In the past decade, websites have seen an increased use of mobile traffic, which in turn leads them to optimize their pages for mobile compatibility. This includes the creation of mobile apps, mobile browsing options, and even tactics like increasing the size of text and buttons so that mobile accessibility increases. In fact, making a website have mobile compatibility helps web developers out because they tend to understand the trends of what works and what does not in a better way as a whole. Ecommerce website development is important in order to stimulate sales and have a great looking site. Hiring a web developer can be a great way to ensure your site looks good on a computer and on a phone.
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What is E-Commerce?
Before we go into mobile compatibility, we must first have a good understanding of what e-commerce is. E-commerce is the shortened word created from electronic commerce. It has increased in popularity recently. It is basically the action occurring when one buys or sells goods across the internet. With the rise of the internet in the 90’s, e-commerce has grown tremendously. Amazon and eBay are two of the largest e-commerce sites in the world, and they continue to expand every year. They also have great mobile compatibility with their apps, which is another reason for their continued success. E-commerce also has launched new, smaller online retailers who place an emphasis on advertising and attracting new customers rapidly.
Website Mobile Compatibility
E-commerce websites tend to have two options in which they can display a product. They can have a website made for computers, and the same website but optimized for a mobile device. While this may not sound like a big dilemma at first, it can grow to become one. Website mobile compatibility is important because there is more accessibility. Once a user goes on the mobile site, data is usually saved faster. On the website that is made for a desktop, details are more difficult to navigate to, making it more time consuming for a consumer. Having good website mobile compatibility mainly has to do with designing the website for a smaller screen.
Some businesses already have good web pages, but they need to integrate e-commerce on their site in order to generate sales online as well. This goes with another factor, called mobile optimization. The text should be aligned properly and any advertisements should not be taking up the bottom half of the screen with a banner that is difficult to remove. If you choose to run ads on your e-commerce store, or any website that is designed for mobile users, make sure the ads are relevant and that they will not cause issues for the phones of users.
Safari and Google Chrome can easily crash with poor optimization, and the customer will be upset. When someone using their cell phone encounters a website with poor mobile compatibility, they likely will leave the site and not return. Poor experiences will not convert someone into a regular customer.
Mobile Compatibility versus Mobile Optimization
There is a substantial difference between mobile compatibility and mobile optimization. So you may be wondering, what is the difference between mobile compatibility and mobile optimization? A site with mobile compatibility for example, is one is viewable on a phone or a tablet, and most likely works best on a computer. It involves the user having to zoom in and out and move the screen around in order to find everything they need on the site. It could even result in losing customers for the brand if the site isn’t working well on a mobile device.
On the other hand, a site with mobile optimization is specifically designed for a mobile device, or has detected that you are on a mobile device and redirected you to the mobile version of the site. These sites are usually very user friendly. There is no need for zooming in or moving the screen left and right to find what you are searching for. Typically, a site that is optimized well has lower bounce rates from mobile users, compared to one with just mobile compatibility.
The Importance of E-Commerce Website Design
Since the rise of e-commerce, there have been several key names that have risen to prominence with their successes. Perhaps the biggest name in e-commerce website design can be said to be Shopify. Shopify has great templates that come with a membership, which puts less stress on the creators of the site. This helps out many who have a great idea on what to sell, but they do not have the skills to do e-commerce website design at a high level, where their site will be with mobile compatibility and look much cleaner.
Apart from helping out when doing e-commerce website design, Shopify can also boost sales. It also helps you track everything easily with a mobile app. Ironically, their app is very well designed for mobile phones as well as them having a great website accessible from a computer. It is another example of good website mobile compatibility. As e-commerce continues to become one of the most popular ways to shop online, it is important to know about the best e-commerce practices, as they are more than just having website mobile compatibility.
E-Commerce Website Development
When building an online store, many challenges may rise up when doing the e-commerce website development of that store. Also, success is not guaranteed to every seller. It may require time and money, and sacrifices may have to be made in order to have a successful online business. There are many steps that need to be taken in order to have success when building up that site. This is another part of the process that contributes success to an e-commerce website.
Starting Out Your E-Commerce Store
Once an idea has risen for a product to sell online, it is not as hard as it seems to get it out to the public. Part of good e-commerce website development is having a good business name and good business model. Taking a look at similar sites and analyzing their successes without plagiarizing or copying them can contribute to your knowledge about the product you want to sell. Find out if your business will sell to other businesses (B2B), or if it will sell directly to consumers (B2C). Choose a name that will attract customers to your product. Make sure to leave a memorable impression that can create returning customers and reduce bounce rates.
Branding is also important. Choose a color scheme that is already attached to your branding. This is important as it plays into the whole e-commerce website development. Many famous brands have their apps in a specific color scheme that ties into the branding of the company. To ensure good e-commerce website design, make sure your branding is consistent across the entirety of the site, and that it will leave a good impression, reducing bounce rates as traffic increases.
The Finishing Touches to An E-Commerce Store
To finish off good e-commerce website development, there should be a proper incorporation of e-commerce SEO on the site. Lastly, optimize all web pages for mobile compatibility. It’s important to write excellent descriptions of the products you are selling. Any keywords that can bring back better results from a search engine should be incorporated into a description. Also, even lengthy descriptions should be able to fit onto the screen of a mobile device without the user having to zoom in or zoom out on the screen. While shipping isn’t a major key to a store’s visual success, having multiple options also helps.
E-commerce website development plays a huge part in the overall success of an online store. This can be a thorough process that requires the full attention of the person doing the work. Even designing a WordPress website can be difficult, but help is always available. SEO Design Chicago has website development experts in e-commerce who can assist you.
The Future of E-Commerce
The success of online businesses today is evident across the globe. Consumers are becoming more and more focused on online shopping. Because of the current global situation, that is likely to increase in the near future. If you want to sell a product online, multiple factors will play into your e-commerce store’s success. Perhaps the biggest factor, as mentioned before, is having mobile compatibility for your store. Website mobile compatibility is crucial, as it makes a website more accessible on a mobile device. More people use their phones to access the internet now, and likely in the future as well. So, having good mobile compatibility can only help e-commerce stores.
Developing your store can be a lengthy and detailed process. But there are many tools that can make this rigorous process much simpler to the regular user. With these tips, users can enjoy a better knowledge of how mobile compatibility helps e-commerce websites.
If you need help making sure your e-commerce has mobile compatibility, contact SEO Design Chicago today! Our website development experts are ready to help you.
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