Ecommerce slideshows allow your homepage to truly stand out, providing customers an overview of what you’re selling. To make the most of this opportunity, watch out for these 5 common mistakes.
I can never adequately stress the importance of your homepage.
Think about it, your homepage usually provides a first and lasting impression of your entire business. For a simple and affordable way to add some pizazz, you might consider including an interactive slideshow. But before you get started or make too many changes, check out these five common mistakes we see throughout our customer base.
Happy selling!
-Matt Winn, Online Communications Specialist, Volusion
Special thanks to the folks at See It Bigger for allowing us to feature their product! If you’re a Volusion customer and would like to be a part of future episodes, send us an email at marketing@volusion.com and we’ll send instructions on how to get started.
Here’s the transcript if you’d like to read along:
Hi everybody! My name is Matt and I’m an Online Communications Specialist here at Volusion. Welcome to Two Minute Tuesday, where we give you two minutes of ecommerce advice to bolster your online success.
Today we’re going to look at an important aspect in creating a good first impression on your homepage: your ecommerce slideshow. While we’ve seen an uptick in customers using this design element, we’re seeing a lot of mistakes as well.
First, watch out for brand consistency. For example, if you’re selling motorcycle gear but have a cute picture of an Easter bunny on your ecommerce slideshow, you’re not solidifying your brand message on your homepage. Thus, ensure that the typography, images and overall treatment of your slideshow is consistent with the aesthetic of your brand.
Next mistake: no specific calls to action in your website’s slideshow. This means that you should direct customers to the appropriate pages, whether it’s through a button or compelling text. If you don’t tell shoppers where to go, they likely won’t do what you want them to.
Third, stop neglecting your best products. Your slideshow allows you to present a lot of different ideas on the same page. Thus, one best practice is to show off your best selling products and most popular categories within the slideshow.
Fourth, we’re seeing a lot of people using Flash slideshow on their ecommerce site. This really isn’t a big deal if you’re a big fan and are comfortable with Flash, but there are a couple of drawbacks: 1) Flash isn’t good for SEO, and 2) if you’re not experienced with Flash, it can be very cumbersome to update and keep current. Thus, we recommend using a Javascript slideshow to help you get the best of both worlds.
Finally, if you’re forgetting to keep your slideshow fresh, you’re missing out. An ecommerce slideshow is a great mechanism to consistently update your homepage with various offers and specials – so remember to make updates here.
Hopefully this helped answered your most burning questions about your homepage’s slideshow. If you have any other questions, we’re happy to help.
From me to you, happy selling!