A step-by-step guide to starting your e-commerce business
This article was written by one of our amazing contributors! Content may include promotional links.
It doesn’t take much to notice that e-commerce is one of the fastest growing industries globally. While brick-and-mortar stores are still alive and well, it can’t be ignored that the online is rapidly gaining ground and businesses must get with the times. This trend that has been going on for a while now and experts assure e-commerce expansion is only just beginning and will boom in the next few years. If you don’t believe the experts, believe the numbers, because we’ve got the statistics to prove it. In 2019, worldwide e-commerce sales reached the impressive amount of 3.5 trillion dollars. When it comes to retail, figures show that 14% of the total sales came from online shopping. It’s expected that by 2023, total e-commerce retail sales will amount to more than 6.5 trillion dollars.
Looking at all these data we can easily conclude that the future is looking bright for e-commerce businesses. If there ever was a right time to start an e-commerce business, that time is now. The internet opens new doors for entrepreneurs and offers plenty of advantages for those who are willing to take the leap and become their own bosses.
However, just because e-commerce presents you with a world of possibilities, it doesn’t mean getting started is a piece of cake. If you’re ready to jump on the e-commerce bandwagon, you’ve probably got a million questions and different answers for each of them. It can be hard and confusing knowing which path to choose and how to sort through all the information and resources you come across. That’s exactly why you can’t start on a whim. It’s crucial to have a well-devised plan with all the steps that you have to follow in order to drive your business toward e-commerce success. This guide will lend you a helping hand and take you through the most important stages in the process.
Find your niche
Unless you’re Amazon or eBay and you have unlimited financial resources on your hands, you can’t begin by selling everything product under the sun. The first important decision you have to make is choosing your niche. You have to do a bit of research, check out what markets are profitable for startups, but avoid overcrowded niches where competition is too intense. Don’t go for niches where big brands rule the game. Try to be as specific as possible and opt for a product category that is successful on social media.
Identify your target market
Knowing who’s going to buy your products is just as important. It would be a mistake to rush in to open your online store without first knowing who you’re selling to. Your brand image should match your target audience, so create the profile of your future clients and get to know them on a deeper level. Finding out how they think, what their needs are and what they expect from a brand like yours will help you further develop your business plan and create a coherent vision.
Come up with product ideas
It’s time to move on to a very exciting step – finding product ideas. You might feel extremely confident and ready to take on the world, but try to to contain your excitement and refrain from launching with 100 different products at once. There will come a time when you’ll want to expand your product or service range, but for now it’s best to start small. You already know your niche, so that makes it easier for you to find the product that you want to sell. Focus on something less generic that people can’t find on every street (or internet) corner. Start with a smaller investment, take the time to see how the audience responds to what you offer and then decide which path you’re going to choose.
Find suppliers
Now that you know what you’ll sell, you must find the right suppliers. Don’t settle for the first vendor you come across. Shop around and try to find a supplier that will offer both great quality and reasonable prices. Since you’re only just beginning, you might want to consider a dropshipping model for your business. You won’t have to handle the products yourself since the suppliers will ship them directly to your customers, so this model requires less investment and has lower risks.
Build your online store
Assuming you don’t have the budget for a top-notch custom-built site, you’ll have to look for the best platform for your online store. There are countless software options to choose from such as Shopify or Magento that offer great advantages and can help you save a lot of time and effort. You must research and compare in order to decide what will work best for you. In time, your business will grow and your needs will also change. As you’ll become a bigger e-commerce player, you’ll have to consider scaling and run further comparisons such as Shopify Plus Vs Magento Enterprise to help you decide on your next move.
Attract customers
Your e-commerce business is up and running and ready to receive its customers, but there’s no guarantee they’ll come running to buy from you just because you exist, so you must now focus all your efforts on building an effective marketing strategy. A big part of it is learning about SEO techniques and how they can increase traffic to your online store and help your business grow. you must stay up to date with online marketing trends and put aside a healthy budget for marketing your business. It’s also a good idea to ensure that you market around holidays and seasonal trends, especially Black Friday. This is an opportune time when consumers are looking for deals and products. To ensure that you don’t let Black Friday pass you by, be sure to think about your Black Friday marketing strategy to be prepared and maximize the time period.
Keep an eye on the competition
It’s better to learn from others than learn from your own mistakes, even though it’s much harder. Your competitors can also be great teachers, so look around you and see what other startups and small businesses in your niche are doing. This will help you figure out what methods are working and yield the best results in your market and what mistakes to avoid.