The 7 Most Common Shopify Design Mistakes That Could Kill Your Sales
Shopify is a dream come true for people who want to start their online business without being tech-savvy.
It has made it easier for people to establish, design, and run their eCommerce store. You don’t need to learn how to code or hire a web developer who costs a fortune.
And the best part is…
With a small investment and a few clicks, you can launch your very own eCommerce store.
It’s a platform that builds and hosts online stores. Allows you to create one that is attractive, functional, and fun. It also provides the tools necessary to start, run, and grow your e-commerce business.
But there’s a catch…
Even though Shopify is a fantastic platform to establish and run a business, many businesses fail to boost their sales.
Do you know why many entrepreneurs still fail despite having superb products and an effective marketing strategy?
They fail because of some common Shopify design mistakes which affect their conversions.
If you too are facing difficulty in achieving your conversion goals, perhaps it’s time to look into your website’s design.
In today’s post, we have curated a list of the seven most common Shopify design mistakes that kill your sales.
Let’s dive in…
The Seven Most Common Shopify Design Mistakes That Could Kill Your Sales
1. Not Focusing on Responsive Design
This is the most common Shopify design mistake that store owners make. They select the theme and customize it for desktop users and forget about mobile users.
It has become high time for online store owners to create responsive stores that function right on various digital devices. Gone are those days when the only usage of cell phones was to call and send text messages. Nowadays, people access the internet through their mobile devices.
Mobile phones generate more than half of all internet traffic. Thus, if you do not optimize your eCommerce for mobile visitors, you’re losing a handsome chunk of a potential audience at your website.
Make sure you select a mobile-responsive theme.
So, if you customize the theme’s design, navigation, CTAs, etc. Don’t forget to optimize it for mobile devices!
Next, the Shopify design mistake that entrepreneurs often make is that they fail to configure their checkout process.
2. Not Including Site Search Option
Have you ever wondered why giant eCommerce stores, such as Amazon, Etsy, eBay, etc., have a site search option on their main menu?
The site search option makes it quite convenient for your visitors to look up the products they need without going through each product page.
Many Shopify newbies tend to overlook this important feature on their websites. If you don’t want to lose any more customers simply because they could not search for the product, then include a site search option.
Display the search option on the main menu so that it’s visible to your audience.
Most of the themes have a built-in search option. However, if you want an advanced search option, you can easily find plugins for that.
3. Using Low-Quality Images
What even is an online store without high-resolution images?
A customer cannot touch, feel, hold, or try on the product in an eCommerce store, unlike a physical store. Thus, the images on your website must be powerful to provide a clear picture of the product to customers.
Uploading low-quality and blurry images can be fatal for your eCommerce store conversions. If the images are not clear and attractive. In that case, it will be difficult for the prospect to determine if the product meets his expectations or not.
Always upload clear and high-resolution images on your website. In addition, upload product photos from various angles to give a better idea of the items to the customers. Capture your photos in good lighting and with clear backgrounds. If photography is not your cup of tea, hire a product photographer who can take appealing pictures for your website.
Apart from low-quality images, poor product descriptions can ruin your website design too.
Here’s how…
4. Inappropriate and Insufficient Product Descriptions
Images play the role of the products on the website. Meanwhile, product descriptions play the role of a sales rep in the eCommerce store.
An interesting product description can convince your customer to click the buy now button. Yet, many store owners overlook the importance of good product descriptions. Instead of creating a new and convincing product copy, they use the ones provided by manufacturers.
Images give an idea about the appearance and colors of the product. A product description highlights important details such as its weight, size, texture, and benefits.
Use the following tips to write persuasive product copies:
- Use a friendly and conversational tone. Refrain from using complex or technical words.
- Avoid using the descriptions provided by the producers or suppliers. They are bland, flat, and not to mention used by hundreds of other store owners.
- Describe all the product specifications.
- Use headings and bullet pointers to increase readability.
- Include primary keywords in your description to improve SEO.
5. Using Aggressive Color Scheme
Colors play a significant role in a website’s design. If the website has a soothing and pleasant color scheme, visitors would love to explore it. On the contrary, if the colors used are sharp and create a high contrast, it will annoy the audience and make them quit your website.
Be very considerate about the colors on your website. Various studies have proven that colors can evoke different emotions. Do not use many colors on your website. It might appear displeasing to the customer and distract his focus from the products.
Select the colors that convey your brand’s image and identity. For example, soft and pastels tones are good color options for a website that sells baby items. If the same website uses black or grey colors, it will not look attractive.
6. Not Having Appropriate Filters
Nowadays, why do people prefer online shopping?
The answer is simple – it saves their time.
So, if your website is not designed to help save people’s time, the essence of online shopping is lost.
Adding filters to product pages is of great help to visitors. Especially if you have a wide variety of products. Filters can help customers find their desired products in a few seconds. Rather than scrolling his screen for several minutes to search the products. If your product page is long, the customer will get frustrated from scrolling endlessly.
