Ecommerce or Electronic Commerce is a term that describes business conducted over an electronic network such as the Internet. Much of the increase in eCommerce has come from businesses selling products and services to other companies rather than individual consumers. Consumers account for less than 10 percent of total US eCommerce sales.
Understanding E-commerce
It’s important to understand that eCommerce isn’t just shopping online.
E-Commerce is a part of modern life nowadays because we can shop online and buy things we want and need with one click; we can make payments through our credit cards online; we can make money transfers through our banks; we can pay bills quickly (electricity, cable, water, telephone); we can read, download and upload anything online. We don’t have to wait for a hard copy of a document or a product anymore; everything is fast and accessible through the Internet. Ecommerce has changed our lifestyle too – we have more time for ourselves now because we no longer have to go out to buy things or pay bills. One-click is just enough!
Benefits of Ecommerce
e-commerce seems to be the future wave as more and more companies are exploring this new marketing avenue. Many advantages come with having an e-commerce site. This article will discuss three benefits of creating an online shopping experience for your customers, focusing on increasing your customers` customer retention and loyalty.
Convenient
Customers love the convenience and saving money as a business owner; you should know that if you want to stay competitive in this day and age, you need to make your product available 24 hours a day – seven days a week – through an e-commerce website. This allows customers to purchase products at all times of the day or night. Customers are likely to explore features such as express checkout, so they don’t have to spend much time before purchasing.
Special discounts
Another main advantage for businesses with an e-commerce site is offering customers special discounts or coupons exclusive to their site. Also, creating an e-commerce website will allow you to provide free shipping on purchases over a certain amount, prompt more online purchases. Customer retention will be easier because you provide them with what they want – convenience and savings.
Social media shares
Customers can easily share information through social media. E-commerce sites also provide businesses with the opportunity to communicate with customers in many different ways now since so many people are now using social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. This allows companies to promote new products, sales, discounts, and sweepstakes.
Link posts
Another way to engage customers is by making sure that you post links to your e-commerce site on social media sites, allowing people to share products they like with friends or family members. This can help spread the word about a new product and increase revenue.
Good ROI
E-commerce websites provide a good return on investment. A great benefit of having an e-commerce website is that it allows for businesses with a good return on their initial monetary investments.
According to the Nielsen Company, “For every $1 company invested in online ads last year, Nielsen calculates digital ad spending returned an average $3.49 in purchases at retail.” With this being said, online marketing is more advantageous than traditional marketing because consumers are more likely to purchase products through the Internet than by watching television or listening to the radio.
Increased Customer Retention
So there are many benefits of having an e-commerce site for your business including increased customer retention and loyalty, improved communication with customers through social media sites, and a good return on investment.
Summary:
By exploring all of these benefits, you can help provide better service to your customers by providing them with 24/7 access to information about new products, sales, and discounts.
Mistakes to avoid while creating an Ecommerce Website
An eCommerce website is a medium between the retailer and buyers. It allows you to sell your products online with ease while also providing an accessible platform for customers to find your products.
If you are planning to start an E-Commerce business, there are some things that you need to consider before you get started. This article will briefly go over those items to better plan out your strategy from the very beginning.
Over the years, we have created successful online businesses for our clients using Magento as their back-end system. In doing this, we have come across many common mistakes made by new online store owners and thought it would be helpful if we shared them here so that you can avoid them.
Do not buy a premade template
One of the first mistakes people make is going to a website and buying a premade template, these templates usually are low quality if not useless. They might look good, but they do nothing to help you sell your products.
We have never seen a premade template work as a whole cohesive, solid system that you need from your website. Instead of using premade templates, we recommend developing your site from scratch with all custom features to ensure that it meets the needs of your business and its customers. This also ensures that all dynamic aspects such as shopping cart and user account functions are coded correctly to increase sales effectiveness without the risk of security breaches or other problems later on down the road.
Build Website from Scratch
Developing your site on Magento is not an easy task. It can be pretty costly, but it also gives you the most professional look on the web today. So if you want to make sure that your investment will pay off in a big way, we recommend taking the time to develop your site from scratch rather than going with a premade template which can lead to many headaches later down the line.
