Sustainable fashion is here to stay. While some have decried it as a trend, the growing number of brands, either starting-up or adapting, to become sustainable is showing us that this is a growing sector of the fashion industry—and with good reason. 

Environmental benefits aside, consumers are clamoring for brands that share their views. As we’ve shared in a previous blog, transparency and sustainability is key for apparel eCommerce webstores. According to Forbes, if your brand isn’t helping consumers improve their environmental and social footprint, you’re in danger of disappointing 88% of them. 

In the post-COVID-19 world, customers want pieces that last, says the New York Times. There is a shift in focus from newness to longevity, not just in the products, but also in the companies that make them. 

If your fashion brand is one of the many that is already prioritizing sustainability, you’re clearly in a favorable position. But the benefit is only there if consumers know about it. So how do you showcase your brand’s sustainability? Read on for six tips on how to do just that, and reap the benefits.

Have a clear mission statement

Sustainability can look like many things—for Los Angeles Apparel, it means committing to paying their workers a fair living wage, providing employees equity in the company and creating more jobs with their local factory. For Courtyard LA, it’s about using sustainable fabrics and releasing limited ranges to reduce their effect on the environment. Whatever sustainability looks like for you and your business, you need to make it clear to your customers. That’s where a mission statement comes in handy. Create a separate page on your webstore with text, images or video that outlines your commitment to sustainability. It should sum up your approach in a few sentences, while also leaving you the ability to then expand on it. Reflect on your values and how your brand embodies them. Are you committed to raising awareness of environmental issues, reducing your and others’ impacts on the planet, reusing existing products? Or all of the above? Spell it out like New York designer Mara Hoffman does on her website. Her statement is honest and personal, acknowledging that sustainability is a journey that her brand is committed to.

Mention sustainability on your homepage

Some brands are bashful and hide their sustainability efforts by only mentioning them on their product pages or ‘About’ pages. You are doing a wonderful thing as a sustainable brand—why not sing it from the virtual rooftops? Reference your sustainability directly on your homepage. This could be in the form of a small banner at the top of the page with a few words, or it could be a more graphic element showcasing a particular initiative, technology or approach that you employ. Organic cotton brand Pact proclaims their sustainability with a huge headline calling themselves “Earth’s favorite clothing”—a clever pun that neatly communicates their mission. While you may or may not have the help of a copywriter to craft your tagline, a few bold words can go a long way. Everlane also features their sustainability on their homepage via a section about their “promise” to provide “radical transparency.” This links to more information about their “sustainability initiatives” and “About” page, which details their ethical approach. Choose how loud and proud you want to be with your sustainability message, but at the very least include a few words on your homepage.

Spotlight your partner organizations

Many brands, sustainable or otherwise, work with multiple organizations to achieve their business objectives. You work so hard to cultivate these relationships and build networks that adhere to your vision of sustainability—why not champion this on your website? You could build a whole page on your webstore that outlines these partnerships and helps foster a more tight-knit community of sustainably focused buyers and providers. Mara Hoffman does this well by sharing their commitments to various organizations, listing how each one helps them achieve their sustainability goals. You can also illuminate your supply chain through informative text and images, as Eileen Fisher does. The brand provides an in-depth look at the “farms, factories and faces” behind their clothing, as well as an up-close look at their factories in the US. Any shopper visiting their webstore can get as much detail as they want, straight away, about how the brand is backing up their claims and “living their values.” If you’re already doing the same, why not spotlight your efforts as they have?

Call out any sustainable materials prominently

Any sustainable products that you’re sourcing or producing should be clearly called out and celebrated on your webstore. Whether it’s deadstock or recycled fabrics that you’re rescuing from the landfill, or sustainable materials you’re starting with from scratch, these are all very worthwhile efforts in sustainability and deserve to be celebrated. Ensure that you highlight all of these details in your product titles and descriptions, both on the individual product page and collection pages. Beyond text, you can push your sustainability message even further through photos. A close-up swatch-style image of your fabric can showcase its quality in an eye-catching way. Reformation does this well, communicating the unique nature of its limited fabrics. Alongside shipping and fit details, the brand also lists the “sustainability impact” of every product, providing estimations of water use that really illuminates the environmental effect of every item they sell.

Amplify your sustainability focus on social media

It may seem obvious, but the value of social media in spreading your sustainability message should not be overlooked. Use the content you create on your webstore to inform your posts on socials and boost your brand message to the masses. There is potential for you to build a loyal following for your commitment to transparency, as each post holds your brand accountable. Customers are growing increasingly savvy with keeping brands in check, so you can be sure to increase engagement with every post you make about your noble efforts. It’s also a great way to build your network with other like-minded brands and organizations.

Conclusion

As we said earlier, sustainability is a journey, and a commitment that brands must not take lightly. If you are in the business of being sustainable, we salute you. Show other brands how it’s done and be a model for the future, on your webstore and beyond. We would love to help you reach your goals, so please get in touch with our team if you would like more help with furthering your message.

