Did you know that an e-commerce website can help you convert people who search for your services online into buying customers for your business? A recent study indicates that Kenya ranks third in Africa’s e-commerce market penetration rate at 46.7% behind Egypt and South Africa, respectively.
Increased internet connectivity, smartphone use, and a youthful population are major drivers of this trend. In particular, Kenya’s e-commerce market is projected to hit over $900m in 2025, making it an attractive business destination for investors and consumers. Thus, the e-commerce landscape provides Kenyan businesses with a new frontier to increase their market base and sell to a broader audience.
This is why you must have an e-commerce website on your to-do list for your business in 2025. In this episode, I will highlight some of the most essential e-commerce features we at Wenamax recommend for your businesses.
10 Features of an E-commerce Website You Must Have
1. Create A Responsive Homepage to Attract Eyeballs
The homepage is a landing page that allows users to get a wholesale overview of the entire website. Usually, it should be clean and responsive with a professional navigation bar and categories like products, special offers, about us, and contact us, among others. Thus, it should arrest the user’s attention and influence them to continue browsing.
2. Ensure you have Clear Product Display/Listings
The product page should have clear product listings, subcategories, filters, prices, and stock availability. The uploaded product images should be high-resolution and zoomable to give clients clear views.
3. Include an Easy-to-use Search Functionality
An e-commerce website should have a robust search bar to provide clients with auto-complete suggestions while searching for products. When clients visit your website, they can filter and search products/services by keywords, brand, category, etc.
4. Integrate A Shopping Cart
It should also integrate a shopping cart to allow customers to select products from different categories before checking out. The shopping cart enables them to select quantity, view, and modify cart items before they pay. In addition, it should automatically calculate shipping and tax-related costs.
5. Include Payment Integration/Checkout for Customer Convenience
The website should also integrate online payment methods, such as MPESA and Credit Cards, to allow clients to complete online payments. It should provide a secure payment gateway to ensure client data does not leak while transacting online.
6. Create Different User Accounts
Since multiple users will visit your e-commerce website, having different user accounts can help you manage it well. You can have user profiles for customers, managers, and other staff. A customer account management system can allow clients to register, log in, track their order history, and help them check out.
7. Have a Professional Admin Dashboard
The admin dashboard allows you to manage customer orders, stock, staff, and customer data. It gives you super-admin privileges. Thus, you can develop access control strategies and assign privileges to specific website users.
8. Post Latest Trends in the Blog/News Section
Writing regular blogs and publishing them on your website can play an essential role in enhancing its Google ranking. Thus, Wenamax recommends posting fresh content to give Google a reason to rank you higher. Blogs should aim to educate or answer clients’ questions about your products online.
9. Make it Responsive to Different Devices
Your e-commerce website should be responsive to desktop, tablet, and mobile devices. It should provide clients visiting your website from multiple devices with superb user experiences.
10. Integrate your Website into all Social Media
Integrating your website into your social media creates interlinkages, enabling clients to interact with your products from multiple online platforms. For this reason, you can redirect people on social media to visit your website and increase traffic.
Are you looking to establish an online presence for your business through an e-commerce website?
Contact Wenamax today for a free consultation to help you chart the way forward.
