An increasing number of people across the world now turn to e-commerce websites to acquire the products and services that they need. Hence, choosing to sell your offerings through an online platform can go a long way in enabling you to reach new markets and expand your business prospects.
For any e-commerce business, it is extremely vital to have a website that is attractive, robust, responsive and runs smoothly. An inefficiently designed website can make an e-commerce business lose out on a number of prospective customers, and create a host of other issues. However, developing a perfect website is not easy. Competent e-commerce development involves a lot of time, effort and technical expertise.
While you may know that having a website that is vibrant and aesthetically appealing is important to drive quality traffic and conversions, not all are aware of the key technical aspects of e-commerce website development. Below we tried to answer two of the most asked questions : What all is required for an Ecommerce Website? and Which Platform is best suited for your Ecommerce Store?
Essential eCommerce Features Your Website Needs
To make sure of the superior functionality and performance of your e-commerce platform, there are certain technical aspects you must take care of, such as:
Website Security
A plethora of sensitive information shall flow in and out of your e-commerce website, including billing addresses, credit card details and other personal data of the customers that must be kept secure. In case this data gets leaked, then it might cause a lot of damage to your reputation. Hence it is vital to seek out professional e–commerce development services through a company that has the technical know-how to take care of your web security.
Your website should ideally have:
- An SSL certificate that secures sensitive transactions
- No plain text or permanent storage of sensitive consumer data
- Secure password storage
- Server protection, such as a host-provided maintenance service or firewall
Website Performance
In case your prospective customers find your website too slow, then there is a high chance that they would shift to the website of your competitors without even giving a single thought. Your web pages should ideally not even take 100 milliseconds to open. If your e-commerce website struggles to open or is slow to load, then you should try consulting an experienced e-commerce website development company at once. They can fix any bugs and issues that might be causing your web pages to lag.
Application programming interface [API]
An API refers to a method of communication through which diverse applications can smoothly and easily share data amongst them. There are multiple types of APIs that you can leverage to boost the functionalities of your e-commerce website and make the shopping experience much more seamless for the customers.
Here are some of these APIs:
- Catalogue API: Create, edit and manage the catalogue of your products.
- Site search API: Makes finding a product, service, or information easier at your website
- Cart API: Allows you to take a peek at the cart of your online visitors, and provide them with personalized experiences, discounts, and coupons based on it
- Payment API: Ensures that your e-commerce website has a fully functional payment system
User Experience
The importance of user experience (UX) in e-commerce development cannot be ignored, as it makes sure that your prospective customers can easily navigate through your online portal, find what they need, purchase it and move on. The core idea of having a UX friendly web design is to deliver a seamless, simple and enjoyable online shopping experience to your customers so that they are encouraged to return to your website time and again. Simple navigation, swift transactions, and clear communication are some of the vital components of good UX.
Website Updates
Just getting a website made is not enough; ensuring it is up-to-date is also extremely crucial. Not timely updating your website would result in it having outdated features and higher risks of bugs. Hence, it is important to seek assistance from a vendor who can promptly deliver new code for your website for adding new features or improving its performance.
Automated backups
Accidents and mishaps are just a part and parcel of life. There can be an incident due to which your customer records get deleted, and important files are wiped out. To avoid issues cropping up due to such accidents, it would be a good idea to set up routine, automatic backups for your e-commerce portal. They will help you to swiftly recover from even the most major catastrophe.
Mobile friendly
A great number of people today do not even open their laptops to shop, and opt to simply use their mobile phones to make purchases. With a consistently growing number of people choosing to shop on mobile phones, optimizing e-commerce websites for such devices has become more important than ever. Coming to the technical perspective, the web features that are developed with a mobile-first interface are likely to provide you with superior flexibility and agility. Making sure that your website is responsive, i.e., opens smoothly on devices of diverse sizes, including smartphones and tablets, would go a long way in enabling you to connect with a wider range of audience and enhance your conversion opportunities.
Payment Gateway
Your e-commerce website won’t be functional unless it manages to accept payments from the customers. A payment gateway refers to the software needed to accept credit card payments from your customers online. There are several types of payment gateways available, among which you can choose the one that perfectly meets your requirements. However, if you are offering any booking or subscription facility, then you should opt for a gateway offering automatic billing, as not all of them provide this feature.
Conclusion
These were some of the technical aspects you must take care of, when it comes to your e-commerce website development, to create a frictionless shopping system. It would ensure that your website functions properly, is equipped with all vital features, provides a great user experience and delivers a smooth and safe shopping experience.
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