eCommerce Website Requirements
As the internet is spreading daily, users are getting used to online shopping and are also thinking that online shopping is much easier. Since 51% of people across the globe have access to the internet, 6 out of 10 purchases are made through eCommerce stores. On the other hand, starting an online store is not easy, as the competition in online sales has never been so fierce. As many companies enter the eCommerce business every year, only some succeed, making it increasingly difficult to maintain an online store. As a business owner, if you want to open an eCommerce store, you first need to build a proper eCommerce website. For running a successful online store, read this article to know what the eCommerce website requirements are and how you need to fulfill them.
Basic eCommerce Website Requirements
Many tools can be used on the internet to start an online store for your business. Still, in the end, you need to know the basic requirements for an eCommerce website to succeed in the competition.
1. Register A Domain
For starting any website, the first requirement is a domain name, which should be acquired by your company online. The domain name reflects the whole company image, so one should be careful when choosing the domain. Typically most owners try to choose names that are the same as their company name, but sometimes the name might be taken online, or at times the name might be too long for a website name. If the name is too long, customers might find it difficult to remember the website, so you need to take time to uncover the name of your website. Some of the options available can be using abbreviations that can be easily remembered.
2. Web Hosting
Another important eCommerce website requirement is choosing reliable and quality web hosting. The success of any website depends on hosting, which should include speed, good upload time, scalability, and customer support. Your eCommerce store can succeed with a hosting plan that provides all the basic requirements.
3. Security
For any eCommerce store, security is the main concern, and your customers should feel safe to do money transactions on your site. Now all web browsers are taking care to warn the users if the browsing site does not have an SSL or HTTPS certificate. A secure website can protect your users from cyber-attacks, data stealing, and other risks.
4. Product Attributes
Product attributes include every detail of the product you are showing on your online store. The customer should be able to choose the product according to his favorite color and size. The images should have the zoom option so customers can look closely at the product features. You could include videos on products, reviews, and proper images to attract more customers.
5. Mobile-Friendly Website
The increase in mobile usage has a massive impact on eCommerce stores. As per 2021 statistics, mobile eCommerce sales comprised 72.1% of the overall eCommerce sales. As most of the shopping is completed on mobiles, optimizing your eCommerce store for various devices, including tablets, mobiles, etc. A responsive design should be implemented for your website to perform well on mobiles. A responsive website design is also one of the best ways to drive traffic to your online store.
6. Customizable Themes
People visiting your online store tend to leave if they find the theme or layout is not attractive. The appearance of your site should make the users stay on your site, and your brand will stand out from the competition. To attract more customers, it is necessary to use high-quality, customizable themes reflecting the product niche or business vertical. The selected theme should also allow the business person to edit the content of products, create blogs to share articles, and manage portfolios.
7. Performance
For any eCommerce website, driving traffic is always the top priority. No matter how many products you have added to the inventory, the online store should always load faster, so you need to set up a speed benchmark so that the maximum number of products can be added. You should never include third-party delivery times on your site to achieve the required speed. Your site’s performance can be affected if you depend on another database to complete the orders.
8. Robust Operating Systems
For your online store, reliable management systems for your inventory can always save you time handling manual tasks while you can focus on running your digital store. The backend programs can manage stocks, labels, warehouse data, import catalogs, store customer information, create alerts for low stock, and calculate the tax. Meanwhile, the same systems can easily be used for order management, creating invoices, and tracking orders. All popular eCommerce platforms like Magento, WooCommerce, Shopify, or BigCommerce are equipped with order management and other inventory functions. You could choose from the platforms per your requirement.
9. Fast Checkout Process
Customers visiting your online store can leave their cart abandoned if the checkout process is complicated. When the customer is in the mood to buy from your store, the lengthy checkout process can test customers’ patience, leading to canceling the order. A smooth checkout process can be handy when customers are more enthusiastic about buying products. To make the checkout process faster, you can introduce a one-page checkout, which can be completed easily.
10. SEO-Friendly Pages
SEO is important as it helps your eCommerce pages to be found on search engine results. Google search results are considered reliable, and most customers search on Google to get information related to products. To make SEO effective on your website, you need to know about keyword strategy, adjust the content regularly, and be found in the results.
11. Social Media Integration
Today Social media have become so popular that people share single reviews or situations on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. So one of the easiest ways of reaching more customers is to be active on social media by regularly posting about your products, new launches, and other events. Social media integration tools for your website can be very useful in promoting your products or services to a large audience.
12. Customer Support
Your online store could be successful only if you provide appropriate support during and after the sale. To give a convenient shopping experience for your clients, you should include an intuitive user interface that gives a fast shopping experience for users.
13. Integration with Marketing Tools
Besides acquiring new customers, retaining users is also challenging for your eCommerce website. It takes a lot of time to attract new customers to your online store, and also difficult to regain users. Sending promotional emails and product reviews can help create enthusiasm in users’ minds. For any eCommerce site, send promotional emails, promotional content, and other marketing strategies to build customer relationships.
14. Create a Blog for Sharing Views
For any eCommerce store, the blog is an excellent way to connect to your potential customers and attract new ones. You can keep reaching people by providing essential tips, reviews, instructions, and reliable content. Building a blog is free, but the content published in the blog can help drive more sales and revenue.
15. Reports and Analytical Data
Besides knowing the number of sales and revenue, it is also important to know the number of users visiting the site and other key factors. Most eCommerce platforms provide inbuilt analytics features, and above all, Google Analytics can be used to measure SEO performance, best-viewed pages, and customer details.
Contact an eCommerce Web Design Agency
The main motto of any eCommerce site is to increase sales, reach more people, and drive website traffic. To have a performing website, you must consider the above eCommerce website requirements. If you are a business owner looking to start an online store for your company, then you need to talk to eCommerce web development experts, who can guide you through designing and developing your site. At Ayatas Technologies, we have top-notch eCommerce developers who can design robust and best-performing eCommerce websites. Contact us at (916)836-8099 for more details.