Have A Clear Idea On Target Audience
Another mistake people tend to make when starting their E-Commerce websites is they don’t have a clear understanding of their target customers or who they are trying to sell their products to. For any business model to work effectively, you need to know exactly what type of customers you target and how to reach them.
When developing your site, keep in mind the type of customers you want to attract and develop a shopping cart that caters to their needs.
If, for example, your customer base is average buyers who look for reasonable prices but do not buy very often, then it might be beneficial for your business model to lower your costs below your competition so that they will purchase more frequently.
We also recommend offering free shipping on all purchases, which will increase conversion rates as well. However, if you target professional buyers who constantly look for new products at best possible price, then lowering your costs will not help you sell more because they already know where they can get the best price.
It would help if you instead focused on offering value to your customers, such as free shipping and some freebies with their order.
If you want to learn more about target marketing, we recommend reading articles on our website about the subject because we cover it in depth here. The more information you have when starting will help you develop a better strategy for success.
When developing your site, you mustn’t get too far ahead of yourself and forget to test your site before launching it. This step seems simple enough, but many people tend to skip this process, leading to wrong results once they find their site live.
When testing your new eCommerce solution, make sure that all aspects are working, including shopping cart features, user account functionality, payment gateways, and of course, security. If you do not test your site on a local server before launch, you will never know if there will be an issue until it is too late.
Get An SSL certificate
One of the most important things we recommend is getting an SSL certificate for your site if you plan on accepting credit cards from your customers. For this feature to work correctly, your website must have an SSL certificate that encrypts all data that passes between the web server and browsers on the customer end. This ensures that sensitive information such as user names, passwords, and banking information is kept private while being transferred. If a third party gets access, they cannot read this information in plain text due to data encryption via an SSL certificate.
Consider Magento
Magento is considered one of the most powerful eCommerce platforms on the web today, and with it, you can build countless types of E-Commerce solutions for your business model.
Look for hosting solution
The most important thing to remember with Magento is that it’s not only a shopping cart but also an eCommerce development platform that can be used with multiple language translations, payment gateways, and much more. This allows you to use the same website solution repeatedly for different projects without having to start from scratch each time.
Another thing to consider is the hosting solution you plan on using for your website. This step used to be considered essential, but with managed cloud hosting answers, it doesn’t matter as much because they take care of everything for you. Most larger businesses prefer to host their installations locally but
Summary
If you are starting, then it’s recommended that you select a managed service provider because they offer more support and ensure your site stays up even during peak times when traffic is at its highest.
Step by Step Guide To Create an Ecommerce Website
There are thousands of steps and hundreds of details that go into making a successful e-commerce website. The following is a step-by-step guide to creating an e-commerce website.
1 . Decide what you want to sell
This may seem like an obvious first step, but it is often overlooked in the early planning stages. It is helpful to determine exactly what you’re selling before diving in too deep; otherwise, there can be confusion when deciding on things such as product information and prices. Suppose the website eventually grows large enough that specific products need their producers or distributors. In that case, it will be necessary to find out who they are and plan for this long in advance (see “2: Obtain inventory from manufacturers”). In addition, you need to find out which of your products are best suited for online selling.
2 . Obtain inventory from manufacturers
Once you have decided on the products that will be sold, it is time to obtain them. You can ask manufacturers to send samples or look for vendors selling new or used items at websites such as eBay and Amazon. New items can also be ordered directly from a manufacturer, but this is often not the most cost-effective solution. If there are any restrictions or fees involved with each purchase, these should all be taken into account when planning how many of each product will be available for sale. For example, if a purchase requires special paperwork, then only a small number should be bought at first; otherwise, there could end up being a large amount of wasted inventory.
3 . Build website
After figuring out what’s for sale, you’re ready to create your e-commerce website. There are many ways to do this, but the most common is using an e-commerce hosting service that offers free or low-priced templates and setup instructions (Google “free online store builder”). It will also be necessary to upload all images of the products onto your server space; otherwise, customers won’t be able to see them when they make their purchase. Also, it might be helpful to list similar items on the home page to give customers additional options before finalizing their purchases. You can always change things later (see “5: Make changes”), so it’s best to hold off on making these kinds of decisions until the website goes live.
