9 Website Mistakes That Most Successful Shopify Stores Know to Avoid

eCommerce is a booming business, with an estimated 2.05 billion buyers in 2020. 

Shopify, a popular eCommerce platform, has taken an impressive slice of that pie with more than 100,000 merchants and over 200 million buyers using the platform.

Most successful Shopify stores use strategic design to attract visitors and convert them into paying customers so if you're a Shopify business owner and want to increase your sales and grow your business, here are a few common mistakes to avoid.

A Lackluster About Page

89% of customers are loyal to brands they relate to in some way, like shared values or a common cause. 

While your brand messaging should be consistent throughout your content, your about page is the designated place to share your company’s values, causes and the “why” behind your brand.

Many new business owners miss the mark on their about page, either because they're not sure what to say or because they focus on relaying the wrong message. 

Here are a few tips for an effective about page:

• Share your brand story: connect with your visitors in a meaningful way by sharing who you are, how your brand came to be and the bigger purpose behind your brand.

• Write scannable content: your most important points should be large and noticeable. Don’t make your customers dig for the golden nuggets in your content. 

• Use mixed media: write great content, use high-quality images and engage your customers with video. 

By implementing these tips, you’ll be able to create an engaging about page and connect with your customers.

Unfriendly Checkout Process

In a recent study, 23% of people abandoned their cart during the checkout process because it wasn’t user-friendly.

Hidden fees, having to create an account to purchase, high shipping costs and technical problems are other common reasons for abandoned carts during checkout.

A user-friendly checkout process can be as simple as:

• Offering guest checkout (unless you're offering subscriptions for certain products)

• Using progress indicators at the top and/or bottom of the page

• Using clear calls to action and microcopy to guide customers through the process

• Making sure people understand that you charge for shipping. If you do offer free shipping, clearly display eligibility.

These tips will provide a smooth and frustration-free checkout process for your customers.

Poor Design

Is your site "overdesigned" with automated image sliders, a variety of fonts, overwhelming walls of copy and information and colors that are not on brand? 

38% of people will click off a website due to unattractive design.

That’s a staggering statistic considering 98% of people won’t purchase anything the first time they visit your site. So when a poor design is the first impression, you can lose the chance to cultivate loyal customers.

Improve your website design by:

• Using a clean and minimal design

• Staying within the aesthetic of your branding

• Using simple and easy navigation 

Not sure how to level up your design? Work with a professional web design agency.

Lack Of Branding

Did you know you can increase your revenue by 23% by having consistent branding on your website, social media, and other platforms? 

Sometimes, new Shopify stores launch with inconsistent branding that ultimately confuses your customers and leaves them feeling a lack of trust in your company. 

Create consistency in your branding by:

• Using your brand messaging across all channels

• Choosing your brand identity and using only those elements

• Sharing your story

A brand style guide will help you set the parameters for establishing brand consistency.

Poor Product Information

High-quality product photography and effective product descriptions are essential for optimizing your product page for sales.

If you are winging it with your product photography and descriptions, you likely are losing sales and potential customers daily. 

Your product photography should be: 

• Styled to fit your brand

• Of professional quality

• Show the product in use

Your product descriptions should be: 

• Written in your brand voice and descriptive

• Focused on the benefits of the product

• Immersing your customer in the story of your product

Ultimately, you want your product photography and descriptions to allow your potential customers to envision themselves using the product. 

The use of videos is gaining popularity and is something you should also consider to easily present and describe your products. 

Ignoring SEO

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, helps you target your ideal customers and brings organic traffic to your site. 

If you are ignoring SEO, you are missing out on one of the most important sources of traffic you can have.

While the topic of SEO is extensive, here are a few tips you can implement right now: 

• Fix site errors, like broken links, duplicate pages, and broken redirects

• Make sure your website is loading at an optimal speed

• Research and add relevant keywords to your website

By implementing these tips, you’ll have a better chance to be found in search.

Poor Mobile Experience

Your Shopify store must be optimized for mobile. Most popular Shopify stores are optimized for both mobile and desktop browsing.

The same way customers won’t purchase from a poorly designed website, mobile shoppers won’t purchase from a company with a poorly designed mobile experience.

The first step you can take to make your site mobile-friendly is to run a mobile-friendly website test. From there, you can view the report and start fixing any issues that are listed.

No Social Proof

Successful Shopify merchants understand that social proof is necessary to make sales and grow your business.

Social proof shows potential customers that others have purchased your items and had a great customer experience.

Social proof can come in many forms, including:

• Reviews

• Testimonials

• User-generated content

Not sure how to add social proof to your website? There are a variety of ways you can implement immediately, including:

• Flagging your best-selling products with a "Popular Product" tag

• Implementing transactional pop-ups that realtime purchases

• Adding social media photos of real customers using your product

• Showing the number of likes each product has received

By adding these elements of social proof to your website, you will increase the know, like and trust factor for potential customers.

These Are the Mistakes Most Successful Shopify Stores Avoid

The main thing most successful Shopify stores avoid is a poor user experience for their customers. 

By making their shopping experience easy, you’ll not only encourage sales but you’ll also encourage customer loyalty.

Need a Shopify store built or redesigned? Our professional design team is here to help! Contact us today and request a quote.