e-Commerce has ballooned into a multi-billion dollar market, and the competition in this market is fierce. Companies that offer the best user experience are the ones most likely to succeed on the Web. To help companies succeed online, IBM has developed guidelines addressing the issues of trust, customer support, product navigation, product information, and the purchase transaction. In each of these areas, our goal is to make buying goods and services comfortable, easy, and enjoyable.

Key Terms
Below are e-commerce terms used frequently throughout these guidelines, and their meanings as they are used on this site. Lesser-used terms are defined in place, as they appear.

order list - Also known as a shopping cart, a list of products that the user has identified as being under consideration for purchase.

order list page - A page that contains the order list.

product list - A list of products in the online catalog. Typically, the product list contains each product's name, price, and a very brief description. It is linked to more detailed information and may also include a mechanism for adding items to the order list.

product category navigation page - A page that presents product offerings, grouped by categories such as brand or intended usage.

product description page - A page that describes a product in detail and allows the user to add the product to the order list.

store front - A point or entry to an online store. Sometimes this page is the same as the company home page (www.companyname.com). Other times it is separate (perhaps www.companyname.com/shop).