Do you need to design an eCommerce website and you’re not sure where to begin? Perhaps you already have a website and it needs to be optimized? An eCommerce website is basically your 24/7 storefront. Since first impressions are everything, you want to make sure you have an appealing, easy-to-navigate website. In this article, we will discuss building eCommerce websites and explore some of the different eCommerce platforms available.
Building an eCommerce website is a must-build step for you to start your online business, and it must be well thought out and includes many steps. However, once your website is built, selling online is a breeze.
How to Build an eCommerce Website
Choose a Name and Get Your Domain
Choosing a domain name is important to your brand and overall success. Using descriptive keywords in your domain will tell your customers what your business is about. It will also help you rank well in search rankings. It’s best to stick with .com, when possible because it’s the most recognizable extension. However, if .com is taken .net and .co are other recognizable extensions.
Your domain name generally costs $12-$25 a year. Some eCommerce platforms will offer a free domain with your purchase.
Pick Your eCommerce Platform
There are many eCommerce platforms to choose from. Some eCommerce platforms are free with limited features.
Here are a few popular platforms:
BigCommerce
Shopify
SquareSpace
Later in this article, we will focus more on popular platforms for eCommerce websites in 2022.
Plan and Build Your eCommerce Website
In order to plan and build your eCommerce website you’ll need the following:
Set Up Payment, Tax, Shipping, and Marketing Tools
Setting up these features is dependent upon the platform you decide to use. Some platforms, such as Shopify and BigCommerce, come with built-in payment processing, tax calculations, shipping label printing, and marketing tools. Most others require integrating a few outside services to handle these tasks.
Test and Launch Your eCommerce Website
Lastly, you can process a few test orders. These orders will connect to your payment processor without charging your card. Once you’ve worked out all the bugs, you can officially open your eCommerce site!
eCommerce Platforms
When deciding on an eCommerce platform, you’ll find there are many different options to choose from. Here are some options to consider.
Wix
Wix is best for flexibility and customization. It’s an affordable eCommerce option. Wix is the perfect eCommerce platform if you have a small store or have special design requirements. It’s known for its drag-and-drop features to help create a nice design. Wix also gives you access to 500 website templates and customization features. Wix includes a variety of marketing features:
Email accounts
Sell directly via social media
Worldwide shipping and taxes
Coupons and discounts
SquareSpace
SquareSpace is the best eCommerce platform for creatives. It’s a well-known free website builder with eCommerce packages. SquareSpace gives you artistic freedom and you can install and customize multiple templates at a time until you find the one that suits your needs. Some other features include:
Subscriptions, digital products, and in-person compatibility
Mobile-optimized checkout
Mobile store management
Real-time shipping estimates
BigCommerce
BigCommerce is best for medium to large stores. It’s an all-in-one eCommerce website builder for larger stores. BigCommerce has advanced eCommerce features for managing high volumes and a large number of products. This is a perfect option for an established business or if you plan to sell high volumes. Some features include:
Customer accounts for faster checkouts
Mobile-optimized checkout
Coupons and discount codes
Advanced inventory management
Built-in shipping management
Advanced product filters
Shopify
Shopify is the best all-in-one eCommerce platform and powers more than 1 million online stores! It is a more advanced platform because it’s built specifically to host online stores. It’s easy to use and has the right level of flexibility. Some features include:
Point of Sale for brick-and-mortar shops
Real-time carrier shipping rates
Abandoned checkout recovery
Automatic tax calculations
Advanced inventory management
Unlimited products
In-depth analytics
WooCommerce
WooComerce is best for WordPress websites. WooCommerce is a lightweight plugin that adds capabilities such as:
Accepting online payments
Configurable shipping options
Product listings on your site
Some features include:
Support of subscriptions and deposits
Automated tax calculations
Real-time shipping rates
iOS and Android mobile apps
Physical and digital product capability
WooCommerce is a free plugin to download, install, and use forever. The sky’s the limit with WooCommerce, and we have a great guide on how to start with it. However, it’s not the easiest or most intuitive eCommerce platform, unless you’re already using WordPress.
OpenCart
OpenCart is the best eCommerce platform for selling digital products. It is free but you must have an existing website to use OpenCart.
Some features include:
Simple and centralized admin dashboard
Manage multiple stores from a single dashboard
Discounts and coupons
One-click digital downloads
Custom eCommerce Platforms
A custom eCommerce platform is built specifically to meet your business needs and goals. There will be no other website like yours. You can personalize it as much as you want, based on where your company stands now and where it will go in the future.
Things to Consider Before Developing an eCommerce Website
Research Your Business Industry
Before starting the eCommerce website development process, you should thoroughly analyze and research your business’ industry. Delve deep into your customers’ preferences, age, and other factors that will help you develop product categories, descriptions, payment gateway, product images, and other aspects effectively.
Understand the Needs of Your Target Audience
Next, you should prioritize your potential customers and understand their culture, geography, demography, and purchasing inclinations.
Determine Your Branding and Plan a Content Strategy
You should consider your brand. Think about a logo, visual images, your company’s voice, and emotional connotations. Establish a strategy for growth and development.
