For anyone looking to take their business online there are a number of solutions available. You will need to define your business model and how you plan to run things online. Because there a number of pre-built solutions which you can adapt your model to. Of course there is the route of creating something more custom as well. Start with your business plan, because you will not be creating just a website, you’re going to be starting your online business as well. Following the plan will guarantee that you’re hitting milestones and growing the way you need to. The goal is to become successful with your business.
Stating your online business
Some steps we need to consider in the process.
1. Choose your domain name and hosting provider. The domain name is important and you want something that will reflect your business well. Depending on the size of your business, the traffic you expect, the hosting plan will be dependant on this.
2. Build an E-commmerce Store from scratch or utilize existing software. There is a lot of ecommerce software already on the market. There are providers available like BigCommerce, Shopify, Square Space and Volusion. Those are just some examples. There are also CMS’s such as WooCommerce which are very popular. As well some companies opt to build out their websites from scratch, to make them unique and custom. So that they can meet their business needs. Depending on the business requirements, you will have to figure out which may be the right for you. Or talk to a professional that can make the recommendation for you.
3. Integrate your solutions if needed and chose the right payment provider. You may be looking to integrate your website with other services. The payment provider needs to work with your business model again and pros/cons of each option should be considered. Some may have better support and lower fees which will make your decision process easier.
4. Market your website and continue to expand. You want to grow your online presence by implementing different marketing strategies. Which may include SEO and Social Media.