10 Things You Need To Know Before Launching Your E-Commerce Store
You've got a great idea for an e-commerce store, but you're unsure where to start. Luckily, I've done all the hard work for you. Here are ten easy steps that will help take your online store from its current conception to a fully operational internet business in no time at all.
Step 1: Choose the right e-commerce platform
You should choose a platform that is easy to use and has all the features you need. It's also essential to ensure it's affordable and has a good reputation. Here’s where you should initiate the e-commerce platform selection process:
Determine your goals
You might have an excellent idea for an online store and be itching to start. But before you do, it's vital to take some time and think about why you're building an e-commerce site and your business goals.
If you have a brick-and-mortar store or plan on opening one in the future, it's worth considering whether selling products online will complement your brick-and-mortar operation or work against it.
Is something missing from your current offerings that would make sense as an online offering? Or maybe you want customers who live far away from the physical location of your store—by building an eCommerce site; they'll be able to buy directly from you without having to come in person or order over the phone.
Answer these questions:
What do I hope my customers will think when they visit my website?
How can I use this platform as a way of engaging potential customers?
Understand the features and limitations of your preferred e-commerce platforms
Once you understand what features are available, it's time to assess which ones are right for your brand.
Features that matter most might include reporting tools and integrations with financial software.
For some companies, a platform's ability to support multiple languages and currencies is critical; for others, it's a non-issue.
Some businesses need the ability to customize their sites.
Once you've gone through this exercise, you'll have a clear idea of what matters most to you—and how much of each feature is supported by each e-commerce platform on your list.
Assess your budget
Once you've decided on a specific platform, the next step is to decide on a budget. You may have looked at the feature sets and decided that one platform is a better fit for you, but it might be out of your price range. When pricing, look at what features are included within each package and whether or not those features will benefit your business.
It's also important to consider any add-ons or extra services that might come with the base price tag. Is there support available? Is training offered?
These are all questions worth asking before signing up with an e-commerce provider, regardless of budget size, because they can affect how much time and energy you spend getting things set up in the first place—and how long it takes before sales start rolling in.
Decide if you're looking for a free or paid platform
If you're starting up, or your company isn't sure how e-commerce will fit into its business plan, then a free platform might be the way to go. If you're looking for something more robust and customizable, paid software is probably the way.
However, be aware that paid software can still come with a hefty price tag. "The biggest challenge startups face when choosing a platform is understanding all of the features that come with it," Adam Torenstein. "You may think you want one thing (like customer loyalty), but after learning about all of the other amazing features that come included with most platforms these days, you realize that these additional tools could improve your business.”
For example, Shopify Plus offers unlimited bandwidth and storage space—a big plus if your business uses large images on product pages or hosts videos on YouTube channels related to each product category on its site—but it starts at $2,000 per month plus other fees.*
So, while there's no cost upfront for Shopify Plus users like there would be with Magento Enterprise or Big Commerce Pro+, those who opt for this option are responsible for paying an annual fee every 12 months after their initial signup period ends.
Think about how you want to scale your e-commerce business
It would help if you had a clear idea of how your business will scale. Will you be launching new products? How many customers are you planning on serving, and what kind of volume can your system handle?
If you're starting out, it's OK to use a smaller e-commerce platform—but make sure the platform will be able to grow with your company. If not, switching later might be difficult or costly.
Consider your customers' needs and preferences
There are many factors to consider when choosing an e-commerce platform, but none is more important than your customers' needs and preferences. This is a lot easier said than done. However—after all, what does it mean for a customer to have a choice?
To answer this question, we need first to define the word "preference." The Oxford English Dictionary defines it as "a personal choice or liking; something is chosen instead of another thing." If you're trying to sell something on your website, the key word here is "personal choice or liking."
Let's look at an example: A customer wants to buy some shoes from your store. Did they pick these shoes because they like them better? Or did they choose them because they were cheaper than other similar products? Remember that every person has their own unique set of preferences and needs.
Decide on the scope of your market
One of the most important decisions you'll make when choosing a platform is whether you want to prioritize mobile sales. E-commerce platforms like BigCommerce and Shopify allow you to set up your store so that it's optimized for desktop and mobile users.
However, if you choose to go with a different platform, take note: some don't have mobile apps at all. So if your customers use their phones more than their computers, this could be a deal-breaker.
If you're planning on selling globally (or just having an international audience), it's also essential that your e-commerce platform supports multiple languages and currencies.
If your store doesn't support various currencies or languages yet, consider switching over when it does so that potential customers in other countries can easily find what they're looking for without having to convert prices from dollars into NZ$ or euros first.
Pick an easy platform to use from the start, but look for future flexibility
To illustrate, some platforms are easier to use than others. Ease of use is crucial because it helps you get your site up and running quickly, but don't forget about future scalability.
In addition, some platforms are more flexible than others, so look for a solution that will offer you room to grow as your business grows. You want the flexibility to add new features or products as you need them without having to switch e-commerce platforms (which can be time-consuming).
Don't forget about site design and branding
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