Are you looking for an ecommerce platform to build a successful store?
We’ll help you find it! This guide contains all the key information you need to make an informed decision about which ecommerce platform is best for you.
So, what do you look for in an ecommerce platform?
1 – User friendly
How easy is it to set-up and design your store?
This should be the first question you ask when looking for an ecommerce solution. Setting up and designing your online store should be easy. You need control over the contents, images and the overall look and feel. This means you can put more effort into running your business and promoting your new website.
2 - Modularity and sustainability
A good ecommerce platform should provide all the features in a modular architecture. This means that it will be easy and inexpensive to expand in the future. Therefore, the website can scale as the business grows and new features can be added when required. An ideal ecommerce platform will also offer solutions for a range of products meaning it is flexible enough to support many different business types.
In addition to this, you must choose an ecommerce platform that will support future growth and not become a barrier later on. Most ecommerce solutions impose restrictions on the number of products you can list or sales you can process before you need to upgrade to a more expensive package. Each provider will be different so take time to fully research the current and future costs of using their platforms.
3 – Attractive designs
A professional looking website is essential for any business.
If you are planning on setting up your online store you must keep in mind its aesthetic value. Your website must look attractive to customers. You don’t want to disappoint your users with worn out designs and a lack of new technology. Go for the platforms that provide modern templates and a great shopping experience.
If you are using an agency to build your new store ask them to provide examples of their previous work. This way, you can make sure they can meet your expectations.
4 – User experience
Online shoppers are savvier today and demand that a website is easy to navigate, loads quickly and allows them to complete a purchase quickly. If you can fulfil this need you are more likely to see a return on your investment. Have a look at real life examples of stores built on your chosen platform so you can be sure they provide the experience your customers want.
Google also loves websites that provide a great user experience and has gone to great lengths to improve their search algorithms to include this. As a result, you will find your website ranks better if it meets these criteria.
5 – Strong SEO
After setting up your online store you then need search engines like Google and Bing to be able to find and index your products. Look for an ecommerce platform that will provide you with SEO friendly tools. Although search engine optimisation (SEO) includes more than on page signals, you need to be able to:
- Create meta titles for each page
- Use header tags (h1, h2, h3 etc) to show content hierarchy
- Create meta descriptions
- Edit URL slugs
- Edit image alt tags
- Use schema mark up to tell search engines what each page is about
Following best practice and getting up the page rankings quicker will help you build a more profitable business.
6 – Mobile responsive technology
Half of all website traffic is now comes from mobile devices and this trend will continue to rise. People have become accustomed to scrolling through websites and shopping online via their smartphones.
Because of this, your website needs to be optimised for mobile and provide a great user experience regardless of the device used to access it.
Again, look for examples of stores built on your chosen platform. Visit them on your mobile device and check what the experience is like. Does it load quickly? Are the menus easy to use? Do the product pages engage you? If the answer is no you need to look for an alternative solution.
7 – Good payment options
Online shoppers like choice so it is better to have multiple payment options available. You should look for platforms that provide at least two mainstream payment gateways with their ecommerce solution. Also keep in mind the security they provide as your customers will be looking for a safe and secure checkout environment. This helps build trust with your business and will encourage increased sales.
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