The importance of UI Design in eCommerce - a detailed guide - Prismetric

The importance of UI Design in eCommerce – a detailed guide

Ecommerce UI Design - Ultimate Guide

A fabulous website is necessary for businesses to grow in the modern era. In a nutshell, your website is the face of your business, and thus it is essential to design a website neatly. It will not be an overstatement to say that customers are reluctant these days to trust a business that doesn’t have a website.

Having an online presence either through a website or a mobile app is important as they give a transparent medium for the customers to buy things directly. As far as running an ecommerce business is concerned, having the design and development process successfully completed by a top ecommerce development company is a necessity.

The online ecommerce platform needs to have captivating aesthetics that keep the customers hooked to the ecommerce website & ecommerce app, and increase the ecommerce business’s revenue.

The term ‘UI/UX design’ was first coined in the late 1990s by cognitive psychologist Donald Norman. Moreover, ever since the proliferation of the ecommerce industry, the importance of UI has increased manifold. Thus having a beautiful UI for a successful ecommerce business is necessary.

This blog will study the nuances of user interface (UI) and their overall impact on the eCommerce business. In addition, we will also see the approach and steps to create an emphatic UI design for your eCommerce app or website.

So keep reading!

What is an eCommerce UI?

User Interface in ecommerce is focused on the overall look and feel of the ecommerce website or the ecommerce mobile app. UI design is all about how the final eCommerce website or ecommerce app is presented to the customers.

User Interface design also involves maintaining robust functionality while making an eCommerce website look a certain way. Along with pleasing the visitors with aesthetically designed elements, it also clarifies the visitors’ direction to navigate through the website. An asthetically designed UI also adds value and makes the latest eCommerce trends integrated in the website and app to be more effective.

In addition, proper user segmentation is essential for your eCommerce business as it reduces bounce rates and increases the overall conversion rate of your eCommerce app or ecommerce website.

Key elements of eCommerce UI Design

Having a balanced ecommerce UI design is a key aspect to garner more organic traffic to your ecommerce platform. The UI designers have to maintain a fine blend of intuitiveness, functionality, and beauty in the UI design of the ecommerce app or website. Here are the five key elements in making the ecommerce platform more engaging and reliable.

Informative Homepage

An informative homepage of an ecommerce website or app is essential as it is able to satisfy multiple functions. Be it giving a starting point to the journey or a card of invitation to the customer, a well-designed homepage can do everything. Moreover, it can be your asset in designing your marketing strategies as well.

Proper Site Search

Having a proper search box is very important as it is highly likely to convert your leads into customers. But if the search bar doesn’t work properly, the visitors won’t get their desired information and will leave the ecommerce website unsatisfied.

Here are some of the key ideas to improve the site search experience:

  • The search bar should be big enough to fit the queries of the customers
  • Provide the visitors to search their product in list or grid format
  • Show status of the products for example in stock, out of stock, etc. clearly to give the visitors a fair idea about product availability
  • Have a search autocomplete to save time for the visitors
  • Allow the visitors to search the items using product codes
  • Always analyze the consumer behavior and keep improving the overall ecommerce website experience

High-quality visuals

The ecommerce store owners should understand that their customers can’t touch and feel the products. Thus, in order to render a more immersive experience, it is essential to use high-quality visuals.

Top-quality visuals like demonstration videos, high-quality photos, user-generated content, etc. can play a vital role in giving your ecommerce website a much-needed edge. In fact, 77% of the customers prefer photos taken by previous customers rather than professionals.

In order to give a 360-degree view, you can use Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) (Take Ikea for example) to enhance the overall shopping experience of the customers.

Importance of UX Design for Ecommerce

The user experience design has to be user-friendly for the ecommerce platform as it is vital to keep the user engagement rates high. So, always put the users in focus first and then prioritize the functionality above everything else.

You need to understand that not each of your targeted customers is tech-savvy. Thus, always make the UX design as intuitive as possible. Do not complicate things for the visitors with complicated design solutions.