Keep Your eCommerce Budget
It’s easy to go overboard with your budget, especially at the beginning stages of development. It’s best to be cautious, stay within your budget, and implement strategies to help you do so.
Know Your Competitors
You want your business to stand out above your competitors. In order to do this, you must analyze them and see what’s working for them and what’s not. Pay attention to the technical aspects, such as the hosting tool, domain name, content management system, or other add-ons that they are using.
Outsourcing Your Custom eCommerce Website Development
There are many ways outsourcing your eCommerce website development could be beneficial for your business.
Increase traffic
Grow your business
Drive performance
There are many eCommerce website platforms to choose from. Hopefully, this gives you a place to start when it comes to choosing a platform and designing an eCommerce website. With the right platform and a well-designed website, you will see your business grow and sales increase.
In today’s competitive e-commerce environment, it is critical to set yourself apart from the competition by having an amazing product description that increases your conversion rate and overall sales. A good product description provides more than just basic product details, and it allows you to persuade your customers that purchasing your specific product brand is necessary.
Product descriptions provide the vital information that shoppers need to be able to make a decision on whether or not they should buy your product. Compelling product descriptions sell products. Poorly written ones leave shoppers confused and frustrated and ultimately turn them away from conversion.
Being a critical component of any e-commerce site, product descriptions can either enhance or damage the shopping experience, depending on how much effort you put into them. That’s why it’s important to follow these seven cornerstone rules for writing a powerful product description for your store.
1. Decide on a Product Description Format
There is a lot of confusion over product description formats. Should you use bullet points or paragraphs? Why do some sites have their reviews on the left and others on the right?
Have you ever been on Amazon and noticed that the product description on one page is different from the others? It’s not just a mistake or typo. Most likely, it’s an experiment where Amazon has changed the formatting in some way to improve conversion.
How should you write your descriptions? What are the rules of product description writing? When should you use bullet points, when to get more specific, how vague should you be, and how long should they be – these are some of the questions that you need to answer before finalizing a product description format for your e-commerce store.
No matter what format you go with, make sure you also decide on a specific word count. Trying product descriptions of varying lengths might not be lucrative if you are running a new online store.
Try to keep the word count consistent so that readers know how you talk about the product. However, you don’t have to be too picky on this. It’s perfectly alright if the word count is slightly different on various product listings. To make sure that the text length doesn’t go off track, try using a word counter. A word counter can help you keep track of the total number of words you have written in a product description. In this way, you will be able to maintain a consistent text flow among all the product descriptions on your online store.
2. Use High-Quality Videos and Images
Videos and high-quality images can be extremely powerful tools to sell your product. But the challenge is video marketing is hard to do when you are a beginner. While creating a video and image graphics isn’t something you can do overnight, following the right strategy can help a lot.
I urge you to use videos and photos to show your product. I think it will help with the sales. It just makes the buying experience so much better for your customers, especially for people who are too lazy to read long descriptions.
Did you know that the number one reason customers don’t buy online is that they can’t see the product in person? By using well-filmed, high-quality images and videos of your products, you can delight your customers so much that they start buying immediately.
3. Focus on Using Sensory Words
When writing product descriptions for your online store, you need to focus on using sensory words. Sensory words are the secret weapon for your product descriptions. If you use them, you’re already winning the battle against your competitors.
Have you ever put your hands on a pair of jeans that felt like butter? Or wear a cotton t-shirt that was softer than your pillow? How about jeans that hugged your skin like you were wearing pajamas?
These are all examples of using sensory words in product descriptions. Use distinct words in your product descriptions to evoke the senses and allow customers to feel what it’s like to own the product.
Sensory words help you paint a clear picture for your customer about your product or service. These words are descriptive and can be used to encourage users to feel or experience something. Sensory words are not only some of the most powerful storytelling verbs, but they also have a unique power to influence buying decisions.
4. Describe Technical Aspects of the Product
eCommerce stores sell a variety of products through the World Wide Web. Each product is likely to have distinct features. To make your product sound good, you have to talk about all of its technical aspects.
You cannot describe the technicalities until you learn everything about the product before writing its description. Especially eCommerce sites selling smartwatches, smartphones, tablets, Drone cameras, and other gadgets have to be serious about the product descriptions.
Specs and features should be mentioned correctly. You cannot afford to indicate wrong specifications because it can ruin your online reputation. Make sure to double-check the product description once you are done with it.
5. Write Descriptions for the Ideal Target Audience
While writing for your eCommerce website, it can be challenging to write for the ideal audience. What should you focus on? How do you connect with your reader? What tone should you use?
Product description targeting the right audience is a must if you want to increase sales. But how do you write them? This is often something that new business owners focus on as they create their first products.
The best way to start is to talk to your target market. The ideal market for any business is not going to be the same on every site. This means you might need to create different descriptions for each of your listings. Before you start writing your product description, pay attention to your target audience. When writing product descriptions, one of the most important elements in creating a message that hooks your ideal customer.
For instance, you might be running an online garment store selling apparel for people of different ages. In that case, product descriptions have to be different for people of different age levels. You are not supposed to right the same copy for kids’ wear and teen dresses. Keep your target audience in mind while creating a product description.
