To launch your ecommerce website, it’s important to get the details right. So when it comes to the design and branding elements, there are some things you need to keep in mind to ensure you’re offering a great experience to your visitors.
Icon design is a great place to start. Many of the ecommerce sites we feature here have showcased how great icon design can make a big impact on how you brand your site. Let’s take a look at how you can use icons to enhance your ecommerce site.
For shopping cart and checkout use icons to really stand out
When it comes to ecommerce checkout, you need to make your shoppers’ shopping experience as fast and easy as possible. According to the surveyed, 80% of shoppers left their online store because it was very difficult to checkout, and 25% of those left because of a poor checkout process.
To avoid these issues, you should use ecommerce icons to make it as fast as possible. Some of the designs on this list are ideal for checkout. They’re great for telling your visitors what to do next, whether they’re in a shopping cart or checkout mode.
The first is this smiley face which tells visitors they are in the “Inbox” section of your cart. The arrow above the smiley gives visitors a glimpse at the number of items they’ve added to the cart.
Next is a traditional “make a purchase” icon, which is also great for directing them to a payment method. The curved arrow at the end tells visitors what is next. They are now being told they are being taken to your payment page.
Finally, this star icon is great for showing off what items you are currently selling. It’s also a great way to show off what products you have in stock.
In an ideal world, every store would be filled with these beautiful, iconic icons that offer instant gratification to your customers.
Make a strong statement with a brilliant search box
For users who are looking for something specific, ecommerce sites need to make their search boxes as eye-catching as possible. Customers won’t give a second thought to your site if the search functionality is slow or confusing.
This search box works like an arrow pointing in the direction of the search you’re making. It’s a simple box that is easy to understand and to use.
The “insert name” icon can be used as a checkbox. You can display the search box here with an arrow to indicate which option is being checked. This works nicely on a button-based system, but could also be used in an inline form.
A “send to” icon would show visitors who they can send your website to, such as a group, email, or social media page. If you have many different feeds that you want to show, you could also show this as an arrow in each feed’s direction.
When designing search boxes, use a white background to be able to see where you are placing your search box without clashing with your other branding elements.
Use icons to tell your visitors where they are
Ecommerce sites that are not using icons can create great confusion for their visitors. So if you’re using icons, make sure you use a strong logo or icon to define the location.
An arrow pointing in the direction of a navigation bar, such as your shopping cart or a social media page, would allow your visitors to know they are in the proper area to perform an action.
If you have a set of products that you want to have for sale on your site, you could use icons to indicate where they are available to buy. This would also work well if you are providing a search feature.
You could also make use of these icons to show where visitors can take action. Here, a “buy” icon is displayed to show the users what they can do next. This could also mean that you have a lot of products that they can buy in this area.
In addition to helping visitors navigate to different parts of your site, icons also act as a visual guide for customers who don’t read the small print on your products. They may not realize that they will be charged separately for shipping, for example.
Make sure you have good design and navigation to your website
This is especially important for your product pages.
People want to browse your products without having to sort through countless pages. Make sure your site is easy to use. Visitors shouldn’t have to scroll through your site or read detailed info in order to find what they want.
All these elements work together to show customers that you take great care in your customer’s experience.
Now it’s Your Turn
What are your best tips for creating a visually pleasing, intuitive, and efficient ecommerce site? Let us know in the comments section below!