07 Mar 2024 IN eCommerce

21 Key Features That Your New eCommerce Website Required

Over the past few years, the eCommerce sector has been expanding steadily. Because of this, eCommerce functionalities are crucial to the success of your company.

The online retail industry is truly at its height. Over the past many years, this market has been expanding steadily. Are you able to imagine that by the end of this year, there will be close to 3 billion digital consumers?

You may ask – what factors we believe to be crucial when creating an online store. We certainly think that these websites ought to be responsive and mobile-friendly. You’ll ask, “Why?” By 2023, there could be up to 6.8 billion mobile users worldwide. The discrepancy between this figure and 2019 (5.6 billion) is significant. These figures are understood by LinkSture, which also develops top-notch eCommerce enterprises.

Why are these essential features crucial for online stores?

With so many digital products available on the market, selecting the ideal eCommerce platform for your online business may be challenging. To avoid becoming overwhelmed, we advise taking it slow and making a “shopping list” of your features. Ecommerce is a rapidly changing and expanding industry where the stakes are quite high.

When choosing between a pre-built platform and a bespoke eCommerce development, it is imperative to take your company’s demands, goals, and ambitions into consideration. This step is essential since it will dictate how your company develops. If you choose poorly, starting as an internet vendor could cost you far more than is necessary.

As a company owner, you should keep in mind that marketing efforts in this market differ from others and demand greater involvement and attention from your team. Everything in eCommerce is about the purchasing experience, thus you should concentrate your efforts on giving your online customers unique experiences.

Therefore, to create a faultless user experience, your platform needs to support features that marketers can utilize and be completely aligned with your business objectives.

Even when employing high-quality product photographs, our team is concerned with page speed optimization to give users a mobile-friendly experience and put your website at the top of search results. What are the top features of an eCommerce website? Just wait; we’ll introduce you to every one of them.

1. Easy-to-use navigation

Easy to use navigation

An eCommerce website needs a user interface that is thoughtfully designed. Only when the website’s user experience is positive do customers prefer to purchase things? In addition to show the product catalog, an online store must make it simple to switch between different product categories. If a customer can easily and quickly find a product, they are more likely to buy it. Navigating the product catalog will be simpler and more efficient if it is organized into pertinent categories and subcategories.

2. Lists of products

Due to the inability to physically contact the product before purchasing, customers mainly rely on the information provided on the product listing page. The product’s dimensions, high-definition photos and videos, preferably taken in real-time, precise garment sizing chart, the product’s key characteristics, and their usage guidelines should all be listed in the product listing.

A product listing page also includes information on the product’s pricing, projected delivery dates, and stock levels. A list of related items should be included on a product listing page so that customers can browse additional options and make the best decision.

3. Product filters

product filter

Product filters are a great way to make products simple for customers to access. Customers can quickly and easily focus their product search depending on their preferences by using filters. Utilizing the proper filters depends on the type of eCommerce company and the products it sells.

The most often used filters on eCommerce websites include attributes like price, ratings, model, style, or color. It’s also crucial to consider where the filters are placed on the website; they need to be prominently displayed and smoothly incorporated into the user interface.

4. Product evaluations

The majority of online buyers rely on their decisions on the ratings and reviews left by previous customers. To encourage customers to leave reviews on the things they have purchased, the review process should be simple and question-based. To reassure customers about the legitimacy of the company and the product, the reviews section should be accessible to customers, preferably below the product listings.

5. Push notifications

Push notifications

Push notifications are a useful tool for informing customers and assisting in the conversion of leads into actual paying clients. Push notifications are a convenient way for customers to learn about special offers, sales, and discounts as well as the status of their orders. By reminding users of their buying journey, push notifications to help lower cart abandonment.

The eCommerce company may reach a wider audience by sending these warnings to desktop and mobile devices. They interact with customers and let them know when new products are released, promoting the growth of your online store.

6. FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) can help customers with product-related questions before purchase and are a great method to enhance customer engagement. On the product listing website, there can be a section for commonly asked questions regarding the item, and buyers can respond to them.

Along with ratings and reviews, FAQs provide customers confidence in the features and quality of the product, enabling them to make an informed purchasing choice. Questions about online privacy, security, payments, shipping, returns, and other shopping-related topics must be answered in the store’s FAQ.

7. Mobile-friendly design

Mobile friendly design

Mobile devices are used for online purchasing by more than 45% of consumers. Therefore, to adjust the screen size of any device, an eCommerce website needs to be highly responsive and mobile-friendly. Companies must make sure their mobile websites are very user-friendly and aesthetically pleasing. Businesses can create a specialized mobile app to improve an eCommerce store’s functionality and make it easier for customers to visit the internet store to improve the mobile experience.

8. Search bar

On eCommerce websites, the search bar is used by almost 70% of online customers to locate items. If you provide this functionality, customers using your eCommerce website will find products more quickly and effortlessly. Any online store must have a search bar, but building one with plenty of features takes time and work. Businesses should ensure that the functionality of the search bar accurately records lengthy searches, provides relevant results, and corrects spelling problems.

9. Multilingual assistance

Multilingual assistance

A multilingual eCommerce website can greatly assist companies and vendors with a global outlook. The use of numerous language options in an online store might help the company attract more customers. Language barriers should be removed to improve consumer happiness and experience at an online store. Even if a worldwide audience is not the target market for the eCommerce company, including different regional languages can help it reach a larger domestic audience.

10. Data security

Data security

As clients exchange sensitive information like credit cards and other payment details, data security should be a top priority. Your website should have a strong firewall and various security layers for crucial sections like the checkout, dashboard, and shopping cart in addition to an SSL certificate and PCI compliance. Businesses can prevent unauthorized individuals from accessing their websites by putting in place the necessary security measures. Businesses can allay customers’ worries about making purchases from an online store by displaying security certificates and warnings about safe payment methods throughout the checkout process.

11. Various payment methods

An online store must have an easy checkout and payment process. Customers will abandon their shopping carts if they cannot identify their preferred payment option, resulting in a loss of sales. Stores should accept online banking, e-wallets, smart cards, and cash on delivery in addition to credit and debit cards. Supporting a variety of payment options can speed up the checkout process, help customers choose their preferred payment option, and ultimately make it easier for them to finish their transactions.

12. Options for flexible delivery

Your online store’s ability to fulfil orders has the power to make or break it. Customers are requesting quicker and more timely deliveries more frequently. But many deliveries fail because of unanticipated circumstances or customer unavailability. To avoid botched deliveries, give customers a variety of delivery options.

Customers should have the option to select the delivery time, place, and length so that they can be ready for the arrival of their goods. Giving clients the ability to customize their delivery experience would boost customer happiness while lowering shipping costs by lowering the number of failed deliveries and returns.

13. Real-time monitoring

Customers want to be able to follow the progress of their packages from the time they leave the original inventory center until they reach their front door. The customer experience and brand reputation of your eCommerce company can be enhanced by offering end-to-end visibility into the last-mile delivery process, including details like the estimated time of arrival (ETA) and notification in the event of delivery delays. Ecommerce websites should integrate tracking tools and prompt clients with the status of their orders.

14. Return policy

Before making a purchase, customers always research the return policy. For an eCommerce company to gain the trust of its customers, a clear return and exchange policy is crucial. On the eCommerce website, the return and exchange policy should be clearly visible. The return policy can be effectively communicated to customers and used to persuade them to purchase by being displayed in the Frequently Asked Questions area or during the checkout process.

15. Customer service

Customer service

The client experience and happiness are highly valued in the eCommerce sector. As a result, a 24/7 great customer care department is essential for an online store. Ecommerce businesses may now deploy AI-powered chatbots for customer care thanks to contemporary technologies. Chatbots are incredibly responsive, cut down on waiting times, and effectively handle customers’ reoccurring questions.

