Website design
When developing an e-commerce website, strong web design is a crucial IT skill. A good e-commerce site design relies on the use of the appropriate colours, fonts, images, phrases, and visuals to persuade visitors to make a purchase. The e-commerce website design should entice potential buyers, create a positive user experience, and present the store in the best light possible.
So, not only does the site need to look attractive and feel on-brand, but it also needs to compel users to take action and make online purchases.
There are many short courses available on website design for those looking to upskill and continue their career development. As workplaces and markets become increasingly digitised, this has the advantage of being a transferable skill across many industries.
Front-end development
Front-end development is the process of writing CSS, JavaScript, and presentational HTML code to create a strong user interface. Essentially, it is a method of turning whatever the developers write into something that the customer base can visually grasp. Front-end developers do not write application-level code or perform debugging.
What occurs here is that the website code and design are in sync. A front-end developer gathers information from a UX designer and then executes it using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. They are also responsible for ensuring that the sites load quickly, that the code is efficient, and that the pictures are optimised.
This IT skill helps with developing websites for e-commerce platforms and ensuring they perform optimally. Without a strong user interface, customers may be unable to, or be discouraged from, making purchases online.
Data analysis
Visitors are the intended audience for an e-commerce website. What do visitors have in spades? Data! They have access to millions of terabytes of data without even realising it. They leave data trails for analysts to follow.
Analysing this data is an important part of research and development for an e-commerce business. There are many questions that those in data analytics need to answer, such as: which website is being visited? Where did a certain user’s cursor fall on the landing page? How long does it take for the webpage to load? How long does the average session last per user? Are there any issues on the website that users are encountering (such as 404 and 301)?
Answering these, and responding to trends, allows e-commerce teams to refine their marketing strategy and develop products that consumers want to sell.
Data analytics is usually taught during a marketing degree, but there are accredited short courses that workers can take to upskill in this area and contribute to the development of their company.
Search engine optimisation
Finally, there is SEO, or search engine optimisation. This is often the foundation of long-term e-commerce success. Website links are displayed higher in search engine results as a result of SEO, which is how consumers learn about a company’s brand, offerings, goods, and services.
It is critical not just to increase revenue but also to establish a brand. It is not intended to deceive Google or other search engines, but rather to assist search engine crawlers in better understanding what you have to offer. By using strategies like keyword integration, you can ensure that a website, blog, or sales page is shown to people who are interested.
SEO may seem very technical, but once the fundamentals are covered, it becomes rather intuitive. Look at online videos or blogs to learn about SEO or upskill for your next e-commerce job through an accredited SEO IT skills course.
Soar in e-commerce
There are undoubtedly many additional skills necessary for the success of any e-commerce firm, but here, we’ve outlined some of the salient skills to help you upskill in your current e-commerce job, start out in e-commerce, or make the switch to e-commerce as a part of your career development. We’ve also provided some tips to shape up your CV for the new opportunities that you’re seeking.
