As people spend more and more time online, they are also shopping for or being exposed to more products online. Running an online store is a complimentary way of taking advantage of growing markets online. e-commerce can seem complicated at first, especially when determining how to implement it on your site. Here is a clear guide to help get you started.
Identify your niche and product
First, sit down and determine what your niche or brand can uniquely contribute to your chosen market. You want to select a product that will sell and a popular but not oversaturated market. Next, consider what problems people in your industry have that you could solve. Alternatively, consider desires within consumers interested in your industry that you could address. If your product or service is geared towards this, you will naturally have a market interested in your product.
If you are selling a physical good, you will need to acquire stock of the product you wish to sell and set it up in your e-commerce store, using solutions like Shopify or WooCommerce. If you are selling a digital product, these e-commerce solutions make it easy to upload the product to your site for purchase. Additionally, if you wish to sell a service, you may want to add scheduling forms or ask customers for more information at checkout.
Do research
To succeed in your niche, you will want to research competitors and other products being offered within your niche. For example, what products appeal to customers? What strategies are your consumers using? What tools are they using for their e-commerce site?
Additionally, you will want to research different e-commerce business models. While you may not be in the same niche as an exemplary online business, looking at their strategies could help you improve your own.
Make it official
Once you have decided on your business plan and product, you can register your business. Registering your company provides you with some legal protection and tax benefits and is a necessary step on the road to opening an e-commerce store. You’ll likely need to apply for a business license, register for an employer identification number (EIN) for taxes, and apply for relevant permits. But you also get to be creative with this step; now is the time to choose a brand name if you haven’t already, design a logo, and brainstorm your brand identity.
Build your store
Once you’ve got all the research and legal stuff out of the way, you can focus on adding an e-commerce store to your website. Again, tools like Shopify and WooCommerce make this process incredibly easy, allowing a ton of customization options and assisting you in efficiently managing your products, profits, and other finances all through your existing website.
Market your product
Now that your store is built and stocked, it’s time to open! Send out email blasts, post content on social media platforms, and let the users already on your site know about your e-commerce store. For more tips on social media marketing, check out our guide on social media metrics.
