Consider This Before Setting Up An E-Commerce Business

Nowadays, setting an e-commerce business has become paramount if you want to become a successful internet personality, content creator, business, or influencer. Basically, if you do any amount of business on the internet, it is probably worth the time to set up an e-commerce platform to help you generate additional revenue. Here are a few things you should consider before setting up an e-commerce platform – while the process is easier and cheaper than ever before, you still need to plan ahead to ensure you’re successful in your venture.

What Kind Of E-Commerce Platform?

The most important question you need to ask yourself is the type of e-commerce platform you want to set up and the capabilities of that platform. This is crucial because it determines the amount of money you need to spend on the platform, how much the platform will appeal to your core customers and the potential for growth:

Small Businesses:

When setting up an e-commerce website for a small business, you need to make it as simple as possible. You have a small core of customers, and most people have not heard of you, so you have zero brand recognition, so how can you convince people to buy products from your e-commerce website:

• Make It Simple and Intuitive: when people visit your website for the first time, they should be able to navigate your website quickly and find whatever product they are looking for. The website doesn’t need a lot of bells and whistles which might just confuse first-time visitors to your e-commerce platform (which will be the bulk of your customers).
• You have zero brand recognition, and customers won’t easily trust your website enough to buy from you. That’s why you need to make sure they have access to impartial reviews and ratings of your products, and your website doesn’t look spammy.
• You might not require a dedicated e-commerce platform for your business. It is much easier to get set-up on Amazon, for example, and you need to look into those options to see if they are suitable for you.

Big Businesses:

If you are a big business that can offer products that can be shipped, then you need an e-commerce platform ASAP. Most people do their shopping through the internet, and not receiving a piece of this ever-increasing pie will make you uncompetitive and make you lose a lot of customers:

• Make as many products and services available online as possible. You need to ensure that you have a good selection comparable to your physical office that makes customers visit your website.
• While the bureaucracy in a big company can be an impediment, you need to integrate your e-commerce platform into your wider business model, ensure your clients know about it and make long-term plans involving it.

Influencers And Content Creators:

If you are an influencer or a content creator, you probably have a dedicated fanbase that will buy your merch if given the chance, and the data corroborates this. Most influencers who open an e-commerce platform see a big increase in their income – you just need to keep a few things in mind:

• You probably know who are your fans and what they are interested in – you shouldn’t appeal to them by offering generic merch, but rather, you need to make sure the merch means something to your fanbase.
• As you already have a large presence on the internet, you need to learn how to effectively redirect this into your e-commerce platform. There are a few ways you can do this – either by frequently mentioning it in your content, offering exclusive content for those who buy things, or a mix of both. Thankfully, there are a few platforms that will help you integrate your social media into your e-commerce venture – fourthwall.com being one of the primary examples.