There can be a lot to think about when you decide to start your own eCommerce business. The products you sell play an integral part in the planning process, but there can be so much more to a successful launch. Before you open your business up to the world, make sure you’ve considered some of the following things.
Payment Types
Something as important as payment types and credit card processing services can easily fall by the wayside when you’re busy organizing all the products you want to sell. However, if you want to make sure customers can pay for what they’re buying, you need to make it a priority.
Choose a credit card processing company and decide how you would prefer to accept payments. Most online businesses accept debit and credit cards, digital wallets, and even wire transfers if people are happy to wait. The more options you offer, the more people you may be able to cater to.
Permits and Licenses
During those early days of eCommerce business planning, research what your legal requirements are in the way of licenses, permits, and tax obligations. If you’ve created your business as a general partnership or sole proprietorship, you may not need to register it with the state.
However, you will have tax obligations that you may need to factor into your pricing structure and general business plans. Having these essential considerations taken care of may mean that you don’t face any hurdles when your business is ready to launch.
Business Plan
A business needs to be more than a great idea. It needs to be a road map that you follow to achieve success. Business plans can be essential for making sure you have a direction and goals, and they even come in handy when applying for funding, grants, and business loans.
Fortunately, you don’t have to write your business plan from scratch. There are many templates online that can form the foundation of your plan, or you can reach out to a business expert for help.
At a minimum, your business plan should include the problem your customers are having, the solution you can offer, your target market, and product or service offerings. You may also like to include detailed branding and marketing information and a timeline on which you can measure your success.
Any time you become stuck with your business’s directions, you can refer to your plan, make adjustments to your business, or add new information to your plan that can drive you forward.
Website Design
Your products might be so desirable they almost sell themselves, but every eCommerce store owner needs a platform to sell their products on. As you’re diving deep into the planning stages of your new business, take a moment to research different website builders for businesses you can use to develop your website.
Some of the more well-known ones include WooCommerce, Shopify, and Squarespace. However, you can let your store type dictate which platform will suit your needs the best.
How you design your website on your platform of choice can depend on your target market, branding, and the products you sell. Take some time to view what your competition is offering so that you can see how you’re able to provide your customers something on par or even better.
Product Stockists
Whether you buy or make your own products as a struggling startup, it’s essential to make sure you have confidence in the companies you rely on for products and materials. If you don’t know whether they’ll be able to keep up with demand as your business scales up, research multiple product stockists you can rely on.
Pay attention to their reputation, ordering process, and even their ethics and morals regarding how and where they source the products and materials you’ll need to use.
Investing in inventory programs that allow you to keep tabs on stock levels may also be worthwhile as your business grows and starts making money.
Marketing
Simply creating an eCommerce site is not enough to have customers rushing to make purchases. You may need to create a marketing plan and advertise on various platforms to attract your target market. Look at popular options like social media ads, Google ads, and even search engine optimization.
By focusing time and money on marketing and brand awareness, you may welcome more customers to your new site in those early days than you thought possible.
Starting a new eCommerce site can be exciting and thrilling, but it can also be daunting and time-consuming due to the sheer volume of planning involved. If you’re not sure how to get started, begin with some of the considerations above. You may then be on the right track for success.