The Importance of Convenience and Clarity

We live in a world where people value instant gratification more than they ever have before. With today’s advancements in technology, we literally have the world at our fingertips- and it is no exception when it comes to the online shopping experience. Time is of the essence. We see it in our social lives, in our professional lives, and any time we are trying to complete a task. The task of making a purchase no longer needs to be as time consuming as it once was. 

Grocery shopping was once a task that could take all day, and purchasing a rare product could require you to drive 2 hours to pick it up at its location, but these days are long gone. With the click of a button, you can have any product you’re looking for in your virtual shopping cart, waiting to be shipped to your front door. With almost every business out there offering this online shopping experience to their customers, how do you get ahead of the competition? The key is to not make that process any harder than it needs to be.

Clarity and Convenience 

Clarity and convenience are two things to be focused on when mapping out the customer experience journey. When online shopping, the experience begins at the very beginning, when a customer first enters your website. Pay close attention to the navigation of your site. Is it easy to understand? Customers do not want to waste time clicking around to find a product or make a purchase. Instead of crowding your site with animations or special effects, focus instead on the clarity.

Companies with brick and mortar locations are no different. A shopper wants to be able to find what they’re looking for easily. Even if they are out for a leisurely day of shopping for fun, no one likes mess and confusion. Things should be organized with some sort of system that is easy to understand based on product categories. Clear and direct signs which represent where a consumer can find what they’re looking for should be placed in plain sight. You want your customers to remember your brand as giving them the best shopping experience both in person and through an electronic device. 

Benefits of an Easily Navigable Site

When focusing on the navigational aspects of your ecommerce site, there are certain things to take into consideration. As previously mentioned, special effects busy animations are a distraction from the actual content of your site. While it may have been trendy to incorporate these things at one point, loud effects are a thing of the past. This isn’t to say that there isn’t a place for subtle animations or effects someplace on your site, but you should be very careful that they are not overtaking the customer experience. 

Another important thing to consider is the placement of your buttons and text. Is there a clear hierarchy for your drop down navigation that makes sense? Are “call to action” buttons easy to find? Will a customer know how to move to important pages based on the layout of your home page? When confusion strikes, most people don’t have the patience to search and figure things out and will inevitably exit your website. 

Clear directions on how to proceed will be an incredibly important factor in how far your potential customer gets through their purchase process. The same principle can be seen at a brick and mortar store with situations such as the availability to buy online and pick up in store. For example, Walmart now provides the option or make your purchase online and then have someone bring it out to you in their brick and mortar parking lot. The website is clear as to how to proceed in placing your order. This includes clear navigation, straight forward details about limitations and instructions on how to successfully pick up your purchases. They also provide you with text message/email updates about the status of your order and access to an app which gives your directions and tracks your route to the store. It even knows exactly when you arrive in their parking lot. 

When it comes to clear directions at the physical store location, they continue to provide customers with the information they need to move ahead. Bold signs and arrows direct customers to the exact parking space area where they should park their car. Here, another sign is present which includes a phone number to alert the Walmart employee that you are ready for them to deliver your order. You sign for your purchase on a hand held device and are on your way. Such simple clear instructions make for a very pleasant shopping experience, and undoubtedly a returning customer. The same principle goes for your online site experience.

Ensure That Your Site is the Best it Can Be

So how do you go about making sure your website is designed in a way to deliver the ultimate experience to your online shoppers? Knowing what to avoid is helpful, but you’re going to need some help in implementing all of the right features and aspects of design to keep things running optimally. Web Solutions NYC is an agency made of the world’s top developers. Working with the Magento ecommerce platform for over a decade now, the knowledge accumulated by years of experience is what sets them apart from the rest. Web Solutions NYC is dedicated to achieving the specific goals of each client, whatever they may be. Click HERE to get in touch today and schedule a call to see how we can move forward to create your dream ecommerce site.

Melissa Mannino