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By Paul Lang http://sellitontheweb.com Some of the most popular articles on the Sell It! site are the Tenfold series, which are located in the E-commerce 101 section ( http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/webstore101.shtml ). These articles cover a broad range of topics from why you should open a Web store in the first place, through to the best ways to promote your store. All in all, these articles contain over 100 tips and hints. However, I am often asked what my top tips for someone new to e- commerce would be. So here they are - my top ten tips for building a successful e-commerce Web site: 1) Study and learn as much as possible Last week I received an e-mail from a reader who said that they did not have time to read the articles on the Sell It! site and could I therefore send them an e-mail which detailed exactly the steps they needed to follow in order for them to build a guaranteed money-making Web business. If only it were so simple! Electronic commerce is a large and rapidly changing area and it is vital for all new merchants to learn as much as possible and then to keep up to speed with the changes. Fortunately, there are many great resources available online -- all you need to do is find the time to read them all! Links: Ten Key Resources to Help You Build Your Store http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/tentips009.shtml The Sell It! Weekly E-commerce Newsletter http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/subscribe.shtml 2) Choose your niche and focus There are literally thousands of potential web-based businesses to choose from, but if you try to address too broad an area you'll probably fail unless you have the funding available to become a major online player. The secret of success for the small online business is to choose a niche and focus, focus, focus. Develop a set of rules or guidelines that tightly define the boundaries of your business. Then, the next time you get a "hot" business idea in the shower you can use these rules as a litmus test -- if your idea meets these rules then by all means go-ahead and follow it through; otherwise, ditch it fast. 3) Plan carefully and realistically One of the biggest mistakes that would-be Web entrepreneurs make is to assume that normal business rules do not apply to the Web and therefore there is no need for business and marketing plans. However, all businesses need a plan or they will be like a ship without a rudder. When writing your business plan remember to remain realistic, particularly about the number of visits your site will receive, the percentage of visitors that'll make a purchase, and the time and money it will take to build your business. And remember to focus on the needs of your customer, and not on your entrepreneurial wish list. Links: How NOT to Manage an Online Business http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/opinion006.shtml 4) Choose your shopping cart carefully Probably the biggest mistake that people make is to choose a cart that only meets their current needs. Then when they try to expand their business at a later date they find their cart can’t cope and they have to start again and build their store from the ground up using a new cart. However, by referring to the plan created in the step above, Web merchants should be able to clearly define the features they need both now and in the future. Of course, things move very fast on the Internet and whereas it is realistic for bricks and mortar businesses to plan five years in advance, most Web businesses can only realistically look 18 months to two years ahead. Links: How to Choose a Shopping Cart http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/howto001.shtml 5) Automate as much as possible Many new Web merchants wrongly assume that automation is something they need to think about only once their business gets bigger. However, the best time to set up automated systems and procedures is usually before a Web store opens its doors for the first time. The important thing is to at least have a plan in place that details what tasks you are going to automate, and when you are going to automate them. For tasks that you decide to automate later, check to make sure that your initial Web store can be expanded to include them. For example, if you decide not to implement real-time credit card authorisation initially, ensure that your merchant account, your shopping cart and your ISP can support this at a later date. 6) Accept credit cards Although there are other methods of paying online, credit cards dominate. It is vital therefore to be able to accept credit cards in your Web store if you wish to maximise your sales. However, there are some special considerations that you need to take into account. From a customer's perspective, the most important issues are security and privacy, whilst for the merchant the most important issue is credit card fraud. Consumer security fears centre on two areas: that their credit card data will be stolen during transmission or that a merchant will rip them off. The former fear can be overcome by providing an ordering system that is secured by SSL, and by taking the time to explain to the customer why this is safe. The latter fear can be conquered by building your credibility as a reliable merchant, for example by providing your bricks and mortar address, your telephone number, verifiable customer testimonials and third party accreditations from bodies such as the Better Business