How to create a new webshop that is attracting customers
Creating a new webshop is not as difficult as it used to be. In the case of using webshop engines we can create our own webshop without having the knowledge of a web developer. However, the devil is in the details, because some of the advanced settings required for online advertising can cause difficulties, not to mention search engine optimization.
There are several factors to consider if you’d like to have a successful webshop:
- Technical and content SEO aspects (search engine optimization),
- User-friendly interface (UX aspects)
- Load speed of the webshop (fast page load),
- The buying process (easy to follow),
- Offered payment methods (e.g. credit card payment),
- Measurability (GA3, GA4, Google Ads, Facebook Ads)
- Other considerations (e.g., generating a dynamic product feed for Google Shopping and Facebook catalog ads, incorporating dynamic remarketing and other features required for online advertising).
These are just some of the key aspects that a webshop today must meet in order to achieve its main goal, which is to get not only viewers but also customers and revenue for its owner.
When choosing the webshop engine on which you want to build your webshop as a first step, you should consider the aspects above. In the following, we will inspect what functions and features are needed for your webshop to work well, as well as what are the main webshop engines and what are their advantages and disadvantages.
Webshop SEO (webshop search engine optimization)
When we create a new webshop, product and product category descriptions and urls are key to reach organic search traffic. To approach this problem, we need to be aware of what features we actually need the webshop engine of our choice to have, and how much we want to do the search engine optimization for the webshop ourselves.
Let’s look at the conditions that must be met in order to increase our website’s organic – free – search traffic.
- Webshop speed (fast page load)
- URL structure (keywords and hierarchy of the URLs)
- 301 redirect handling (redirection of discontinued product URLs)
- Robot.txt editing possibility (manual fixes)
- Mobile-friendly webshop interface (easy navigation and shopping on mobile)
- If possible, the webshop should not require web developer knowledge (this is only valid if you want to manage the webshop yourself, but the presence and help of a webshop developer is essential for many advanced settings)
The two most frequently used webshop engines in Hungary are Shopify and WooCommerce, so let’s see in detail whether they meet the basic requirements.
The WooCommerce webshop engine
The WooCommerce webshop engine offered by WordPress is a common choice when planning to create a new webshop. It is very easy to convert, can provide a lot of technical help when needed and is also strong in the key points above.
However, users of the WooCommerce webshop engine will have to go through a very serious learning process in order to take full advantage of the features of this webshop system. For each additional function, a new so-called plugin needs to be downloaded similarly to WordPress, which complicates and slows down processes (and page loading), and important information is that the plugins are developed by third-party developers, so they don’t always work flawlessly, and some extra features aren’t available for free, but are often available with the purchase of a paid plugin.
However, e.g. the All in One SEO plugin makes SEO easier than other webshop engines. For example, with the “All in One” SEO plugin, we can modify the URL parameters to better match the products in the webshop. In addition, we can modify the meta descriptions so that our webshop can be even more relevant in the search engine.
The Woocommerce webshop engine can be a great choice for special webshops where, for example, bulk product management solutions are needed (product upload, product pricing), or even monitoring the huf-eur exchange rate and based on this we want to automatically change webshop product prices or even price rounding solutions in addition to the change in the huf-euro exchange rate.When using the Woocommerce webshop engine, it is possible to implement almost any sophisticated development.
The Shopify webshop engine
Shopify is perhaps one of the simplest webshop engines, so it is preferred for webshop creation, but like everything, it has its advantages and disadvantages, and complex features can cause problems that can only be solved with additional developing that can lead to basic operational problems.
Shopify’s interface is the most user-friendly, easy to use without developer knowledge, it is easy and simple to create a webshop with it. If you are planning to write a Blog, which is very helpful for SEO, Shopify is a good choice, and not the last in terms of measurement, as it also has a built-in Google Analytics linking possibility. However, without developer knowledge, it is difficult to modify the robot.txt file, which if personalized can often greatly improve the perception of a webshop in Google, and it is not possible to modify the URLs assigned by the system manually, but it also has other shortcomings, e.g. the disadvantage of mapping the URL structure is that the product category / subcategory url hierarchy is retained up to the lowest product category, but this part is already missing in the product urls.
The disadvantage of Shopify in terms of search engine optimization is the product url problem already mentioned and for example the fact that it is not possible to enter meta tags manually for product category URLs.