6. Show How the Product Can Benefit Users
Product descriptions play a critical role in helping you sell your product as they allow you to specify the advantages and benefits that your product offers. To effectively use them, it’s critical to focus on creating effective copy that speaks to the specific needs of your customers. Focus on writing unique, professionally-polished descriptions that will help you improve sales.
If you are selling products on the web, the number one thing that can help you increase your sales is a well-written product description talking about the product benefits.
Talking about the advantages of your product is crucial because people tend to buy stuff that can benefit them. They don’t take an interest in things that make no difference to them. Therefore, your product descriptions should revolve around the product benefits that users can enjoy after purchasing that specific product.
7. Set Goals for Your Product Descriptions
What would you like to achieve through your product descriptions? This is the question that you need to answer first. If you have your goals defined, you will be able to write a good production description that can help achieve your goals.
Setting goals for your product descriptions can help you improve SEO and increase sales. Clicking on a link to purchase is the ultimate goal of most online shoppers, and this can be used to your advantage.
As an eCommerce business, you want to design your product descriptions specifically to convert customers into buyers. If you want to achieve that goal, then you have to write details that makeup good, conversion-oriented product descriptions.
Getting repeated customers is another common goal of e-commerce stores. A great description will keep customers engaged with your business and keep them coming back for more. Your description should be written in an engaging, conversational manner and should feel more like a story than a technical manual. Instead of focusing more on other aspects, try telling a story about how your product will enhance the customer’s life or solve their problem.
Being in the top search results is another goal that online retailers want to achieve through product descriptions. You need to use keywords in your descriptions that potential customers might use when searching for products like yours. This will ensure that your product descriptions are found by the right people when they are searching online.
There is a lot of information to know when it comes to product descriptions, but the most important goal you need to set for your product descriptions is what you want your customers to do after reading product descriptions.
Do you want them to buy the product? To learn more about it? To share the information with their social network? To come back and read more of your product descriptions? Or something else? Whatever it is, make sure that you have already set a goal for your product description so that you can track its success.
Conclusion
For some reason, product descriptions have always been kind of overlooked. Everyone knows that you need to create killer headlines, images, and a well-structured description to increase your chance of getting maximum sales.
Content gives your potential customers an insight into what your product or service is about. It allows them to see if it is something that would be useful for them in their day-to-day lives. This can result in more sales for your business.
Given the extensive success of many American eCommerce clothing businesses, it comes as no surprise that the United States is a global e-commerce leader. This is largely due to the adoption of e-commerce as a mechanism for brands and merchants to sell their products to the vast, geographically dispersed population of the United States.
Due to this new earlier acceptance, customers gradually warmed up to the idea of online purchases, ultimately becoming supporters and voracious online shoppers, long before many other countries had begun to move in this way.
Since the American market is so developed and addressable, it’s no wonder that e-commerce players are competing fiercely with good quality products and providing a range of categories for their consumers. It is also noticed how the big giants attract their customers with high-quality photos that the customers can relate to.
Large platforms that operate across many segments, such as Amazon and eBay, are dominant, but conventional brick-and-mortar retailers are still gaining market share. eCommerce product Clipping path
Shoppers’ interactions with brands, particularly fashion shops, are no longer limited to physical stores. Fashion retailers are revamping the entire buying experience as customers anticipate mobile purchasing, one-day shipping, and 24/7 customer service.
Fortunately, the fashion industry is a master of change, with seasonal trends appearing and disappearing before you can catch your breath. The digitalization of the fashion industry, on the other hand, may be the most significant change yet. Clothing dropshipping suppliers and sellers are especially affected by this trend, as they must adapt to the rise of online shopping, the increasing importance of social media marketing, and the growing demand for sustainable and ethically sourced clothing.
We’ve compiled a list of the top 10 operating e-commerce sites in the United States. The list includes obvious competitors such as Amazon, eBay, and Walmart, as well as a diverse range of brands with multiple categories.
Top 10 eCommerce Websites in the USA to Start Your Own Clothing Business
Amazon
Amazon is not only the most popular e-commerce site in the United States but also in most other countries. Amazon began as a small e-commerce site selling books in 1994 and has since grown to dominate the bulk of e-commerce categories, including computers and gadgets, books and literature, and even television and movie streaming.
In the United States, Amazon customers have access to the whole range of Amazon products, including books, music, electronics, fashion and accessories, tools and hardware, sporting goods, and pretty much anything else. Furthermore, Amazon Prime members in the United States can get these items with free one-day or two-day shipping.
eBay
eBay, another e-commerce leader, was founded in 1998 and has a big head start in the global race for e-commerce domination. eBay has been the leading online marketplace for more than 20 years, the first of its type and the largest in the world, providing consumers with an online platform to buy and sell just about anything they can imagine, while staying loyal to their initial goal.
Currently, eBay leads in areas such as clothing, and more, offering free delivery on many items through auctions, straight from companies, and verified sellers.
Walmart
Walmart has become a household name in the United States since the 1960s when it first established itself as a low-cost mega-warehouse. It has since grown to become the world’s largest retail corporation, with locations in 50 states and a significant e-commerce presence in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Walmart’s online consumers can choose from a wide range of products in areas such as fashion and more making it an appealing platform for customers of all types. Consumers in the US can even get a Walmart-branded credit card to save even more money on their purchases.
