The Impact of Cultural Diversity on E-commerce Designs — Part 1
As someone working in the e-commerce sector, my curiosity about understanding the diversity in the e-commerce experiences of users from different cultures has solidified with a desire to conduct thorough research. Through sharing the information obtained from this research, I will describe the impact of culture on the e-commerce sector.
To remain competitive, e-commerce companies today need to develop strategies for sustainability and growth in local and global markets. In this competitive environment, the designs and user experiences of e-commerce platforms should be adapted to the cultural context of the targeted geography. In this article series, we will emphasize the importance of cultural differences in e-commerce designs and look at how these interactions affect design.
As of January 2023, the 5.16 billion internet users worldwide constitute a significant part of global online shopping, with 56.5% of internet users aged 16 to 64 making online purchases weekly. [1] This statistic indicates that most individuals with internet access engage in online shopping, highlighting the expansion of user bases on e-commerce platforms and their coverage of a large segment of potential customers.
To make this large-scale e-commerce experience more effective, design factors, especially language and culture, should be considered. While 58.8% of global websites provide services in English, the question of how many in the global population can understand these English sites is crucial. Unfortunately, this ratio is quite low, as only 6% of the global population speaks English as their native language, and 75% do not speak English at all. [2] In this context, design processes should consider not only English but also other languages and cultures. Understanding cultural diversity and language differences will make the e-commerce experience more inclusive and effective on a global scale.
Connection Between Language and Culture
Language is a tool that provides information about a community’s values, beliefs, and habits. The words, expressions, and grammar rules used form a cultural identity by reflecting the worldview of that community. Therefore, communication in a language should be culturally appropriate for the culture in which the language is spoken.
E-commerce companies should pay attention not only to the grammatical rules of a language but also to the cultural context of that language when designing their platforms. It is essential to align many elements, from color choices to symbolism, page layout to content tone, with the cultural expectations of the target audience. For example, the symbolic meanings of colors used on an e-commerce site in an Asian country can vary based on cultural beliefs in that region. Similarly, the addressing style and content tone in a language should show respect for the target audience’s values.
In the upcoming sections of this article series, I will delve into specific topics by categorizing areas differentiated by culture and explore in detail the impacts of cultural differences on these elements.
Color Usage: Colors play a significant role in intercultural communication as each culture attributes different symbolism to colors, triggering specific emotional responses. In this section, we will examine in detail the effects of color palettes used on e-commerce sites in cultural contexts. For instance, we will explore how a color may have positive connotations in one culture while being perceived differently in another.
Page Layout: Page layout has a substantial impact on the usability of an e-commerce site. However, expectations for page layout may differ across cultures. In this section, we will analyze the effects of different cultures on page layout preferences. For example, we will identify differences between Eastern and Western cultures regarding page layout expectations.
Site Content: Language and content tone significantly influence users’ interaction with a website. In this section, we will emphasize the necessity for the language used on e-commerce sites to be culturally sensitive. Additionally, we will discuss intercultural content strategies and user language expectations.
Site Interaction: User experience is determined by site interaction. In this section, we will focus on how cultural factors affect the interaction of users with e-commerce sites. For example, by addressing the responses and expectations of users from different cultures to interactive elements, we will examine the interaction strategies of e-commerce sites.
With this article and the subsequent series, I aim to provide a resource for e-commerce companies to understand the relationships between these fundamental design elements and cultural diversity, enabling them to create more effective and user-friendly designs in intercultural markets.
References
[1] https://datareportal.com/global-digital-overview
[5] https://www.statista.com/statistics/262946/most-common-languages-on-the-internet/
