What makes a great eCommerce store? One that converts... right?
It’s not all black and white. Some brands can get away with things that others simply can’t. The market that you’re selling to will dictate this for the most part.
Why? Because in most niches you’re competing with a ton of people - you need to stand out.
There are, however, some best practices that apply across the board. That every single eCommerce store can adopt to improve the design, functionality and overall experience on their site.
And of course, increased conversions.
But above all, you need to establish and define your brand.
This is one of the keys to a whopping conversion rate that will make all your other eComm buddies jealous. When you are so completely unapologetically you (in terms of branding), the right people will reach out, respond and buy what you’re selling.
We took to the canals of the internet to find a handful of brands using Shopify that are having great success. But most importantly are leveraging the power of strong branding (among other tricks) to increase conversion rates and capitalize on the complex phenomenon of consumerism.
If you need inspiration and real actionable tips to increase the conversion rate of your own Shopify store, look no further than this list.
For no stone will be left unturned. No crevasse left unexplored where the secrets of conversion rate optimization can hide from us.
Here are 5 top Shopify stores that are killing it right now. We’re going to show you what they’re doing right, what they could do better, and what you should do to be on their level.
But first.
Outline
- Shopify: A brief overview
- What do we look for when reviewing?
- 5 top Shopify stores killing it in 2022
- Tips for increasing conversion rate
- The wrap-up
I. Shopify: A brief overview
If you’re new to Shopify and the daunting world of eCommerce, I’ll explain things quickly.
Firstly, don’t be intimidated. Shopify is an eCommerce platform that was literally designed to take the stress and complex mechanics out of selling stuff online.
It lets you create a website that is already optimized to sell products. All the complex coding and software updates are taken care of by Shopify, giving you more time to focus on critical aspects of marketing and branding.
Now getting decent traffic and sales is a whole different story. Look at it this way.
Shopify will give you the keys to the car, but it’s up to you to learn how to drive.
Thankfully, there are thousands of successful brands you can look to for ideas and inspiration. In this article we’ll be reviewing 5 we love and talking about specific elements and tactics that make them so great.
II. What do we look for when reviewing?
We’ve made sure to include stores in several niches, each offering a slightly different perspective. We’ll be judging their:
- Quality of design
- Quality and variation of content
- Structure of the site
- Strategies for conversion
III. 5 Top Shopify Stores Killing it in 2022
01. Biolite Energy
The high-definition hero is enticing, instilling a sense of the age-old “wanderlust” that world travellers seek. There are two clear calls to action that contrast nicely with the image while still being congruent with the brands color palette.
This is a great emotional trigger than gives visitors an extra incentive to trust in the brand. In addition, it’s a unique selling proposition that can be quantified with real data, differentiating BioLite Energy from competitors in the same market.
The wealth of content is compacted into a super responsive drop-down menu. G
oogle actually favours content to be laid out in full, but when there’s too much, at least make sure your menu fires up and responds as fast as this one.
What they’re killing it with:
- Beautiful hero image
- Clear calls to action
- Strong mission statement and unique selling proposition
Areas of opportunity:
Sadly BioLite Energy scored poorly in page speed tests. Optimizing images further with tinypng and eliminating render-blocking issues could help speed things up, offering a better user experience.
02. Karina Elle
If you didn’t know, Karina Elle is one of a slew of Instagram “models” and influencers. In addition to being a GymShark sponsored athlete, she runs her own fitness and apparrel brand with Shopify.
Off the bat, the neon color scheme is not only congruent but pops right out of the page. Neon pink and yellow are “energetic” colors, staying true to the fitness brand.
And of course, Karina can be seen doing what she does best with an opening headline that triggers your curiosity “above the fold”.
The concept of user-generated content is fantastic, and the hashtag competition gives her followers a chance to be featured on her Instagram. Interaction like this can greatly impact conversion rates - people want to connect.
It would be even better to feature the user-generated content on the site itself.
Rather than emphasizing generic payment badges, Karina Elle is using customized graphics to offer guarantees. This shows an extra level of attention to detail that can directly impact the conversion rate of the store.
What they’re killing it with:
- Lively brand colors and consistency
- Attention-grabbing headline
- User-generated content concept
- Custom guarantee badges
Areas of opportunity:
A strong mission statement and an “About Us” page would help visitors to the site connect and understand the woman behind the brand.
After all, Karina Elle is a personal brand that is built on influencer marketing. Could she be another talentless hack using body image to convince vulnerable young girls to buy her merch? There’s just not enough personal content to tell.
03. KKW Beauty
She may be at the centre of a lot of controversies, but if her team have done one thing right, it’s the creation of a well-designed site.
That’s right, global megastore Kim K uses Shopify. Aside from the nude color scheme that runs through the entire site, there’s a restock message with a date of July 9th.
For a brand like Kim’s, this type of anticipation builds hype before the product has even dropped. Pre-order Now Shopify app is a great tool to increase conversion rates before you even have it in stock.
Rather than redirect straight to the checkout page, you have to actively open the cart after pressing “Add to Cart”. For a make-up brand of this scale, it’s perfect, as beauty enthusiasts tend to buy multiple products at a time.
If you’re running a one-product dropshipping store, however, I’d recommend redirecting to checkout with the Buy Button to increase conversion rates.
What they’re killing it with:
- Congruent color scheme
- Consistent use of fonts
- Huge range of products
- Seasonal promotions
Areas of opportunity:
As much as I love the minimal design, the checkout page was bare.
Expanding sections with Shipping Info, Returns Policy and FAQs on the checkout page can really help put buyers at ease and avoid abandoned checkouts.
Instead, I had to search the farthest corner of the website to find any relevant shipping info.
The email capture tool could also use spicier copy and better design. Where do I type and why should I bother? What exactly am I missing out on?
