Now that you have a store or at least an idea for a store, it’s time to start creating content for it and planning your store’s sales funnel.
There are a lot of things to keep in mind when designing your store, which is why we’re breaking down the standard pages of an eCommerce website, whether Shopify or WooCommerce. These are the typical sections of your store that are used to market your products to customers. Let’s take a look at the different standard pages of an eCommerce site.
eCommerce Website Basics
Your home page is like the greeter at the big box store, only better. It should welcome your visitors, be visibly appealing, and entice them to explore the rest of your site. Your product pages are where you display and sell your products. You can customize these pages as much or as little as you want. You might include images and descriptions of the product, or some customer reviews. You could even include detailed information about the materials used for production if you have them available to share with potential customers.
When it comes to photos and images, quality is important in order to attract shoppers who are browsing the web. Lastly, your cart is how people check out after purchasing items from your store. This page lets customers enter their shipping address and billing information while also previewing what they’ll be paying for before completing the purchase. Customers can always change their mind at this point too if they decide they don’t want an item or want to double-check the cost before buying it.
Content Strategies for Your eCommerce site
The first thing you’ll want to focus on is your theme. Choosing an appropriate theme is important for both Shopify and WooCommerce sites. The theme will allow you to access and edit the different settings for customization.
Below are the pages that are typically used in every eCommerce website, regardless of the platform.
Home Page
The home page is usually the first-page visitors land on when they visit your site. It’s important that this page be visually appealing and contain any necessary information about your products or services. The content on your home page needs to guide your visitors along the customer journey of your site to make purchasing from you a no-brainer.
Collections Page
A collection page is a page in which you organize your products into a cohesive set, such as “Sale Items,” or “New Arrivals.” Collections pages are critical because they help the customer understand the different parts of your store and what they can find there.
Product Pages
For brands with items available for purchase, each product page will display all the information about that item so customers know what they’re buying and what they’re getting before they buy it. You’ll want to optimize your content with keywords to help with SEO.
Blog Page
A blog page is where you post regular updates, so your followers have a way to stay updated on what’s new with your business or brand. Not only does it do that, a blog is crucial for SEO and helps to show you as an expert in your field.
About Page
The purpose of the About page is to give your customers an idea of who you are and why they should purchase products from you. It’s important to have a high-quality, professional About Page that includes your brand’s logo, mission statement, and values. Make sure you include any social media links you want people to follow like Facebook and Instagram. Neil Patel has a great article on writing an about page.
Legal Pages: Privacy, Terms of Service, Shipping and Returns Policies
There are a few legal pages that you need to have on your eCommerce website. These pages are your Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, and Shipping & Returns Policies.
The Privacy Policy page is where you disclose how customer data is used and stored by your business.
The Terms of Service page is where you detail the terms that customers must agree to when using your business’s products or services.
Finally, the Shipping and Returns Policies inform customers about what they can expect in terms of shipping fees, return policies, and other useful information like exchanges and refunds. Shopify offers a free generator for creating legal pages for your eCommerce site.
In their blog article, LegalShield discusses the 10 Legal Requirements for Your Small Business Website which will be helpful to you.
Contact Page
The contact page is where you want to provide a way for customers to get in touch with your brand. It should have an email address and phone number, as well as any social media channels that you want to include. You could also include a form for people to submit a question or comment which would come to your inbox rather than making them send you an email.
FAQ page
The FAQ page is a critical aspect of your store. It allows you to answer any questions potential customers may have about your products or services. After all, most people are not going to bother reading the rest of your site if they can’t find an answer to their question.
Reviews page
If you’ve shopped online at all, you know how important reviews are in making a purchase decision. In addition to reviews, you can also show off your social media followers and rank on Google. This gives people an idea of how popular you are, which helps raise trust levels for customers.
Final Thoughts on eCommerce Website Pages
Creating an eCommerce website isn’t as difficult as you might think. The first thing you need to do is determine how much time you want to put into your store. Do you want to create a simple store with no bells and whistles or do you want to create a full-fledged online store with many different features and functions? Once you’ve decided the level of complexity you want for your store, it’s time to get started.
Not ready to tackle an eCommerce website on your own? Let us help you! Book a Free Consultation to find out how.
