Friday, August 26, 2011

E-commerce: Things to Consider When Setting Up Shop

E-commerce is the biggest thing happening in the field of online trading. It has become as a part of the mainstream shopping experience, so many companies are fighting it out to capture online market as they see potential there. Setting up an e-commerce website is the basic requirement for an online business. Concentrate on the following things to set up a successful online store.

Choosing a domain name: Domain name will always have a huge impact on the success of any site and an e-commerce site is no exception. If you already have an established business, choosing the same name is wise. If you can't get that exact name, add a prefix or a suffix like 'online' and 'shop' and try to get it.

Reliable hosting: An e-commerce website can grow very quickly. If your website can't handle the traffic and goes down regularly, you can't make any sales. Customer confidence will also get affected. So, pick a reputable hosting company for your online business. They may charge a bit higher than most companies, but it is worth paying as they provide a reliable service.

Find good suppliers: An e-commerce operator should never be caught up with the logistics of handling inventory. To avoid this situation, you should create a network with suppliers. You can find suppliers all over the world - China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, etc. If you have a good network of suppliers, you will never have to worry about running out of goods.

Attract the customers: Customers should find a valid reason to do business with you. You must highlight why they must buy from you. Are your prices more competitive? Do you offer attractive discounts? Do you have a wider range of products? Can you ship faster than your competitors?

Create easy navigation: Find a good web designer to design your website. An e-commerce site needs to be well designed so that customers will find it easy to navigate and search for the products they want to buy. A search box will help them in this regard. You can also showcase featured products on the home page.

Use graphics and attractive images: Attractive images of products can make users buy a product. Additional features like including personalized notes while shipping, especially for gifts, will also help improve sales. Customers must find it easy to collect multiple items in the shopping cart.

Easy checkout: The checkout process should be hassle free. For instance, step 1 - add to cart, step 2 - check out, step 3 - pay with credit card or debit card and the process is complete! You can find numerous open source software for this and they are free to use.

Maintain Transparency: Selling online is different from selling offline. If you make your customers to pay additional charges and taxes at the far end of the checkout process, they will never come back to your site again. Avoid those surprises by disclosing all terms and conditions upfront.

If you create a good e-commerce website and provide a great service, then customers will certainly come back to buy from you again and again.

Forix is a Portland Web Development company offering web design and development services. The Portland Web Design company is highly experienced in design of informational & eCommerce websites for small businesses and startups. Call toll free 1-800-818-2361 for details today!

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