New York City is famous for its department store displays — among other things, of course. Department stores spend big money to create flashy, eye-popping displays and change them out frequently. They’re so well done and famous that they’re popular tourist attractions.
Those displays aren’t there just to look pretty, though. In a city with as much foot traffic as New York, they’re an important form of advertising. If you were walking by a store with nothing but a brick wall, you wouldn’t even know what they sell, let alone feel like walking in.
On the other hand, a grand display to catch people’s attention will also draw in visitors, shoppers, and revenue. But retail is dying, as you can tell by walking through almost any mall in America.
Online sales have taken over. And digital storefronts are the window displays of the digital era. They’re not just for e-commerce stores, though. Any business can benefit from them.
What is a digital storefront?
A digital storefront is the online face of your business — a virtual space where potential customers interact with your brand, browse your offerings, and make purchasing decisions. Just like a physical storefront draws foot traffic, your digital storefront attracts online visitors through visual appeal, functionality, and user experience.
It can be as simple as a one-page site that promotes your services or as complex as a fully integrated e-commerce platform featuring product catalogs, shopping carts, customer reviews, and automated checkout processes. In essence, it’s your business’s first impression online, acting as both a marketing tool and a sales platform.
Common types of digital storefronts include:
- E-commerce websites (Shopify, WooCommerce)
- Landing pages for services (Carrd, Leadpages)
- Online booking platforms for appointments (Square, Calendly)
- Marketplaces (Etsy, Amazon storefronts)
- Social media storefronts (Instagram Shop, Facebook Shop)
What are the benefits of a digital storefront for a business?
A well-optimized digital storefront can transform how your business connects with customers. Key benefits include:
- Increased visibility: Digital storefronts allow businesses to reach customers around the globe, vastly expanding potential customer bases compared to traditional physical locations.
- Cost-effective advertising: Unlike physical storefronts, digital ones require less overhead in terms of rent, utilities, and physical maintenance. Online advertising methods can also be more targeted and efficient, reducing overall marketing expenses.
- 24/7 availability: Digital storefronts never close, meaning customers can browse and purchase products or services anytime, enhancing convenience and increasing potential sales.
- Enhanced customer engagement: Features like interactive product demos, personalized recommendations, customer reviews, and chatbots enhance user experience, leading to greater engagement and higher conversion rates.
- Data and insights: Digital storefronts provide valuable analytics on customer behavior, preferences, and purchase patterns. These insights help refine marketing strategies, improve product offerings, and personalize customer experiences to boost retention and loyalty.
One-page website tools
Like the shop displays, your business has to capture attention. If it already has a web presence, these tools give you a way to showcase it in one place. You can show people what you have to offer. And you can make an attractive presentation to draw them in.
1. Jotform Apps
Jotform Apps is a part of the Jotform suite of business tools. Jotform got its start as the easiest and most feature-rich form builder on the market.
Jotform took that ease of use and applied it to Apps to create a tool that lets you build beautiful, custom web and mobile apps in minutes.
Your app can draw in visitors and direct them to any part of your social media or web presence. You can even use Jotform to sell goods and services with their built-in e-commerce solutions.
2. Linktree
Linktree is a link listing tool that gives your business an attractive center of attention. It’s similar to Jotform Apps in that it can bring everything together in a mobile-friendly package. It just doesn’t have Jotform’s rich feature set.
What Linktree does have is business tools like analytics to make it very useful for social media influencers.
3. Carrd
Carrd is a lot like Linktree, but it goes way beyond links. Carrd gives you an eye-catching landing page that acts more like a one-page website.
Carrd offers a lot for free, but the pro version also gives you a custom domain, widgets, and analytics.
Website builders
Another option for your storefront is to have an actual website. That site can be an e-commerce solution, an informational website, or anything else.
It’s important to have a catchy landing page to act as your storefront, but these solutions will give you the ability to add content to back it up.
1. Wix
Wix is one of the most popular website builders aimed at absolute beginners. They give you everything you need to get started quickly with no coding needed. They have professionally built templates to make your website look like you hired a high-end designer.
But Wix is more than just a pretty face. They give you tools to start an e-commerce business, manage a consultancy, start a blog, and much more.
2. WordPress
WordPress is a lot like Wix, but it’s even more extensive. WordPress appeared on the scene at a different time in the web’s history, so it’s not as simple to use as Wix. But it’s still incredibly easy compared to building a website by hand.
In fact, it’s so easy that half of the most popular websites ever built were built with WordPress.
But unlike Wix, WordPress lets people completely edit their website right down to the raw code. That makes WordPress the most flexible tool around. It also means that while it’s easy to get started, it will grow with your business’s needs.
3. Shopify
Shopify is probably the most popular e-commerce solution on the market. It’s just as easy to get started with as Wix, but the focus is more on e-commerce.
However, Shopify is much more than an e-commerce solution. It’s highly configurable, and you can use it for just about anything.
It’s not as flexible as WordPress, but it has a ton of apps that you can add on to let you do almost anything you could want. And if you can’t find an app to meet your needs, you can create your own or hire someone else to.
How to choose the right digital storefront software
Selecting the right digital storefront software is crucial for your business’s success. Consider these factors:
- Ease of use: Choose a platform that matches your team’s technical abilities, ensuring you can efficiently manage and update the storefront without extensive training or external support.
- Scalability: Opt for software capable of handling your business’s growth, accommodating increasing product ranges, higher traffic volumes, and additional features as your needs evolve.
- Features and integrations: Identify key functionalities required, such as inventory management, payment processing, SEO tools, and social media integrations. Ensure the platform can easily integrate with other essential business tools you use.
- Budget: Evaluate software based on upfront and ongoing costs. Balance affordability with the features offered, ensuring good value without overspending.
- Customer support: Good customer service and reliable support systems are critical for quick resolution of technical issues, minimizing downtime, and maintaining smooth operations.
Photo by: freepik
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