Online shopping is one of the largest industries globally, as it is now a multi-billion dollar market each year. From selling specific products, such as unique retro decor items, to starting your own line of household goods, fashion, or even automobile parts, eCommerce is becoming the go-to method of launching new businesses anywhere in the world today. Understanding the most important eCommerce essentials is a key component to ensuring your online store is a success, even upon its initial launch.
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Know your market
Conducting market research should be one of your priorities if you’re building an eCommerce store, especially if you’re doing so for the first time on your own. Identifying the target audience and niche market you intend to appeal to can help you better understand existing competition and products that are already widely available to your prospective consumers. Whether your eCommerce store will promote cute t-shirt bras or you’re selling rare collectibles, you will want to analyze existing competitors while getting to know more about predictable market trends.
Diving deep into market analysis is vital if you’re entering a highly competitive or saturated market that is already rife with existing businesses and brands. The more insight and data you gather regarding customer preferences and behaviors in your target industry, the more likely you will be to achieve your short and long-term milestone goals. Keeping up with the desires, demands, and needs of your specific niche market will help you stay ahead of your competition once your eCommerce store is accessible to the public.
Names, trademarks, and domains
Choosing the right name for your eCommerce store can make a world of difference once your store is live and online. An eCommerce store name that is difficult to spell includes special characters or one that is extremely similar to a competitor’s name will be more challenging to grow. While researching domain names for your eCommerce store, consider who you will be targeting and how they will discover your digital business to find a name that is fitting and suitable for your intended presence. You will also want to trademark your preferred eCommerce name and the name of your business (which should be the same to minimize confusion when attracting new customers).
Selecting the right eCommerce platform for your business
From selling women’s stylish dresses to promoting prototypes of products that are truly unique or produced in-house, you’ll need to select a suitable eCommerce platform for the best outcome possible. While it may be possible for you to invest in the development of a unique site-hosted eCommerce platform, this can quickly add up to tens of thousands of dollars, which may not be feasible for those just starting. If you’re thinking of building an eCommerce business and want to do so with a known and reputable platform, research and compare the following popular solutions before you finalize your decision:
- WooCommerce: WooCommerce is an extension of the well-known CMS (Content Management System) platform, WordPress. WooCommerce is free to use, secured, and updated by thousands of users and developers. WooCommerce is extremely versatile in terms of providing free and premium themes, plugins, and add-ons to create a truly branded eCommerce experience. WooCommerce is self-hosted and will require you to install and maintain the platform using your preferred web host. WooCommerce is free and accessible to all, regardless of personal or commercial usage of the platform.
- Shopify: If you’re not interested in hosting an eCommerce system yourself, Shopify is a leading provider of alternative eCommerce solutions. With Shopify, your eCommerce store will be hosted on Shopify servers. Shopify may be optimal for those who are inexperienced with server management or those who are operating smaller stores and brands uninterested in self-hosted options. Shopify requires a monthly fee for ongoing maintenance and service.
- BigCommerce: BigCommerce is another alternative to hosting your eCommerce store if you’re seeking a trusted, secured, and encrypted platform to launch your store on. BigCommerce is a premium service that will require monthly or annual payments.
Responsive eCommerce design
Today, responsive design is more important than ever. Incorporating a user-friendly template or design will improve your user experience while increasing the chances of generating a sale. When choosing or designing your eCommerce store layout, ensure that your selected template or layout is not only branded properly to align with your company’s image but that it’s also responsive and user-friendly across multiple browsers and electronic devices.
Compelling content and accessible navigation
Your eCommerce store should include about pages, history pages, and properly sorted product pages, according to your designated categories. Crafting compelling content for your eCommerce store blog is also highly advisable if you’re searching for a way to establish a professional and authoritative reputation.
When crafting unique pieces of content, you will also want to keep basic SEO (Search Engine Optimization) techniques in mind to boost your website’s position on top search engines such as Google, Bing, Yahoo!, and DuckDuckGo. Product descriptions, videos, and media uploaded to your eCommerce store site should also be optimized for search engines.
Payment gateways
Setting up a payment gateway is vital for anyone running and managing an eCommerce store. Payment gateways make it possible for customers to send virtual payments to you using a safe, secured, and encrypted system. Using a trusted payment gateway system will ensure seamless and secured transactions which will significantly reduce the risk of running into fraud or exposing consumer data to potential thieves and online hackers. With the right payment gateway solution, it is also much easier to complete international transactions while simultaneously accepting and handling various international currencies without a hassle.
Shipping and order fulfillment
Determine which shipping platform and order fulfillment solution is optimal for your e-commerce store. Set policies, shipping rates, and taxes accordingly based on where you intend to ship products from your original location. Consider which inventory management and order fulfillment platforms you will use to streamline this process.
Incorporating key components that are necessary for an eCommerce site into your business model and strategy can significantly improve your chances of achieving success. When you’re aware of the current trends, security patches, and features of various eCommerce platforms, choosing an ideal solution will be much easier, even if you’re new to working with an online store. With an understanding of the eCommerce world and the steps involved in the process of building a store of your own, you will be on your way to ensuring your next eCommerce venture is a complete success, regardless of your chosen market and niche.
Ashley Nielsen earned a B.S. degree in Business Administration Marketing at Point Loma Nazarene University. She is a freelance writer who loves to share knowledge about general business, marketing, lifestyle, wellness, and financial tips. During her free time, she enjoys being outside, staying active, reading a book, or diving deep into her favorite music.