4 . Build a reputation
Even if all you want to do is sell your products, it’s still essential to attract traffic to your site and let your customers know what they can expect when they buy from you. This will require some time and effort to get the word out there about your new business, but once things start rolling, it should be easy enough to keep the momentum going (see “6: Market”).
The best way to ensure that customers will return in the future is by providing them with an enjoyable and positive buying experience each time they visit. You’ll also need to consider how many orders you want to receive per day; otherwise, everything may end up being too time-consuming. For example, if you only want to sell one item per day, make sure your website is set up to handle this limitation. Otherwise, there could be long delays in filling orders, leading to customer dissatisfaction and possible abandonment.
5 . Make changes
Once the site goes live, you’ll probably notice things that don’t quite work as expected or maybe features that are missing entirely. The best course of action is to keep an eye out for any problems or future improvements that need to be made; otherwise, the website could become cluttered with outdated designs and broken links (see “7: Clean”). It’s also important not to get too frustrated by mistakes because everyone makes them. However, the biggest mistake is to ignore them, which will only cause more problems down the road.
6 . Market
Once the website is up and running, it needs to be moved into a position where people can find it easily. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) should be used to help your website appear higher in any relevant search queries; otherwise customers may not ever see your site or product listings even if they are looking for them.
For example, several key phrases related to “online stores” receive tens of millions of searches every month, so the potential audience is enormous! Some other ways to market your site include posting links on forums, sending email newsletters, and making sure everyone you know has access to your new business so they can spread the word too.
7 . Clean
After you’ve been running your online store for several months, it will probably start to fill up with unneeded files and images that need to be removed (see “4: Build a website”). This is normal because things change or are added over time but this also means that even more work is required in order to keep everything organized.
There are many tools available to help; some of which may already be included on your computer (such as Windows Explorer). However, it’s often necessary to invest additional money into software like Microsoft Office or Adobe Photoshop if you want more options (or faster speeds) for cleaning up various aspects of your business.
8 . Sell!
By now you should have a fully functional online business which means it’s time to start making money. However, this doesn’t mean that you can simply put up the website and wait for customers to miraculously appear; it won’t happen because potential customers need to know about your site before they will consider buying.
For example, if someone visits an online store for the first time there’s no reason to make any purchases; especially when there are plenty of other options available. According to industry research, it takes an average of 7-10 interactions with a company before people change their minds and decide to buy something. If the service is poor or the quality isn’t what was expected then many people will take their business elsewhere; even if it means paying more or waiting longer for product delivery.
9 . Customer Service
It’s important to provide everyone who interacts with your company (the customers) with a great experience by providing them with excellent customer service.
This means solving any problems quickly and efficiently. Your goal should be to have every customer return by making them feel valued while ensuring that they have a great buying experience each time they interact with you. It’s also worth noting that many people will tell others about their experiences, so good or bad feedback can spread like wildfire on the Internet.
If someone has a negative experience, then expect lots of complaints from different places such as forums, Facebook groups, chat sites and review sites which often get linked to by other websites. In some cases, bad online feedback can even influence a person’s buying decisions, so it’s essential to be proactive about fixing any problems that may arise from time to time.
10 . Profit!
Once you have found a winning formula and built up a large customer base, the only thing left is earning money (see “9: Customer service”). This should happen without too much effort because people will usually buy more than just one item when they shop at an online store, especially if there are discounts or sales running periodically.
If additional stock isn’t needed, it could be sold elsewhere using dropshipping (read more here), which means less work for you because orders are forwarded to a supplier after the money is collected. If you thought about starting an online business, then it’s likely that you already have some interest in the subject matter and probably even more knowledge than most people who are just getting started so why not put your skills to good use?
There’s always more to learn, and it never hurts to improve yourself, especially when there are plenty of tutorials and guide books available on almost any topic imaginable (i.e., see “Related Resources”). For now, consider taking what you’ve learned from this article and using it as a foundation for building your own brand, which will inevitably become profitable due to all of your hard work! Good luck!
