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Step 1: Conducting market research

First, you will want to figure out the viability of your products. This is where market research comes in. When you begin to research, you are trying to gather information to assess the feasibility of your product, whether it鈥檚 a new musical instrument or a canned cure for sleepiness. Market research allows businesses to identify their target market and obtain feedback on their product or service from consumers.

Market research will help you unlock a niche where you will:

• Stand out among competitors
• Find loyal customers
• Spend less on advertising
• Grow faster

The main steps of any market research are:

• Conduct a SWOT analysis. This means finding the positives (Strengths, Opportunities) and negatives (Weaknesses, Threats) surrounding your company. Learn more about SWOT here.
• Find a gap in the market. In order to have a successful online presence, you need to uncover unfulfilled customer needs that you and your business can provide. This doesn鈥檛 mean being a monopoly — more, you want to be able to fill a niche. Learn more about searching for a niche.
• Figure out your potential customers. Customer profiles help identify who your target customers are, what they care about, why they buy products, and where to find them. Learn more about buyer personas.

Step 2: Choosing a platform

Unfortunately, there isn鈥檛 one answer to choosing your platform. You might start selling through social media, or take the steps to create your own website. The best platform for Ecommerce depends on your product, how you want to sell your product, and how much work you want to do on said website.

Here are 9 things to consider when choosing an Ecommerce platform for your online store:

1. Pricing. How much will the net cost be when using this platform?
2. Integrability. Does this platform get along with other tools you鈥檙e going to use?
3. Templates. Are templates available to make your products easier to buy?
4. Analytics. Is there an analytics feature that provides information about your customers and sales?
5. Google Search friendliness. Does this platform have built-in SEO tools to get your business in the search spotlight?
6. Mobile-friendliness. What mobile features do you need based on your products or services?
7. Customer support. Is there a store platform with 24/7 support in case of emergencies?
8. Transaction safety. Does the platform provide a safe Ecommerce platform for your consumers?
9. Growth opportunities. Does it have built-in tools and scale well? Or are there weird limits to what you can do? Will the platform help you grow or pull you back?

Learn more about choosing the right platform for your online store here.

Step 3: Creating a storefront

When you begin the process of creating an online store, you have two basic options: 1, building a store from scratch as a separate asset; or 2, embedding a store to your existing website.

Most Ecommerce platforms enable you to create online stores as separate websites. You can create pages on that platform, and edit all of the features in place. These platforms have global settings that influence the entire website look and feel.

But sometimes, you don鈥檛 need a separate website because you already have one that gets a lot of traffic. To monetize this traffic without creating another website on a separate domain (or subdomain), some platforms offer an embedment feature. Embedding will allow you to add a shopping cart to any website using almost any website builder. Thus, you鈥檒l save days and weeks on generating traffic and start selling to the people that already visit your website.

Step 4: Choosing a domain name

Your online store鈥檚 digital property is everything. Your store name is how customers will find products on the internet — search engines like Google and other sites like Facebook will list your products based on how people are looking for them.

Names like “Amazon” and “Etsy” will be at the top of these listings, so if you鈥檙e looking to sell online, make sure your domain name is short, unique, and recognizable. Choose a name that you know your market audience will enjoy and remember.

Step 5: Adding products to your online store

When creating a website for your store, you need to create engaging product pages. You will have to set up your product category pages, write excellent descriptions, and post pictures that will sell to make shopping at your store enjoyable and easy.

Product page
Make sure your product pages are clearly labeled, with consistent keywords that help people find your products while searching online. You want to make sure your product page pulls consumers in, using organization, clear descriptions, and attractive photos. Learn more about how to create good product pages.

Product descriptions
You should make sure to provide detailed descriptions for customers as they consider buying one of your products. Never feel like you鈥檒l bore your consumers with too much information, even if the pictures show the answer. You want to give details in multiple places so that if customers miss information in one place, they can find it in another. Learn more about product descriptions.

Product images
As a merchant, your products (and selling your products) are the key to your success. How you visually showcase them online can make all the difference in turning visitors into customers. Well-thought-out photography should be your first step. This is even easier nowadays, with cell phones that take better pictures than most cameras. Making sure to take high-quality photos that showcase your products is easy. Learn more about product photography.

Step 6: Customize the look of your online store

Ecommerce website platforms come with a broad selection of themes, organized by market (or product) . Verticals are content that appeals directly to your business niche. Choose a template that best matches your needs and then adjust it to fit your business鈥� branding.

Here is a list of some aspects you can customize in your online store:

• Navigation around your site
• Use pleasing fonts and text sizes
• Add high-quality visuals and branded assets
• Configure your color scheme聽
• Embed social media accounts and branded content
• Experiment with different page layouts and product listing types
• Highlighting products on different static content pages
• Distribute banners across online store
• Add Legal pages
• Add About us page

Step 7: Setting up shipping and taxes

In order to get your product to your customers, you have to deal with shipping and taxes. Make sure you鈥檙e choosing shipping options that are best for both you and your customers. First, you鈥檒l select your preferred shipping, then choose how you鈥檒l handle shipping costs — free, flat-rate, live carrier rates, or a mix. Don鈥檛 forget to make your shipping policy as clear as possible to set the best expectations among customers. You need to include terms, costs, and limitations.

As for taxes, that will depend on the region where your business is located. But finding out how to pay taxes on your products is one of the most important things you need to do when doing business, especially online. While accounting is probably the last thing on your mind on a day-to-day basis, you want to keep on it. Don鈥檛 ignore it until it鈥檚 the end of the quarter, and then madly find all the tax sheets under your bed before any filing deadlines.

Learn more about filing your taxes here.

Step 8: Setting up payment methods

When you start an Ecommerce business, you want to give your online shoppers payment options that are both safe and convenient.

Therefore, you should think carefully about how to accept payments online. You need to both meet customer needs and manage the cash flow of your business effectively. Payment methods will also determine the facilities your business will need.

Typical payment methods used in a modern business context include cash, checks, credit or debit cards, money orders, bank transfers, and online payment gateways such as PayPal. Learn more about payment methods for your online store here.

Step 9: Launching your online store

When you complete setting up your online store, go through the checklist below to make sure you have everything in order. Once you do, your store is ready for the launch!

• Test your checkout and payment system
• Check product pages for images and descriptions
• Inspect your main navigation
• Test your support emailing
• Check transactional and marketing emails automation
• Check your inventory for stock availability
• Test coupons
• Look through all pages for the design and layout issues

Here are more things to check before launching an online store.