Easy to use webshop
When we think of ease of use and usability in the case of a webshop, it is impossible to examine things from just one point of view. It is important to be able to easily manage the admin interface for the webshop operator as well.
It is important that customers get from product to payment quickly and easily, and last but not least, the webshop should be visible to Google.
We have collected 13 points that must be taken into account in terms of the usability of the webshop.
- It is important to avoid broken webshop links. The worst experience for the buyer and Google is to run into a 404 error message. This greatly reduces the willingness to buy and Google also ranks the website lower in organic search results.
- It is essential to take into account that the text in the webshop is important not only for the customer to know all the information about the product, but also for Google’s robots.
- Use the correct language. It is important that if we sell products in more than one country, the website should also follow this and speak to customers in that country in their language.
- Backlinking is perhaps one of the most effective SEO weapons. Webshops that get more backlinks rank higher in organic search results.
- Seamless shopping. Ensuring fast, easy and smooth shopping in all conditions. This is a very important point in the manageability of the webshop. In that case, let’s try to think about what you would be most happy about when you are shopping online.
- Webshop speed. In today’s fast-paced world, a website’s loading speed is a pivotal point to success. On a slow website – no matter how good – the product will not generate a purchase.
- Title optimization. This is a basic structural point of the webshop. This tells users where they are going from and where they are going to on the webshop.
- HTML code optimization. HTML code is the soul of a webshop, if it is not okay, then the whole webshop is not okay.
- Image optimization. Be sure to use descriptive text for your images as well as keywords, as Google’s robots can interpret this text. In addition, the size and file format of the images greatly affect the loading speed of the website, which in turn affects the user experience.
- Make the theme of the website straightforward.
- Turn off the doorway landing pages, if visitors are important to you and you want to get good results in the search engine.
- It’s very important to Google that the content is displayed properly on all screens and that the features work well. As a result, mobile and tablet views are just as important as the desktop view.
- Keep creating fresh content and blog articles for your webshop. If you use the Woocommerce webshop, download the appropriate SEO plugin and don’t hesitate to use it all the time.
Webshop load speed
Nowadays, it is very important that our webshop is available to users in 1-2 seconds after clicking. This is no longer optional but key.
Today, mobile purchases already account for 24.5% of the world’s online purchases. And that number will only increase.
If you want to check the speed of your website and get advice on how to improve it, you may want to use the “page speed insights” website provided by Google and the “test my site” websites for specific suggestions and improvements.
Purchase process on the webshop
We have reached a crucial point. Optimizing the buying process is one of the most delicate processes. The shorter the buying process, the better. The ideal shopping route consists of a maximum of 6 steps, from finding the product to a successful delivery.
Most webshop engines like WooCommerce, Shopify and Shoprenter use the shortest possible route to make shopping run smoothly, but what if we use custom or other webshop engines? We have collected 14 points that we must adhere to in order for our webshop to provide the optimal shopping experience.
- Optimize your mobile payment page. Today, the number of mobile purchases is constantly increasing and neglecting this can result in a deterioration of up to 50%.
- Allow guest purchases. It is important to ensure that customers do not have to register in order to make a purchase on the website.
- Ask only the information you need. The longer it takes to place an order, the more likely it is that the user will get bored and leave the website.
- Use a straightforward design. Remove all unnecessary items from the purchase process. Once the user is at the checkout, there is no need for further factors, just closing the purchase as soon as possible.
- Offer multiple payment options. It is important that there should be other options beside prepaying by credit card. Most users like cash on delivery or PayPal payment.
- Avoid surprise costs. In addition to the price and shipping of the advertised product, do not attempt to charge the user for hidden costs.
- Assure the user that their data is secure. If you have a badge that proves that we protect your information with a certain service, indicate this.
- Use form authentication and error messages. This will help users provide all the information they need to place an order.
- Connect users to customer service. In the event of any disruptions, it is important that the contact details of the customer service are indicated at all times, preferably in both the header and footer.
- Use a progress bar. This allows us to show users how many more steps are left to make a successful purchase.
- Option for quick registration. It’s important to enable registration with Facebook and Google accounts to speed up the registration process as well.