Methods to Promote Ecommerce Website
It can be done via digital marketing. Digital Marketing is a broad term that has evolved to describe electronic devices to communicate directly with consumers to promote brands or products. It’s not surprising that digital marketing has skyrocketed in recent years, as digital platforms have become so accessible to consumers.
The following are just some of the many ways that technology has influenced the way marketers currently promote their brands:
Traditional Media
Traditional forms of media advertising such as print ads, billboards, TV commercials, and radio spots are rapidly losing popularity as more and more people opt for online alternatives. The Internet now plays a massive role in influencing buying decisions, with over one-third of those who surf the net doing product research before making a purchase.
In fact, according to ComScore, an average consumer now spends 88% of their time online researching products they intend on purchasing through physical retail outlets or other venues.
For this reason, businesses must recognize the impact that digital marketing will have on their marketing strategies. However, not all marketers are set up to handle marketing their products through digital channels. If your business needs traditional marketing techniques, which may also be beneficial, see Digital Marketing.
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|
| A Larger market | Lack Of Personal Touch |
| Customer Insights Through Tracking And AnalyticsLack Of Tactile Experience | |
| Fast Response To Consumer Trends And Market Demand | Price And Product Comparison |
| Lower Cost | Need For Internet Access |
| More Opportunities To “Sell” | Credit Card Fraud |
| Personalized Messaging | ## IT Security Issues |
| Increased Sales With Instant Gratification | Complexity In Taxation, Regulations, and Compliance |
Social media -
Social media has completely revolutionized the way online users share information. Sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest have transformed interactions between businesses and consumers, allowing companies to communicate directly with potential customers who are already interested in their brand or product.
Social media networks are an extremely effective way to implement promotions because they provide you with a platform on which you can interact with thousands of people at one time by simply posting links to your product website or blog. Not only will links posted on sites like Facebook attract new customers, but they will also provide you with the option to capture the contact information of interested consumers for future marketing campaigns.
Digital Advertising
A popular and very effective digital marketing technique is search engine optimization (SEO). By optimizing your website for particular keywords or phrases related to your business and industry, you’re giving yourself a better chance at ranking on top of major search engines such as Google.
When consumers conduct searches in which you’ve optimized your site, there’s a good chance that they’ll find themselves landing on one of your web pages instead of other businesses. It’s important to note here that when it comes to SEO, quality link building is more beneficial than simply creating links using automated software programs. For this reason, it’s important to avoid using link-building services that continue to lead users back to your website when the specific keywords entered in the search have already been found on another site.
SEO copywriting
Another way that many digital marketers are
taking advantage of is SEO copywriting. This technique entails writing content for web pages or blogs in a way that optimizes it for particular keywords or phrases related to your brand, industry, and niche.
By doing so, the hope is that you’ll come up higher in search engine rankings compared to other sites that may not have optimized their content for these exact words or phrases.
Although this strategy can be very beneficial when done correctly, it can cause problems if you don’t know how to find and target the right keywords. For example, if you write content for your webpage that’s not relevant to the specific words you were aiming to optimize it for, not only will search engines notice but so will users who click on your page expecting something else altogether.
Social bookmarking
Social bookmarking is a straightforward and effective way of getting your brand in front of more people online. Websites such as Stumbleupon, Digg, and Reddit allow their members to submit links that other users may find interesting enough to rate or share with others.
Because these sites are entirely driven by user participation, companies must participate by submitting their own unique content. This way, when users come across your suggestions, they’ll be inclined to check out your website and perhaps even follow you on social media.
Social media management
Not only is social media crucial when it comes to getting your product noticed by more people, it can also be used to keep in touch with existing customers through what’s typically referred to as social customer relationship management (CRM). Sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn make it incredibly easy for brands to interact with current or potential consumers, answer questions asked within posts, offer discounts or coupons, and promote upcoming sales or events. Suppose you’re constantly interacting with consumers through social media. In that case, it will drive more traffic back to your site and show that you’re committed to providing excellent service, which may influence future purchasing decisions.