Target
It has over 1800 stores across the country and a robust e-commerce platform that allows customers to access the entire range of target products and services both online and in-store.
Target is a consumer goods shop that sells everything from fashion to home décor and much more, having a strong presence in fashion and apparel.
Etsy
Etsy is a marketplace founded in the United States that specializes in the sale of handmade or vintage goods as well as one-of-a-kind factory-made things. Etsy’s e-commerce site allows individuals and businesses to sell a variety of items, including apparel and accessories, cosmetic products, and a variety of other unique items.
Etsy, which was founded in 2006, is the world’s 19th-largest marketplace, a noteworthy achievement given its particular focus. Fashion is the most popular category among users on the platform.
Macy’s
Macy’s is a US fashion behemoth that began as a brick-and-mortar store in the 1990s and has since grown to become a global brand with locations in many countries and an e-commerce site that ranks first in the world in the fashion and apparel category.
Macy’s e-commerce site offers a wide range of accessories, shoes, beauty goods, cosmetics, women’s, men’s, and children’s clothing, as well as home and décor items.
Wish
Wish is a unique addition to the list since, unlike many of the other brands mentioned, it is largely a mobile marketplace where small businesses and manufacturers may sell directly to consumers through the Wish platform. Electronics, family, beauty, and home decoration are the four core categories of the Wish marketplace.
Wish, which was founded in 2010, has risen quickly to the top of the market, dominating sectors such as computer electronics and technology, adult products, video games, consoles, and accessories.
There are numerous elements to consider, ranging from data analytics to technical assistance. It’s never easy to pick the best eCommerce platform. Finding a platform that meets your demands, however, can make a huge impact on the bottom line of your apparel company. Here are a few eCommerce platforms to help you with it.
Magento
Magento, which is by Adobe, is the eCommerce platform of choice for many of the world’s most prestigious fashion firms, including Hermès and Christian Louboutin. Its platform processes more than $100 billion in gross merchandise volume each year and has 190,000 active users.
Magento is recognized for its customizations, which is why so many of the world’s most powerful brands use it.
WooCommerce
The most popular eCommerce platform on the internet is WooCommerce. There are currently 3.87 million active WooCommerce sites all throughout the world. WooCommerce’s popularity originates from its software connection with WordPress, one of the most widely used content management systems.
WooCommerce is used by a number of up-and-coming eCommerce websites, so you’ll have a good peer group if you use it as well.
BigCommerce
BigCommerce, based in Austin, Texas, is one of the fastest-growing eCommerce companies on our list. In fact, the company’s yearly revenue reached $100 million for the first time in 2019. BigCommerce provides a few intriguing features, such as in-depth analytics, that can appeal to first-time eCommerce site creators. They also have some of the most fashionable websites. There are both new and established clothes brands on the platform.
What features should my e-commerce platform include?
‘What would be the ideal online marketplace?’ is a question that many clothing company owners have. The truth is that there is no such thing as the “best eCommerce platform.” It all relies on the specific requirements of your clothing company.
High-Quality Product Photo
Product photographs are one of the most significant parts of an eCommerce site, no matter what, high-quality product photography brings in customers faster. When customers or buyers can relate to your product or see themselves in your product, they tend to make a purchase more often than usual. To get high-quality photography and photo editing services, UCP is one of the online editing services giving professionals at an affordable rate with professional and excellent quality work.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
The ability of an eCommerce platform to perform SEO is one of its most crucial features. Your site will be useless without SEO functionality and the availability of high-quality SEO plug-ins. It doesn’t matter if you have the most attractive website in the world if no one can find it online. Search engine optimization (SEO) helps in the finding of sites on online services and brings search engine traffic to your online store.
Social media and other eCommerce platform’s integration
For many apparel firms that rely heavily on indirect sales, integration with Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, eBay, and other platforms is a must. If your business relies on Amazon sales, be sure your platform allows you to continue doing so as easily as feasible. If it’s a sit, be sure to have a fashion blog to get some organic traffic from search engines.
Features of security
eCommerce businesses require a high level of security. Your eCommerce platform should include everything from firewalls to payment gateways, encryption, and backups.
Technical assistance
If you’re not tech-savvy, look for an eCommerce platform that offers tech assistance and simple functionality. Instead of phone help, several of the leading platforms solely provide online tickets and chat support.
Several payment options are available
In the fashionable fashion sector, being able to process every frequent payment method is very vital.
Analytics and data recovery
Using data to improve product recommendations, products, and services can significantly boost your profits. Several of the most powerful AI-based services that assist with this are more expensive, but they may be worthwhile. AI is used by several of the world’s top apparel firms.
Users with aspirations and peers
What are the demographics of the platform’s users? It’s a good sign if your eCommerce platform is being used by established or emerging clothing brands. If not, it could be worthwhile to investigate why.
Final Words
With all of its advantages, though, e-commerce still carries some risks. Because you cannot view the products before purchasing them, it is conceivable that they will not meet your expectations or requirements. The next step is to determine whether the e-commerce website’s return policy is responsive to client needs and expectations.
Users occasionally express their dissatisfaction with shipment issues and delivery delays. Shipping costs may, in certain situations, cancel out all of the savings gained through online shopping.