Create filters on your product page to help prospects view products they like. For example, filtering products according to price, size, fabric, colors, etc.
Use the following points while implementing filters on your website:
i) Mention The Product Quantity
Always show how many products are available under the applied filter. For instance, if the customer has used the color filter to view the products. Display the number of particles present in each color like:
Red (5)
Blue (6)
Black (10)
ii) Display Applied Filters
Ensure to display the filters selected by the customer. A customer might want to add or remove a filter to broaden his selection.
Including filters and a site search option makes it pretty easy for customers to find goods.
This takes us to the next design mistake, i.e., the absence of a site search option.
7. Failure to Configure The Checkout Process
The next common mistake is not configuring the checkout page.
Just as the homepage and product pages are essential, the checkout page is essential too. It’s where the prospects place their orders, share their details, and convert into customers.
Many amateur store owners forget to customize their checkout page and match it with the store’s design. Always ensure to add your store’s logo on the checkout page. Moreover, use similar colors, font style, size, etc. on your checkout page as the rest of the web pages. If there is any discrepancy on your checkout page than the rest of the website, your customers will get confused.
Suppose the website’s color scheme is pink and black, and the checkout page’s colors are green and white. In that case, it will confuse your customers, and they might even quit the website if the checkout page doesn’t look like a part of your website.
Use the following tips to optimize your Checkout page and make the checkout process hassle-free for the customers:
i) Add Your Brand’s Logo
Uploading your company’s logo on the checkout page makes it look like a part of your website, not to mention it also looks professional.
ii) Provide Multiple Payment Channels
The last reason you want people to quit your website is the absence of the payment channel they like to use. Do not provide just one option to transfer the payment. Provide multiple options to your customers to select the one they trust the most.
iii) Display A Progress Bar
As much as customers enjoy an online shopping spree, they don’t relish the idea of filling out forms. To keep your customers patient, add a visible progress bar on the checkout page. It will let them know how close they are to checking out from the website.
iv) Be Upfront About Shipping Charges And Terms
“When will my order arrive?“
“What are the delivery charges?” etc…
The above questions buzz into the customer’s mind when he is placing his order on a website. Hence, disclose your shipping charges and terms. Make them clear from the beginning. If the customer looks at the extra charges added to his bill, he might rethink his purchase, which we are sure you don’t want at the checkout stage.
Hence, do not wait for your customers to arrive at the checkout stage to disclose the charges. Instead, make it clear from the beginning.
3 More Shopify Design Mistakes
8. Overcrowding Your Online Store With Plugins/Apps
Shopify has a wide range of apps. Entrepreneurs can integrate unique features on their websites by installing the right apps. Such apps eliminate the need to write long strings of code to solve a problem or add functionality to the website. For example, a simple carousel app saves the developer from writing hundreds of lines of different codes.
Apps are, without a speck of doubt, beneficial for entrepreneurs. Hence, many store owners make the rookie mistake of installing every app that they come across. They believe that more apps will make their website/store more functional and better than others.
However, installing many plugins/apps can create the following problems on your Shopify store:
- Make your homepage crowded;
- Disturb your visitors with annoying pop-ups;
- Affect your site’s speed
This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use apps, no! Use them when you need them, but don’t stuff your website with them.
Overcrowding of apps is one reason for the slow loading of a website. Let’s talk more about it in the upcoming mistake…
9. Slow Loading Time
Do you like to wait for a website to load completely? Or do you hit the back button if the website doesn’t load quickly?
Slow-loading websites are a mood killer for indulging in retail therapy. Do not expect online buyers to be patient while your website takes forever to load. They will exit it without thinking twice; it will increase your bounce rate and damage the SEO.
Thus, your website must speed up to keep up with the expectations of impatient and hurried buyers. The ideal loading time for a website is under 3 seconds. Moreover, 70% of buyers reported that page loading time influences their purchasing decision. All your efforts in designing the store will go in vain if the page cannot load fast. The customer will leave your store, probably to visit your rivals’ websites.
Select a Shopify theme that is fast. Besides that, compress your code and images files to make the website load faster. Also, uninstall the plugins that you no longer use as they add extra load to the webpage and slows down its speed.
10. Spelling and Grammar Mistakes
We don’t even need to emphasize how terrible a website would look if it has spelling, grammatical, and punctuation errors.
Imagine how a simple mistake of writing ‘Add to Cart ’ in CTAs instead of “Add to Cart” is going to bug your customer? Even though it doesn’t change the meaning, it will affect your brand’s image and credibility in customers’ eyes. Not to mention, it might give them cold feet to purchase from your website.
Thus, do not rush writing your web content or product copies.
Take your time to write content.
And then proofread it a gazillion times or use an online proofreader to rectify the errors.
Make Shopify Design Mistakes a Thing of the Past
There you have it, readers, the most common Shopify design mistakes that kill your conversions.
So, it’s time to roll your sleeves and check your website for these design mistakes. If you spot any mistakes, you know how to fix them and boost eCommerce conversions.
