In order to overcome the fears that people have buying online there are a number of features that one needs to have in place in order to run an effective store with full ecommerce shopping cart facilities. One needs to bear in mind that customers first and foremost need to trust the buying environment. So any design steps taken that in any way make the buyers skeptical are unlikely to do you any favours. Buyers want familiarity and any aspect of your design, which deviates from this familiarity, needs to be carefully considered.
On the other hand any features that can be added that are likely to make buyers more comfortable are likely to win you more sales. Highlighting security features and associations with best web practice will also do no harm. In fact some practical studies have shown that by moving a ‘security’ icon just a few centimeters on screen (into the viewers line of sight) can have a dramatic effect on the number of sales generated on a web site.
In particular any good web site and ecommerce shopping cart facility will offer a few features that will really make the buyer more comfortable.
They include:-
- Simple and Effective Navigation
- Multiple Purchasing options
- Multiple payment options
- Numerous Shipping Options
Whle the South African online shopping market remains relatively small in world terms it is growing and it is growing fast. Traditional retailers and traders ignore the power of the web at their peril. As a client of mine, who has just launched his new site said to me today - ‘it has been such a revelation getting 3 to 4 new customers every single day that I am going to have to change my business model to accommodate the demand!'
Spaceacre has helped to build and launch a number of ecommerce websites and with its recently launched SpaceShop product is able to either integrate a full shopping cart facility into a custom built site or setup a template based website using the same admin and backend. Spaceacre also offers web design and web hosting facilities.
For more information contact Wayne on 021 4236882
