Aurora

As a very well-seasoned designer & developer,
I've realized I'm getting harder and harder to please when it comes to digital experiences around shopping.

One thing I'll mention that I think is really helpful, well kind of one thing...
That first screen users see.
A "new-age" aspect per say,

1. Very quick load time, less than a second please.
2. Short & sweet animations (The type of content here varies, typically, images appearing, icons filling, from left to right, any sort of image or video on the right, etc) and this is totally subjective right, like sometimes you want a column split screen, heading, text, customer images and a reviewer counter on the left, then on the right, you want a image or a video of your product... then in other cases, you just want to build something different and maybe have a video as the background on the main view port then a heading text and a menu, etc.
3. Clear images, clear videos. (A pro tip here, either go very high quality img/vid or go targeted audience using product img/vid).

Honorable mentions here would be;
Engaging branding and content that "pops" (lol, sorry it's the worse thing we here as designers/devs, it's a little lol for those in the backend of this space).
Some sort of continuous movement, announcement banner, image slider, video loop, etc.
And then, another pro tip here, a nice call to action button. Make that thing stand out, make it have some cute icon, make it have some color circulating it, whatever, just make it nice... you can even say something like "Get yours now before theyre gone" or something that gives a sense of urgency.

and I think that’s where the real magic comes in, creating something that feels intentional from the first click. As designers and developers, we’re not just building websites anymore, we're crafting micro-worlds that people step into. It's about balancing usability with surprise, consistency with personality. That first screen? It’s not just a loading zone, it’s a handshake, a tone-setter, a soft “hello” from the brand and a 'close the sale'. We get to shape those moments, layering in subtle motion, crisp media, and structure that doesn’t just work, but invites. When you nail that mix, the experience stops feeling like a funnel and starts feeling like a place someone wants to explore.
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…But honestly, all that flash and movement only works if the bones are good. I’m talking layout that makes sense.
Navigation that’s dead simple.
No one should have to go on a scavenger hunt just to find the sizing guide or see what other people are saying about the product.And speaking of other people, social proof is underrated when it’s done right.
Don’t just slap a "4.8 stars" badge somewhere. Give me real reviews.
Show a scrolling ticker of recent buyers.
Add customer videos or UGC clips showing the product in action.
It humanizes the whole experience and builds trust faster than any overly polished promo ever could.

Another thing: mobile matters.
Like, a lot. It’s still wild how many shopping sites feel like an afterthought on mobile. Buttons too small to tap, modals that don’t close, or worse—pages that just break. If your mobile shopping flow isn’t as intuitive as the desktop one (or better), you're leaving money on the table.

And finally, this one’s big, give me a vibe that matches. Seriously. If I land on your site and I can’t immediately feel what your brand is about, and even if I want the product like crazy, you’re losing me and hundreds of others. That might mean a bold hero headline, or it might mean a quiet, minimalist aesthetic with tiny details that reward attention. Whatever it is, make it intentional.

TL;DR: Delight me. Make it effortless. Give me a reason to stay. That’s the new bar for digital retail.
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Carter

There’s so much more that goes into all of this stuff than just sales and shipping.

Small and medium business owners have this huge advantage, they’re not Amazon. And I mean that in the best way possible. You’re not locked into rigid systems, selfish investors, or billion-dollar logistics chains. You have room to be personal. To be thoughtful. You can actually feel human to your customers, and that’s a massive competitive edge most don’t lean into enough. People don’t remember fast shipping or a flawless app as much as they remember how you made them feel.

And one of my favorite things to mention to brand owners, ecom folks, and founders just getting started—is this: every single visual, every single interaction between your brand and the customer, is one you should never take lightly. Ever.It sounds simple. Maybe even dramatic, but it’s really true. And your first "wow experience'd" customer, will be one even if you pump the breaks on focusing so much on providing a great experience (like no longer giving future discounts)

Anyways,
One of our clients here at ShopSuccessors, in the early stages of pre-launch,
had a very basic fulfillment setup. Just plain mailers. Toss the product in. Ship it out. Done. That was it.
And yeah, sure, that worked for the time being, and that’s technically what most big-name corporations do…
But I’ve personally had the experience of getting an order with a handwritten note, a small discount card, maybe even a random gift I wasn’t expecting (sometimes even rare candies or goodies which was cool) and that stuck with me. Hard. So hard, I placed another order without thinking twice.
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So back to this client, we ran an audit on their unboxing experience. It felt empty. Totally forgettable. So we made a few suggestions. Nothing crazy at first. We’re talking branded tissue paper, a thank-you slip, even just an insert with a QR code that led to a short video from the founder. The point wasn’t the materials (which were like a whole 5 cents each, like a great investment for sure) it was the intentionality behind it. The moment you unbox something, you’re either drawn in or pushed away.Here’s the kicker: once those changes went live, their repeat customer rate jumped noticeably. Not just because the product was great (which it was), but because the brand finally showed up in the process. It was no longer “a product in a bag”, it became a whole vibe. A moment. A story.

I always say, if someone opens your package and it doesn’t give them even a 2-second pause to go “Oh that’s cool,” then you’ve missed a major opportunity to really win a customer over, possibly for life (see our "Metrics that matter: Tracking form 0 to 8 figures" article, it's major), And the wild part? Most of these marketing touches aren’t expensive. A cool sticker, a story card, a scent, a texture, even the way your tape is printed—it all adds up. It’s the stuff that makes people talk about you without you asking. That's how small brands become cult brands. Not through paid ads. Through care. Through intention. Through those little things you didn't think mattered but do.
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And I think more people need to realize, branding doesn’t stop at the logo. It doesn’t even stop at the packaging.
Branding is every single detail you touch, design, shape, or ignore. You can be “just like Amazon,” sure.
Or you can be the brand that someone actually remembers.

Thank you greatly for reading this by the way, sorry I'm not much of a TDLR person.

Our founder had a well structured path into this startup, by wearing multiple hats for so long (as founders / brand owners often do), and while people tell the solo-entrepreneur that "Wearing many hats causes burn out", after a while, Carter truly thinks things start to blend together, and success lies in the beholder of one who masters the basics... but the basics are always multiple things, and that's why we're here today.
We know that being a jack of all the trades is hard, that's also why we share work, educate one another, and review one another, but more importantly, that's what we seek to kind of take off your plate, the issue of having to worry about every single last detail of your store.

While our team have all had many experiences, we think that we all saw so many issues in our corporations, our agencies, and past client experiences, that we sought out to blend our most valuable assets along with our etiquette and appetite to bring them to the people who needed them most.
Something crazy that actually most of our team members have seen in the past, is a delay in communication from an agency to a client. So if we can paint a picture really quick, essentially a few of us at various times once saw a client with $$$$$ looking for X service, and after compiling research and setting up meetings, the agency’s would ghost or delay them. Now surely some agencies may have their reasonings, but like... c'mon, that's a good quality client and who knows what could grow from it. So that's where we get our "No B.S. mien from. Even if you're backed up, have someone willing to handle communications and meetings between BDE's and Clients.

We're incredibly grateful you're here. Whether you're just exploring, already a client, or simply curious about who we are, thank you for giving us your time and for even considering our team to be a part of your journey. We don't take that lightly. Every click, every conversation, every chance to serve, and it all matters deeply to us.

Moving forward, our small but impactful design & development group would like to mention a couple of things.

With every possible project, we put forth our absolute best.
We're not entry level people you find on Fiverr, we're not a random person from (insert whatever country here), we're a team that has spent collectively, decades behind design & development. We wouldn't have gotten so far previously if we didn't have our skills, which now, are boiled into easy solutions for e-commerce owners (our base
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