In ecommerce design there are many ways to present products, display baskets and generally attempt to persuade consumers to part with their cash and order from you. How you do this is an art however there are a number of developers who think they have a formula and are sticking to it and clients that believe them.

The question we ask is why follow the herd if you want your brand to be seen as unique?

If you review the sites nominated by the Awwwards the first thing you should notice is that no two websites look the same. In fact they don't even layout navigations or product pages similarly to other sites because they represent the brand or product and respond to their customer needs, not some generic consumer without any personality.

When I look at the likes of Harrods or Harvey Nichols, I expect to see sites that really represent the experience of walking into their store, glamour, luxury and quality are all expressions I should be using to describe the environment. The same should be true of luxury e-tailers such as Net-A-porter, however if I view New Look or H&M I'm greeted by very similar experiences which devalues the luxury brand experience.

There are other trends in design, one which I believe portrays a more luxury feel however is being copied time again and is represented by Burberry and copied by Zara and Ermenegildo Zegna to name a few.

Clearly the likes of H&M have taken direct reference in design from their high street companions such as Harvey Nichols, which is what all lower priced retailers do when it comes to fashion. The challenge for Net-a-Porter, Burberry etc. is to continue to innovate and deliver a better experience in order to maintain market position and continue to represent the value of the products on sale.

This copying clearly works for the lower end brands however if you are an independent retailer then you need to beware. Take a leaf out of the award winners and brands such as Really Wild Clothing, United Pixelworkers, Suit Supply and really understand your consumers and their desire for the site to represent their lives, style and ethos which is aligned with your brand.

You will then be seen as a leader and consumers will like you for it, unless you’re happy being an also ran following the lemmings?

For unique, bespoke web development that doesn’t follow the heard, speak to us at Gibe and see the difference for yourself.