Creating Your Online Storefront

Next time you are in your favorite shop, take a look around. Look at how the products are displayed, where they are situated, how they are organized, and how lighting, architecture, and décor enhance product appeal. Look at the detail involved in creating atmosphere, in warmly welcoming the client, in providing key information and facilitating customer interest, customer action.

E-commerce is no different. An online store must emulate the same design principles and accomplish the same strategic tasks of attracting visitors, fixing their attention, and moving them to action. Sound web design is the cornerstone of effective online commerce, and neglecting the key details and nuances of storefront development can mean disaster for your e-enterprise. How a storefront is composed, how a product catalogue is displayed, how online shopping carts and payment options are integrated into the 'total design' are important - and intricate - questions.

Perhaps the most important principle of storefront design is to build a site that conforms to the expectations, questions, and demands of your customers. This means anticipating what your customer needs, predicting what questions will be asked, and quickly providing the answers in a navigable format that keeps your customer oriented and engaged. Content and Interface are equally critical to solid design, so pay the same attention to both. Below are some fundamentals for establishing an effective, customer-friendly web site.

• Easy navigation is based on sound organization. A storefront should be organized in a convenient manner that answers customer inquiries before they are even made. Make your storefront manageable for the reader with efficient directories and indexes that lead the customer directly to their shopping goal or specific area of interest. Scaffold information in a logical manner and avoid 'nesting' more than two levels of menus. Make sure your product lines are categorized and formatted in an orderly fashion. And never frustrate your visitor with chaotic or superfluous content.
  
  
• The initial goal of a commercial web site is to educate, so make your content comprehensive - but also make it compact, clear and forceful in style. Economical, dynamic writing will keep your web content focused and your visitors engaged.
  
  
• The 'look' of your site is the first thing to impact your customer. Impressive graphics, manageable, easy-to-read formatting, and a unique atmosphere that distinguishes your site from others are all vital in attracting and holding the attention of customers. Company logos and design layouts should remain consistent between pages so the customer acquires a sense of company identity, gets a unique feel for your site and product line. Remember, everything should be fast-loading and tastefully presented.
  
  
• If your web site is complex or your online catalogue is vast, incorporate a search feature into your storefront. Your store should cater to all types of shoppers. The person leisurely browsing your virtual shelves may not cast a second glance at a product search engine; the customer zeroed in on a specific item will choose it every time. Of course, stores with only a few products can get away with a well-reasoned organizational system. But if you carry any sort of inventory at all, you need a product search feature. Customers expect as much.

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The following articles have been compiled to assist you in designing a commercial website.

The Architecture of Online
Form or Function? Ideas on how to design an website that balances appearance with e-commerce function.

Web Design: Integrating e-Commerce
Are you a web master or web designer? Here are some tips on how to add e-commerce to your - or your client's - website.

Designing A Commercial Web Site: How to Avoid the Hamlet Effect Factors to consider when developing and engaging, action-oriented storefront.

OfficeLinks - OfficeLinks provides resources for small business owners and entrepreneurs starting an online business - including tips on buying web design software for your e-business.

7 Debilitating Diseases of Business Websites (and their cures) Common design mistakes that hinder fluid navigation and effective e-commerce - and some tips on steering clear of typical e-design pitfalls.

Web Site Design: Are We Doing it Right? Over the past few years, many graphic designers have shifted from print media to develop web sites for the online medium. In the process, they have applied proven print design techniques, creating sites that look very similar to print media documents.

Clutter Versus Clicking in Web Design How to balance a great deal of content with sharp organization and coherent design layout.

Site Design: A Lesson in Value A discussion of sound web design with a culinary flavor.

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