16. Discounts and coupons

Customers routinely search for discount codes and promo codes. 73% of online customers look at the sales section first when they visit an eCommerce site. An excellent strategy for increasing sales and retaining consumers is to provide clients with tailored coupons, discounts, and special offers based on their purchasing history. Another great way to keep returning customers at your online store is through loyalty programs.

17. Automated advertising

A marketing tool’s automation is essential to the expansion of an eCommerce organization. It streamlines several procedures that business owners currently perform manually. A variety of marketing automation technologies are accessible and simple to integrate into an online store. Customer segmentation, targeted marketing, setting up real-time triggers, and monitoring customer engagement are all made easier by marketing automation. Time is saved and marketing efforts are boosted by marketing automation to convert leads into paying clients.

Email marketing is a fantastic way to stay in touch with your customers and spread the word about new items, specials, discounts, and corporate announcements. Ecommerce companies can use social media marketing to measure client interest in their goods and services.

Ecommerce companies can also use it to get customer input on new products and learn how the market could react. Customers will be able to access your social media posts if you link your eCommerce website to your social media accounts, increasing customer confidence.

18. Tools for data analytics

A successful eCommerce company studies the data that comes from its website to enhance the user experience. A powerful data analytics tool offers all the statistics and data necessary to pinpoint issues and improve the functionality of your eCommerce website.

The information that data analytics systems provide about your website’s visitor activity includes the website from which they were redirected, the pages they visited or skipped after landing there, the length of each visit session, their location, and whether they are active users.

An eCommerce company can use the data and insights offered by the data analytics platform to strengthen the website’s weak connections while boosting the effectiveness of other parts of your online store that are already operating effectively.

19. Cross-selling

You can advertise related products together on one page thanks to this capability. In other words, you can recommend or promote other products after buyers have placed a product in their cart. Cross-selling, often called suggestive selling, takes place during the checkout process and entails proposing other goods or services to the customer based on their prior purchase. A well-known strategy for improving a customer’s overall purchase value during a single visit to your online store is cross-selling.

20. Storage and speed

Storage and speed

A storefront’s speed is influenced by a variety of circumstances, and it is not always easy to forecast how the store will operate. The best method to find out is to visit several of the advertised services on your storefront and see if there is a delay in processing. Due to your store’s poor speed, customers leave without making a purchase. Customers will first have a negative image of you because of it.

For your eCommerce site, you’ll need enough storage space and broadband transfer. Even if your online store starts modest, you need room to grow without being hit with a bigger bill right away.

21. Navigation

Any eCommerce website’s success depends on its website navigation. It must be orderly, understandable, and user-friendly. To prevent customers from being lost when browsing your website, make sure the navigation is simple to use. The user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) are the two key factors that contribute to the creation of a relationship between customers and products.

The user interface can be used to gauge how visitors will respond to the website. The technological aspects of a website are covered by UI. If they find the website intriguing, people subscribe to it by following all the steps. On the other side, user experience (UX) focuses on how a person feels when using your website.

Enhance The Ideal User Experience On Your eCommerce Site!

Here’s what this is all about…

As you can see, numerous things must be included while creating an eCommerce website. You can bookmark the entire list of features for an eCommerce website development after reading this article. You should include all of them because the market is evolving so quickly.

The catch is that each one must be fair and reasonable to give clients the best user experience possible from the minute they enter text into the search field.

When selecting that or another top eCommerce feature for your website, keep in mind that you must take into account the type of business, the market and competitors, security precautions, your needs, and the expectations of your clients.

Are you ready to advance your online shopping experience? Don’t pass up the chance to customize solutions for you and improve your buying experience. Click here to contact us right away.

For immediate assistance with any type of website design and eCommerce development related requirements, connect with us now!