User-Focused eCommerce Design and the Importance

Ecommerce is growing at a rapid pace. In fact, it’s one of the fastest-growing retail segments in the world. According to data from Statista, eCommerce sales are projected to increase by more than 20 billion dollars worldwide in 2021. With more and more people shopping online instead of at physical stores, it’s no wonder why ecommerce has become so popular. The convenience of staying in your pajamas and shopping whenever you want is hard to beat! However, many ecommerce websites fail because they don’t put their users first. If your primary focus isn’t on making your users happy, then you can expect to see a decrease in traffic and sales from your site very quickly. Keep reading to learn about the importance of user-centric ecommerce design and how it can help take your business to the next level...

User-Centric eCommerce Design is Growing in Importance

If you’ve been in ecommerce for any length of time, you’ll notice that user-centric design is a newer trend than other aspects of ecommerce such as search engine optimization (SEO) or conversion rate optimization (CRO). Many of the best practices that we see today with regard to user-centric design weren’t even around or weren’t taken as seriously just a few years ago. When you look at how ecommerce has evolved over the years, it’s easy to see why user-centric design is growing in importance. In recent years, we’ve seen a massive shift towards online shopping. Physical stores have felt the impact, and many are struggling because of it. Ecommerce is projected to increase by about 20% every year for the next few years, and that’s expected to continue through 2021.

The Importance of User Research

One of the most important aspects of any ecommerce design is proper user research. It’s important to understand your users and their needs so that you can create a design that meets those needs. If you have no idea who your users are and what they need, then you won’t be able to create a design that will appeal to them. You’ll never be able to increase sales or conversions if you don’t know who you’re selling to! The best ecommerce businesses approach design with user research in mind. They want to know what their users want so that they can create a design that meets those needs. If you want to see better results from your ecommerce website, then you need to put in the effort to understand your users. You don’t want to guess what your users want or how they want to be served. You want to know!

What Is User-Centric eCommerce Design?

User-centric design is a design approach that focuses on meeting the needs and desires of your users. It is an approach that is focused on the user from the very beginning of the design process. It takes into account things like the user’s journey, the tasks they want to accomplish, and the emotions they want to feel. One way to think about it is to imagine that your ecommerce site is a visitor to your website. What does the visitor want? What are they trying to accomplish? What emotions do they want to feel? The only way to truly understand your users and what they want from your website is to approach your design with a user-centric mindset.

3 Ways Good UX Drives Ecommerce Success

If you’ve designed your ecommerce site with user-centric principles in mind, then you’ll see an increase in sales and conversions. There are many ways that a great user experience drives ecommerce success, but here are the top 3: - More Traffic - If your site is user-friendly and provides an excellent user experience, it will see more traffic and more sales. - Higher Conversions - If your site is user-friendly, then visitors will stay on your site longer. They’ll be less likely to bounce because your site is frustrating and/or unhelpful. When visitors stay on your site longer, they have more time to see your ads, offers, and product pages. When they see products that appeal to them, they’ll be more likely to buy. - Better Reviews and Rankings - When your site provides an excellent user experience, your customers will be more likely to write positive reviews about your company and product. Those reviews and positive ratings will help your site rank better in search engines, and they’ll also lead to more sales.

2 Ways Bad UX Drires Business Failure

Bad user experience can lead to decreased sales, lost customers, and a damaged brand reputation. If your site has a bad user experience, then you can expect to see those bad results. Bad user experience can lead to lost sales for a number of reasons. Visitors may not find what they are looking for, they may find the process of checkout too difficult, or they may be put off by a poor user experience. Bad user experience can also lead to negative reviews and a damaged brand. Customers who have a bad experience on your site may tell others, and those potential customers may choose to shop at one of your competitors instead. Bad user experience can be caused by many different things. The most common causes of poor user experience on ecommerce sites include: - Unhelpful or confusing navigation - Navigation is the backbone of any website, including ecommerce sites. A poorly designed or unhelpful navigation can make it hard for visitors to find what they are looking for or to checkout. - Shady or unclear product pages - Product pages need to clearly explain what customers are buying, why they would want to buy it, and how much it costs. If your product pages are confusing or misleading, then you can expect bad reviews and lost sales. - Too many ads and CTAs - We’ve talked about this before, but it’s worth mentioning again. Too many ads and calls-to-action can be overwhelming and turn visitors off.

Conclusion

If you want to grow your ecommerce business, then it’s important that you design a user-centric ecommerce site. If you don’t, you’ll end up leaving sales on the table. Visitors won’t stay on your site, and they won’t spend money with you if your site isn’t helpful or relevant to them. When you approach your design with a user-centric mindset, you’ll design a site that appeals to your visitors and helps them accomplish their goals.