Ecommerce Website Design Adelaide and South Australia

The International Monetary Fund reports that “while the pandemic forced consumers to learn quickly, our results suggest that early adopters further extended the use of e-commerce within their economies”. 

Australia is a case in point. As an advanced ecommerce nation, we saw a huge surge in ecommerce websites during Covid lockdowns. There has been a reduction since people were allowed to return to in-store shopping – but the overall growth trend is intact.

The IMF also notes “significant variation by industry. The embrace of e-commerce appears to be particularly longer lasting in restaurants (more specifically in food delivery), health care (which includes telemedicine) and some categories of retail, including department stores, electronics, and clothing.”

The team as McKinsey reinforces this view.

It’s analysts noted that, “given the limitations on in-store shopping, many consumer segments that were hesitant to shop online were forced to try it in 2020, and haven’t looked back.”

QUICK TIP: Does your ecommerce design solution include Buy Now, Pay Later? PayPal reports that “consumers paying with BNPL were up to three times more likely to complete a purchase after browsing.” And in areas such as fashion, electronics and retail, the ability to use BNPL leads to an improved ratio of people choosing to say yes to buying “big-ticket items”.

From Clicks to Conversions: Why Investing in Web Design is Key for Ecommerce Success
As the above hint illustrates, simply having a website isn’t enough in today’s ultra-competitive online market – you need a website that is designed to convert visitors into customers. 

It needs to be based on hard evidence (science), but brought to life by design (art).

Ecommerce businesses, in particular, rely heavily on their websites to generate revenue. From the layout and navigation to the colour scheme and overall aesthetic, every aspect of your website plays a role in whether or not a visitor will convert into a customer. 

This is true across all levels; whether you’re just starting out or looking to super-charge your existing site.

Understanding the customer journey and designing for conversions
When it comes to ecommerce, the customer journey is key. From the moment a potential customer lands on your website to the moment they make a purchase, every step of the journey needs to be carefully crafted to drive conversions. This is where professional e-commerce website design comes in.

“Small differences in approach produce vastly different results,” says Gene Cornfield from Accenture Interactive. 

He has good news. The typical Australian company has an advantage over their mega competitors. 

“… until larger or slower players ultimately get there, opportunities abound for more nimble companies to better align with customers’ new purposes and forge new relationships that accelerate growth and strengthen loyalty by providing them with greater confidence,” he writes in the Harvard Business Review.

A well-designed website can guide the customer through the journey, making it easy for them to find what they’re looking for and make a purchase.

Crucial to conversions is making sure your website is easy to navigate. This means having a clear menu structure, easy-to-find search bar, and intuitive product categories. The goal is to make it as easy as possible for the customer to find what they’re looking for.

Cornfield refers to this as delivering at customer “need points”. He refers to these as ‘moments that matter’ – but they aren’t all created equal.

The marketing team – which includes your Adelaide ecommerce designer – must channel their efforts towards the moments that matter the most.

These are the ones that will most influence the purchasing decision.

Your designers also need to know about secondary audiences, because their need points are likely to differ to your key target audience. Well-developed side journeys and landing pages are key to this customised UX.

Cornfield argues that by understanding the complexity of audiences – but rendering the experience in a simple and prioritised manner – “designers can ensure a more relevant and seamless experience for more customers, which results in more customers won”.

Mobile matters for ecommerce website design
Another important element of designing for conversions is to make sure the website is optimised for mobile. With more and more people shopping on their mobile devices, it’s essential that your website is easy to use on a smaller screen.

In 2022, Digital News Asia cited statistics from online shopping aggregator iPrice. It reported that “mobile purchases are now almost two times higher than those on desktops”. That could be loosely argued that you could almost double your online sales with an improved ecommerce design for small screen users.

Ultimately, the goal of designing for conversions is to create a website that makes it easy for the customer to make a purchase. This means minimising distractions, optimizsng the checkout process, and creating a sense of urgency to encourage customers to take action.

Elements of a successful ecommerce website design
There are several key elements that every ecommerce website should have:

1. Clear branding: Your website should clearly communicate your brand’s unique value proposition and create a sense of trust and credibility.
2. Intuitive navigation: Easy to navigate, with a clear menu structure and intuitive product categories.
3. Mobile responsiveness: see above information.
4. High-quality product images: the best ecommerce web designers will push you to provide high-quality [pictures in order to showcase your products in the best possible light. Don’t fight them on this. It matters!
5. User-generated content: social proof, such as reviews and ratings, will undoubtedly build trust and credibility with your customers.
6. A clear call-to-action: this is simple stuff. But it’s amazing how often designers forget to draw the eye to calls to action.

