Helpful eCommerce Checklist For Entrepreneurs

Over the past two years, eCommerce took a mammoth turn. With eCommerce sales rising to $300 billion, we are on the verge of eCommerce evolution. By the year 2020, it is estimated that eCommerce sales will rise to $12 trillion, according to Frost & Sullivan. It is important to mention here that the volume of transactions will vary between B2B and B2C.

If you are an Entrepreneur and willing to start your eCommerce store, now is the best time to do so. If you have the next big idea, now is the time to turn it into gold.

“You could be the next person to succeed if you choose to learn from successful people instead of being envious of them. Moreover, aren’t they successful because they learned and continue to learn from others?”  ~ Edmond Mbiaka

Here at Branex, we have compiled a checklist that can be a guideline for you to start your business from scratch.

Tips By Gary Vaynerchuk

Start with a Business Plan

Researchers say that “Business planning is positively related to business success. Entrepreneurs who start with a business plan are more likely to succeed in the real world. I still remember my last lecture on MBA. My professor came next to me and cursed me for not making a business plan for my first start. Which I later realized was the first step I missed.

When you create a business plan, you give the impression that you are serious about your venture. You mean business. Yes, for some, this is a tedious job. Well, who is asking to go for complex novel-based documents? Your business plan can be as simple as a one-pager, which you and your stakeholders need to understand.

Pick a Catchy Domain Name

With over $1.17 billion people using Google to search and learn every day, it is nearly impossible for Entrepreneurs to pick a memorable domain name which then can later be optimized for search engines too.

So, despite giving some thought to the domain name. Young Entrepreneurs make a very silly mistake. For instance, if you are willing to sell custom shoes, you will surely not find customshoes.com or custommadeshoes.com (which is quite long btw), so Entrepreneurs go with coolcustommadeshoes.com (Which is quite long and not cool at all). Got it, what do I mean?

For domain names, do some research on the Internet. See what custom shoes translate to in different languages and pick that. Study the culture of your target market and pick some slang from the local market. There are tons of ideas you can use to pick a domain name, but just keep in mind that it should be short, easy to remember, easy to spell, and doesn’t sound awkward when translated into a different language.

Go for a Reliable Web Hosting Service

Your web host will be the nucleus of your business. I remember the first time my website went down and it took three business days for the web hosting company to get back up. While hosting companies charge a hefty fee for their services, make sure to run by all the services they are offering. Cheap hosting doesn’t really mean a reliable one. Read reviews, ask friends, and go for someone who is working for them.

This is usually a one-time deal. You will choose a web hosting that will cater for a one-year or three-year period of time, so make sure to choose wisely.

Spend Time and Resources on Content Marketing

Words are our most inexhaustible source of magic. They are capable of both inflicting injury and remedying it at the same time. For most people, content marketing is just like putting words on the internet to support your SEO. Well, sorry to disappoint you guys. Content marketing is the modern-day golden chicken & egg. If you use it wisely, you can harness the power of lead generation & multiply your sales in no time.

It is often good to invest in content marketing for some quality content. This will not just help bring some leads, it will also help you in your SEO.

Pick a Passionate Web Designer

I always respect people who do work just for the sake of work. Yes, go to Freelancer and you will find thousands of web designers who can make cheap web mock-ups for you. But, ask yourself this: will these designs catch the eye of your visitor? The survey suggests that a visitor takes only 5 seconds to judge your website. So, is it worth it to go for a designer who just works for money? I would suggest going for someone who is passionate about their work.

Set a meeting with the designer and look into his eyes. Eyes are reflections of our souls. If he is thrilled about the design & feels excited about your project hire him on the spot.

Time to Pick an eCommerce CMS

An eCommerce CMS is the backbone of your ideas. It will display your dreams and manage the inventory of your products.

Selecting the right eCommerce CMS is one hell of a job. In this, you need to take care of both the aspects, the developer and the customer side. Will the backhand be easy enough that your team can get along with the interface & will the customers find it easy to browse & search for their desired products?

An ounce of research goes a long way. Google some eCommerce CMS and read what people are saying about them. Take notes of the pros and cons and go for that which is good for you.

Use a Secure Credit Card Merchant

While most of the customers will be paying via PayPal, still it is your responsibility to cater to all the visitors who drop to your website. Normally, Entrepreneurs run away from credit card merchant accounts because at the start it might seem pricey. Typically banks charge a set-up fee, a monthly fee, and a percentage of each transaction.

What About Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?

What is the purpose of your website if it doesn’t show up on the first page of Google? Nowadays, people hire SEO gurus to fine-tune their websites to attain a high ranking in Google.

If you do not know how to set up your SEO, you can always Google some articles and learn before you hire a specialist.

Shipping Rate Structure

Before you even step into your first order, ensure what you will charge for normal shipping, one-day shipping, and date-specific delivery.

Even at first, if you lose some money to make some customers, it is quite a good deal. And also, even providing free shipping on certain items is a great way to attract some genuine customers.

To Conclude It All

A simple checklist is often good to keep in hand; this will protect you & your team from a massive amount of misery & slip-ups down the line, & will enable you to hit the ground running with your efforts to drive actual sales.