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Some customers know exactly what they are looking for. Other shoppers may browse through categories in your online store and jump from one product to another. However, they all have one thing in common: they want the checkout process to be quick and easy once they have found what they are looking for. The term usability refers to a store's user-friendliness and to how efficiently, effectively and intuitively customers can use the store. We'll tell you what makes a store user-friendly and how you can put these qualities into practice.
Clear yet flexible navigation
Your store only has a few seconds to make a good first impression on customers. Often, this first impression depends on whether customers are able to find their way around quickly and easily. Help your customers get their bearings with a well organised navigational bar that contains seven or eight different menu items or buttons. Both the Home button and the header should lead customers back to the homepage. The header should also include buttons that open your customer service and help information, a search function and the shopping cart. Additional submenus should appear when customers move their mouse over the navigational bar. These submenus should list individual product categories and help your customers decide where to go next. Make sure that you also include useful filters and sorting options. Use a powerful search function to help your customers quickly find what they are looking for. Make sure that it includes the same filters and sorting options that are found elsewhere. Include an auto-complete function, which suggests results after three characters. Customers should have several different ways to access the product they are looking for. Not only should you sort your items into categories, but you should also sort them by brand name and group them for specific target audiences such as men, women or children.
The latest trend: flat design
Some online stores decide to use a minimalist UI design. This popular trend is known as "flat design". It favours images and text over stylistic elements such as colour gradients and other visual embellishments. This style aims to eliminate any potential distractions. Although simplicity tends to go hand in hand with usability, make sure not to rely too heavily on minimalism. It is still important that your customers can easily recognise the buttons that allow them to contact your support and the fields that they need to fill out on forms. Often, slight colour gradients or simple borders can be very helpful.
You certainly do not want your customers to feel like they are wasting their time. Therefore, avoid anything that could confuse customers while they search for products and make sure that your customers have several different ways to find what they are looking for. User-friendly stores often follow two important design principles: clarity and simplicity. However, always make sure that these principles help your store rather than hinder important functions.