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Last updated on Aug 2nd, 2022 at 04:37 pm
These days more and more people are trying to explore the digital realm for business opportunities, and hence online stores are becoming more common than brick and mortar stores.
You may think that starting an online store is a lot easier and more profitable than establishing a physical storefront. You don’t have to worry about paying monthly rent and utility bills on top of investing in the products you are going to sell, plus you can reach millions of people globally sitting in the comfort of your home or office.
Undoubtedly, the appeal of starting an online store is just too good to pass. But as with any other business venture, you need to have a strong business plan and plenty of knowledge about how things work online to make profits. Let’s discuss some tried and tested e-commerce tips to help you from beginning to end.
1. Find a niche & test the waters
In this day and age, one can sell anything and everything online. But not all products are conducive to sell online as it can become difficult to drive sales when the customers cannot see the product.
While exploring your options, carefully consider what product you want to sell. Try to find something highly original but with a general appeal.
Once you have determined your product, you will need to evaluate the niche and size up the competition to create a successful online store.
You can test the waters before taking the plunge by selling your products on a small scale like social media or eBay. This will give you a pretty good idea of who is buying your products, what customers are ready to pay and how you can improve.
2. Build your website
When it comes to creating the website, it’s important that you choose the platform carefully. You can get a web developer to build your site from scratch or opt for a hosted platform if you want to avoid any contact with code.
We suggest you go for a secure and robust platform that offers room for customization and scalability. WordPress and Shopify are popular platforms that can get you up and running in no time at a very reasonable cost.
You must carefully assess the benefits and limitations of the service you choose because if anything goes wrong with the website in future, your sales will suffer.
3. Make the Ordering Process Simple & Secure
The process of placing the order should be a breeze for the customers if you want the sales to go smoothly and ensure that the buyers come back for more.
Amazon is a great example when it comes to offering an effortless checkout to the customers. All you need to do is add the product to the cart, if you are a registered user your personal details will already be available on the site; just click a few buttons and voila! Purchase is complete. It cannot get any easier than that.
Make navigation easy for the customers and only create a two or three-step checkout process to enhance the user experience.
4. Pay attention to SEO
You will not be able to get traffic and make sales until and unless you are able to create a web presence. Therefore, paying attention to SEO (Search Engine Optimization) should be your prime focus after your website is operative.
Search engines use specific parameters to index a site and rank it in its search results. These parameters include, but are not limited to, fast loading speed, user experience, clear coding, XML sitemaps and navigation etc. Until and unless these parameters are fulfilled and the site isn’t completely optimized, your customers won’t be able to find you.
5. Create informative and attractive product descriptions and add images
Since the customers cannot see the products in person while shopping online, it’s important that you offer as much information on the product as possible.
Write high-quality product descriptions with complete and authentic information about the product so that the customers know what they are purchasing. Also, be sure to add attractive and high res images to provide visual stimulation.
6. Marketing
Along with optimizing the site to make it search-engine friendly, you will also need to pay attention to marketing for bringing visitors to the site, engaging them and converting them into sales.
Creating attractive landing pages, writing blog articles, and staying active on social media are some of the best ways to attract customers to the site. Running a newsletter is also an important tool for boosting sales.
Offering incentives, and special discounts from time to time, or free giveaways through the newsletter are surefire e-commerce tips that will bring you a lot of leads and sales.
source: Deloitte Africa Digital Commerce Survey, 2020
7. Upsell
Advertising similar products right before the customer checks out is a growingly popular trend these days. Needless to say, it is very effective as well in promoting sales and increasing profits. By showing products similar to the ones your customer has added to their cart, you can encourage them to consider more options.
Conclusion
All of these above-mentioned tips will help you in successfully starting an online business, so make sure you add this article to your bookmarks. Your e-Commerce website is like the front page of your business, so it’s important to get it right. Since the 2020 Covid-19 lockdowns, online shopping has had a BIG increase in popularity, and people are enjoying the easy convenience of it.
If you’re looking to find out more about starting your own e-commerce store, contact Digital Consulting for advice and solutions.
