Information Technology Increasing sales and revenue
with responsive web design Sparks Direct, a lighting and electrical wholesaler, has seen their number of orders and online sales revenue rise by 60% by revamping and modernising their website for better mobile compatibility. The online wholesaler’s vast website now features over 9,000 products including lighting solutions and switches and sockets for throughout the home.
A
s an increasing number of people are accessing the web through different platforms such as mobile and tablet
devices, Sparks Direct and digital agency Cyber-Duck, worked together to launch a responsive website to accommodate the rise in mobile traffic. The design of the new website was centred on
improving the user experience of visitors by enabling people to view the website on virtually any device or screen size. Sparks Direct’s mobile audience now makes up approximately 25% of traffic to their website and so the company saw developing a responsive website as key to engaging with the rising number of visitors. The responsive web design was a central
feature of a project to modernise Sparks Direct’s online presence however the site also went through other upgrades including the e- commerce system supporting the online shop, the overall architecture of the website and its look and feel.
What is responsive web design? The essence of responsive web design is
designing and developing a mobile friendly website. This innovative approach provides the best possible user experience regardless of the device which visitors are accessing it from. Sparks Direct’s responsive website automatically responds to the screen size of a device and adjusts the performance, content and layout of each page accordingly so that the display of the page is tailored to the device it is being viewed on.
Putting the customer first One of the key drivers for the website changes
was the need to deliver the best possible customer service to customers – a philosophy which has been extended to online customers by ensuring optimum user experience. Products and information on the website can
now be accessed quicker and with greater ease, irrespective of the screen size or interface method (touch or mouse). As user experience has been the primary objective from the outset, it means that all aspects of the website are mobile friendly such as navigation buttons that are compatible
30 | electrical wholesaler February 2014
with fingers and thumbs, as well as the click of a mouse. Having a responsive website also allows Sparks
Direct to make fewer assumptions about online consumer behaviour. Since the launch of the new website, mobile visitors can access all of the content and features that are found on the desktop website, on their mobile and tablet devices. This eliminates the need for Sparks to filter which content from the desktop version of the website is featured on the mobile pages. A major advantage of a responsive website is
that rather than designing different websites for multiple screen sizes, one single website is designed with a layout that automatically adjusts to the screen size of the device it is being viewed on. This enables flexibility for the future mobile and tablet landscape as responsive technology ensures compatibility on devices that haven’t even been released yet. In addition, as all content and code is managed
in one place, responsive web design creates a more maintainable single code-base. This eliminates the need to split content via separate content management systems for the different mobile and desktop websites - a valuable advantage for a website that features over 9,000 products. The company will also benefit from the SEO
advantages of a responsive website. According to Google, mobile usability is taken into account in search engines rankings and they recommend a responsive approach to mobile design which can help your search position in the eyes of the world’s most popular search engine. Greater recognition in search results naturally increases traffic to a website. This, along with the upgraded e-commerce solution have enhanced usability and contributed to the recent increase in sales.
User centric design Sparks Direct’s new website was built around
Cyber-Duck’s user centred design which meant focusing each design decision made in the website’s development around the user, through research and user testing. Evidence of this user centric design is most
prominent in the layout of the online shop. Previously, product categories were unclear and
so have been re-organised and simplified, improving navigation around the website and making it more user-friendly. The lighting home page demonstrates this
with quick links to the popular pages that they have identified through search data– ceiling lights, wall lights, outdoor lights and the ‘switch and socket wizard’. SEO benefits have come about from the reorganisation of the Sparks Direct products and categories as it is easier for search engines (such as Google) to crawl through the website’s content if it has a clear structure. The e-commerce system supporting the
online shopping feature has also been changed from ZenCart to OpenCart in the revamp of the website. The new OpenCart system was customised specifically to the needs of Sparks Direct, making it faster and more efficient to manage. New features were also implemented onto the
new website, for example, customers can now view product results on a grid or list, which tailors to the needs of different users and allows quicker, customised product browsing and navigation around the website. Although the website undertook a major
redesign, it was important to Sparks to retain the popular features of the old website. These included the ‘switches and sockets wizard’, the ‘product comparison’ tool and the ‘tax toggle’ (enabling users to see the price of products both with and without VAT). This meant that loyal users were still familiar with the website, but now had an optimised experience when accessing their favourite features.
Results The new, responsive website was hailed as a
great success and in the first month of the website’s launch, the number of online orders increased by 66%. Revenues generated from purchases on the website also increased by 60% in this time period. In embracing the mobile revolution, Sparks Direct has become a pioneer within its industry and by utilising responsive web design they have seen excellent return on investment.
www.sparksdirect.co.uk www.ewnews.co.uk
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