04. Jane Motorcycles
A nice hero image with a transparent sticky menu can be seen as you scroll down the page.
Hovering over the Shop button turns out to be functional and practical. Products are organized into two columns, sorting them by type and brand.
Video content is king in 2022. In addition to it being the most engaging form of content, it helps with SEO by increasing the time spent on page.
Using it to tell a story on your About Us page as Jane has done is a great idea. Look no further than PageFly Shopify app to embed video into any page on your Shopify store.
The option for AfterPay gives visitors another option to pay in installments. More options usually mean a higher chance of a conversion. To set up payment plans like this on your store, check out the Partial.ly Shopify app.
What they’re killing it with:
- Functionality and ease of navigation
- Engaging video content
- Flexible payment options
Areas of opportunity:
More care could be put into the user experience on site. I noticed there were multiple times where the sticky menu wasn’t visible due to background colors like below.
05. Death Wish Coffee
Straight off the cuff, I understand the brand concept thanks to their headline and logo. They’re also playing off the inherent truth that coffee drinkers become tolerant and are constantly looking for a stronger hit.
Additionally, they’ve opened with a huge claim to being the worlds strongest coffee, automatically differentiating them in the coffee niche.
The logo and name are both are humorous rather than literal, while still being true to their unique selling proposition. Overall, the branding is incredibly strong.
The About Us page features some nice storytelling to help readers understand and connect with the brand. Additionally, you’ll notice that they’re internally backlinking to their blog articles - awesome for Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
People love to connect with the brains behind the brand. Notice there are no fancy head shots - just real images of real people that bring you the world’s strongest coffee. An authentic touch goes a long way.
The subscription model is a great conversion tool for this niche. Coffee is a daily necessity, so this offering makes sense.
What they’re killing it with:
- Strong branding (logo, name, claim to fame)
- Subscription available
- Great storytelling
- Optimized for SEO with backlinks
- Authenticity through the About Us page
Areas of opportunity:
Overall I love this store - great content beats fancy design every time. That being said, some subtle design tweaks could elevate this store to a new level. Image quality is less than stellar.
Recommended: Top 14+ Successful DropShipping Stores for Inspiration
IV. Tips for increasing conversion rates
01. Defining brand attributes
Brand attributes are the core values and characteristics that define the true nature of your brand and mission. They are the essence of what you want your customers to feel when they’re on site or your brand comes to mind.
Consider these:
- Relevancy - Do your product and marketing make an emotional connection with the buyer? Understanding customer pain points (buzzword, I know) is crucial in putting relevant content in front of them which they’ll actually consume.
- Sustainability - Is your business built around a one-time trending product or does it have the potential to be a long term brand? Changing market cycles means evolving business dynamics on a constant basis. Do you have the innovative finesse to keep your head above water in a saturated marketplace?
- Credibility - Can people trust your brand as a leader in your industry? Is there enough social proof in place to back your claims? It’s not only about excellent service, but also how you deal with employees, vendors and other business associates of your brand.
- Uniqueness - In a recent article I wrote about the importance of being different instead of trying to be better. Especially if you’re trying to sell a run-of-the-mill product. Find a way to market it in a unique way, or offer another incentive by contributing to a larger cause.
These are just some brand attributes that are essential for your business. Take these and craft them into your own personalized set of values. A good example below.
02. Building buyer personas
At its core, increasing conversion rates on your store means understanding your ideal customer. When you do this, you can optimize your brand and product to appeal directly to them.
We do this by creating buyer personas.
A buyer persona is a specific description of the person or people you want to buy your products or services. Here’s an example I created below.
Straight away you can see that “Daisy” is likely to respond to seasonal sales events and discount product bundles. With this buyer persona, we have a deeper insight into what will make this prospect convert.
There’s no limit to how many buyer personas you should create for your brand. But as a general rule of thumb, less is better.
The premise behind this is that being specific allows you to target with sniper-like accuracy and a personalized message that speaks directly to the prospect.
03. Optimize for mobile
Thanks to Google’s recent mobile-first indexing, we know that they prioritize mobile optimized sites. Google now scours the mobile version of your site's content and ranks it accordingly. Sites that aren’t optimized are penalized in search engines.
Put simply, your site must be responsive across all mobile devices. We’d even go as far as to say that you should place more importance in mobile optimization than desktop.
So how do you create responsive mobile pages to increase conversion rates?
By using the PageFly page builder Shopify app, any web page you build is automatically optimized to respond on tablet, mobile or laptop. You can even go as far as to edit the mobile content and dimensions directly within the editor to optimize the user experience.
Check out an example below.
By changing views, we can see the mobile site in real-time and edit accordingly.
Further Reading:
- Google Analytics Tracking For Your Shopify Store - A Step-By-Step Guide
- Practical Handbook To Shopify Conversion Tracking Guide
- We studied 100+ Shopify Stores - Here's What We Learnt
- Best Shopify Stores: A Comprehensive Review
- Top 12+ Shopify Jewelry Store For Your Inspiration (+Analysis)
V. The wrap-up
Coming full circle, a great eCommerce store isn’t simply one that converts. It’s one that adds value, builds trust, understands its objectives and converts.
All of these stores reviewed do a great job in terms of branding and conversion rate optimization practices.
If you’re thinking about starting your own Shopify store, don’t rush straight into running FB ads without properly establishing your brand, online store, objectives and target market. A store that isn’t ready to convert traffic is a big fat waste of cash.
Check our collection of Best Shopify Stores proven to be successful. Read More.
![How To Open A Bagel Shop? [And Sell Them Online]](http://pagefly.io/cdn/shop/articles/how_to_open_a_bagel_shop.png?v=1699326347&width=820)