To prevent all of these issues, it’s a good idea to check out online buying sites’ reviews and consumer experiences first. There are several options to consider as a business owner looking for an eCommerce platform. While one e-commerce system may be the most popular, others may have unique features that are better suited to your company.
Choosing the ideal platform for your business to build an eCommerce website is a long-term choice, as organizations seldom switch platforms more than once every few years. This is why it’s critical to pick the correct one before investing time and resources in it. We believe that this eCommerce platform’s list of the finest eCommerce platforms aids you in carefully choosing your eCommerce platform alternatives and picking the appropriate one for your business.
If you have created an Instagram profile, not for a narrow circle of friends, but to broadcast your lifestyle to the world, share tips, and earn money on social networks – you need a profile audit.
The audit is a check that helps to objectively assess an account’s status.
It gets on with things and answers important questions like these: “Why is activity falling?”, “What can be improved?”, “Am I positioning myself correctly?”, “Is reading my posts convenient for users?”.
It is important to regularly monitor your account dynamics and check it for quality. Without analysis, you will not be able to identify weaknesses and strengths. As a result, it will not be clear what must be changed, and what to focus on in promotion. There are multiple solutions that can assist you with Instagram Audit, and one of our favorite ones is the service provided by Spam Guard App.
Who needs an audit?
First of all, SMM specialists, PR specialists, and targetologists need a full audit and a Fake followers audit. Before they start working with a company profile, great estimation work should be done. Promoting a beautiful well-designed profile is much easier. This is a fact. But if your account is inharmonious, with low engagement, it will be more difficult to work with.
Only after evaluating your account, you can:
Outline your work plan;
Launch promotion;
Determine whether you need the help of third-party specialists: designers, marketers, photographers, copywriters, etc.;
Announce the final cost for working with a specific profile.
Bloggers and business page owners that have an online presence, need an audit to “come down from heaven to earth”, take an adequate look at the state of affairs, see what mistakes were made, and find suitable ways to correct them.
Who conducts an Instagram audit?
SMM specialists, both private specialists, and agencies are engaged in auditing the profile on Instagram. For profile analysis, you mustn’t transfer access to your profile to third parties, it is enough that your account is open.
If you wish, you can audit your Instagram account yourself. It will not be as professional and complete as that of a specialist, but it will still give a general idea of the state of your profile, and help to find weaknesses and shortcomings.
Profile analysis consists of 7 steps
Let’s consider 7 main stages of analyzing an Instagram account.
Step #1: Evaluation of a nickname and a page name
“As you name your ship, so it will sail” – similar applies to your profile nickname. In fact, this is your main identifier in any social network, a top-line in your account. It is a nickname that will be indicated when mentioning you in posts and stories, and it will distinguish you from other users.
For evaluating the nickname, answer a few questions:
Does it reflect the topic of your blog?
Is typing it in the search bar convenient for users?
Is it easy to remember?
Does it evoke associations that echo the profile topic?
Is it not too long?
Does it consist of less than two words?
An example of a successful nickname on Instagram is “i. love. fitness”. Not too long, reflects the subject, easy to remember, and easy to type in the search
If you answer “Yes” to at least 4 questions, then everything is fine with chosen nickname
Don’t overload it with unnecessary signs. For example, sometimes users separate words with a double underscore like this:”__”. It will not be convenient for users to enter a nickname overloaded with signs, which are often even impossible to count. If there are fewer divisions it will be better.
Choose a unique nickname because when they add numbers to an already used nickname, like this: “Alex123” it doesn’t look very presentable.
Another important point is your page name. The page name (a line highlighted in bold, placed above your biography) is often underestimated. It’s exactly that using page names the search results are carried out on Instagram.
When a person types “Ivan Ivanov” into the search, the service selects people with such a page name, not a nickname. Therefore, commercial profiles often place key queries in the name, for example, “Food delivery Moscow”, “Massage in Sochi”, etc.
Step #2: Evaluate the avatar
An avatar is an important component of any profile. Treat his choice very carefully if possible it does not need to be changed. People with a developed visual memory remember exactly your avatar, and it helps them to find the necessary profile. If you change your avatar you will lose this part of your audience.
When evaluating an avatar, you must take into account these details:
If there are inscriptions on the main photo, they must be readable, otherwise, there is no sense in them.
Your logo should fit completely, its elements should be large.
It’s important not to crop the composition, if a cake is in your photo, then let it be seen in its entirety.
If you are running a specialist profile, then put a professional title photo where you are in uniform or in the working environment.
Photos that reflect goods and services-always of high quality, bright, with good clarity.
Your avatar must be original. Using popular stock images, you will create an image of an unreliable brand and a fake specialist.
Step #3: Analyzing your profile header
Everything is simple here. A profile header can be considered good if it:
answers to questions: “Who are you?”;” What do you do?”;
contains a unique trading offer (relevant for companies and stores);
explains why users should subscribe to you (relevant for bloggers and specialist profiles).
It’s important not to overload the emoji header, choose a readable font for it. If you are conducting an independent audit, close Instagram and take a break from it for at least 4-5 days.
Posts can be uploaded through third-party services and auto-posting. When you reopen Instagram, you should evaluate your profile header, avatar, and other visuals with a clear look.
