5 Features That Make a Great Ecommerce Website

Ecommerce has witnessed stupendous growth in the last few years. With more and more people taking to mobile, ecommerce is turning a new leaf with stores quickly becoming more mobile friendly. Even businesses that were initially reluctant to join the bandwagon are forced to reconsider their original positions. This is not to suggest that the ecommerce environment is all hunky-dory. Demand is limited, and supply is growing at a fast pace. Unless you carve a distinct niche for yourself, you might walk into the sunset soon. So, how do you differentiate yourself?

Responsive Web Design 

 

Responsive web design means your site should adapt to the screen of the device in which it is being browsed. Nowadays, people don't browse websites on just PCs and laptops. Most of the searching is done on mobile/tablets/smartphones. In order to provide a smooth and seamless user experience, you need to make sure that your ecommerce store is fully responsive.

Mobile Website or Mobile App

Investing in a dedicated mobile website or a mobile app is even better compared to a responsive website. This is because a mobile website is specifically designed for handheld devices, and therefore its functionality provides for the best user experience possible. A mobile app is a great idea no doubt, but it should serve major operating systems like Android, iOS and Windows. You probably need only one of the two (a mobile website or a mobile app), but having both is not a bad idea if you can afford it. Look at what suits your budget and gives the best experience within that.

Suitable Technology

 
Finding the right technology is the most crucial part in building your ecommerce website. Look for a scalable platform, as it will help you tremendously in the long run. PHP provides many good frameworks to build good ecommerce portals. Drupal, Zencart and Ubercart are good options if you’re looking at a smaller website. However, the leader in this category undoubtedly would be Magento.

Strong Backend 

 

The backend is as important as the front end. You need to ensure that your website is secure and is not vulnerable to threats and attack. You must also ensure your site has enough capacity to handle traffic especially during new product launches or hot deals.

Regular Maintenance

Get regular feedback from users. Act upon it. Listening to customers and acting on their requests is essential to getting them to visit your website again and again. Strive for a better design, a better UI, better navigation, and better support. Don’t be satisfied. Satisfaction means stagnation.