So, you want to launch your very first e-commerce business. You have the legalities in place and you’re ready to start building. But where do you start and how? Back in the early days of the internet, you could just build a website and achieve success. Now it takes more work and effort on your part. Here are eight secrets for getting your online business off and running, even before it’s time to launch.
Determine Your Niche
Before your business is even off and running, you’ll need a niche. Some of the most successful businesses have a niche. Finding a niche you’re knowledgeable in and passionate about can make building your business even easier. If you end up selling a product that you’re no longer interested in, you’ll have a hard time keeping up with your business.
Market Before Launch
Work on your marketing campaign even before building your online business. Build a “Coming Soon” or “Under Construction” website where you can capture e-mails from interested prospects who can receive updates. Join one or two social media sites where you can post some behind-the-scenes content. You want to build up a little mystery so you can succeed once you launch.
Find Suppliers for Your Products
The next thing you need to do is find the right merchants or suppliers who have the products you want to sell. By tapping into a niche market, you’ll rank high in Google and you’ll have less competition. You should work with a wide variety of suppliers who offer these products. Sometimes issues can arise. It’s best to work with two or three suppliers who can fill the void for another.
Focus on Your Customer
The reason why most online businesses fail is that they don’t focus on their customers. As an online merchant, you need to sell products that your customers aren’t able to smell or touch. All they can do is see and read about the products, so you want to make sure they’re as attractive as ever. Place high-quality images from every angle with 360 views.
This will make the online shopping experience easier for them. Other ways you can improve this experience is by adding customer reviews, reducing the number of steps to checkout, and providing multiple shopping options.
Get on Social Media
To run a successful online business, you need to get on social media. It’s become one of the best ways to increase traffic and sales. Not only does it allow you to interact with your audience, but it also gives you more analytics about your customers than any other website platform. Join one or two social media sites in the beginning.
While social media can be a time suck, there are plenty of social media management agencies or tools that you can use. But don’t just hand your social media accounts and let them do the work. Getting involved with your social media followers is the key to any successful business.
Focus on Your Business
You shouldn’t just outsource every task. You should set an ample amount of time to work on your business. Be prepared to spend early mornings and late nights building and starting your e-commerce business. Starting an online business won’t provide you with the freedom you’re seeking for in the beginning.
It’s going to take time to launch a successful business. During this time, you should follow your competition and current trends. Determine what you can do better than your competition. Follow them every step of the way. Copy what you like about them, and improve what you don’t like about them.
You should also focus on building your customer base during this time. Search everything that you have a question about. This can help you save money on investing in another course or agency. You’ll be impressed at how much you learn.
Choose the Right Platform
Maybe you’re trying to find out how to build an online store. Use an e-commerce platform that provides the features and functionalities that you’re looking for. Find out if they provide 24/7 customer support to help you with your questions and concerns. The brand Magento has everything that online merchants need to get started.
There’s no need to wait for someone else to build you an online store when you can do it yourself. Most e-commerce platforms come with everything you need, including analytics, apps, marketing tools, and plugins. The brand Magento is known for its award-winning capabilities, features, and support. It’s a great platform for large corporations and enterprises.
Create a Mobile-Responsive Site
According to a recent survey, mobile use has exceeded desktop use. When you create an online store, you need to make sure that it’s mobile-ready and responsive. That means creating a responsive website that has features such as big buttons, large font, and plenty of white space between each button and link.
It should also come with call-to-action buttons and navigational menus. Some of those buttons should include the following phrases, such as “check, link, here, buy, more info, view”
Depending on which tools you use, you can build an e-commerce business for less than $500. You don’t even need to pay an agency to help you build a website when you can use a drag-and-drop template. There’s never been a better way to start an online business affordably.