Here are the best practices to create a simple UX design for eCommerce app and websites:

  • Simplify the ecommerce UI design
  • The web pages and app screens must load quickly. Keep a check on that
  • Image zooming with double-tap gesture must be there
  • Always look to analyze and test the user behavior for future references

Checkout process

Having a trusted payment environment integrated along with a proper checkout process will add stars to the credibility of your ecommerce platform. A well-defined checkout process makes it easier for the user to buy and make the payment. Moreover, in addition to a proper checkout process, it is essential for the ecommerce website to have Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificates as well.

The SSL certificate will encrypt the data and keep the payment information protected from external interference. Moreover, if the ecommerce website has an SSL certificate, HTTPS will appear in the URL.

Effective Strategies for Ecommerce UI Design

eCommerce UI Design Strategies

To increase the overall user experience, the user interface of the online eCommerce store development must be intuitive and visually appealing. To achieve a top-rated UI design for the eCommerce platform, there are certain design elements that you must follow.

Business goal

Before even beginning the UI/UX design process for your ecommerce platform, you need to first;

Having a well-defined business goal will become the platform on which you can conduct other important functions of the eCommerce User Interface design process.

Defining the product

Understanding the real scope of the product is very important for the service provider to design an efficient UI for an ecommerce business. Thus, it is the responsibility of the team to collect all the needed details based on the nature of the product.

The team members involved in this phase of UI design are the product manager, business manager, and design team. Here, the team must consult with the client, analyze their needs. The team based on the analysis creates use case diagrams, user personas, and user stories before beginning the design process. This leads to a more precise and user-specific UI design for your ecommerce business.

Define the audience

Businesses need to understand the ecommerce realm is driven by users. So before you go ahead in the ecommerce UI design process, you need to understand your targeted audience. There might be chances that your targeted audiences come from different demographics, work cultures, likes and dislikes, etc.

So you need to come to a common ground where you can meet all the requirements of the targeted audience and then go ahead with the design process.

Brand enforcement

User retention is very important for an ecommerce store to thrive in today’s cut-throat competition. A loyal customer base will ensure steady growth, and this is achieved through building an impressive ecommerce branding. Thus, be it your brand colors, your logo, etc., everything should be a reflection of your brand.

In-depth research

It is a prerequisite that the ecommece design and development team should study and do in-depth research for things related to the client’s proposal. Without this, they will not understand the exact needs and requirements of the clients.

There are three important things included in the research phase of the UI/UX design process for an online ecommerce store:

  • Research for the different industry standards and the processes along with a complete analysis of the existing business processes
  • Research about the different aspects that would interest your audience and analyze the audience’s pain points that you can provide a solution to via your portal
  • Research and understand about the peers and other competitive scenarios and analyze the competitor’s strategies to test the outcomes

Complete analysis

The data that the experienced UI/UX design team for ecommerce website collects during the research process is analyzed in this phase. The entire ecommerce design and development process depend greatly on the analysis of the received information.

Moreover, the design team must also create experience maps and hypothetical personas to analyze the information from all possible angles.

Experience maps

These maps display the user flow of the final product. The process of experience maps is done by using visual representations. These visual representations are done through hassle-free interaction with the clients during the product definition phase.

Hypothetical personas

Creating hypothetical personas will assist the skilled design team in understanding various situations from the user’s perspective. Moreover, creating these personas will allow in depicting a realistic representation of the final product.

Executing the design

The final phase of the designing process of UI for eCommerce is to work on the graphics. The design team will execute this phase, and there are some significant outcomes as:

Design specifications

It includes the task flow and the user flow diagrams. The design specifications will display the overall style requirements and working of the UI design product. Moreover, it also defines graphical elements to create prolific user experiences.

Wireframes

Wireframe is a visual structure that shows the webpage hierarchy of the product. It is considered to be the backbone of the entire product.

Prototypes

The prototypes concentrate on the overall look and feel of the product’s User Interface design. It deals with the user interaction experience and also renders an effect of a simulator.