Bureau. Customers need also to be reassured that any data they provide will not be passed on to a third party or otherwise misused. This can be done by posting a privacy policy on the site, for example one generated by TRUSTe. Despite the continuing media articles about the risks consumers face using their credit cards online, it is usually the merchant who is the true victim of Internet credit card fraud. This is because Internet credit card transactions fall under the heading of MOTO (Mail Order / Telephone Order) transactions and most credit card merchant account agreements leave the merchant 100% liable for fraud committed via this type of transaction. However, there are steps a merchant can take to beat credit card fraud. Links: How to Accept Credit Cards Online http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/howto002.shtml How to Beat Credit Card Fraud http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/howto004.shtml Inspiring Trust on the Internet http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/opinion026.shtml TRUSTe http://www.truste.org 7) Good HTML design The principles of good Web design apply as much to a Web store as the do to any other Web site. So keep the HTML simple, the graphics small and forget about plug-ins and Java applets. And think carefully before deciding to use frames - and if you do decide to use them, include a frame-less version as well. Good, clear navigation is also very important. Try and design your site so customers can be at the ordering point within three clicks of entering your store. Remember that potential customers may enter your store from many directions (i.e. not just your home page) so make sure each page includes full navigation or a clear link to your home page as a minimum. And don't let too many choices distract the visitor; research into interface design shows that users start to feel overwhelmed when faced with 7 or more choices on a menu. Links: The Seven Deadly Web Site Sins http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/opinion023.shtml 8) Promote your store wisely There are many ways in which you can attract visitors into your store, some free and some expensive, some effective and some ineffective. Free ways of promoting your store include submitting to the search engines, posting to newsgroups and mailing lists, soliciting links from other sites, banner exchanges, newsletter ad swaps, free classified ads and FFAs. Paid-for methods include banner ads, ezine ads, press releases and advertising in the traditional print media. The effectiveness of a particular technique will depend on many things, not least the nature of the product or service you are trying to sell and how skilled you are at promoting it. However, for the record here is what I have found to be the most - and least - effective methods for promoting the Sell It! site: Best results from: Publishing a weekly e-mail newsletter Submitting to major search engines / directories Posting to discussion lists Buying keywords at GoTo.com Moderate results from: Writing articles for other peoples Web sites / newsletters Exchanging links with other Web sites Poor results from: Classified adverts Free-for-all links pages Submitting to minor search engines Banner exchanges Links: Product Review: GoTo.com http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/product010.shtml Yahoo!, E-lists or Free Promotion? Here Are My Results! http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/opinion019.shtml Great Expectations http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/opinion012.shtml How to Get Top Search Engine Positioning http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/howto005.shtml How to Design an Affiliate Program http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/howto003.shtml 9) Keep them coming back for more The promotional methods detailed above can be expensive and time consuming. And if that isn't bad enough, new Web store merchants will quickly discover that visitors are unlikely to buy on their first visit, particularly if the store carries high-priced items. Clearly, in order to get the best results from your marketing efforts, you need to maximise the conversion of first-time visitors in to repeat visitors and then on into customers. So how do you encourage people to return to your store? The best techniques are to have relevant content on your site that is frequently updated, and to keep in touch with past and potential customers via a regular, opt-in e-mail newsletter. Links: Keeping 'em Coming Back for More http://sellitontheweb.com/ezine/opinion005.shtml 10) Go loopy! If I were to choose the most important tip then this would be it: when running your Web store you should be continually looping round the following steps: gather data -- analyse data -- make required changes -- test changes -- gather data etc. What data am I talking about? A well-designed store should produce plenty of data, the most important of which will be feedback from customers. Another very important source of data will be your shopping cart software which should produce reports such as what paths customers are taking through your store and which pages there are buying from. And regular analysis of your server log files will provide you with information on where your visitors are coming from and, if the came via a search engine, what keyword phrases they used to find you. ==================================================================
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