While the popular saying, “never judge a book by its cover” may be true for many things, it may not be true for websites. According to Blue Corona, 48% of people use website design as a deciding factor when determining the business’s creditability.

Whether you are new to the ecommerce world or looking to improve your existing site, these five tips will come in handy.

1. Ensure your website is user-friendly and responsive for mobile devices - overly cluttered navigation bars, poor call to actions, and busy homepages distract from closing the sale. Add in a disproportionate view on a cell phone or tablet and you have a lose-lose combination.

2. Make sure the checkout progress is secure - giving customers peace of mind is key. Having an SSL certificate is 100% necessary. Add additional messaging at checkout notifying shoppers that their information is protected and encrypted.

3. Curate descriptive product summaries while keeping SEO in mind - educating your customers on the product you are selling is a MUST, however, there is nothing worse than investing in copy to have no one read it. Keep your descriptions fun and true to your brand.

4. Integrate social media sharing on products - let your customers help you get the word out! This will broaden your audience to their friends and family. Isn’t word-of-mouth advertising the best?

5. Include a seamless site-search with faceted filters - many consumers already know what they are looking for. Faceted filters can include product type, colors, size, price range, etc.

Need help building an ecommerce website or looking to polish up an existing one? Let’s get started!