Get Expert Feedback on Your Square Online Store, December 2021 Edition

[AdamB]

Hello again!

It’s time for the holiday 2021 edition of “Get Expert Feedback on Your Square Online Store”!  🎁 🎁 🎁

Now is a really great time to make some changes in preparation for the holiday shopping season. Just like the other threads in this series, comment below with a link to your Square Online store. I’ll take a look and provide some tips and advice you can use to take your online store to the next level. 

This event will run until December 16th. 

Related:

Get More Expert Feedback on Your Square Online Store

Get Expert Feedback on Your Square Online Store

[#2]

12/13 Update: The response has been fantastic! Just so everyone is aware, if you haven't gotten a response yet - don't worry. We'll get to your site over the next couple of weeks. We'll also tag you when we reply, so you'll get an additional email saying one of us "mentioned" you.

[ElisabethB]

Hey, @FlamingEyeballG! Thanks for sharing your site! 😊
I have just a few suggestions for you to consider:

• There's a lot of information and images on your home page. This can not only overwhelm visitors to your site, but can also cause the page to load more slowly. I'd recommend adding some categories for your items (e.g., Vinyl Decals, Apparel, etc.) and adding a page for each category to the site. You can add those pages to the navigation menu so visitors can see and access them quickly.
• Consider using fewer colors on the website to improve readability and give your pages a more uniform look.
• You may already be planning to do this, but I'd suggest investing in a custom domain name for your site, like flamingeyeballgraphics.com. Using a custom domain name is an easy way to add polish to your online presence and give customers an easy-to-remember web address.

[MelissaCG]

Yes please

https://silverbranchsoapworks.com

[ElisabethB]

Hi @MelissaCG! Thanks for sharing your site! Your site is well-organized and I love your use of the Stories feature (really interesting post about the shelf life of soap)! I think you have a great foundation, but here are a couple things to consider:

• It looks like silverbranchsoapworks.com isn't working, but I found your site by searching Google. You should make sure to set the domain up to work with your website. Check out this guide in the Square support center for details.
• Customer testimonials or reviews would be a great addition to your site. Many buyers rely on the reviews of others when deciding whether to purchase an item.

[MelissaCG]

Thank you, I was wondering if I'd get a response. I'll check that the domain is pointed properly again. It was working so I don't know what the problem is. I'd love to have customer reviews but I don't have the money to pay for the feature right now. I ask people to leave reviews on Facebook or Google instead.

[Jill4]

candlereadycakes.square.site

[ElisabethB]

Hi @Jill4 - always happy to see a fellow Iowan (I'm originally from the Hawkeye State!). I love the colors and images on your site - it's so important to have good photos of your products! I also love that you've included helpful information for your buyers right up front on the home page and shop page. That said, you might want to consider adding a sort of "FAQ" page where you can place all of that information together in a Q&A format. You can link to the page in your navigation menu or from anywhere on your site to make sure it's always accessible for buyers. 

[threeblessings]

www.threeblessingsmade.com

Thanks!

[ElisabethB]

Hi @threeblessings! Thanks for sharing your site! I love the headline text on your home page with the call-to-action button - it's a great summary of what you do! I do have a few suggestions for you to consider:

• Your navigation menu has a lot of pages, and some of the most important ones (like Our Story and Gift Cards) are getting lost under the "More" menu. The "More" menu option appears automatically when you have more pages than can fit across your navigation menu. I'd suggest making a "Jewelry" page and adding all of the different types of jewelry as subpages of that. That would free up a lot of space in your navigation and make it easier for buyers to find what they want.
• I love the photos in your gallery, but you might want to reduce the number of them or split it into multiple pages. Having a lot of images on a single page can be visually overwhelming and have a negative impact on page loading speed.

[McNabbGames]

www.mcnabbgames.com

[AdamB]

Hello, @McNabbGames! I'm excited to check out an online store for games! Reminds me very much of my teenage years spent at the local comic book/game store. 

I think you could move your "welcome to McNabb games" section up to the top so it's the first thing visitors see, then move the three categories that are currently at the top below it. You also might be able to move the list of types of games to a section of its own, that way you just have, "McNabb Games is a fantastic...and board gaming needs". This breaks up all the information a bit so people can more quickly absorb it.

