Do you struggle to turn visitors into buyers in your online store? Do people browse but leave without adding items to the cart? Or maybe they get lost in too many options and never complete a purchase. These are common problems in ecommerce.
One way to solve them is through ecommerce merchandising. This is how you display, organize, and recommend products to make shopping easier and more effective. In short, it helps online shoppers find what they want and encourages them to purchase.
Big players use it well. Amazon relies on personalized recommendations, AR shopping, and its Inspire feed. These tools keep shoppers engaged and help Amazon hold 37,6% of the U.S. ecommerce market. Sephora connects online and in-store with loyalty programs, tutorials, and exclusive brands. This creates a seamless shopping experience that keeps customers coming back.
We use these examples because they reveal the value of digital merchandising. You don’t need the same scale to benefit from it. The principle is the same: make products easier to find and buy. Applied in practice, merchandising can boost both sales and customer experience.
In this article, we’ll explain what merchandising in ecommerce is, how it addresses common challenges, and how you can use it in your store.
What Is Ecommerce Merchandising?
Ecommerce merchandising is a way to present and promote products in an online store to boost sales. It includes organizing units, showing them, offering personalized recommendations, and running promotions. The goal is to help online retailers make shopping easier, guide customers through purchases, and keep them happy.
Digital selling includes:
- A clear and visually appealing homepage that matches your brand
- A well-organized product catalog with accurate descriptions
- Simple navigation with effective filtering and sorting
- High-quality product images and videos
- An easy and secure checkout process
- Personalized shopping experiences for each customer
For example, Walmart uses merchandising techniques to showcase a wide variety of products and create engaging shopping experiences. They organize items in categories, feature promotions, and make navigation simple so customers can find what they need quickly.
Walmart’s homepage prominently features back-to-school promotions, offering school supplies starting as low as $0.25. These promotions are placed to attract parents preparing for the upcoming school year.
How Ecommerce Merchandising Differs From Traditional Merchandising
Despite the growth of ecommerce and the rise of online-only stores, many businesses still value traditional merchandising. They believe face-to-face contact with customers brings better results.
We are not here to argue which type is better. Instead, we want to highlight the differences between ecommerce merchandising and traditional merchandising. Understanding these differences shows what makes each approach unique and leaves the choice up to you.
Ecommerce merchandising occurs online, while traditional merchandising takes place in physical stores. But this is not the only difference. Here is how they compare:
- Flexibility: Ecommerce stores can update in real time. Traditional merchandising requires physical changes.
- Personalization: Online stores use customer data and purchase history to offer recommendations, discounts, and content. Brick-and-mortar stores cannot do this on the same scale.
- Presentation: Ecommerce relies on images, videos, descriptions, and reviews. Traditional merchandising uses in-store displays and layouts.
Digital merchandising is a vital part of an ecommerce strategy. It organizes and presents products to make shopping easier. Online merchandising involves such techniques as product placement, catching visuals, and clear product information.
You may think about replacing physical stores with ecommerce stores. But you shouldn’t. Both approaches can support each other. Many retailers, like Walmart, Target, and Apple, use hybrid merchandising to reach more customers.
The right approach depends on your business. You can use both methods together to match your customers’ needs and your goals.
Still unsure? Contact us, and we can guide you to make sure you move in the right direction.
What Are Key Components of Ecommerce Merchandising?
A strong merchandising strategy helps customers find what they need and encourages them to buy. It usually includes four main elements: brand identity, design, curation, and recommendations.
Brand identity
Your brand identity is how your store looks and feels. This includes your logo, colors, and style. A clear and consistent identity helps customers recognize your store and connect with it.
For example, IKEA uses simple navigation, neutral colors, and clear product photos to make shopping easy. Its website mirrors the layout of its physical stores, where products are grouped by purpose and lifestyle. This consistency helps customers move smoothly between online and offline shopping without confusion.
UX and UI design
User experience (UX) for ecommerce is how easy it is to move through your store. User interface (UI) is the look and feel of your pages. Together, they shape how customers browse and shop.
Good design includes:
- Clear product images
- A simple search bar
- Easy navigation
Zara’s website and app use a clean, minimalist design that reflects its fast-fashion brand. The homepage features large editorial-style images, simple layouts, and clear menus that let users browse by category, collection, or trend. The search bar is easy to find and offers autocomplete and filters to speed up product discovery.
Curation
Curation means grouping products in ways that inspire shoppers. Categories and subcategories help, but you can also group by style, collection, or trend. Curation can also highlight bestsellers or seasonal deals.
Nike’s website and app highlight its brand through bold visuals and organized navigation. Products are curated by sport, like Running, Basketball, or Yoga, as well as by athlete collections such as LeBron. This mix of sport-specific browsing and timely promotions makes the shopping experience direct and engaging.
Personalized recommendations
Recommendations use customer data, like browsing or purchase history, to show products they are likely to want. These can appear on product pages, during checkout, or in emails.
Amazon’s website and app center the shopping experience around personalization. Its recommendation engine analyzes browsing history, past purchases, and search queries to surface relevant products. Shoppers often see prompts like “Customers who bought this also bought…” or “Inspired by your shopping trends” across product pages, checkout, and follow-up emails.
With the right components, you can create an ecommerce merchandising strategy that attracts more buyers and increases sales. Still, it’s important to define your business needs and adjust your approach to fit them. These success stories can give you a starting point for building your strategy.
Why Ecommerce Merchandising Matters for Your Business
Today, having a reliable e-commerce site matters more than ever. The market is competitive, and customers expect a shopping experience that feels unique. A quality merchandising strategy makes this possible. But what other benefits does ecommerce merchandising bring?
