E-commerce Basics For New Business Owners

In my previous article, I spoke a bit about how one can start an e-commerce business with little money.

I already touched on what an e-commerce business is. So, I will jump straight into what you need for a successful e-commerce business.

Nobody starts a business with the intention to fail. We all want to succeed and make it big.

And success in the e-commerce sphere is not as easy as walking in the park, there is intensive competition. This is because of the ease of starting an e-commerce business. There are minimal barriers to enter. But, do not despair because there are ways to ensure that you can also succeed.

In this article, I break down steps that you can take to succeed when you are starting an e-commerce business. 

Have An Optimised Website

What is an e-commerce business without a website? Of course, you need a website to carry out e-commerce business. Whether you build the website yourself or you hire a professional, your site needs to be optimised. According to VWO, website optimization is the process of using tools, advanced strategies, and experiments to improve the performance of your website.

If you plan on building your own website, you have 2 options. You can either build it from scratch or use an existing e-commerce platform. 

An optimised website has the following characteristics:

1. Easy to navigate.
   Ensure that there’s a clear sequence on how your website flows. Clear labelling of tabs and headings is crucial. This helps the clients find what they are looking for faster.
2. Text is readable.
   Make sure to choose a simple and classic font. Choosing a fancy font that is hard to read will make all your efforts futile. 
3. Product images or any image on the site has to be clear and good quality.
4. Ensure compatibility across many devices.
5. People visiting your website should be able to open your website on many devices.
   Optimize it to open whether on a laptop/desktop, iPad or mobile phone.
6. Ease when loading shopping cart and checkout.
   Make sure that the process of adding products to their cart and checking out is as simple and hassle-free as possible.
7. Ensure that you choose a payment gateway that is convenient and safe for your customers.
8. In addition to the above, you need to have a basic understanding of other optimization tools like SEO. It also helps to know about paid campaign strategies.

The Right Product and Service

Like every other business, e-commerce is no exception. Before you invest any money into it, you need to do lots of market research. Market research will help you sell what the market wants to buy not what you think the market wants. One of the mistakes new business owners make is to choose products based on personal preferences. As a result, ignoring market research. 

The thought of gathering massive data must not intimidate you. The internet has made it easy. You can use keyword research tools to discover latest trends. Browsers such as Mozilla and Chrome have add ons that you can use for free.

A Strong Branding & Marketing Strategy

Easy access to the internet has led to an increase in e-commerce businesses. For you to succeed, you have to be different. One way to differentiate your business is by having a strong branding strategy. Branding includes your store name, logos, theme colours and so on. 

A strong branding strategy is successful when coupled with a strong marketing strategy. A business is just an idea until it is known. Marketing gets you known.

Well Defined Returns Policy

Whether you are selling a physical product or offering a service, you need a returns policy. Always keep it clear, concise and reasonable.

Customer Reviews

Good customer reviews keep a business going. They help build confidence in the business. Make sure you have a system that allows clients to leave feedback. Regardless of whether the feedback is good or bad. Make it easy for customers to share their experience.

Reliable Customer Support

According to Intercom, customer support is the range of services you offer to help your customers get the most out of your product and to resolve their problems. Make it easy for customers to contact you. Customers always come back to buy from a business that listens to their needs. Without contact from your customers you will not know whether what you are doing is right or wrong. Find a way to handle enquiries and/or unsatisfied customers. Below are some things you can include in your e-shop service:

• Having an active phone support
• Provide an email address
• Having a contact form they can fill out, avoid lengthy registration/sign up forms
• Integrate live chat 
• Be active on social media 

Your responses must be timely and reliable. The decision making process of clients is becoming shorter because of social media. As a result, if you delay in your responses, you risk losing a potential customer. When done right, a reliable customer support system will make it easy to gather customer data.

Consistency

Another mistake that new business owners make is inconsistency. You can do all the above and even more, but if you are inconsistent all your efforts will be futile. Always show up for your target audience. 

Starting an e-commerce business is easy, but getting that first sale is not as easy. It might sound cliché but you have to put in the work for you to be successful.