E-Commerce – An Introduction to Selling Online
Throughout the world, the number of people who are buying online is increasing considerably every year. Just in 2010, online sales in Europe grew by 18% compared to 2009, according to Forrester Research. In the United States, US online sales grew 13% to reach $176 billion. Indeed, the global reach of the Internet has motivated retailers, big and small, to consider the possibility of selling their products online. But before jumping on the e-commerce bandwagon, it is always a good idea to develop a sound e-commerce plan. This short guide to e-Commerce can be of help.
Developing a successful e-commerce business is no different than developing a successful traditional business, at least in the beginning stages. So, what is the secret? Research. Yes, the success of an e-commerce business has to do a lot with understanding what product or products people are looking for. A very useful question to ask is “Will there be a market online for my products?” This will help you develop a product that not only people are looking for but that is also different from the product of other competitors. In addition, gathering data on online competition becomes extremely important. Online competition can be much fiercer than traditional competition. So, understanding who will be the main competitors and what they have done to build an online client base can be very useful. This can shed line on how to attract customers, which is one of most difficult challenges to any e-Commerce venture.
After analyzing a possible market and developing an online product that meets this market’s needs and/or wants, the next step to selling online is to develop and design an online storefront. It is important to understand that a successful online storefront consists of two elements: design and functionality. In other words, the website has to be appealing but it also has to be simple to navigate, to use, and to maintain. Hiring an ecommerce web developer and an ecommerce web designer that understand these two principles is critical to developing a successful online store from scratch. There is good news, however. Today there are many companies that have already developed powerful ecommerce software that is affordable, easy to use, and very powerful.
Now that we have come up with the perfect product and an online store front to present it to the world, there is important question that needs to be answered. “How will we attract customers to our e-commerce website?” Without visitors, our e-commerce website is just another website in the ever growing World Wide Web universe. One way to let people know about our site is by advertising our site on other sites or through pay per click systems, such as Google’s AdSense. This method is simple but can be quite expensive. A second method to attract customers is by making our site relevant and authoritative. This is best accomplished by developing and publishing appealing content that people will find useful and fun (and, thus, that search engines will love). Although this method takes a bit longer to produce results, it can help build a loyal customer base that will keep returning time after time.
There are many advantages to ecommerce. Yet, there are also some disadvantages to ecommerce. But, as with most things in life, the better prepared we are, the better chances we have for success. From coming up with a successful product, to developing and appealing and easy to use storefront, to attracting customers, every bit of preparation is worth the effort.
Reaching a global audience is one of the benefits of e-commerce. However, there are also e-commerce disadvantages. But with the right preparation, there are no limits to your New Big Idea!
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