E-Commerce Website Design In Perth: What You Need Before Selling Online
Before You Design Anything, Get These Basics Right
What You’re Selling And Who It’s For
Start with a clear promise. Write one sentence: “We sell X to Y, so they get Z.” If you can’t, your homepage will confuse buyers.
Define your “hero” range. It is the small set you can stock, ship, and support well.
Also, decide your angle. Compete on speed, quality, range, or specialist advice. General stores lose to big brands.
Do a quick demand check. Search your products and note patterns in titles and questions. That language becomes your categories and product copy.
If you serve Perth locals, be specific about delivery zones and times. Buyers want certainty.
Pricing, Margins, And Costs
Don’t price from hope. Price from margin.
List your true costs per order:
- Cost of goods.
- Payment fees.
- Packaging and labels.
- Shipping and tracking.
- Returns and refunds allowance.
If your GST turnover is $75,000 or more, you must register for GST. You also must register if you expect to reach that threshold.
Factor GST into pricing early. It changes your displayed price, your reporting, and your cash flow.
Fulfillment and Support Plan
A store is a workflow, not a homepage.
Decide how you will pick, pack, and dispatch. Document steps for:
- Order confirmation and packing.
- Shipping label and tracking email.
- Out of stock handling.
- Damaged items and returns.
Set support rules. Choose response times and channels. Clear rules reduce chargebacks and bad reviews.
Choosing The Right E-Commerce Platform
Shopify Vs WooCommerce
Shopify is hosted. It bundles hosting, security, and a guided setup. That helps first-time sellers move fast.
WooCommerce runs on WordPress. It gives flexibility and ownership, but you manage hosting, updates, and performance.
Pick the platform you can run.
When A Custom Build Makes Sense
E-commerce Design Essentials That Drive Sales
Homepage Clarity
Your homepage must answer three questions fast:
- What do you sell?
- Who is it for?
- Why trust you?
Use one clear headline, a short proof line, and a primary call-to-action.Support it with reviews and return clarity.
Mobile matters most. Mobile leads worldwide device share. Design for thumbs, not cursors.
Product And Collection Pages
Collections help people browse. Keep filters simple and useful.Product pages must reduce doubt. Use:
- Real photos, including scale.
- Clear price, variants, and stock.
- Delivery estimate and returns summary.
- FAQs for objections.
Checkout Experience
Checkout is where money is lost. Baymard reports an average cart abandonment rate of around 70%.
Remove friction:
- Offer guest checkout.
- Keep fields minimal.
- Show shipping costs early.
- Use clear error messages.
Baymard’s 2024 checkout research is based on extensive usability testing. Treat it as a benchmark.
Payments, Tax, And Australian Compliance
Payment Methods Customers Expect
GST And Legal Basics
If the Privacy Act covers your business, you must have a privacy policy. It should explain how you handle personal information.
You also need clear terms, returns, and shipping policies. Put them in the footer and checkout.
For GST registration rules, rely on the ATO guidance.
Shipping, Delivery, And Returns
WA buyers care about delivery time and cost. Be honest.
Choose one of three models:
- Flat rate shipping.
- Calculated rates at checkout.
- Free shipping over a threshold.
Always show tracking. It lowers “where is my order” emails. Write a fair returns policy, then match your process to it. Inconsistent returns create chargebacks.
SEO And Visibility From Day One
SEO starts with structure. Use clear categories, clean URLs, and unique product copy.
Follow Google’s SEO fundamentals for indexable pages and helpful content.
Speed is also a ranking and conversion issue. Google notes mobile delays can reduce conversions by up to 20% per second.
Use Core Web Vitals to guide improvements.
If you target Perth buyers, add local proof. Mention local pickup, WA delivery, and support hours.
Tracking And Pre-Launch Checks
Tracking Essentials
Set up GA4 and track key events:
- View item.
- Add to cart.
- Begin checkout.
- Purchase.
Also track email signups. They become your cheapest sales channel.
Pre-Launch Checklist
Before you go live, test your store like a customer:
- Place a test order with each payment method.
- Check tax and shipping rules in different suburbs.
- Confirm emails arrive and links work.
- Test mobile checkout on two phones.
- Run a refund and return test.
Mini example: a Perth gift store launched with 20 products, flat-rate metro shipping, and one clear returns rule. They tracked add-to-cart and checkout starts in GA4. Fixing one slow mobile banner improved load time and lifted checkout completions within two weeks of going live.
Use real numbers. ABS reported online retailing sales of about $4.7 billion in June 2025. Competition is serious.
A Better Ending Than “Just Launch”
E-commerce success starts before design. Get your products, margins, policies, and fulfilment ready first. Then choose a platform and build pages that reduce doubt. Finish with speed and tracking. If you want a faster, safer launch, start with a short audit and a simple roadmap.
FAQs
You must register if turnover is $75,000 or more. Register earlier if you expect to reach it.
If structure is messy, speed is poor, forms are unreliable, and tracking is broken, a rebuild can beat endless patching