It’s easy to think that the most important thing about your Shopify e-commerce store is your products. And while this might have some truth, this mindset can quickly set you down a path of less success over time.
Shopify is one of the leading e-commerce platforms for companies both in the U.S. and around the world – millions of businesses host their store here, so the environment is crowded and it can be hard to stand out.
Pairing this with the idea that many companies are more focused on getting their products online fast rather than how their store looks and is set up, it can quickly become a struggle for your business.
A bad Shopify store design has a stronger impact than you might think. It can cost you credibility, engagement, customer retention, and sales. To help you avoid this, let’s break down why design matters more than you think it does, and the hidden costs of not giving it the attention it needs.
Why Shopify Store Design Matters
People are quick to judge companies today, especially with how many there are to choose from, and the impacts technology has had on attention spans. So you have to make a good first impression quickly if you want people to stick around long enough to learn what you’re about and make a connection.
Design is a big contributing factor to these first impressions. If people don’t like the look of your store, they’re likely to connect that to your products and think they won’t like those either. And if they can’t easily navigate the site from any device, there is a good chance they exit out and go find someone else to shop with.
E-commerce conversion rates have a direct correlation to store design, meaning bad design is likely to lead to bad results.
Hidden Cost #1 – Lost Sales
With how many stores people can shop at, you have to give them a reason to choose you. Bad design or layout, confusing navigation, and not presenting your products well leads to a negative user experience, which can quickly drive shoppers away.
Whether it’s slow load times, not being mobile friendly, a confusing checkout process, or anything of the sort, bad design makes it harder for people to act on your site. And not being able to take action means they’re less likely – or unable completely – to make purchases.
Hidden Cost #2 – Poor SEO
In order for people to shop on your e-commerce site, they have to find it first. This is where SEO comes into play. Having poor site speeds, bad responsiveness for difference screen sizes, and cluttered structure in the front and back-end of the site negatively impacts your SEO rankings, so you’re less likely to get that traffic from search engines when people in your area search for your store or products.
Shopify gives you the ability to more easily set up your store for better SEO through image optimization, keywords and metadata, and listing descriptions, but if you don’t use these – or use them poorly – you’re more likely to get buried further down in search results.
Hidden Cost #3 – More Marketing Effort
When your Shopify site isn’t getting the traffic or sales you want, most businesses end up spending more money on ads and other digital marketing efforts to help make up for the lack of organic traffic. While this seems like an easy fix, it can get expensive in a hurry and still doesn’t guarantee results.
The ads might drive more people to the site, but if the design still misses the mark, once they get there the ads aren’t influencing them to act. So, you’re spending money and technically hitting your first mark – getting them to the site – but if they aren’t making purchases, that return on investment is still low. Instead, you need strong design to ensure those ads entice people to fully complete the process – go to the site, like what they see, and make a purchase.
Hidden Cost #4 – Lower Brand Reputation
People like to shop with companies they trust. A bad design makes your company look unreliable or unprofessional, which impacts your credibility. If you site looks like you didn’t put much time or effort into it, people might think the same thought – or lack thereof – went into your products.
This also translates into customer loyalty. People might love your products, but if it’s hard for them to find things on your site, they can’t actually purchase them. Same with how likely people are to recommend your brand to people. You want good reviews and word-of-mouth recommendations, but if people are having to say things like “it’s hard to find stuff on their site, I’ll send you a direct link,” that means other people are spending less time browsing and possibly less money.
Hidden Cost #5 – Costly Redesigns
When first building your Shopify store, getting things done as quickly and easily as possible might seem like the best route because you can go live faster. But cutting corners on your e-commerce store means you’ll have to go back and fix them later. Whether it’s using a cheap or outdated theme, not focusing on the metadata, or anything of the sort, those things create design issues over time that can negatively impact your site.
Having to go back and fix those problems later means more downtime, lower sales, and potentially having to hire a professional team to come in and fix things. If you take the time to put together a strong, professional design and store up front, you’re more likely to save yourself time, money, and headaches in the future.
One of the biggest tips for preventing design-related issues on your Shopify site is to take your time and know what you’re doing. Whether that means researching and learning before you do it yourself, or working with a Shopify design company that knows the ins and outs of the platform well, this will ensure you have a design that aligns with your brand, will engage your audience, and help you more than hurt you.
With how competitive the e-commerce market is today, having a strong Shopify website is about more than just your products. It’s the overall package you present to the world, and your site’s design is a major component of that. To help avoid issues with sales, credibility, and retention over time, investing in good design early is essential.
How We Can Help
At WePro, we’re proud to be a Shopify partner, meaning we have the knowledge, background, and resources to help you boost your online store. Whether you need help with the design, store setup, SEO, or a mixture of it all, our team is here to help you navigate the crowded terrain and find your place online.
If you’re ready to get started with our Shopify design services, send us a message and we’ll schedule your free consult!