Role of Wireframe in Mobile App Development

Final Validation

The testing phase is vital and necessary. Because, after the completion of the design process, it will determine the quality of the product. The experienced professionals for website and mobile app here make notes of certain things such as:

  • Is the ecommerce UI/UX design user-friendly?
  • Is the ecommerce UI/UX design flexible and easy to operate?
  • Does the ecommerce UI/UX design attract more users and help in increasing user retention?

What are the benefits of investing in UI design for ecommerce?

To make the eCommerce UI and web design sellable, a professional web development company has to include responsiveness to the eCommerce Website. Responsive ecommerce portals and websites will drive in more organic traffic and make it convenient for the users.

Below are some of the most decisive advantages of investing in UI design for ecommerce app or website.

Improving customer acquisition

In simple words, customer acquisition means getting in more new customers. But this process requires a lot of strategizing and planning. Here, the design of the online eCommerce store can become an important aspect.

A net UI design will give your online e-store a competitive advantage and will attract more customers. In addition, the more aesthetically pleasing your website/mobile app is, the more you will stand apart from your peers. Also, an intuitive website for your eCommerce business will be the catalyst in generating building trust within the targeted audience for your brand and increasing the ROI.

Helps in customer retention

As we have seen that acquiring new customers can become a hard pill to swallow, the story is no different for customer retention. Thus, it would help if you had proper user segmentation for your business website/app so that more people would want to use it.

Also, it would help if you built strong business relations with them to have a high customer retention ratio. In addition, a neatly crafted ecommerce UI design will allow them to navigate through the app or the website easily and compel them to come back to your ecommerce platform.

Increases the overall productivity

Modern-day businesses need to have a cohesive interface to help their business earn profit. Therefore, the business organization should hire experts to implement effective UI design for their online eCommerce store and streamline a layout that increases productivity.

Moreover, an efficient UI design is less prone to errors and ensures a smoother workflow for the employees. Since the employees now work in a streamlined environment, their productivity is bound to get increased. Thus, a synchronized workflow will enable the employees to focus on important information without getting distracted.

More user engagement

The ultimate goal of any ecommerce platform is to achieve high levels of user engagement. Therefore, the easiest way to keep your visitors engaged is to carve out a well-thought UI design strategy. So, the business must always opt for professional ecommerce design and development companies that are experienced in the same domain.

A clever UI design will focus more on the call-to-action aspect and maximize user engagement. Ecommerce website developers should remember that they have only three seconds to impress their website visitors when they first arrive on their website. And a compact UI design will be critical for the success of the ecommerce business.

Revenue and conversion boost

If you invest in creative ecommerce UI design, it will positively impact the overall ROI of your online ecommerce store. A beautiful UI design designed by the top UI/UX designer will increase the rate of conversion as it will help the user navigate through the platform very swiftly.

Thus, as the website or the app of eCommerce shop will become user-friendly, the conversion rate and revenue are bound to go up.

Reduction in development waste

A competent user design has all the ingredients to reduce the overall development cost of your ecommerce development. With a sub-par UI design, your eCommerce design and development project will fail sooner than later. Moreover, the entire process will cost you extra money as well.

Thus, you must conduct thorough research and testing during the UI design phase before launching the website as a business organization and bring down the development cost.

Better customer satisfaction and loyalty

Customer satisfaction is crucial for the success of your online ecommerce store. With a well-thought UI design of eCommerce website, you will not only acquire new customers but will keep them loyal to your brand for a longer period. Moreover, the customer will also willingly indulge in ‘positive word of mouth publicity’ for your eCommerce platform as well.

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What is online store conversion rate?

Conversion rate simply means the ratio of total visitors on your eCommerce platform, like eCommerce website or eCommerce mobile app, to the total number of people completing their desired actions. The number of visitors who purchased something from your eCommerce store are your conversions.

For example, your ecommerce website has 4000 website visitors in a day, and out of them, 400 bought a product. This will mean that the total rate of conversion is 10%.

There are several tools available in the market through which you can calculate the conversion rate of your ecommerce platform. Some of the leading tools are:

HotJar

It is a very handy tool to record individual user sessions and understand how the users interact with the website from a high level. It is a heat mapping tool so businesses can get details about scroll-depth mapping, the functionality of click, etc.

