Ecommerce essentials
The path from product page to “thanks for your order” is where most stores win or lose. These standards cover the parts of an online store that move money: product pages, the cart, checkout and what happens after.
of online shopping carts are abandoned before the order is placed.
Baymard Institute, average of 50 studiespotential conversion lift for a large store from fixing checkout usability alone.
Baymard Instituteof shoppers who abandon a cart say it was because the site made them create an account.
Baymard InstituteWhy it matters.
Shoppers abandon carts for all sorts of reasons, and many of them are design decisions: a surprise delivery fee, a forced account, a checkout that feels longer than it is.
Large-scale ecommerce research shows how much is at stake, and the fixes are often small. Our reviewers check each step against what the research and our own experience say works.
What our reviewers look for.
Delivery cost and timing are clear early
Shoppers can see what delivery costs and when it’ll arrive before they reach the last step of checkout.
Guest checkout is easy to find
Creating an account is an option, not a gate, and saved details are offered after the order.
Product images do the selling
Photos can be zoomed, show scale and detail, and cover every variant.
Stock and options are obvious
Sold-out sizes and colours are clear before someone taps Add to cart.
The cart is easy to change
Quantities and options can be edited without starting again, and the total updates as you go.
Confirmation explains what happens next
The order page and email say when things will arrive and how to get help.
These are a few of the standards in this area. Inside a Flume review, every standard comes with examples, the reasoning behind it and how to fix it.
The slip, and the fix.
Related standards.
Accessibility
Usable by everyone, and in line with WCAG.
e.g.Text contrast meets 4.5:1 across the siteSEO & AI visibility
Found by search engines and answer engines alike.
e.g.Products carry structured data for price and stockPerformance
Fast where it counts: on a phone, on a so-so connection.
e.g.The main content loads in under 2.5 secondsHow does your site measure up? Find out first.
Join the beta and we’ll be in touch when a review spot opens. We’re running a limited number of free case-study reviews while we build.