Step #4: Text Content Analysis
It’ll be better if you view many posts. SMM specialists usually analyze 10-20 recent publications.
The checklist for verification is quite extensive:
Does the post text correspond to the topic from your profile header? Every beginner’s main mistake is that the content does not match the profile header. If you position yourself as a general practitioner, the ratio of posts on medical topics to personal ones should be at least 3:1. If you abruptly decided to change the blog focus, change the header as well.
Is it clear from published posts what you do and what you offer? When commercial profiles are full of publications on general topics that are far from business, subscribers begin to forget what they actually subscribed to your account for. You mustn’t disguise yourself as a personal page, your followers should understand who they are subscribing to. If at least every two posts you don’t talk about your business, it’s time to completely revise your content plan.
Publications are designed in a similar style? If you often change the authors, it’s important to make sure that the texts are designed in a familiar style. This is especially true for personal pages because subscribers believe that you are the one who prepares all the publications. But frequent changes in the business page are also not desirable. If you understand that published texts are very different, correct them.
Is your content diverse enough? There are a lot of types of tests for social networks. In order not to bore subscribers, try to touch on a maximum of various formats.
Formatting deserves special attention. Pay attention to the ease of text readability, and the presence of spaces. On Instagram, you can always edit a previously published text. Be sure to use this opportunity to make it pleasant for new subscribers to read publications.
Step #5: Visual Content Analysis
It’s a very difficult part of auditing. There are no uniform standards for photos. If we generalize, then ideally they should:
have a good quality (without pixelation and defocus);
be kept at identical temperature: only warm or only cold shades of filters;
a complete, harmonious picture has been created, but the pictures may be different.
The requirements for the visual are constantly changing. If in 2017 trends included the most fabulous pictures, then this year the emphasis is on natural photos.
You can maintain a single style, or you can maintain a dynamic live profile. This remains to the taste of a page owner, so the rating here is more about the quality of the content.
Step #6: Calculating the Engagement Rate
This is one of the clearest and most visual stages of verification. If in other points a biased assessment is possible due to banal tastes and preferences (first of all, this concerns the analysis of the visual concept), then engagement rates are quite specific figures.
You can find out the real percentage of subscriber engagement using specialized Internet services that can also hack Instagram followers if it’s necessary.
Step #7: Activity Analysis
It is very difficult to evaluate this item independently. A professional will determine it in just an hour:
Do you publish posts often enough?
Do you respond quickly to comments?
Do you support dialogs in comments or not?
Do you respond to responses and mentions?
Do you use all available promotion methods?
Are you working specifically for your target audience?
Do you invest enough in promotion?
The answers to these questions will help you understand what else you can do to grow your Instagram blog and develop it.
In Conclusion
In conclusion, it is important to say that the profile analysis should be carried out at least once every six months. Or even better – every three months, to validate that that account is correct. We recommend subscribing to an automatic monitoring service that will assist with that, like the Spam Guard App, feel free to check it out.
Earlier people preferred going to shop and buying things. But in this scenario users prefer online shopping. This paradigm shift bought a next-level change in business too. Since every business today is offering shipping services. However, the rising competition at times makes it possible for them to thrive within the market. Here is where drop shipping came to the rescue. Not only is it a boon for business but also an opportunity for rising economies to relish profits.
Talking about the current scenario, anyone can start an online business with drop shipping. This shipping service has gained immense popularity helping businesses to stay ahead of the competitive edge. Therefore, starting with the same can give you valuable profits. Especially in countries like the USA and UK where people are more inclined towards online shopping.
However, if you are out to start a dropshipping business as a side hustle or a way to quit your full-time job to get started with the same, the below post is for you.
Let’s have valuable insight on how to start with the dropshipping business in the USA and UK!
Let’s Hear About Drop – Shipping
Dropshipping is a method of shipping where the sender and the customer’s address are masked, eliminating the need to manage inventory. In this, the order is picked up from the company address, changed, and delivered to the customer. Similarly for the company, the customer information is also changed. In this way, it keeps the information secret on both hands.
A middle man or a supplier name a drop shipper is responsible to deliver the products under the name of the company.
Current Market Scenario Depicting The Value of Dropshipping Business
Dropshipping business is attracting millions of newcomers due to its popularity. It is a startling opportunity for entrepreneurs to relish the profit margins. Have a closer look at the market to know what’s new within the dropshipping business.
Dropshipping is amongst the major business models for 33% of baby boomers and rising merchants globally.
It is expected that by the year 2025 the industry of drop shipping is likely to reach USD 557.9 billion. This immense rise shows the segment is a great opportunity for the newcomers to try and relish the profit margins.
Additionally, Google Trends data also shows a massive rise in interest in dropshipping.
A Valuable Insight On How Does Dropshipping Business Model Work
Now, if you are well aware of drop shipping, let’s take a moment to have a close look at the working of the dropshipping business model.
It’s crucial to understand how the dropshipping business model is different from the traditional retail and eCommerce shipping businesses. Generally in normal shipping, the customer knows about the supplier and company too. In addition, the supplier gets all the information about the shipper.
