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The ease with which a customer is able to use an e-commerce site is an
important part of its success. It's also an important part of your online brand
image.
There are three elements of the shopping process that influence how easy and
enjoyable the customer finds it to shop on an e-commerce site - the store layout,
shopping cart and payment software.
Store layout
The store layout is the interface presented to the customer. This often
incorporates an online catalogue that enables them to browse for products and
identify those they wish to purchase.
Customers should be able to find the product they are looking for quickly. An
eight-second guideline is frequently cited but is not set in stone - if customers are
unable to find the product within a short time, they are likely to go to an alternative site.
The design of the store layout should make shopping intuitive, with the customer
knowing at all times what stage of the buying process they are at.
Always give the end user the ability to search your site to locate the product.
Shopping cart
This is the software that facilitates easy selection and payment for products
purchased by a customer from an e-commerce website. Once the goods have
been selected, the customer should find the checkout clearly signposted, so that
they can proceed to pay for the goods.
The system should process the order speedily and provide you with a summary,
including any packing and shipping requirements. It should also generate a
printable receipt and allow you to send a confirmation email to the customer.
Payment software
Most customers will wish to pay for their purchases with credit or debit cards.
There are a couple of options for accepting such payments - you can:
open a merchant account
use a payment serves provider (PSP)
set up an online shop within a virtual shopping mall
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