Many store owners hit a point where talks of a “redesign” come up daily.
It is important to realize that while you may only have direct control over a limited number of design elements in your store, that doesn’t necessarily mean it is time to explore a complete redesign. If the store code base is solid and the store is feature rich, reworking certain elements of the site may be a more cost effective, less drastic, and much faster option.
Radical Design versus Iterative Design
When a store is first designed, it is done so with a set list of features and requirements in mind. Over the years, the number of features and on-site information can grow substantially. In addition, you must work with changes in customer expectations, common screen resolutions, coding standards, and the focus of the product line may incur a shift.
These evolutionary changes are common for all store owners, but the store must evolve along with these changes.
An Example of Iterative Design
With a template-driven store, custom programming allows us to isolate problem areas and rework them best to fit a new list of requirements – without having to dive into a complete redesign. A good example of this is www.hightidehealth.com. Although the store needed a homepage facelift, there wasn’t a need to start from scratch. High Tide’s biggest issue was the homepage and navigation. Over the years, the number of sections increased, and the homepage and header messaging needed updating.
Our cost-effective solution was to update the homepage and wrapper with the latest branding and messaging rather than rebuild the entire site.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
The Effort
These changes required minimal design and development time. We provided new controls for the clients, while leaving the core code and all features untouched. The changes included:
- header and top nav for breathing room and efficiency
- left nav to allow categories to remain above the fold
- homepage contents with designated “shops” available to client and customers
The improvement in performance was immediate:
- 20% increase in time on page
- 10% drop in exits from homepage
- 3% decrease in bounce rate
The Case for a Radical Redesign
There can be a case for a radical redesign more often than not. A store could be using stock templates, the current templates are not programmed to standard, or there is simply no digging out from the complexity that has built up from years of new fields and features.
FastPivot relishes the opportunity to offer iterative ideas for our prospects. We completely redesign stores every day, but a chance to innovate over time and rework areas to account for new features excites us. This is one of the reasons that our retainer base is so healthy. We would much rather continue to improve stores over time instead of designing a killer store and cutting it loose.
It is important to keep in mind that even if you’re frustrated with your branding, wrapper, cart experience, item page clutter, or other headaches, that does not mean it’s time to wipe the slate clean. Give FastPivot a call, and let’s talk about what your options really are.
Or… learn more by downloading one of our helpful guides:
- Whitepaper: seven tricks of the trade to enhance your website
- Five ways to improve your Netsuite SuiteCommerce Website