However, in dropshipping things are somehow different. The information of both supplier and shipper is hidden. With this, the dropshipper protects the online stores from predators. All their information is secured and maintained to the next level, but, it’s important to mention that there are tools that help you to manage it.
Due to this fact, Dropshipping is very popular, on different sites such as Amazon or Aliexpress. Furthermore, there is not too little upfront investment cost associated with it making it a wise option to get started.
Here is the Step By Step Guide to Start Your Dropshipping Business
Now, if you made up your mind to start a dropshipping business, here is a step-by-step guide to begin.
Step 1: Pick a Dropshipping Market
To begin a dropshipping business, the first step is to determine the niche. A market niche is a subset of a larger market. Your niche should be as specific as possible. Specify the products and services you will render via your dropshipping business.
It is believed that while doing dropshipping business you can make money in any niche, but this is not true. You’ll have an uphill battle with your new business if you choose a niche that significant brands influence.
Here is how you can pick a dropshipping niche that will pay off in 2022:
Choose a niche with unique knowledge of products.
Try to sell in a niche that helps people make their life easier.
Choose a niche with low to medium competition.
Choose a niche with at least a 40% profit margin.
Step 2: Locating a Dropshipper
The next step is to know and locate the dropshipper to start the business. Here are steps to move forward:
Make sure the supplier is a drop shipper before you contact them.
He should have hold years of experience in the drop shipping
If a supplier charges you more than the range of $2 to $5, stop right there as it will be too costly.
Analyze the supplier’s delivery times to the countries you serve. Dropshipping can take one to two weeks. Make sure they do not take longer time
Request product samples before committing to a supplier, always test quality..
Ensure they aren’t charging you any unnecessary charges for the services.
Step 3: Obtain a Sales Tax ID for Your Business
You’ll certainly need a sales tax ID if you’re starting a business in the United States or Canada.
Sales tax is a tax levied on all sales of physical goods to consumers, and it typically ranges between 6 and 9 percent of the purchase price.
It’s common for businesses to pass on this cost to customers by including it in the retail price.
You can do this in person at your county clerk’s office or online by searching for “[your state] + VAT number” on Google.
Step 4: Selecting a platform for selling
To earn profits from your online store, we always recommend having your own online store. But people choose to have well-known established marketplaces too. It is recorded that drop shippers connect with a well-known online marketplace such as Amazon or eBay when starting out. The reason behind this is already the consumer buildup they get through these platforms. However, when starting your own drop shipping services, don’t forget to align with a leading player in the e-commerce segment.
Step 6: Customer Acquisition Strategy
For making your business successful, you need to attract customers to your store. A customer acquisition strategy comes into play here.
You can choose the fast (paid) or slow (accessible) route to gain new customers.
Here we have mentioned some ways to acquire customers for your business
Dropshipping Facebook Ads for Quick Results
Google Adwords for Online Stores
Influencer marketing
Blog or forum marketing with slow results (for free)
Marketing with Content
Marketing on Social Media
Marketing via email
Step 6: Increasing the Size of Your Dropshipping Business
Once your dropshipping store is up and running and you’ve implemented some of the strategies, you should start seeing some sales. As your business grows, consider some of the future-proof processes you can implement to make your job as an owner easier and prepare for an increasing order load and more customers to satisfy.
In Conclusion
Huzzah! We’ve made it to the end, and you should be well on your way to starting your eCommerce dropshipping business.
We hope this guide will help you to start a dropshipping business. Have you been inspired to make one? Leave a comment and don’t forget to share this article with your business associates.
Starting an eCommerce business is like offering a product or service to the masses. You are not limited to a city, state, or country. Your client or customers can be browsing your store from another part of the world. Additionally, running an eCommerce is affordable if compared to the brick and mortar shop where you pay the rent and bills, and hire employees and other cleaning staff.
Break the shackles of selling routine products to a community by starting an online business that aims to serve millions across the world. Statistica reports that about 80% of consumers across the world shopped online in the last year. Online buyers are increasing with every passing day. Why miss such a profitable opportunity? Start your eCommerce business today by following the steps described below.
1. Exploring eCommerce
Ecommerce is huge. For a layman, it may be simple website creation, but deep down it involves various technologies and platforms. To start an online business, you must have an eCommerce platform, where you can sell products with the ability to accept payments online and a complete mechanism of orders and customer management.
Initially, most eCommerce startups don’t have enough budget to develop a dedicated platform where they are the sole sellers. Therefore, they start selling on famous marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, Walmart, etc. as soon as they grow in sales, build a brand, and are ready to build a business website from scratch or with the help of eCommerce platforms. Magento, PrestaShop, and WooCommerce are a few worthy to mention in using eCommerce software as a service.
So, the first step is the selection of an eCommerce platform. You will have to decide – according to the budget – either to start on a personally owned eCommerce website on WooCommerce, Shopify, or any other platform (in any case – remember to avoid EIG hosting providers) or use a marketplace. Getting a website gives you complete authority, whereas, opening a store on a marketplace restricts you in many ways. The first option takes time to attract customers but marketplaces are flooded with their user base. Both have their advantages and disadvantages so choose according to your business requirements and the goals you set.
