6 Tips for a Successful Online Store

Read Time: 4 minutes

You no longer need a brick and mortar location to run a successful store. Thanks to the e-commerce revolution, you can create an online store, offering products exclusively through the internet. However, you must keep certain realities in mind when starting an online shop.

For example, e-commerce is a very competitive industry. Unless the products you’re selling are extremely niche, there’s a very good chance that others will be offering the same types of goods that you offer. You need to optimize your online store to stand out among the competition. The following tips will help you achieve this goal.

Optimize for All Devices

Data indicate that mobile web browsing and desktop web browsing are about equally popular right now. Trends also show that mobile web browsing will most likely become more common than desktop web browsing throughout the world in the coming years. Online shopping is also likely to reflect this trend.

Keep this in mind when designing an online store. For your business to deliver a satisfying experience to all customers, your online store needs to function reliably on both desktop and mobile devices.

Use High-Quality Product Images

Although everyone has been told not to judge a book by its cover since childhood, the fact is that we all make judgments based upon first visual impressions. This applies to our judgments of people and of businesses. If your customers find that the pictures of your products on your online shop look amateurish, they will get the impression that those products are not high quality.

On the other hand, if your product images look professional, customers may not even realize that yours is just a small business. Yes, hiring a photographer to take professional pictures may require some investment. However, the amount of money you stand to make by enticing customers to buy your products with attractive photos should ensure the investment pays for itself fairly quickly.

Think Like You’re Designing a Physical Store

Your store may not have a physical location. That doesn’t mean you can’t design it with the same mindset that you would have if you were designing a brick and mortar shop. For example, when you walk into any successful store, be it a location for a multinational chain or a small shop in a little town that has thrived for decades, you might find that successful stores often showcase their most attractive products so that customers notice them as soon as they walk in.

This same principle can apply to an online store. When deciding which types of products should be displayed most prominently, consider what types of products sell best, what types of products make the strongest visual impression on customers, or what types of products are most likely to signal to customers that this is an online shop that offers the types of products they’re looking for.

Use Video

There are many reasons that video content should play a significant role in your online store. First, it’s essential to understand that video content statistically yields higher levels of online engagement than other types of content. It’s easy to understand why.

Video content combines dynamic images and sounds to grab the attention of a viewer in a way that other types of content simply can’t achieve. In addition, video content can speak a universal language that may appeal to customers regardless of language or geography.

Video content is particularly valuable in the context of online shopping. Many types of products offer value that isn’t apparent to customers unless they see these products in use.

Consider the example of a kitchen tool. Describing what this kitchen tool does, text doesn’t replace the experience of actually seeing the tool in action. Video content can fill in this gap. With a video, you can demonstrate your products in a way that clearly communicates to customers why they are worth their money.

Emphasize Simplicity

Don’t fall prey to the impulse to bombard your audience with too much stimulation when they navigate your online shop. Navigating your shop should be a pleasant experience that’s easy and intuitive. Thus, it’s wise to prioritize a simplistic and minimalistic approach when designing an online shop. You may also want to stick to a fairly consistent color scheme.

Adhering to the same color scheme throughout your online shop can help you establish a recognizable brand. You may even consider researching color theory to determine what types of colors might have specific types of influences on shoppers. For example, blue has been shown to have a calming effect. You may thus want to incorporate blue into your online shop’s color scheme if you sell wellness products or other types of products aimed at customers looking for relaxing experiences.

Ensure All Content is Branded Properly

Your color scheme is by no means the only element of your online shop that can reflect your company’s unique brand. All of the elements of your shop should represent a consistent brand to ensure a consistent experience for your customers. To return to the above example, perhaps you are selling wellness products and have adopted a relaxing color scheme accordingly.

If so, the verbiage on your website should also sound like it’s coming from a calm and grounded person. True, you should also be urging customers to take action and buy your products, but your words should reflect the identity of your brand.

Online Store Business Tips: The Importance of Tweaking Your Plan

Applying these tips can help your online store achieve new levels of growth. That said, it’s important to remember that online shopping trends consistently change. By staying on top of these trends and modifying your online store accordingly, you can offer customers an ideal experience for years to come.

Use Powtoon to Create Video Content for an Online Store

Creating video content for an online shop doesn’t need to be as expensive or time-consuming as you might assume. With templates and similar resources, Powtoon makes creating online shopping video content easy, regardless of experience level. Sign up for free today to learn more about what Powtoon can do for your business.

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Hanna Abitbul

Hanna is Powtoon's Content Marketing Strategist. She joined Powtoon as a copywriter in 2019, after graduating from university with a specialized degree in marketing and business. She continues to inspire people to create incredible video content with blog posts, videos, guides, and more. Hanna's passions include reading, singing, and caring for animals (#proudvegan). Nothing makes her happier than waking up to her two black kitties who, contrary to popular belief, are good luck!