The specialist will then design the website according to the owners’ wishes.
Start of by thinking – first off, how are customers going to find the store? The website needs to be able to accommodate all browsers. The e-commerce store should allow customers to search within the store, via a search button. If the website is complex to navigate, consumers will go away. The shopping cart layout and the graphics or advertisements must be appealing. Customers want their questions about a product answered and if they cannot they leave – just like a bricks and mortar shop. The layout and graphics are very important to get customers from window-shopping to buying. Between the business owner and the designer, they will decide where the search button is located how to design the shopping cart and where the ads will go. Consumers enter the store like any store and the first impression will decide if they buy or not…and that’s e-commerce design.