The role of user experience (UX) in ecommerce web design
User experience (UX) is a critical element of ecommerce web design. It refers to the overall experience a customer has when interacting with your website, including factors like ease of use, navigation, and overall satisfaction. A positive user experience can lead to increased customer loyalty and higher conversion rates.

How web design affects search engine optimization (SEO)
Done right, search engine optimisation (SEO) results in your products ranking higher in search engine results pages (SERPs). While there are many factors that go into SEO, web design can play a significant role in determining how well your website ranks.

One key element of web design that affects SEO is the website’s structure. A well-structured website that uses clear headings and subheadings can make it easier for search engines to crawl and index your website. Another important element of web design that affects SEO is the website’s loading speed.

A website that loads quickly is more likely to rank higher in search engine results pages. The web designer has a large influence on these aspects of your project.

Perhaps it’s time to review your current website or online shop. By incorporating SEO best practices into your web design, you can improve your chances of ranking higher and driving more traffic to your website.

Case studies of successful ecommerce web design
To illustrate the importance of web design in ecommerce, let’s take a look at a few case studies of successful ecommerce web design:

1. Apple: Deceptively simple. Superb use of colour and white space to help you move through each step of the process on a deep, scrolling page. Exceptionally high-quality product images. Video FAQs. The price is large once you move to your “bag”. They don’t make any excuse for it. Blue is used to entice you to the next step.
2. Kangaroo Island Gin: like the gin itself, this website provides a very smooth pathway to purchase. Awards act as social proofing. Generous amount of white space to help move the eye to key decision points. A no-fuss, black and white palette feels authentic. Easy to buy on mobile.
3. Glossier: A beauty brand. Splits into two clear pathways on the home page. Takes you straight to the products. Neat side slider shows your “shopping bag”. Black text on a white background allows the colour products to pop off the page. Express checkout is what they want you to use; this is defined in colour at the top of the page. It’s likely that this ‘quick, one’click’ style of shopping increases conversion.

The ROI of investing in ecommerce web design
There are several ways that a well-designed website can drive revenue for your ecommerce business. It’s up to you and your accountant to crunch the figures and assess the volumes and margins you are achieving, compared to your outlay.
Three obvious drivers that a well-designed website offers are:

1. Increased conversion rates: more purchases equals greater profit.
2. Improved customer loyalty: a positive user experience leads to increased customer loyalty and repeat purchases.
3. Larger sales: good design is a hallmark of quality, and people that choose quality over price will drive margin growth.

Conclusion
As Bain & Co state: “Marketers are increasingly using data and analytics to broaden audience insights, uncover emerging trends, and build brand equity.”

But all the analytics in the world won’t help you reach your sales potential without a champion ecommerce web designer on your team.  

Can Boylen help?

We currently manage and host websites across a range of industries including manufacturing, hotels, food & beverage, education, defence, health and more.

In recent times we have done a lot of work in the drinks sector but as the list higher in the page shows, we’ve undertaken large e-store inventory design in the form of Size Music, ecommerce web design for schools such as Immanuel College, designed WordPress stores using WooCommerce like Embellish Flowers, and we manage the sports uniform ecommerce website for Black Chrome.

https://www.medicalert.org.au/ – MedicAlert is a household name in Australia. We undertook a detailed analysis of the design and ecommerce aspects of the website. Then we put forward a strategy for the Board to consider to improve online sales. Now, within just three months, it is showing a dramatic improvement in sales conversions.

Now, back to the breweries and distilleries we’ve been supporting with beautifully designed online shopping experiences.

• Hidden Lake Whisky – Rare Tasmanian single malt
• Mismatch Brewing Co – Every detail matters
• Kangaroo Island Spirits – Australia’s first gin distillery
• 78 Degrees – Crafted better with nature
• Mighty Craft – Corporate site for the craft industry
  • Sub brand example page – for Better Beer
  • Sub brand design – Ballistic
  • Sub brand ecommerce – for the Sparkke brand  

Let’s Work Together

We are a full-service ecommerce agency.

That means we can assist you with everything from pre-planning and strategy, web design and graphic design, product photos and video, through to setting up your store, integrating inventory, establishing payments gateways and analysing your results to see how you can do better.

We also offer SEO, so that your online shop is found.

Oh, and we can also advise you on world’s best practice conversion optimisation, so that you are doing everything right to turn interested visitors into paying customers.

We’re based in the city of Adelaide, South Australia. We can meet in the CBD, your place or ours.

Let’s talk!