Your news page interested me, but I don't see anything on it yet. If you are still planning on adding news, I might recommend removing it from your navigation until you've started using it. You can also remove the "shop now" link from your navigation since you have a button - this will help tighten up your menu and leave some space for anything else you may add in the future.

[therosemobileb]

I love some tips!

Therosemobileb.com 

[ElisabethB]

Hi @therosemobileb - it's your turn now! 😉
First of all, I think a mobile boutique is such a cool idea! I bet that was a lot of fun, and I hope someday you'll be able to revive the mobile part of the business! 
I have just a little feedback for your site:

• Consider using a light background color on your website to match your logo image - it will look more pulled-together.
• I might have missed this on the site, but do you have an "About" or "Story" page? If not, I recommend creating one - I'm sure there's an awesome story behind your business!
• Create pages for your product categories (like Clothing, Accessories, and so on) and add them to the navigation menu to help people find what they want quickly. You might also create a "Shop Now" call to action button for your main page.

[therosemobileb]

So instead of categories, do pages? I'll have to search out how to make that happen without having to upload all my items again.  I currently have the 6 different category tabs to click. 

My about was exactly what you read to know that I was Mobile 😉  Should I make that section more lengthy? 

Thanks 

[ElisabethB]

Hi again, @therosemobileb ! When you have categories set up, there's automatically a page for each one. You just need to add it to your site and then customize it if you want. Here's an article from our support center with more info. Regarding the about, that's up to you! I personally do look for a "story" when I find something new online. I think people generally like to know the who and the why behind something, but you should share only whatever you're comfortable with! 😊

[Quetzalli]

We are working on this site and hope to make it our actual domain by the end of the year. To access the section called Shop wholesale use the password Jewelrylove1 

https://quetzalli-jewelry.square.site/

Thank you

[ElisabethB]

WOW, @Quetzalli - your site looks fantastic! 😍It's so well-organized, and I love the gorgeous, eye-catching header photos! I only have a couple of small suggestions for you, and you're already considering one of them!

• A custom domain name is a great idea - it's not strictly necessary, but it does look more professional and is easier for customers to remember.
• I love how you have the Facts page laid out with the images and text! Don't forget to customize the default text on the last couple of rows, though. I know that seems really obvious, but it's easy to overlook when you're building a site (I've done it myself! 😅)

[Quetzalli]

Hi Elisabeth. Thank you for answering and for the advice. I have now changed it to our real domain and did finish the facts, which I was neglecting. Thank your for reminding me.

I appreciate the time you took looking into it. A great thread this was.

[abigkahuna]

Hello Adam

Our website is tiedyebarn.com   Thanks for the checkout and review!

Happy Colors

tiedyebarn.com 

[ElisabethB]

Hey @abigkahuna - thanks for sharing your site! I have to admit that I'm just a little obsessed with tie dyed stuff, but it can be hard to find. It's awesome to see such a huge selection in one place! 🌈
Here's my feedback for you:

- Consider using a lighter, more neutral background color for the site to let your product photos stand out!

- As I suggested in an earlier reply, try reducing the number of pages in your navigation menu to make things easier to find. For example, you could have pages like: Men, Women, Kids, Accessories that correspond to item categories. 

- Featuring a selection of items on your homepage is a great idea, but you might want to reduce the size of the title text a little bit so the titles don't break into another line.

[ddeno79]

816rosemarket.com

[AdamB]

Thanks for sharing your site, @ddeno79!

The first thing you may want to consider is switching from the "order online" template to the "shop all" template. The reason I mention this is because you have a lot of items that you sell, and the "order online" template was meant more for food and beverage businesses with small to moderate sized menus. I think "shop all" will make it easy and quick for customers to find what interests them without a lot of scrolling (it also works just fine with pickup, delivery, and shipping). You can change that by clicking on the pages dropdown, clicking on the "..." button for your Order Online page, then clicking on "switch template".

You could also consider adding navigation links for some of the higher level categories, which would make it quicker for customers to navigate to those. You'll need to switch templates first, though.