Google Analytics

You can use Google Analytics for event tracking, unified sessions, goals, etc. Moreover, it provides other details about the users like their session time, location, if they are new or old, etc.

Quantcast Measure

It is a new tool but will help you to gain insights about the segments of the visitors, demographics metrics, etc.

Read Also: How to Build an E-commerce Website in 2022?

How to improve conversion rate through UI design?

conversion rate improvement for ecommerce store online

No matter what kind of business you are associated with, earning high profit remains the ultimate motive. However, in the ecommerce industry, the businesses need to improve their conversion rate for attaining high profits. One of the ways that helps you have better converisons in addition to having a clean UI is to have the top eCommerce features in your website and app. But to help you better with the UI aspects, we have made a list of the best ecommerce UI practices that will help you enhance your rate of conversion for your benefit.

Focus on making the navigation simple

If the visitors find it tough to navigate through your ecommerce platform, they will be less inclined to come back again. Thus, good navigation becomes a pivotal part of the eCommerce UI design. Moreover, good navigation also boosts the website SEO of the eCommerce platform.

The key to making navigation simple is to minimize and concise the movement between the web pages. Furthermore, it guarantees that the website or the mobile app has high domain authority and the trust to flow into the internal pages.

Customer ratings

As an eCommerce business owner, you should never underestimate the power of positive customer ratings. The ratings can play an important role in increasing the online presence of your eCommerce store along with increasing its credibility. It is why it is one of the best practices to improve the sales of your ecommerce store.

Optimizing mobile devices

‘Mobile devices are ubiquitous in the modern world’. For increasing the user experience, you have to have a mobile-first strategy for your ecommerce platform. Optimizing the online eCommerce store for mobile devices will give you a wider reach and increase the user base by leaps and bounds.

Related products

Suppose you have an eCommerce store dedicated to electronic products. So when a customer purchases a mobile phone from your platform, you can suggest glass covers, Bluetooth for mobile, etc. This technique will make the customer more engaged and increase your chances of making more sales and earning better revenue.

Checkout process

According to the different ecommerce studies, the average shopping cart abandonment rate is 68.81%. Moreover, some recent studies show that the abandonment rate of shopping carts has increased to 74.52%. One of the major reasons behind this high abandonment rate is the faulty checkout process.

Thus, to increase the conversion rate, always focus on creating a simple and hassle-free checkout process for the eCommerce store. Moreover, try and include multiple payment options like credit/debit cards, mobile payments, cash on delivery, etc. at the checkout process to have the freedom to pay as they feel like.

Live chat

Chatbots have, over the years, become an inseparable part of any ecommerce platform. They contribute to increasing the conversion rate as they are available 24/7 for the customers. Moreover, with the advancement in technologies, chatbots, too, have come a long way.

Unlike a few years ago, chatbots have become more interactive and can have a conversation with the customers by analyzing their emotions. Thus, having a live chat feature in the online ecommerce store will enable the customers to feel more at home.

Product Search

Ensure that the search bar on the eCommerce store is simple and allows the customers to find their desired thing easily. Creating a profound product search bar is an important step in the overall ecommerce app design and development process.

Do not forget to include customer-centric content and a voice search feature to make the product search process hassle-free for customers.

Detailed product description

A well-processed and detailed product description will allow the visitors to have a clear idea about the nuances of the product on your eCommerce app or web portal. Moreover, a detailed product description will also help the customer in knowing exactly what they are buying.

Always remember that you are running an online ecommerce store where the customer cannot feel and buy things. Thus, it is essential to have a clear and detailed product description.

Unique selling proposition (USP)

In today’s cut-throat competitive scenario, it is critical to state the unique things about your ecommerce platform upfront. UI is a key element for any ecommerce business’s success. Chiefly, it comes through a neat design that can catch the eye of the customer.

Another important factor in making it successful is to state the things that make you different from your products and why should the customers buy from you.

