WHAT ARE THE ESSENTIAL FEATURES OF AN E-COMMERCE WEBSITE?

 

The essential features of an e-commerce website are numerous but typically include:

1. Product catalogue: This is where the products or services offered by the website are listed, including detailed information such as descriptions, images, and pricing.

2. Shopping cart: This feature allows customers to add items to their cart and keep track of their selections as they continue to shop on the website.

3. Checkout process: This feature allows customers to complete their purchases, including entering shipping and billing information and selecting a payment method.

4. Customer account management: This feature allows customers to create and manage their own accounts on the website, including viewing their order history and tracking the status of their current orders.

5. Inventory management: This feature allows the website owner to track and manage the availability of products, including updating stock levels and displaying “out of stock” messages when appropriate.

6. Search and filtering: This feature allows customers to search for products by keywords or filter by different criteria, such as price, brand, or category.

7. Mobile responsiveness: Since most users access e-commerce websites on their phones an e-commerce website needs to be optimized to look and function well on mobile devices as well as desktop computers.

8. Security: The website should be secure and protect customer data through a secure payment gateway and SSL certificate.

REFERENCE 

Mangles, C. (2017) 72 essential features of an ecommerce site [infographic], Smart Insights. Available at: https://www.smartinsights.com/ecommerce/ecommerce-strategy/72-essential-features-ecommerce-site/ (Accessed: January 24, 2023).