Your store needs these 12 website features!

In today's world, customers demand a high-quality web experience. This includes providing information in an appealing way. As an e-commerce business owner, you have a wide variety of design elements at your fingertips that can prevent customers from leaving the site or closing the shopping cart (so-called shopping cart abandoners).
We asked 12 entrepreneurs from the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following question: What is a must-have design element or feature that helps an e-commerce business create an easier and more enjoyable customer experience?

1) Customer reviews

Guillermo Ortiz of Geek Powered Studios emphasizes that every e-commerce website should have reviews or testimonials from previous customers. These reviews are incredibly important to the buying process. Positive reviews can make products or services seem more trustworthy. Consumers will spend more time on the site when reading reviews, rather than going back to Google, for example, to search for other product reviews elsewhere.

2) Product videos

Videos can help create a positive customer experience or a more engaging landing page. In addition, if a video focuses on the basics and explains one feature at a time, step-by-step, it becomes easier to understand how a product works. According to Chris Savage of Wistia, this makes for a better customer experience, but also leads to higher customer engagement, a concrete increase in willingness to buy.

3) Customer service with chat function

More and more online shoppers prefer to chat rather than call. With the help of a simple support box at the bottom of the page, users can easily ask questions. Sales can be captured that might otherwise have been lost. Adelyn Zhou of Alight Labs describes specific customer service chatbot companies that can help you manage online inquiries and keep the conversation going.

4) An informative FAQ page

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Many would prefer to search for information on their own first before deciding to contact customer service. Roger Lee of Captain401 recommends a detailed, helpful FAQ page that not only answers a question directly (and customizable), but also gives him more information about your brand and offerings.

5) Clear contact information

There's nothing more frustrating for a customer than having to go through the hassle of finding out where to get support. Alex Miller of Upgraded Points recommends clearly displaying contact information on the top half of every page on the site. It is easier to place this in the header or near the navigation bar. The information should definitely include a phone number and email address. Visible contact information increases the credibility of the page immensely.

6) Quality Blog Content

Cynthia Johnson of Ipseity Media describes the impact of high-quality content. It provides additional sources of information, positively influences purchasing decisions, and better explains how to use the product in an effective way.

7) Visual Heatmaps

Knowing where customers are interacting on an e-commerce site is one of the most important factors that can be monitored on a website. Using visual heatmaps allows you to see where people are scrolling, clicking and moving around the page. This gives you information on where to place content, what to remove, and what may be necessary to generate and convert customers from web traffic. Visualh heat maps were recommended by Tommy Mello of A1 Garage Door Service.

8) A "call to action" near the price

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It's important to have either a phone number or a clickable order button in the immediate vicinity of the price. Specializing in phone-based conversions that link the online shopping environment to the offline world, Michael Gleason of Consumer Brands, LLC uses several unique duty-free numbers next to each line item price in a shopping cart.

9) A mobile-optimized interface

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With more and more customers ordering from their smartphones, it's important to have a responsive and mobile-optimized website. Without a responsive and well-built site, Google rankings will decrease and with it visibility and conversions. Duran Inci of Optimum7 describes the relevance.

10) Email Lightbox/Pop-Up

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Email lightbox and pop-ups are among the most important part of driving conversions, according to Erik Huberman of Hawke Media. Most people don't buy a product the first time they click on a page. By collecting email addresses, you have the ability to follow up with a large number of visitors, greatly increasing your sales

11) Coupons and limited time offers

For the impulsive buyer, a coupon that is valid for a limited time can create urgency and dispel doubts about the purchase. Firas Kittaneh of Amerisleep recommends using discounts strategically to encourage customers to add items to their carts.

12) Detailed product descriptions

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According to John Rampton of Due, it's helpful to have a very detailed product description rather than one that might come from a manufacturer. The more appealing or entertaining the website is, the more I feel like buying a product. Also, pictures that show the product from all sides are very helpful because there is no opportunity to touch it.