According to Trendex North America via Statista, a decline of $485.62 billion in the global fashion ecommerce industry in 2020 has been anticipated with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has posed threats not only to the public health situation but also to industries, but this must not be the case for some online clothing stores. Instead, they have soared during this time!
This is a manifestation that some fashion websites and online clothing stores have not yet adjusted to the trends in their ecommerce plans amid the pandemic. If this is the case, it is only perceived that most clothes websites will continue to fall flat.
Don’t worry because this is workable! It is high time for you to step up your game in presenting your clothes websites to your potential customers. Here at Strikingly, we have seen several clothes websites take off on our platform, and we found some glaring differences between these sites and other ecommerce websites we have helped launch.
For starters, the fashion ecommerce industry is more than transactional in nature. Although need is an effective driver, people don’t just buy clothes out of the need to have something to cover their bodies. They are also buying the experience of being stylishly clothed. The aspiration to become fashion icons is another thing that makes them take out their credit cards.
Having said that, it’s already a given that clothes websites templates should be mobile-responsive, user-friendly and quick to load. But how do you design a clothing website that can sell effectively and retain customers? Here are some of the best tips that you can apply to boost your clothes websites!
1. Smart Use of White Space
The first tip on how to create a website to sell clothes is to consider the use of white space in the design. Many fashion websites utilize a lot of negative space to draw attention to their visuals. When correctly used, white space in design makes a site look more luxurious and elegant. It exudes exclusivity. Aside from that, white spaces would also give a minimalist vibe to your clothes website which makes it clean, cool, and high-fashion.
Clothing consumers want to feel that they are purchasing one of a kind pieces - they want to wear clothes that will make them stand out. Most of these fashion-inclined consumers have their inspirations from Instagram personalities who commonly use white spaces in their content. If they get to check your clothes website, it would be easier to connect to them because you are aware that this is the type of aesthetic that interests them. An elegantly designed website can invoke this feeling in a user.
2. Consistent Branding Across the Design
Consistent branding is also important when building clothes websites. Aside from the use of a professional logo, the right choice of color palettes, fonts and icons on the site contribute to consistency in branding. These design elements should effectively represent your shopping website to create a more coherent image in your user’s mind. Consistency in branding contributes to brand awareness and recall - things that you want to build to get customers to come back to your site.
If you are the customer, you want to see coherent content from all clothes websites you are checking. You don’t want any mismatched content or even errors on the site. To be able to avoid that, it is recommended for you to create a set of visual guidelines to implement not just on your website but all other aspects of your digital marketing campaign.
Remember that every visual you put out on the internet - through paid ads or social networks - should tie back to your website and your brand.
3. Good Photography Is Essential
Another tip on how to make a website sell clothes effectively is to invest in good photography. You don’t want to disappoint potential customers by giving them poorly photographed products in your shopping website. Remember that most people who are into fashion have their icons who they look up to, that’s why it is important for your clothing website to present photographs of your products that would make them imagine what they look like when they buy and wear the piece.
When you shop through an online store, you don’t have the opportunity to carefully examine the make of the clothes that you are looking to buy or try them on before making a purchase. To address this limitation, clothing and fashion sites rely on professional shots of their products. Action shots will also help users visualize what the products might look like when they are worn. It would also work best if you have multiple photographs for a product: close-up, whole body, details, etc. Some sites even go the distance and get different-sized models to represent the different types of people who can wear their clothes.
4. Don’t Kill the Site With Too Much Text
Fashion is mostly visual in nature so take care not to use too much text on your content in your shopping website. Good copywriting can help convey your message to your visitor in key areas on your site such as the product pages and the homepage. For sure, your potential customers would not want to be bombarded with so much text when all they need to do is find fashionable pieces that they can slay on any occasions.
In general, the text should be brief and straight to the point. Don’t put too much yada-yada on your clothes website so as to make your consumer stay and buy your products moving forward. If you are to put yourself in the shoes of the consumers, you save your time and effort in finding clothes; if they have to deal with so much text just to navigate the whole fashion website, they might lose interest. So if you have the budget for it, it is a good investment for you to hire a good copywriter to help you communicate your brand’s message on your website.
5. Create an Overall Pleasurable Buying Experience
User experience matters a lot when it comes to online stores. This is where you will not only make your customers stay on your clothes websites, but also urge them to come back if they are looking for new garments to wear.
If you want your website to be effective at selling your products, make it easy for users to complete purchases. Strikingly has an integrated ecommerce platform that allows visitors to transact and make payments through your website in just a few clicks. Add the Simple Store section to your clothes websites templates for a convenient way to build an online shop that sells. You should also provide your contacts so it would be more convenient for the consumers to inquire.
What do the best fashion ecommerce sites have? Here are some of the clothing websites powered by Strikingly that have unique features that make it a fashion store to check!
• Koike
Image taken from Strikingly user website
Koike is one of the best fashion ecommerce sites out there today. This is one of the clothes websites that opens with a very straightforward photo with minimal texts that gives a preview of what and who the website is all about. It features collections of clothing and partnerships with known affiliations to strengthen its brand.
• Isa Catepillan
Image taken from Strikingly user website
Isa Catepillan’s website is more than just an online clothing store. This website provides a clean and minimalist look which makes it easier to navigate. You can easily locate the collections and the button where you can have custom orders. Overall, the website is very organized and comprehensive all at once.
• Stitched Alive
Image taken from Strikingly user website
This website provides all that you need about it: visuals, text, and details! The colors provided by the website include vibrant ones which make it one to check out. Also, the tagline is very brief, that you will keep asking for more. This online clothing store makes shopping more fun and exciting.
How To Create a Clothes Website
Image taken from Strikingly product
Now that you have the necessary information about what makes the best clothing website and have seen some of the sample clothing websites powered by Strikingly, it is now time to create your own! Through these simple steps, you can now have your clothing brand known:
1. Select a Template That Represents Your Brand
From different varieties of templates provided by Strikingly, you can select one that is representative of your clothes websites. Make sure that you are considering the aesthetics and design of the website being coherent to the fashion garments that you are selling.
2. Start Editing The Template
Here is the time where you can add your products, your tagline, and your promotions among others. What’s important here is ensuring that the content of your website is comprehensive but also adheres to your preferred aesthetics.
3. Keep Track Of Ecommerce Trends
You can maximize the advantages of some marketing tools such as newsletter integrations, social media streams, and SEO editors to promote your brand and your clothes website. You can also check other websites and play with their strategies - keep what works, remove what does not work.
4. Materialize Marketing Campaigns
Make use of all the means to promote your fashion clothes website. To do this, you can share your content on various platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to expand your networks. Consider paid advertising on search engines as well as on social media when promoting clothes websites.
Ready to step up your clothes website? Create your free Strikingly account today, so you can conquer the ecommerce world with your online clothing store. Using Strikingly as your online store builder is a great way to achieve your ecommerce goals!
