“eCommerce is not an industry; eCommerce is a tactic.”
– Tobias Lutke
With advancements in technology and increased demand for online shopping, starting an eCommerce business has become a dream of almost every entrepreneur. No matter whether you are looking forward to starting a small business or large-scale business, it is a bit challenging and requires many efforts.
According to one survey, around 24% of retail purchases will shift online by 2024. To assist you in navigating the path of success, we have prepared a comprehensive list of ten essential tips for starting an eCommerce business from scratch. Our comprehensive guide will help establish a solid foundation and boost the chances of success.
Let’s dive into….!!!
Benefits of Starting an eCommerce Business
Are you looking for an attractive business idea?
Look no further than eCommerce! eCommerce not only helps generate additional revenue but is also an ultimate option for individuals looking for hybrid business models. Some of the top benefits are mentioned below!
- Get the freedom to scale your business.
- Reduced other associated costs.
- Enjoy the wide customer base without any geographical limitations.
- Start a business with low startup costs.
- Sell more products at ease and earn more revenue.
Finally, the wait is over!
Get ready to build your eCommerce business and accomplish greater heights. To simplify the process, you can even hire an eCommerce development company or skilled professionals who can carry out all your tasks. They can aid online businesses to deliver the best solutions that best satisfy the client’s requirements.
10 Tips to Starting an eCommerce Business
Starting an eCommerce business is cost-effective as compared to brick-and-mortar stores. But, before starting an online business, it is crucial to make sure that it complies with standard rules and regulations.
Let’s have a quick look at 10 tips for starting an online business from scratch!
Select a Product
The first and foremost step to building an online business is to identify what products you want to sell to your customers. Choosing the most appropriate product is one of the most burdensome tasks for starting a new online business.
If you are willing to launch a new product in the market, you also need to ensure that there is a market for your product and whether the shoppers will make a purchase. The next thing is to validate your idea by selling product prototypes in the local market and getting reviews for a particular product.
Carry Out Market Research
Before starting a business, carrying out market research is vital. It helps you discover your target audience and determine the demand for your product. You can also know if there is enough audience to support your product or service. If you do not have a solid target market, it would be difficult to build a successful business.
1. Competitor Research & Market Gap Analysis
Find out the competitors and perform a complete competitor analysis to identify the areas of improvement. Have a complete idea of competitors’ businesses comprising their products, pricing, customer service, and marketing strategies, and customer experience analysis. This helps to identify their strengths and weaknesses. You can work on their weakness, seek a competitive advantage, and stay ahead of the curve.
Create a Business Plan
A business plan is a roadmap to your ideas and thoughts collectively. It helps to prioritize tasks accordingly and reach out effectively to new customers. You can easily outline every aspect of your business that comprises market research of your product or service, and advertising strategies. You can easily modify the business plan as and when required per your needs.
Choose a Business Name, Logo, Model, & Legal Structures
1. Naming Your Business
As soon as the product is selected, it is essential to assign the most suitable name for your business that clearly signifies the product or service you are offering. You also need to find a suitable domain name that showcases your business. If the domain name isn’t related to your business, the customers may face issues identifying your company on the internet.
2. Creating a Logo
Once you have selected the name and registered domain, it’s the best time to design an attractive logo for your business. The logo should be unique, reflect the brand identity and stand out from the competitors.
3. Varied Business Models
The business model you opt for clearly defines the product or service that you are going to launch in the market. Basically, three types of eCommerce business models include products, services or subscriptions.
A product model is best suited for selling tangible goods to customers. For instance, let’s say that a person selling clothes follows a product model. Whereas the one offering any service, such as giving lectures online, opts for a service model. And the subscription model is where a person requires to make a purchase at regular time intervals or on a recurring basis.
4. Types of Business Structures
The business structure can be defined as the business’s legality. There are mainly five types of business structures, and it is advisable to choose them carefully. It includes sole proprietorship, corporation, partnership, s-corporation, and limited liability.
Like two sides of a coin, varied business structures have their advantages and disadvantages. Thus, it is crucial to select the most appropriate business structure. If you are unaware, you can seek help from a consultant or advisor and choose a suitable structure for your business.
5. Better Understanding of SEO
When you are almost ready with your online store, it is advantageous to have a clear understanding of search engine optimization (SEO) so that it aids you to have the proper structure for your website and can easily appear on top of SERPs.
Get Your Business Registered
It is crucial to get your business registered and avail of legal licenses to stay in accordance with legal rules and regulations.
1. Avail Necessary Licenses
The licensing requirements may vary depending on your business as well as the geographical location. If you are willing to sell your products in other states, the rules may vary accordingly.
2. Get an EIN
Having a unique identification number for your organization is essential. Setting up an EIN number is straightforward and can get it done easily in no time.
Choose an eCommerce Platform
There are multiple platforms available for selecting an eCommerce platform. It includes Magento, Shopify, WooCommerce, and many more. Magento is a highly robust and feature-rich platform with wide customization options. Setting up an online store with Magento will give you access to multiple extensions that best match your business preferences.
Shopify is the top eCommerce platform with many features and functionalities. It can be helpful for individuals having little or no technical knowledge.
It also has an app store with everything you need to start your business. Including content marketing tools and shopify donation apps.
WooCommerce is an open-source eCommerce platform that you can avail of to start selling on your WordPress site. It offers plenty of eCommerce tools and is best for individuals having technical expertise.
Setting Up an Online Store
After selecting an eCommerce platform, it is the perfect time to set up your online store. You can refer to various tutorials or articles to set up an online store. It is even beneficial to seek help from professionals and create a fully-functional website for your business. Hiring experienced professionals can also help you in carrying out various search engine optimization practices to improve your search engine rankings.
Choose the Best Sales Channel
Once you are ready with your website, the only thing you need is an appropriate sales channel. You are required to identify the proper sales channel to generate leads and sell your products online. Your website is one of the ways to boost your sales, but can be time-consuming to get more traffic. Thus, one can seek benefits from other pre-existing websites and generate revenue.
Prepare a Launch
If you are manufacturing products yourself, you must ensure that you have sufficient resources to offer support. There are various sales channels that support shipping and delivery. You need to ensure that the shipping process is carried out in a proper manner. It should have proper shipping labels and a logo on the product.
Strategize a Marketing Campaign
Carrying out a solid marketing campaign is one of the most crucial factors that need to be considered when starting an eCommerce business. Most of them highly depend on various digital marketing tactics to lure customers easily. However, some of them are unaware and do not have much idea about advanced marketing strategies may face issues. They make use of various strategies like social media marketing, content marketing, influencer marketing and online ads to get the best results.
Wrapping Up
And that’s it!
Building an eCommerce business is daunting as well as rewarding. So, what are you waiting for?
Get ready to build an online store and achieve great results. Starting an eCommerce business from scratch requires proper planning, well-crafted strategy, and its proper execution. By carrying out all the above mentioned steps, you can easily accomplish long-term success with your online store at ease.
We hope that this article will help you in understanding how to start an eCommerce business from scratch. We’ve got everything covered that you require to kickstart your journey to start an online store. In case of any queries, we are ready to help you out!