2. Selecting a viable product
The key to making eCommerce an overnight success lies in the selection of products that are high in demand, low in competition with higher profit margins. Finding such products is hard as everyone is coming to the eCommerce market with the same mindset. There are various business models for you to follow. If you already have a business and want to digitize it, you must put the same products or services in your online store. However, starting a new online business may require you to do research, testing, and evaluation. Things to consider in product selection:
Competition – is found in every form of business. Check if you can gain an edge by reducing the price, improving the product, or innovating a new service from it. Build a strong relationship with suppliers to grab discounts on bulk orders. Use interactive media channels that are not used normally in your industry.
Market share – Evaluate the sales volume and revenue to measure the market share of your competitors. It gives you a probability for your products or brands to penetrate the market. Providing good quality in an average price range will surely help you secure a fair market share. Consider price-cutting and spending on promotions.
Customer base – Assess your customers. You must know the people who would like to take interest in your products or services despite the fact they are buying from the competitors. If they find it well, they will surely be converted into loyal customers.
Niche products – A niche is a small section of a market where you can build authority and create a monopoly. Choose a specific range of products or services within a market and get recognized as an icon for it.
Product selection goes on to continuous research and development. It leads you to recognize marketing mediums, tools, and platforms effective for the specific type of your business. Setting a brand message, product description, and adding a story to it is also worth considering for creating an impact in the market.
3. Study the trends
In general, eCommerce is highly driven by trends and seasonal fluctuation. Despite the usual industries like food and grocery that are considered to be safe from seasonal fluctuation also have to face ups and downs. It is the fashion, beauty, and tech industry that is affected the most. Celebrities endorse new clothing brands, cell phones, and skincare products that set new standards for the general public to follow.
If you are a beginner in eCommerce, you must look into the ways you can cater to your audience with the trend they like to have. As soon as your business is recognized as a brand, you get the authority to break the stereotypes and set new style trends that will be unique all and followed the most.
4. Get your business registered
Choose a business name and decide the legal structure you would like to carry. You can open an online store as an individual (also known as a sole proprietor), go into a partnership, and incorporate it as a private company. It depends on the investment you bring to the business and the human personnel you will need to run the online shop.
Online stores do need registration with the government agencies that are governing taxation, legal, and import or export matters. Obtain permits and licenses to ensure the smooth and seamless operation of your business. Acquire compliance with health and safety regulations, sales registrations, etc. as well.
5. Producing or sourcing a product
The product you choose to sell must either be manufactured or sourced. Look into the ways you can produce it. It can be getting raw material or partly-complete products and finishing them at your manufacturing facility. To save finances on processing units, you can choose to source finished products straight from the manufacturers, wholesalers, or suppliers.
You can search for a list of products and their possible suppliers. Reach out to them to seek their terms and conditions, and get affiliated. They often have the condition of minimum and maximum order amount or quantity. Agree with them to remain at peace. However, you have another product supply and distribution model to choose which is dropshipping. It removes the need to order and manage stock. You get the order, retain a profit cut, and forward it to the supplier. They ship with your details and revenues are generated.
For starting a service-based eCommerce business, you may need to invest in building a portal. For example, booking appointments for your consultancy business that may be about visa, career, business, marketing, accounts, real estate, etc. The service industry is huge as it allows selling your skills, knowledge, skills, and expertise. You will not need to strive for products. However, the same time and energy are required to find the right service to sell online.
6. Go Live and Promote
Add products to your store and it’s ready to attract customers. Make sure the domain name is easy to remember and the same as your store name. you might have selected Magento or WooCommerce, or a marketplace, pay attention to optimizing the product pages. these should load faster in users’ browsers. The design may also need modifications with the time so keep your web developers and designers on board for quick and reliable changes.
Now that your store is up and running, it is time to start promoting it. targeting users from search engines may require you to research the key terms and add them to the title and body of the product pages. For quick marketing and better return on investment, store owners need to consider search engine advertising too as it quickly displays the products against relevant searches to the users. If you need any freelancer help, you should consider getting started on Fiverr to hire some. Use different social media networks to spread the word and amass users with post likes and other interactions.
Add traditional marketing mediums as well to your promotions like running ads on mainstream media including TV, radio, or publishing press releases in popular newspapers. Distributing flyers and brochures with your bundle offer are still working and useful for attracting the local community.
7. Maintain and Expand
An online store requires continuous maintenance. It requires security patches and functionality updates. Hire web development agencies on retainer ship to ensure minor issues are dealt with before a major breakdown. For example, if you are using the Magento eCommerce platform and a new version is released, you may need to update the online store to avail the enhanced security, performance, and functionality of the platform. Besides this, you must also keep an eye on expansion plans.
As soon as your online business grows, you may need to target more regions and people of different ethnicities. To reach them effectively, you may need to add the products in other languages to establish it as a multilingual store. There are plugins and extensions to enhance the functionality of your existing store. You will be able to manage multiple region-specific stores from a single dashboard. such an expansion means getting profits from multiple stores by managing one.
Final words
Starting an eCommerce business is not difficult. It is an open choice as anyone can start it. However, the one who is wise enough to choose the right product and tap a demanding market leads the way to success. I hope the steps I have discussed in starting an online store will help you set up one for yourself, however, there are countless eCommerce development agencies to seek help from.
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