If this is your first time deciding to create an online store for your business, then you need to know a few important things that developers are usually silent about:
1. Do you need an expensive online store? If you sell goods without delivery or with delivery in a small region, then it is unlikely that a large investment in an online store will pay off. Your online sales will depend on the number of visitors. Find out how many people in your area are looking for your product online. However, you will stand out from your competitors if customers have the opportunity to study the product and make a choice in the online store. Order a simple WordPress site with a product catalog and a shopping cart function.
2. Any store requires attendants. This is forgotten by almost 90% of those who want to transfer their sales online for the first time. Remember, even the promise to create a turnkey online store does not mean that someone will compose for you and place on the site your entire range of products, not to mention compiling high-quality descriptions. And then it will also be necessary to constantly update the assortment and prices, publish promotions, etc. Hire a full-time IT specialist and train them on the product, or train a smart staff member who is familiar with the product in Internet layout technology.
Getting visitors. Any outlet without visitors is a waste of money. There are two ways to attract visitors to your online store, and this is a strategic point to decide for yourself:
- Paid advertising. There are many advertising agencies, including global search engines. You pay for each visitor separately.
- Search engine promotion (SEO). To take the top places in the search results, you will need not just a coder, but a team of specialists who will make your site worthy of the top positions. Naturally, this will require money, time and patience. But in the end, you will receive visitors, whose number will depend on the growing interest in your site.
What is the difference between an online store and a regular website
First of all, functionality. The usual features of a corporate site are information pages and menus. An image gallery, news and other elements can be added to them to make the site more interesting and recognizable.
When it comes to a professional online store, it's a combine compared to a bike. The product is presented not as an information page, but as a separate entity that has images, description, characteristics, price, categories, tags, reviews, rating, etc. As a result, we get the main thing that an online store should do: show the buyer what he is looking for and convince him to buy it.
I will list only some additional features:
- Basket
- Catalog menu
- Search by characteristics
- Keyword search
- Product comparison
- Similar products selection
- Ratings
- Reviews
- Images
- Administrative section where the buyer can see and track their orders, shipping addresses, payment methods.
Cost of works
- Creating a simple online store on WordPress: 12 600 UAH (≈ $300)
- Creating a professional online store on OpenCart: 84 000 UAH (≈ $2 000)
For an accurate cost estimate and estimate, please contact the developer: contacts.