The mobile age is here and more people are turning to their cell-phones for their shopping needs. Almost 230 million people purchase items online with that number only expected to increase each year. To meet customers’ needs and make their viewing experience easier, having a mobile app or mobile version of your eCommerce store will give customers a better, smoother overall experience and can help drive sales on your webstore. But while mobile native apps and PWAs can be costly, there are actions you can take today on your existing eCommerce store that will make it more mobile accessible to your customers and profitable for your business. Keep scrolling to learn the best practices to make your apparel and accessories eCommerce store mobile-friendly.

Include Simple Navigation

If you want users to enjoy visiting your site on their mobile device, you need to have an easy to use and simple navigation. Navigation directs your customers to where they want to go or to find what they are looking for. Due to limited screen space on phones, your content must not look overcrowded on a mobile device. An overcrowded navigation can cause disconnect, confusion, frustration and lead to the user exiting the site. Navigation menus on both mobile devices and desktops have the option of having dropdown lists. Multiple dropdown menus may structurally fit on a desktop but will take up the majority of space on a phone. Avoid this issue by keeping your mobile navigation to a few dropdown lists and all in a single column or row. 

Fawn Shoppe has an excellent example of simple, clean and mobile-friendly navigation on their homepage and landing pages:

Limited-time sales and discount codes

Why do you think your inbox is constantly flooded with limited-time sales and discount codes? Because they work! These time-sensitive initiatives are a no-brainer for creating a sense of urgency in your customers, and almost seem to create a ticking clock in their minds. If someone is interested in your product or service and sees an end date or expiration date for a discount code, it’s a trigger that compels them to make up their mind on whether or not to purchase. A deadline is a powerful incentive to action. Help your customers make up their minds by giving them a time limit.

Create Easy Registration

For every store, easy registration is a must. It is where your brand gains customer information to send future emails, newsletters, messages and fulfill orders. Most people do not want to spend longer than a couple of minutes inputting their information just to browse a store. Plus, a small screen with a complicated registration may deter people from continuing to purchase. Instead, stick with the option of an easy registration at checkout that involves limiting your required fields to an email or phone number. You can ask for additional information like shipping or billing addresses and payment information later when the customer is at the end of their checkout process. Another option would be to allow users to register using their Facebook or Google account. Even on mobile, this is a simple 1-click option that will collect all the necessary data fields without requiring customers to enter the fields one by one.

Position CTAs Properly

Trying to click on specific buttons and tabs can be hard enough on a mobile device, so placing call-to-action (CTA) buttons incorrectly can make the user experience nearly impossible. In most cases, the user will leave the page and most likely never return if they can’t find the navigation and purchasing links they’re looking for. You can avoid this from happening by strategically and correctly placing your CTAs and making them easy to find. And it’s especially important to make sure to place key CTAs like Add to Cart and Checkout front and center.

Accept Guest Checkout

When people use their phones to make any purchases, they are expecting a fast checkout process. And in many instances, customers prefer to skip registering during checkout or altogether. Phones have made information fast and accessible, so the checkout process on a mobile device needs to be the same way. The best way to achieve a fast checkout on mobile (and desktop as well) is to accept guest checkout. This option allows your business to sell to a more diverse audience because it encourages one-time customers to purchase as well. While setting up your checkout page, make sure to include a CTA that states checkout as a registered user or guest checkout. This may limit some registration fields; however, it gives your brand a wider possibility of new customers.

Write Short & Catchy Content

With the limited physical viewing space on a mobile device, it is important to keep your content short and catchy. Lengthy product descriptions, long blog posts, or too many images cluttering product pages divert many mobile device customers. Make the shopping experience easier by using short, catchy, and essential content on product pages. To help keep your content short and memorable, we recommend working with a marketing firm that knows how to create concise yet impactful content, including photos, graphics, video or written copy.

Size Images Correctly

Mobile screens and computer screens are two very different layouts. An image that loads and fits for a desktop website could take up the entire screen on its mobile counterpart, take too long to load or create pixilated or low-quality images. To avoid these scenarios, you need to correctly size your mobile images or partner with a marketing firm that knows how to format images for desktops and mobile devices. Even though there are no set sizing requirements, it is best to keep mobile images as small as possible to balance image quality against mobile networks download speeds and file size against mobile data caps. Generally, images range from 240 x 320 to 2560 x 1440 in size.

Always Upsell

Just because there is a lack of space on a mobile device does not mean you can overlook the opportunity to upsell your products. Upselling on product pages and shopping carts introduce customers to new purchasing opportunities. Think of it as the impulse items that many brick-and-mortar stores use to entice customers at checkout. After the product information, show off more of your webstore’s inventory by including links to items that other customers who bought this also viewed this or people also viewed. Studies show that 61% of customers say they are more likely to buy when companies include upselling that matches their preference. Many stores recommend other products that complete an outfit or are similar. An apparel eCommerce store that partners with InteractOne, Kabaryare Fashion has a simple way of upselling similar content with an analogous style and price when customers view their products.

Conclusion

Shopping through mobile devices will become more popular as technology continues to advance. Have a step up from other competitors by following these best practices to make your apparel and accessories eCommerce store optimize mobile shopping. Contact us today for more information on how InteractOne can help your webstore become mobile-friendly.