When it comes to web design, eCommerce is a whole other breed of animal. Read on to learn about eCommerce web design elements you can't ignore.

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The web has sure come a really long way since it's early days. From simple "gee whiz" brochure websites to fully functional retail business machines, consumer trust has been growing year after year for online shopping.

In fact, according to statista.com 40% of internet users have bought something online –and that's a global figure likely diluted by third world countries.

That figure looks quite stale when you consider companies like Amazon, the world's largest eCommerce operation whose business resides almost entirely on the web alone.

Smaller businesses have also been quick to notice, with many on their second or third iteration of their eCommerce website. Due to constantly changing internet security enhancements, the evolution of eCommerce website design best practices, and new and affordable online retail technologies emerging year after year (ie. ERP software, payment processing, customer data management services, and the like), the average website has a shelf life of three to four years.

And a lot can change in such a short time, to the disdain of small businesses and enterprise-level Goliaths alike. It's difficult to keep abreast of contemporary eCommerce web design principles and truthfully we suggest doing your research just-in-time right before you approach your local leading website design company in Australia just so you don't miss anything when you take on your eCommerce website redesign.

If that's the case for you and you'd like to know what eCommerce design elements are relevant in 2016, you have come to the right place.

5 Design Elements every eCommerce Website Should Have

1. The Basics

Right off the top, every eCommerce website is going to need a clear call to action. Studies show that a call to action is most effective when it uses contrasting colours, has a border encapsulating it, white space is cleverly used to guide the visitors eye through your offer, and large eye catching images are used.

Whatever your offer, if you intend to sell online internationally you're going to need to understand that different cultures assign different feelings or meaning to specific colours and they also speak differently.

Colour triggers an emotion after all, and you want to make sure that whatever colour your website visitors see will translate into you seeing more green. Do a little research on colour and local flavour to gear up your visuals to suit the locale you're selling to. Even Amazon uses different verbiage for Americans than it does for those in the UK and they're both English speaking countries!

2. Product Information

When writing product description content it is important to be descriptive so you can break down products in such a way that they're easier for a customer who's ready to buy.

A customer with very specific search terms is more likely to make a purchase, so make sure that your product information follows suit.

For example, a shopper who searches for "24 carat gold ring" is much more likely to make a purchase than the website visitor who just enters "gold rings" into their favourite search engine. Search terms indicate buyer intention, so don't lose out on a website conversion because you tried to cast a larger net –specificity is everything.

Also, product descriptions usually incorporate a lot of keywords that can boost SEO to a large extent, so it's really useful to optimize them, especially for the more restricted industries like cannabis seo ecommerce, where paid advertising might not be an option yet.

3. Unique Product Images

Yes, manufacturers eager to make it easy for your business to sell their product will generally supply you with images of their products to put on your website. Along with everyone else.

If you're going to remain competitive, unique product images you commission yourself are an absolute must. You know your customer better than anyone else, so be sure to paint the products you sell in a light they will relate to and find visually striking.

Product images that convey a sense of freshness and originality while not distracting your website visitor have been proven to draw more sales time and time again. Hire a reputed website designing agency like plentyofpixels.com/locations/web-design-detroit-mi that understands your product and designs the website accordingly. They should have technical knowledge on aspects such as image load time and options to highlight a product from different angles. Such features can keep a prospective customer on your website instead of buying the same product from a competitor.

4. The Almighty Up-Sell

An up-sell can be facilitated in a number of ways, however the lowest hanging fruit in this regard is having the option to change the quantity of a product that goes into their virtual shopping cart. A quantity option takes up very little screen space and can generate compelling results for your bottom line.

In addition to a quantity option, companies like GoDaddy have also proven that adding steps to the sales process offering related products, buy-ups, upgrades, or additional warranty can be incredibly fruitful.

5. Customer Reviews

A team doing Ecommerce website design in Sydney or anywhere else knows that social proof is a key component of any eCommerce operation's success, as a majority of online shoppers will seek consensus from other shoppers to cement their buying decision. This sort of functionality may add a little more expense to your eCommerce website project, however it is sure to pay for itself in spades.

In Conclusion

At the end of the day, all of these suggestions boil down to a/b testing. Never blindly trust an expert, and certainly do not take our word for eCommerce best practices alone. Test, test, test. Every market and niche has its own nuances, and the only way you're going to learn what is important to your clients right now is to try out different angles across a wide panel of website visitors.

Anything to add? Our suggestions are only the tip of the iceberg! Please let us know in the comments.