Modern Trends in Ecommerce Design
Just last year, mobile shopping became an ecommerce trend worth talking about. Merchants now have no choice but to meet the demands of consumers, otherwise they’re going to miss out. What do consumers want? Simpler, friendlier designs that create an awesome shopping experience on mobile devices. This includes large, clickable buttons, seamless navigation, quick loading, easy-to-read font, clear images with product descriptions and so much more. We could go on and on. In fact, we will.
Now that we’re in a brand new year, it’s time to give your ecommerce site a major refresh. Why? Well for one, it will make your customers happier. Two, an updated design that captures the latest trends can bring you more money. Not only will people be happier to shop with you, but also they’ll be more willing to spend their hard-earned dollars on your product. Of course, we can’t forget that a great design that beats out the competition is also worth celebrating.
Let’s take a look at some of the modern trends in ecommerce design that can be applied to your website.
Custom Typography
Hey, if everything else can be customized these days, why not do it with typography as well? I know that when I type, it gets boring to look at the same drab font all the time. (No offense Arial or Times New Roman.) The same is true with your readers. Looking at the same fonts across brands is, well, rather dull.
At one time, web designers thought that fancy font styles were the best way to communicate with people, but it turns out that wavy, curly, frilly fonts can be a bit of a distraction. That’s why more are setting their sights on customized web typography that is unique to the brand. Alongside this personalized typography are added features like ghost buttons, bold fonts and text animation.
Of course, the same basic rules still apply here. Always select a font that’s easy on the eyes. The font should also align with your brand. If your company prides itself on being bold and distinct, your typography should follow suit.
Large Category Lists
Today’s users aren’t interested in scrolling through dozens of pages to find what they’re looking for. You need to do a good job of organizing your products so that shoppers won’t get frustrated and move onto another company. To help with this are large category lists. These lists are all placed on a single page and then split into categories and subcategories.
For instance, if your brand sells personalized gifts, you could break down your products based on their themes and then into smaller subcategories such as “gifts for her”, “gifts for him”, “gifts under $20” and so forth. This helps shoppers get right to the point of what they’re trying to do rather than throwing so much at them, they forget what they came for in the first place.
Detailed Product Information
While you don’t want to ramble on about the product or list 101 things you can do with it, you do want to include some information. How frustrating is it to shop for something that has a vague description? If you’re browsing for a piece of furniture, you want to know the dimensions, the color, the material, what other people have liked about it and so forth.
When building out your product descriptions, don’t just repurpose what other people have written. Write something that is informative and sells the product. Include things like the price, quantity, colors and sizes. Also include product photos and reviews from previous customers. I know I always like to see that I’m not the only one buying a product.
Filters on Searches
It’s very frustrating when ecommerce sites don’t have a search function. Yes, those drop-down menus are helpful, but sometimes shoppers don’t want to sift through dozens of lists. When I’m in a hurry, I head straight for the search box. Unfortunately, many ecommerce sites lack in the accuracy of their search function.
Not only should you have a decent search function on your site, but also users should be able to filter their searches. Filters allow shoppers to limit their search results based on size, color, quantity, manufacturer and more. It’s definitely an underrated tool at this point, but it’s something that will make for more efficient shopping.
More Media, Less Text
Long, boring paragraphs aren’t going to cut it anymore. People prefer short, visual and mobile-optimized content. That’s not to say that words aren’t important, because they most certainly are. You still need well-crafted content that provides value to readers. The text should also be broken down into easy-to-read sections with bullet points, subheadings and appropriate links. But it should also include bright graphics, short videos and other media that draws attention from your customers.
One format that you’ll see often on ecommerce sites is a rich and dynamic background that has a creative tagline. Brands that can pull this off show to the world exactly what they stand for in a matter of seconds. Consumers respond well because they’re not bogged down with text, and everything is delivered in a clean, minimalist format.
Conclusion
If your ecommerce site was created a few years back, it’s time to give it some love in 2016. Always look at your website from the perspective of a customer – not a proud business owner or marketing manager. What would you think if you were a customer landing on your site for the first time? How does your site compare to your competitors’?
Part of being a successful ecommerce site is not just following the current trends but predicting what will be hot in a few months. This way, you’re always thinking about what you can do to improve the user experience and keep customers happy in a landscape that is never short on competition.
