Having an online presence for your retail business is a great way to find more customers and get your product out to a wider audience, but if you do not pay close attention to ecommerce website design, your online shopping and sales goals could fall flat. Responsive web design is vital to the success of any ecommerce website, as proper web design allows customers to find what they’re looking for and buy it without running into problems. Here are a few ways to make ecommerce website design work for you.

Use Photos in Your Ecommerce Website Design

Can you imagine shopping for something without knowing what it looks like? Most customers are visually oriented, and one of the bonuses of online shopping is that it allows for easy browsing at home — something that is only possible if your web design includes images. Include at least one photo of each product within your ecommerce website design, and if you have different angles of a product, share them, along with color options and close-up shots. You want to show your customer as much of the product as they would see in a brick and mortar store, to help them decide which product they’d like and lessen the chance of having to facilitate a return.

A Well-Designed Search Tool is Key

Especially if you stock a lot of products, your ecommerce website design should include a well-designed and robust search tool. Use web design to let your customers filter objects by price, newness, size, color — any field you can think of that would be useful to narrow down your stock. Make this search tool available on every page with smart and streamlined web design and your customers will have no trouble finding exactly what they need, meaning another sale for you and another happy client more likely to come back.

Make Sure to Use Responsive Web Design Techniques

If your website is slow or confusing to use on mobile devices, you’ll lose clients quickly. Aim for responsive web design — if a customer touches a link in an email on their smartphone, your website should load immediately, with no confusion or delays. Keep things simple and clearly labeled, and make sure your navigation and search areas are easy to find and work well. Responsive web design does not have to be complex, but it should guide every web design decision you make.