Immaculate UI Design: things businesses should focus on

Tips for ecommerce UI Design for business success

After understanding the best practices for UI design for eCommerce, there are certain things that eCommerce businesses need to understand. UI design for ecommerce is a combination of both science and art. Therefore, eCommerce business owners should focus on the below-mentioned things to enhance the level of the user interface.

After understanding the nuances to improve the conversion rate, there are certain things that eCommerce businesses can focus on to increase the user experience. We will see them in detail below.

Positioning of all the elements

A shabby-looking eCommerce website or mobile app is bound to perish soon. Thus, while including different elements such as buttons, icons, etc., in the UI/UX design, make sure you place them properly. Positioning all the elements must be neat as it is essential to make everything visible on the eCommerce platform.

Along with assisting in enhancing the conversion rate, positioning the elements is also important in determining your website’s navigation.

Following the F-pattern

An ‘F-pattern’ is a clear depiction of how a general visitor will look at the website or the mobile app. So, according to researches, any average user glances at the app or website from the top left, moving to the top right, then moves back and scrolls down.

Thus, they will swiftly glance through your ecommerce store in the shape of the letter ‘F’. Therefore, always make sure to include UX-based design and navigation based on rudiments of visual hierarchy and other user-experience principles.

Product page images and videos

The user on your ecommerce website or mobile app must get desired information related to the product they are searching for at the earliest. In addition, the landing page of your website must also depict your brand intuitively as well.

Thus, it becomes necessary to include product page images and videos that give a clear idea about the customer. In addition, images and videos are vital in keeping the visitor hooked at the eCommerce platform for longer periods.

Effective Call to Action

The web design evolution has come a long way. Today, the Call to Action (CTA) plays a crucial role in the success of any website or portal and must always be on point. From the UI point of view, the main job of the CTA is to convince, attract, and intrigue the visitors, grab their attention and force action. Make sure that the call to action button displays nothing but a clear option every time.

Be smart in your pricing

In the modern world, customers have options for anything and everything. Thus, if you are selling things that a lot of eCommerce stores have to offer, you have to be smart about the pricing. Therefore, keep an eye on your competitors, and set the product’s price at below average to compete.

Free Shipping

In today’s hyper-competitive market, free shipping is a must. Over the years, online shoppers have grown accustomed to the free shipping bonanza rendered by eCommerce giant, Amazon. You can adjust the overall pricing of the product to cover the cost of free shipping.

Coupon

Do not forget to give coupon codes to the customers for a limited time period. This would act as an incentive to compel them to come to your ecommerce platform and buy more. Moreover, the expiry date on the coupon code will drive urgency in the shoppers to complete the shopping process without getting distracted.

Reduce cart abandonment

The problem of cart abandonment is one of the major issues faced by eCommerce business owners. Therefore, during the ecommerce design and development process, make sure that you give enough perks to the customers so that they don’t abandon the cart midway.

In addition, the owners of eCommerce businesses can also use cart abandonment software that will help in increasing the conversion rate of the store. The software will work with the users who have entered their details, picked the item, and then left the cart at the end. It will send them follow-up messages, push notifications, and other incentives, and urge them to complete the shopping process.

Safety and Security

This may seem subtle, but it is very important. Let your visitors know that your online ecommerce platform is completely safe and secured. Don’t leave any stone unturned in finding ways to enhance the credibility and the onsite trust of your eCommerce platform.

Many split tests have shown that trust signals have a positive impact on the overall conversion rates. Therefore, do not shy away to implement industry-standard security measures for your online eCommerce store.

Mobile apps – the hope or hype for ecommerce companies

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Closing thoughts on eCommerce web and app success – The design perspective

Ecommerce app design and development does not have a set pattern or formula. However, because of the diverse nature of the eCommerce realm and the ever-evolving needs of the customers, businesses should always be on their toes. Moreover, the customer-friendly design of UI/UX for ecommerce businesses is essential for success.

All in all, implementing these principles of UI/UX during eCommerce design and development phase will ensure that the UI design renders more credibility to the online eCommerce store and provides the users a wonderful shopping experience. No eCommerce development guide is complete without an effective UI design guide. We hope that in this blog we have provided you with a framework for designing the UI of your website.

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