How to Build an eCommerce Website

So you want to open an e-store but you’re not sure where to begin. Building an e-commerce website can be overwhelming and frustrating if you have no experience in doing so. Well, lucky for you it’s not as complicated as it may seem. Just follow these steps and your store will be up and running in no time.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Research the type of products you want to sell. Do a basic Google search to get an idea of how many other sites are selling the type of products you’re looking to sell. Also, using a keyword search tool (Overture or Google Adwords) figure out how many keyword searches were done looking for your products. Too many stores and you may want to rethink your product. Too few searches and you may also want to rethink your product.
2. Make a decision on how you’re going to ship your products. If you’re going to use a drop-shipping company, conduct research on which companies will be the best for you and your needs. If you’re going to store them yourself, conduct research on wholesalers who are offering the best prices on the products you want to sell. Then, find space in your home or rent a nearby storage facility to keep your products.
3. Choose and register your domain name. You want to choose a name that is short, easy to remember and best describes what you’re trying to sell. After deciding on a name, you will need to have it registered. There are plenty of companies where you can register a domain name for as little as $4.99 a year. GoDaddy.com is a popular choice.
4. Decide on a web hosting company that combines hosting with a website builder. You want to choose a company that specializes in e-commerce sites and already comes with an integrated and secure shopping cart.
5. Use the website builder to create the pages for your website. Take the time to learn a little HTML so you can add creative changes to your website. HTML.net is a good place to go to learn the basics of HTML. The templates the website builder offers are great, but you don’t want your site to look generic.
6. Open a Paypal account and add it to your website, even if your website has a shopping cart. Paypal is the biggest of the online shopping carts and the easiest to use. Visit the Paypal website at Paypal.com and follow the step-by-step instructions they have listed.
7. Upload your products to your website. Create appropriate categories and sub-headings so your site is easily navigable and your products are well organized.
8. Market your website. Write articles and submit them to ezines. Contact similar websites and ask for a link exchange. Use the top keywords you found for your products and use them throughout your website. You want to make sure your website ranks high when keyword searches are performed for your products.