How to Create an Online Store


ecommerce-1-300x300 How to Create an Online StoreBy creating your own online store, it gives you the freedom of providing your customers what they want. Learning to create an online store is not as complicated as it may seem. You do not have to be a web design expert to create an attractive e-commerce platform to promote your products and services.

Before you begin, you should have a general idea of the type of products you want to sell in your online store you want to build. Once you have decided on the type of online store you want, here are a few important steps to follow:

Engaging Web Design

An online store with an attractive web design typically gains more customers than a boring, unorganized website will. Your design should complement your brand name. If you know how to create designs or want to hire a web designer, you can create an attractive design. You can also choose from a predesigned e-commerce template that will fit your industry and products or services. The design you choose should have colorful, well-designed images with very little text to distract the customer from your design.

Interesting About Us Page

The “About Us” page should be informative for your site visitors, without adding information not relevant to your services or contacting you. It should tell who you are, what your vision or goal is, what products or services you offer. It should be clear to visitors how to they can contact you, place an order, and where you are located. This page is a good place to put customer reviews and attach links to your social media networks.

Online Support

Customers enjoy the convenience and ease of shopping at an e-commerce store on their time. When a customer runs into a problem with ordering or needs more information on a product, having online support available will ensure your customer is provided all the help they need.

Multiple Payment Options

When choosing a payment method gateway, ensure it accepts various payment options such as PayPal, major credit card, e-check. Your shopping cart should be easy to navigate and use. Ensure your customers have a way to save the products they want in case they need more time to decide.

The most popular payment gateways include Authorize.Net, Google Checkout, PayPal. Major shipping carriers to use for your online store are USPS, UPS, and DHL.

Advertise on Social Media

Using your social media networks like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, you will be able to advertise promotions and sales to your customers. You will be able to reach a broader range of customers since your current customers may share your social media marketing posts.

Mobile Responsive e-Commerce Store

Most online shoppers choose to do their shopping on the go, on their mobile devices. It is much easier to carry around a phone or tablet than a laptop for most people on the go. Having a mobile responsive website will ensure you are not missing out on a vital part of the target market.

Register a Domain Name

You can register an affordable domain name on a site like BallisticDomains.com. Your domain name should be relevant to the type of online store you want to build and your specific industry.

Add Store Products

When adding products to your e-commerce platform, make sure you have images that are crisp and clear. The images that you upload to your online store can make or break a sale. Each product should have a clear description.
If learning how to set up an online store seems a little complicated, you can always hire the services of a professional web design and development team to build it for you. You can then focus on other aspects of your business.

Once your store is complete, the final step would be marketing and promotion. This involves Search Engine Optimization (SEO), and social media marketing.

Flying Cow Design provides online marketing services to help build your online presence. After all, there is no point in having a well-designed online store with great products to offer if no one can find you online. Online marketing and promotion can help get your store noticed in the search engines and also help drive unique traffic to your new online store.

For more information on setting up an online store, visit the E-commerce Web Design FAQ section of flyingcowdesign.com

fb50c5bf790872a8ecad33a6bd15d358?s=100&d=mm&r=g How to Create an Online Store

CEO, Flying Cow Design
Attended University of Auckland
Lives in San Francisco Bay Area

June 21st, 2013


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