- Archive cart contents. Sometimes someone adds a product to the cart but then closes the page or their laptop or phone turns off. The solution to this option is to save the contents of the cart and assure users that they can buy that product later, and last but not least this is important in terms of remarketing as well.
- Use promotional codes with caution. The option to use the promotional code should be indicated at the time of payment, but not too spectacular for those who are not less distracted.
- Don’t forget to send a confirmation email after payment!
PPC advertising and measurement issues in webshops
The next point is most important with subsequent ads and the right measurements.
For the implementation of e-commerce metrics or even codes that help to measure different platforms, it is important to consider how simple or how complicated these are to set up for a given webshop engine. We looked at the most popular webshop engines for how easy it is to set up the codes and metrics mentioned above.
WooCommerce webshop engine
One of the best known internationally used webshop engines available for free. The registration itself and getting started is extremely easy. There are plenty of free plugins for the site. It offers built-in payment options and full control over your data. However, there are more difficulties if you want to publish your website, assign Facebook, Google Ads systems, or even set up ecommerce metrics, and it is needed to buy extra storage so you can upload products and manage traffic.
It can take several hours to download all the plugins you need and make them work.
An important advantage is that the Woocommerce webshop can be easily integrated with Facebook conversions API(can be set up with a few clicks), so you can easily supplement your Facebook pixel – 3rd party cookie – Facebook conversion measurement with 1st party data and 1st party measurement, giving you much more conversion data that may be the replacement of our pixel measurements due to third-party cookie blockings.
Shopify webshop engine
This platform has been specifically designed for webshops and as a result it is much easier to create and operate our webshop on it. It is extremely user friendly and very easy to set up measurements on different platforms like Facebook and Google Ads. However, in the case of the Shopify webshop engine, it is important that if you need features other than the basic operation, you will need a custom developing, and from there, you can expect a number of problems with the basic operation after modifying the basic Shopify webshop operation. It is also important that for such unique developments it is very difficult to find a webshop developer partner in Hungary and there is only one official Shopify development company in Hungary!
In addition, it offers a number of free features, plus it provides 24-hour customer service and has its own storage space, which provides great convenience.
However, the negatives can also be found here. In order to take full advantage of the features of the Shopify webshop engine, you have to pay a monthly usage fee of $ 300, which is not the best for a start-up webshop, and if you want to advertise internationally, you have to reckon with additional costs.
Shoprenter webshop engine
Hungary’s “market-leading” webshop engine. It already has many features in the basic package that allow a novice web store to get started without any problems. Its advantages include the fact that many things can be set up in the admin interface relatively easily, it is under constant development and its customer service is extremely good, as well as it provides training for its users on a regular basis. It has its own storage space and various packages through which we can adjust the monthly fee to the size of our webshop.
Since a lot of things can be set in the admin interface, it is easy to ruin our already existing webshop. Unfortunately, the concept of the base is not the best in terms of design, and therefore, if we want a unique, clean webshop, we have to reckon with additional costs. Also, if you want to connect with any custom billing or logistics software, it won’t be easy. However, it can be integrated with Kulcs-Soft’s inventory system.
The huge downside is that as of May 2022, it does not yet have GA4 (Google Analytics 4) integration, which should be a basic requirement for a webshop. Not to mention that setting up Facebook conversions API for the Shoprenter webshop engine is only possible with custom web development, they don’t offer an easy to use partner integration like WooCommerce and Shopify.
Overall, using the Shoprenter webshop engine can be a good choice for a simple webshop, but if you want anything more sophisticated, choose the WooCommerce webshop engine!
Summary
It is clear that there are many critical factors to consider when designing a well-functioning webshop. The key aspects are the suitability for seo, the user-friendly interface, the good shopping experience, the right measurability, and the easy-to-use and easy-to-understand admin interface for simple tasks.
In order to avoid the insignificant detail costing more than essence, it is worth considering the channels through which we plan the traffic to the website and choose a suitable webshop engine. For many webshop engines, the basic settings are simple and the webshop engine itself is free, but if you want to make more sophisticated measurements and advanced settings, it is easy not to achieve the set goal.
Take the time to plan carefully to choose a webshop engine that will effectively support the growth of your online business in the future.
If you need professional support for your digital marketing activities, do not hesitate to contact us!
Sources used:
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https://www.oberlo.com/statistics/mobile-commerce-sales
https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
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