- Better customer experience: Good merchandising can raise conversion rates and strengthen your brand. When done well, it gives customers a reason to return again and again.
- Support for business goals: Ecommerce merchandising also helps achieve business goals. You can run campaigns directly on your site with ads, banners, and targeted content.
- Cross-promotion opportunities: When planning campaigns, consider featuring a partner. This draws attention to both brands and supports shared goals through cross-promotion.
All these benefits show that digital merchandising is the foundation of a successful online store. It also helps you build a more personal connection with your customers.
How to Build a Strong Ecommerce Merchandising Strategy
Ecommerce merchandising is more than arranging products on a page. It’s about guiding customers, building trust, and creating a shopping experience that feels natural. The right approach not only improves sales but also strengthens your brand. Here are 5 main ecommerce merchandising best practices that can help you do it well.
Personalization
Online shopping can feel impersonal. Personalization in ecommerce fixes that by giving each shopper a tailored experience.
Examples:
- Showing curated products with “Because you bought last time…”
- Recommending items based on location or past purchases
- Offering loyalty programs with special deals
Costco uses personalization through its membership model and AI-driven analytics. With millions of members, Costco can understand shopping habits and preferences.
Virtual storefronts
Presentation matters. A virtual storefront should feel like an in-store experience.
Key tactics:
- Use visual merchandising like high-quality photos, close-ups, and 360-degree views
- Group products by brand, style, or use
- Highlight best sellers and trending items on the homepage
- Add tutorials or product demo videos
Nike uses its SNKRS app to offer virtual product drops and interactive shopping. The brand combines storytelling, gamification, and visual merchandising to create a unique digital experience.
User-generated content
People trust other people. Reviews, photos, and testimonials are powerful tools.
Ways to use it:
- Encourage customers to share photos with hashtags
- Include reviews on product pages
- Add customer stories to your emails
Sephora encourages user-generated content through haul videos and makeup tutorials shared by customers. Product pages feature reviews, ratings, and user photos, and customer content is also used in email campaigns and on social media.
Optimized checkout
A smooth checkout process increases sales.
Consider:
- Keep the cart visible during shopping
- Allow guest checkout and account login
- Offer many payment types, including digital wallets and BNPL
- Send reminders for abandoned carts
Allbirds makes checkout easy with express checkout and guest login, reducing friction for shoppers. It offers trusted payment options like PayPal and Apple Pay, and uses personalized, time-sensitive abandoned cart emails to recover lost sales.
Strong product descriptions
Clear descriptions turn browsers into buyers. They also cut down on returns.
Tips:
- Focus on what makes your product different
- Add sizing charts, material details, or care instructions
- Use reviews to show how others experienced the product
- Optimize descriptions for search engines (SEO)
Patagonia’s product descriptions go beyond basic specs and tell a story. Each item includes material details, sizing charts, and care instructions, while highlighting durability, sustainability, and ethical sourcing.
Need help integrating merchandising techniques? Contact Forbytes, and we’ll provide our proposals.
How to Measure Ecommerce Merchandising Success
Now you know how to build an ecommerce merchandising strategy. But how do you know if it’s working? Use these key metrics to evaluate performance:
- Website traffic and conversions: Every website visit is a potential sale. Track total visits and traffic sources, including search engines, social media, and paid ads. Compare new versus returning customers to see if you retain buyers while attracting new ones.
- Customer lifetime value (CLV): CLV measures total revenue from a single customer over time. It combines average purchase value, purchase frequency, and customer lifespan. Tracking CLV helps you focus on your most valuable customers.
- Seasonal and promotional analysis: Promotions require investment, so measuring ROI is important. Look at past sales to spot seasonal trends and product demand. Use this data to launch timely campaigns, limited editions, or targeted offers.
Regularly reviewing these metrics keeps your merchandising strategy effective. Understanding customer behavior helps you make better decisions. Improving the shopping experience increases customer satisfaction. Aligning promotions with trends drives more sales. These steps help you retain loyal customers and grow your online business.
What Trends Are Shaping Ecommerce Merchandising?
Ecommerce is changing fast. Brands use technology not only to sell products but also to improve the customer experience. They make it easier for shoppers to find what they need and use trust signals to build confidence before purchase.
- Artificial intelligence: AI implementation helps businesses understand customers better. It processes large amounts of data, spots patterns, and groups shoppers into segments. AI can also predict behavior, such as when a customer is likely to leave. It can trigger offers or pop-ups at the right time.
- Social commerce: Social platforms are now sales channels. Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok support shoppable posts, livestreams, and ads. These features combine engagement with direct purchases.
- Omnichannel retail: Online shoppers expect a seamless experience. Omnichannel strategies connect online stores, apps, and physical shops. For example, a customer can add an item to a wish list online and get notified in-store if it goes on sale.
- Sustainability: Sustainability is a growing priority. Eco-friendly packaging and optimized delivery routes reduce emissions, helping brands meet customer expectations for greener shopping.
Together, these trends show where ecommerce is heading. Personalization, social selling, and omnichannel make shopping simple and engaging. Sustainability reminds brands to act responsibly. Businesses that follow these trends will stay ahead and build stronger ties with customers.
How Forbytes Can Help You Build Smarter Merchandising
Strong merchandising needs more than good ideas; it needs the right tools and integrations. At Forbytes, we help ecommerce businesses connect data, AI, and customer insights into one seamless system. So, you can better serve online shoppers’ needs and boost your sales.
Whether it’s personalizing product recommendations, setting up omnichannel flows, or integrating analytics, we can build a successful ecommerce merchandising strategy that works in practice, not just on paper.
If you need help integrating merchandising tools or building a tailored solution, reach out to Forbytes. We’ll come back with clear proposals to support your growth.
