This week’s CHAT WITH EXPERT we invited the UX Tricks and Toptal Design Editor Daniel Schwarz. Daniel shares his knowledge on Design and Ecommerce. He also shares some thoughts on eCommerce industry, hope you’ll enjoy that and take action based on his advice.
ABOUT DANIEL SCHWARZ:
Daniel Schwarz is an UX Designer by profession, as he love to write about User Experience Design and want to spread his knowledge with others he founded UX Tricks a subscription based UX Design learning blog. He is also Design Editor on Toptal & Sitepoint.
Hey! What’s your background, and what gets you out of bed every morning?
I’m self-taught, so you could say that I’m a jack of all trades. I started out in web design, but eventually moved into all type of UX and later coding, branding, business and entrepreneurship.
Right now I’m a design writer and editor, and what gets me out of bed is breakfast. I work from home (as a digital nomad), so self-motivate myself with food!
What motivated you to start UX Tricks?
Two problems:
While there’s a tonne of terrific resources out there for learning design (I should know, I’ve worked with all of them!), the learning steps for beginners can be difficult because all of the resources aren’t all in one place. UX Tricks isn’t the first to introduce course-style structured learning, but we do aim to make it easier, faster and cheaper.
Most people never read the books they buy. UX Tricks books will be short and focused—no BS—making them more accessible and digestible.
Give us your elevator pitch for Ecommerce Design
eCommerce was a $409 billion dollar industry in 2017 (and this is rising significantly), and considering that 70% (I can’t remember the real %) of checkouts are abandoned, this indicates that there’s still a serious problem with how we approach eCommerce design.
Which eCommerce platform you prefer and why ?
Shopify for sure. While there’s still a shocking lack of support for blogs, you’re able to hack your way into achieving what you want a Shopify developer, and I’m always amazed by how straightforward their documentation and UI is. It’s well worth the price tag.
Do you think continuous improvement on design with a compelling user experience can help ecommerce entrepreneurs? If yes how?
For sure, yes. Unexpected shipping costs at checkout, lack of trust and awkward navigation are just some of the reasons that checkouts get abandoned, and the root of these issues lies with UX design.
Do you see mobile users as being the ‘future’ of eCommerce retailers? What are your personal experiences while using mobile shopping, if at all?
Absolutely, yes. 50% of eCommerce sales happen on a mobile device, and this figure is expected to rise to 79% by (I forget the year). I don’t use my mobile device very much, I’ll admit, but the statistics speak for themselves.
Where do you think the future of ecommerce marketing is heading? Is it chatbots, IoT, more personalized content, big data?
A combination of all, and I’d even go as far as saying that this future is here, now, which is why eCommerce growth is expanding so quickly. Designers need to be able to leverage new technology if they are to build eCommerce websites and apps that do well.
Do you think a branded eCommerce store help merchants to stay in top?
It definitely makes me feel more impressed, and I’m also more likely to trust a website with effective branding, but what’s even more important is the user experience.
What’s your thought on data driven marketing?
Just like with design, everything should be driven by data. Otherwise, what are you basing your decisions on?
