There is nothing to starting an eCommerce business nowadays: the entire process takes up to a few hours tops. Nevertheless, launching an eCommerce site and launching a lucrative eCommerce site are completely different matters: everyone can do the first, but if you want to keep cash flowing in once your e-store is up and running, you will need a little bit of patience and a few smart tricks and tools. If you want to get the biggest bang for your eCommerce buck, follow the tips below and your online store will soon start bringing in profits in no time.
CLICK TO TWEET “If you want to get the biggest bang for your eCommerce buck, follow these tips”
Pick Your Product Wisely
The first thing you need to decide on before you hoist your eCommerce flags is the industry and product you are going to focus on. The choice will depend on multiple factors, such as budget, merchandise storage requirements, shipping costs, projected profit margin, and demand-supply ratio. On top of that, you will need to take into account competition, market outlook, and current industry developments, and your own inclinations as regards to the target trade sector.
The Sweet Supplier Spot
Once you have picked the industry and decided on the product you are going to trade in, it is time to find suppliers that offer most favorable prices and shipping conditions. To cut hassle and waste of time when hunting for suppliers, you can use various online tools such as Google Shopping: the easy-to-use search engine runs searches into products sold online, as well as suppliers and re-sellers.
CLICK TO TWEET “To cut hassle + waste of time hunting for suppliers use various online tools “
Alternatively, you can do your research through online directories such as Worldwide Brands and Wholesale Central, both of which feature thousands of wholesalers and millions of products. Once you have narrowed down the selection, you should outreach handpicked suppliers and see if they are interested in doing business with you. Note that some brands will not be open to the idea of working with newbies to eCommerce, so check application and requirements first and count your supply before you set up the online store.
eCommerce That Sells
With your industry, product, and suppliers in place, it is time to get your website up and running. When it comes to eCommerce platforms, you should look into options available for free or for a relatively low cost and select the one that has the features that fit your needs best. For instance, you can tap into the power of Shopify’s Facebook store: simple to use and set up, the smart tool will help you boost reach, target customers by location, age, and interests, and personalize the shopping experience for users who will be able to access and order products from a mobile device.
If you are looking for a neater interface and additional features, try OpenCart: an open-source platform with thousands of convenient pre-programmed extensions, the powerful platform lets you customize your site and enhance user experience without having to hire a developer. There are other options out there which you can take into consideration when choosing an eCommerce platform, so be sure to do your homework in advance.
A Shiny Domain Name
If you opt for OpenCart or a similar platform that does not come with a hosting account, domain name, and SSL Certificate, you will need to look into these details before you open your store for buyers.
To hit multiple e-commerce birds with a single web solution, get BlueHost to handle the domain name, hosting, and SSL certificate for you. Or, try SiteGround, Flywheel, WP Engine, and DigitalOcean instead: each of these has shown to provide superior user experience, reliability, and cost-efficiency, so you can go over their features and see which one fits your brand’s needs most based on your budget and preferences.
A Fetching Web Design
The design, logo, and trade name of your eCommerce site will impact visitors’ in-store behavior. For this reason, it may be a smart move to hire a designer to custom-design your web store. Or, if you want to avoid prohibitive web design expenses, you can use a suave-looking customizable template available from an online marketplace, such as TemplateMonster or ThemeForest. You can also have your brand logo custom-designed at an affordable price by posting a call for ideas on a crowdsourcing design platform or by hiring a brand designer to create this for you.
Ship on a Shoestring Budget
Once you have set up your website and made the first order from the most favorable supplier, you will need to look into shipping options and see which of them offers the biggest profit margin in the long run. For instance, you can offer free shipping to return customers, include the flat rate shipping option to incite website visitors to buy more, or resort to “per product shipping” to avoid losing a fortune on special shipments. If you want to shave off total costs for both your e-store and the end user, you can also try in-person deliveries for local orders.
CLICK TO TWEET “Your web-based shop will go from measly to massively lucrative overnight.”
Ready to take your e-commerce off the ground? Follow the tips above and your web-based shop will go from measly to massively lucrative overnight. Good luck counting your Ka-chings online!
Oscar is a writer and one of the editors at Bizzmarkblog. He writes about the latest developments across various industries, usually relating to marketing, business, and technology. To stay updated with Oscar’s latest posts, you can follow him on Twitter.