Great web design vs. average web design for ecommerce shop

Here are questions I've been asking myself lately and did not come up with any kind of answer on it.

Should you invest in custom design for your shopping cart or not. If yes what does it worth? In meaning, how much increase in sales or customer retention can you see? Does it even matter at all what kind of design?

We all know that all e-commerce websites have fairly standard navigation, so let's drop navigation issues and customers not being able to find their way on your website. What I'd like to know if it makes difference between let's say cre loaded standard design (very clean, fairly modern. I think this website is build on standard design https://www.greatstainedglass.com/) vs. custom made, hand drawn design that will make your shop stand out from competition (for example design like this http://www.peacepipehookah.com/ it is not e-commerce site, but you can see the difference between designs) Will it make difference or should I just concentrate on search engine position results?

Thanks for reading

 

I think simple but good design is the best....
Simple to navigate but the layout is correct... so the customer easily to find their needs....

 

It's your business, so why be like everyone else? I would always go for a custom design to make it stand out from the crowd. But the custom design has to be simple yet attractive, easy to navigate, easy on the eye, it has to work with all the major browsers. It has to be extremely user friendly and search engine friendly too.

 

Thanks for your replies, but does any body know any kind of rough numbers regarding effectiveness? The main question of this topic is "how much good design worth" and "does it worth anything at all"? I understand that it is much more pleasant to see your website looking good, but does it matter for your customers or they don't really care, all the care about is what you have to offer at what price.

 

Personally i think its impossible to answer those questions. You can only try and guess. No two customers are alike, no two business are the same. A crappy design works for some, a great design works for others. For some customers it's all about the price, for some everything plays a part in their decision to buy. What may work for others may not work for you.
I still think the website should reflect your business. The design affects the goodwill and recognition, and in return these two add value to your business.
When you walk down the street, which shops attract your attention? The ones with great displays and awesome signage, or the ones you can't even stand looking at, or the ones you can't even notice in the crowd? The same goes with websites. But that doesn't mean you should spend big on custom design.