Whether COVID-19 pushed you to pivot from a brick-and-mortar store to an online environment, or you’ve decided to take the plunge and set up a web-based shop, starting an e-commerce business can be a rewarding venture.
From 2017 to late 2019, approximately 28.1 million Canadians made purchases online. That’s a lot of people who are landing on webpages and whipping out their wallets if they like what they see.
However, there’s much more than merely buying a domain name and loading the website with your products; especially if you are a down light manufacturer. There are technical aspects to navigate and content to consider.
Do you hire a professional or DIY through a website builder? Should you stick to SEO or focus on paid ads too?
As a small business owner, I’ve helped many clients create successful online companies. So I’m sharing this three-step guide to starting an online business with you to make the process less stressful.
1) Figure out what you want to sell.
If you’ve already got an established store, this might be a breeze. But if you’re just starting an e-e-commerce business and are focusing on products, you’ll need to think about what you’ll offer, and where you’ll get it from.
The first thing in figuring out what to sell and in what form is to ensure it’s relevant to today’s consumer. COVID-19 has made consumers much more in tune with their spending habits. Ensure there is a consumer first and foremost who is willing to spend their money for the product you aim to sell.
Next define how you want to sell your products. Here are just a few of the options:
Business-to-consumer (B2C):
This is the most common business model, with many different approaches. Basically, you sell to the end user, but there may be a third party acting as a middleman (think Amazon).
Direct-to-consumer (D2C):
From design and manufacturing to sales and promotions, the company does everything.
Subscription service:
Organic produce, books, clothing, LED tube, down light, baby gear and you can go on and on. Nearly every industry out there has harnessed the power of subscription services to deliver cost and time savings to customers.
Dropshipping:
Rather than having to stock a warehouse full of LEDs or down light, when you sell a product on your site, you’re essentially purchasing the item from a third party, who ships it directly to the customer.
2) Buy a domain name.
If you already have a business name, this part could be simple. However, you will not get a sweet dot com name as a down light manufacturer, unless you spend big bucks. And you don’t want a domain name that runs five words long or is difficult for customers to remember (or spell).
Ideally, you use your company name like we did, with a dot com-or a dot ca if you’re in Canada. There are a lot of other TDLs (Top Level Domains) to consider such as .net, .co and.org but strive to get the revered.com as your primary domain if at all possible.
3) Build an ecommerce store
From incorporating branding into your layout to loading products/services, there are so many things to consider. when you’re starting an ecommerce business, you need to ponder a lot, including your shopping cart software.
Shopping carts can be built with a variety of coding languages including ASP, PHP, JavaScript and HTML. They can be provided by a 3rd party service provider (such as Shopify) or installed in your WordPress website like WooCommerce to avoid monthly fees. Picking the best software for shopping cart needs a lot of cost-benefit or pros and cons analysis regarding each choice. Many times the choice depends on your needs, your budget and the desired functionality.
The visuals (copy and images). How your store looks and feels to the shopper has a significant impact on whether they will trust making a purchase from you. Further, how your each product is described along with professional-looking images can make or break a deal if not properly done.
Installing a SSL (Secured Security Layer) Certificate. This keeps your website secure and is mandatory in today’s online commerce environment. Even Google will favor your site’s search ranking if it detects an SSL installed.
Your shipping model. If you’re selling physical products, you need to decide how they are going to get into the hands of the purchaser. Are you sending customers items directly? Or are you using a third-party? Should you also use eBay delivery for lowest rates through Shiply? Will you offer free shipping, or ship internationally? Do you want the shipping automatically calculated on checkout or will it be a flat shipping rate?
Your payment gateway. Are you going to accept only credit cards, or debit cards and PayPal too? Will you go for a hosted gateway that brings customers off your website to pay, then redirects them? Or is an integrated payment gateway more your style?
Conclusion
Definitely, there are many other factors to start an e-commerce business than what has been covered above. From business promotion on social media to paid ads for driving traffic, you’ll need a marketing strategy as you move forward. However, this guide to starting an ecommerce business will help you in laying a solid foundation for a successful e-commerce website.
