Creating and maintaining an online store has gotten easier for small businesses, but there is still a lot to navigate. Understanding what ecommerce is, how to choose the right platform, where the world of ecommerce is going, and how to take advantage of it will go a long way to ensuring your online store is a success. Below are some ecommerce insights you need to know.
Shopify provides a great definition of ecommerce: ecommerce, also known as electronic commerce or internet commerce, refers to the buying and selling of goods or services using the internet, and the transfer of money and data to execute these transactions. It is often used to refer to the sale of physical products online, but it can also describe any kind of commercial transaction that is facilitated through the internet. Whereas e-business refers to all aspects of operating an online business, ecommerce refers specifically to the transaction of goods and services.
There are many options to choose from when it comes to eCommerce platforms, but below are the 10 most popular in no particular order:
Everyone platform differs so take your time to choose the one that’s right for your business. Here are a few considerations before you choose a platform:
All platforms have costs associated with them. Make sure you can support the cost of an ecommerce platform before you spend the money. Find out if you’ll be paying a flat monthly fee or if you should anticipate paying more for transactions, bandwidth, server storage, apps and plugins as well. All of these costs need to be considered in your decision.
Many ecommerce platforms offer a variety of options and functionalities, but they’re only valuable to your small business if you and your team can actually use them. Ask for an in-depth demonstration of the product. See if you can have a free trial to get hands-on experience for yourself. Find other businesses that use the platform and ask their opinion. The goal is for the platform to make your life easier, not add more complications!
This one is a common mistake that business owners make. They get excited about a platform only to find out that their current hosting company either can’t handle the platform or will only do so at an additional cost. Here are good questions to ask your hosting company:
Keep in mind you may need to switch hosting companies to accommodate the platform you want.
Get more details on these and other trends by reading Shopify’s article, “16 Ecommerce Trends That Will Drive Sales in 2019”.
Understanding these ecommerce insights will help your small business succeed online. As always, reach out to Strategic Marketing Services if you need help marketing your online store!
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