3 Steps to Kick Start your E-Commerce Business Worldwide

3 Steps to Kick Start your E-Commerce Business Worldwide

With the development of the internet, the high penetration of smartphones, and the introduction of e-wallets and payment gateways, the e-commerce industry witnessed a considerable growth in the past decade.

Many retail businesses are moving their stores online and servicing their clients remotely, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic.

If you are considering this move, this article will layout the 3 main steps to follow to kick-start your e-Commerce Business Worldwide.

1. Choose your product:

The first step to build a successful e-commerce business is choosing the right product to sell online. Many factors enter into consideration when choosing your product:

• The price: if the product price is too low, it will be harder to reach your sales targets. If the price is too high, you might need to double your efforts on the customer support’s end because people would want to ask more about your offering before buying. It is hence important to find a product with the right price. Many believe that a product priced between USD 100 and USD 200 is a comfortable range for people to place an order online.
• The manufacturer: you can run an online search and find your suppliers in the available directories. Once you have a list of manufactures, choose the responsive ones with whom you can easily communicate.
• The ease of shipment: The heavier the product, the higher the shipping costs which can negatively affect sales. Many customers expect free online shipping. If you find a low shipping cost product, you will encourage buyers to get your product and you will have the option to offer free shipping to increase your sales.

2. Create an online store and link it to a payment gateway:

WordPress and Shopify will help you set up and design your online store almost for free.

WordPress is an online platform through which you can create your blog or website. Over 37.6% of all the websites on the internet are powered by WordPress. Technically speaking, WordPress is a content management system that anyone can use or modify for free, allowing its users to manage the important aspects and contents of their website, without the need to know anything about programming and codes.

Shopify is another platform created exclusively for e-commerce businesses. Whether you’re selling physical products, digital products, services and consultation, memberships, tickets, classes and/or lessons, etc., Shopify provides you with the necessary architecture to build your online store and even sell products or services on social media, starting USD 29 per month (depending on the services you’re requesting). Shopify includes many features and offers a secure shopping cart, flexible shipping options, tax calculations solutions, inventory management, and a host of languages.

Recently, Shopify added a WordPress plugin on its platform and three free WordPress themes. The two platforms are now linked to each other, which means that you can design your store using WordPress while Shopify handles the e-commerce part.

After you create your shop online, you will have to link your website to a payment gateway.

A payment gateway is a technology used by merchants to accept online debit or credit card purchases from customers. It is a payment processing system for electronic payments responsible for sending customer information to the merchant’s acquiring bank, where the transaction is then processed. Some e-commerce stores still have the “cash on delivery” option so they do not need a payment gateway. However, if you are planning to build an international e-commerce store and shop worldwide, you will need a payment gateway to process the transactions with your customers. Keep in mind, that to add a payment gateway such as PayPal and Stripe to your platform, your e-commerce entity must have an international corporate bank account.

3. Set your marketing strategy:

The final step is to get in touch with your market by working on a great marketing strategy. Nowadays, people are increasingly using social media platforms, this is why such platforms are the perfect choice for your marketing campaigns. Having a solid marketing strategy helps you connect with your customers, increase awareness about your brand, and boost your sales.

Conclusion:

After going through the three main steps described above, you should consider setting up a company for your business to limit your liability towards your clients and third party providers and create more credibility around your brand and products/services. Check out our Start a Company plans to choose the best option for your e-Commerce Business Worldwide.