Introduction
Although an e-commerce website shares most of a regular website’s content, there are differences that need to be properly planned and implemented. This is why we have prepared this separate guide for creating and submitting content exclusively for an e-commerce website.
The specifications contained in this article will help you prepare and submit content that is easy to understand and integrate in your e-commerce website.
We also provide you with basic information on how to pack and send your documents to us throughout your e-commerce website’s development.
Disclaimer
At any time, please only submit content that you legally own, or otherwise have legal authority to use in an online project.
We will never allow or accept images that violate a third party’s intellectual property rights to be used in any online or offline project that we work on.
We will only develop an e-commerce website for a business that is registered in New Zealand or the country of your residence and if that registration is able to verified independently.
We will also not accept any of the following content:
- Content that displays or promotes any form of nudity, or that may otherwise be classified as “adult content”, which may be generally unsuitable for an audience under the age of 18 in New Zealand, or the legal age in any other jurisdiction from where your website may be accessed.
- Content that displays, supports, intends to, or can incite race-based, gender-based, ethnicity-based, sexual orientation and identity-based violence, crime, or hatred.
- Content that advertises any material that is prohibited from sale in New Zealand and in the jurisdiction from where your website may be accessed.
- Contents of products that cannot be sold to minors as per the laws of New Zealand and any other jurisdiction from where your website may be accessed.
- Content that displays products which are classified as controlled items in New Zealand or any other jurisdiction from where your website may be accessed.
- Drugs and related product content.
- Merchandise or items that may be used to inflict physical or emotional harm to any person.
- Contents of products that may otherwise require special permission or prescription from a registered health practitioner to be purchased in New Zealand or any jurisdiction from where your website may be accessed.
- Contents of products that can be used to manufacture weapons of any kind.
- Digital content that has been pirated or is intended to be served over torrents.
- Content that contains graphic details of death, murder, or crime of any nature.
- Content that is intended to spread propaganda or hatred against the New Zealand Government or the rule of law.
- Content that is classified as having the potential to disrupt the national security of New Zealand or any other country, region, state, or territory.
- Content that contains any form of child pornography, child sexual abuse, child abuse, or abuse in general.
- Any other content that is prohibited from being published in an online publication under the Laws of New Zealand, or any other jurisdiction from where your website may be accessed.
Types of Content
When we are developing your website, we will request various types of content. These content types are discussed below.
Product Images
Research shows that products with images on a website are more likely to be viewed and purchased.
We understand that some products may have multiple images. In a usual WordPress + WooCommerce setup, we can have a primary product image and a gallery that contains other images of the same product. Usually, other images contain other perspectives of the products or show the variations such as colours, etc. for a product.
Please ensure you include an image with your product description. It is helpful to name each product image with their SKU, such as, 198377165_Blue, 198377165_Green, etc.
Resolution
Where possible, we recommend sending us images that are more than 1920 pixels wide in resolution. Images that are at least of this resolution are known as “high-resolution” or “high-res”, and ensures that your website has clear and crisp images which are an important aspect of user experience.
Images that are submitted in lower resolutions may appear blurred out when viewed from different devices, which will affect the user experience in a negative way.
Image Formats
Unless specified otherwise, we can only accept images that are in the following formats:
- .WEBP (recommended)
- .PNG
- .JPEG
- .GIF
Aspect Ratio
A good product image is usually square. This means that their width and height would ideally be the same. This allows for a better viewing experience on your website and is only a recommendation.
Text
Usually, the text part of an e-commerce website contains the following:
Product Descriptions and Specifications
Product descriptions are important parts of an e-commerce websites. They link what the website’s visitors are seeing with information that is helpful for them to decide whether to purchase a product or service.
For this reason, it is important that product descriptions are properly formatted.
When creating product descriptions, please use the following format:
You can also use bullet points to list your product’s features or attributes.
Formatting Your Text (General Guidelines)
Where possible, please use minimal formatting for your text. You may use bold, italics, or underlined text to tell us how you would like them to appear on your website.
If you use a word processor for your text content, please use the default font. If you use a third-party font that you may have downloaded and installed, we might not access to that font in our library, which means that your document will not display as you intended. Please note that not all word and document processors are able to embed fonts in the proper way, and some fonts may also be licensed in a way that prevents them from being embedded in documents.
Please use the appropriate headings throughout your document to specify the same on your website. If you are unsure of how to use headings in a document, please refer to your document processors official manual.
File Format
Files containing the text copy of your website must only be submitted in PDF format. We are unable to accept any other file format for text content as our word processing software may be different to yours.
Most new word processors have a built-in feature to export your files as PDF. You should refer to your word processor’s official manual for help if you need assistance. There are also several online tools that may help you convert your native word format files to PDF, however, caution must be taken to only use trustworthy websites as some may embed malware to your files.
Product images must be submitted in any of the following formats:
- PNG (with transparent, or other light background for best results)
- WEBP
- JPEG
Graphics
Your website can contain various graphics. These include your business or brand logos and other decorational elements.
File Format
When you submit your business or brand logo, we will accept the following file formats:
- AI
- SVG
- EPS
When submitting illustrations, please note that we accept the following file formats:
- AI
- SVG
- EPS
Submitting Your Content
How To Pack Your Contents
We suggest that you pack your contents in compressed ZIP files. This will allow a faster transmission of your files as well as the ability to include multiple contents in a single upload.
Most customers use separate folders for each product, which makes it easier for us to link and integrate your products correctly.
If you are unsure about using tools to compress your files and folders, please submit your contents individually.
How To Send Us Your Content
File transfers to and from us are done via our own cloud service, BissesarCloud.
BissesarCloud is a secure and hassle-free way of sharing files with us. When we start working on a project with you, we will send you details on how to access BissesarCloud as well as your login credentials.
For security reasons, we are unable to accept contents via email.
Last updated on 4 February 2024.