Video marketing
Video marketing is another online technique that marketers have been adopting. As a replacement for static advertisements, online videos serve to convey information quickly and visually. One study found that 65% of shoppers were more likely to purchase after watching a video showing the product in question. Not only can this help drive sales, but it can also be used to create better brand awareness through social media, blogs, and even email marketing campaigns.
Summary: Whether you’re an individual looking to promote your website or an established business seeking new customers using digital marketing techniques, hopefully, this has given you a good idea of what’s possible with online content today.
1. Why is Ecommerce important?
When it comes to E-commerce factors that can help you increase sales and visibility, Everyone wants to grow their business and make more money, and that is the only goal we have when we manage a business. If you run a firm with a distinctive concept, you’re likely making a good profit. Is this, however, the end of the store? To proceed further, take help from the eCommerce development company that can create an online store for your business at a meager cost. It is elementary to draw maximum audiences or customers in today’s society without having an actual store.
2. How to Create a secure custom e-commerce website for your business?
First, you must develop an eCommerce site on the most popular platform, Shopify, Magento, or any other platform you may have considered. If you currently have it, try improving it to make it more user-friendly and adaptable.
3. Why Connect With Well-Known E-Commerce Sites
Second, make your store visible on all major e-commerce sites, such as Amazon, eBay, Flipkart, and others. With little marketing, this can target many online shoppers Cloud software can be helpful in this situation. It can make it easier for you to maintain your store. Moreover, you can contact the best e-commerce website development company to design your online store. However, they can help you in installing the extensions to raise the sales of your business.
4. Are extensions essential ?
With these extensions, you can track the inventory and generate sales, track purchase records, generate bills, and much more. Henceforth, there are various extensions available in the market. If you want to create your custom extension for your online store, you will need to select the finest e-commerce web development company that can provide you with immediate assistance.
5. Why go for a Mobile-Friendly e-commerce site?
You can even design a mobile app for your e-commerce store to connect with more customers. It has the power to communicate with the customers because they are always connected to it. Therefore, to make shopping for the customers easier, contact an e-commerce development company to provide more convenience and cater to a larger audience.
People are increasingly using their mobile phones to make internet purchases. According to research, the number of mobile users globally has surpassed 3 billion. Laptops and desktop computers are no longer used for social interaction or online commerce. It’s critical to make your e-commerce website mobile-friendly. Remember to use a mobile version that is basic and easy to navigate. The spacing between buttons on the page should be large enough for a person’s finger to press on them.
6. Why optimize Product Navigation?
Online customers expect information that is rapid, straightforward, and easy to understand. As a result, it’s critical to concentrate on excellent product navigation. If a potential buyer visits your site for the first time and does not find what they are searching for, they are unlikely to return.
7. Why is a Secure Payment Method essential for e-commerce?
A payment mechanism is required for any e-commerce website. During the custom e-commerce website development, make sure you use a user-friendly payment platform. Having a trustworthy source of payment is one of the critical challenges that e-commerce sites encounter. Setting up different payment plans for different types of people might help you cater to them. Consider simple details such as your clients’ geographic location.
8. Why is it essential to incorporate Images of high quality in e-commerce stores?
The images of the products put the first impression on the buyer so make it count. Present high-resolution pictures so that the buyers can see exactly what they are looking for. Add images of the products that are in use or are available in the product. The customer will be able to relate the experience of the product. The Zoom-in capability will remove the haziness about the quality of the product design or color.
9. Is Live chat Essential?
The live chat option can help the customers if they have any questions and get the answers in real-time. Direct interaction with the customer not only increases the store’s sales but also forms a trustful relationship with the customer and motivates them to return to shop more.
10. Is user-friendliness essential for e-commerce?
Yes. Create a website with easy-to-understand navigation and labeling. Most businesses fail in this area because they do not consider how a typical visitor will search for a product. Conduct user testing before launching your website to uncover navigational issues.
Conclusion
On the whole, we have mentioned the prime factors for the e-commerce store that can increase sales and visibility. Apart from it, the website should aim to provide the best customer service. And to get all the above features in your online store, you can reach out to the best eCommerce development company that can help you provide convenient features to enhance the smooth journey for the customers and keep you always ahead of your competitors.