10 Easy Steps to The E-Commerce Website Development Process
E-Commerce Website Development can be challenging, but it does not have to be. When you choose the most suitable website development option.
In this post, we have prepared these steps to assist you in creating a beautiful and successful e-commerce website.
An e-commerce website is essential for any business that wants to attract customers and grow their revenue streams in today’s technology-driven marketplace.
Follow these 10 simple steps to help you create your new e-commerce site quickly and easily.
1. Choosing the E-Commerce Website Development platform
Examine all of your options before deciding on the best e-commerce platform for you. You must ensure that your platform is capable of performing the functions you require.
First, look into the e-commerce platforms that are available in your country, then narrow down your options by comparing the packages and prices of each company.
Compare those options based on user experience, support provided, payment processing fees, partner discounts, and other perks.
Keep in mind that some platforms may be more expensive up front, but they may save you money in the long run if they provide better services than cheaper alternatives (for example, better support).
Planning ahead of time can assist you in determining which packages are best for you.
Make sure you choose a platforms like Friday, which provides the best beginner friendly starting options, you get all the essential e-commerce website development features in one plan.
It operates on AWS (Amazon Web Services), which gives excellent stability and a 99.9% uptime guarantee. Furthermore, Friday’s enterprise-level security and cloud-based hosting may be relied on to reduce maintenance and security concerns.
Choose a hosting provider
When you do not use a website builder platform such as Friday, Wix, or Squarespace, you must evaluate several hosting companies when deciding where to launch your website.
Many organizations provide low-cost web hosting plans; nevertheless, it is also critical to ensure that their servers are fast enough for any type of website you intend to develop.
It’s also a good idea to choose web providers with good customer service so you don’t end up with an unreliable server if difficulties develop.
Register your domain name
Before you start building any aspect of your site, make sure you register your domain name through an accredited registrar such as GoDaddy or 1&1.
2. Selecting your theme
When creating an e-commerce site, it is important that you get it right first time. This can be tricky, as there are literally thousands of different e-commerce themes available.
Some are quite good; others are really awful! So where do you start?
Well, my advice would be to look for industry leaders in your niche.
These companies have more experience and generally tend to produce higher quality products (which should lead to fewer problems down the line).
When you use a website builder like Friday, you have the choice of selecting from a variety of themes that are included in your package. And you can choose and design your e-commerce website without paying anything more.
Also keep an eye out for well known developers — they usually work with recognized publishers who provide solid support which will help you maximize your profits in turn!
Finally, look at sites similar to yours. Are they using one of these platforms? If so, then there’s no harm in doing likewise.
3. Integrating payment gateways
One of the most important aspects of your ecommerce website is choosing payment gateways.
There are plenty of websites that list down a long list of payment gateways, but not all are created equal.
Some might have extra charges associated with them, some might lack security features or may be prone to attacks from hackers.
As such, it’s very important that you choose well when picking out your payment gateway partners.
4. Adding shipping methods
If you’re selling online, you’ll want to consider what shipping methods will be available for your customers.
To determine which options are available, look at competitors in your niche that have already built an ecommerce site.
For example, Amazon has many different types of shipping methods for its users. There’s free super saver shipping with a $25 purchase minimum, as well as other affordable express delivery options.
Look at what’s available from Amazon competitors before deciding on which option is best for your business.
Remember that you’re competing with these businesses so it’s important to choose wisely from the start since shoppers may not bother checking out multiple sites if they can’t find their preferred method of shipment easily.
5. Importing your product catalogs
You will want to import your product catalogs for each of your products. You can create multiple product catalogs for your ecommerce platform if you sell several varieties of one particular item or provide different prices for different regions in your country.
You can also name your catalogs anything you like, but consider using something descriptive so it is easy to identify later on.
For example, if you are selling t-shirts and hats, Tshirts might be appropriate while Men’s Tees would make more sense than just Mens Tees.
6. Creating marketing plans for your business
From Social Media, Linkedin, Marketing Materials, Banner Ads, Adwords, and Other Techniques.
Knowing how to publicize your firm is critical to its success.
Depending on your budget, target audience, and so on, you can choose from a variety of approaches.
It is strongly advised to learn everything there is to know about digital marketing.
7. Developing social media platforms and pages
To start off your e-commerce website, you should have Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and others.
Make sure that your social media pages are filled with information about your company. This will give users an opportunity to get to know you before they visit your actual site.
You can also use social media as an advertising tool; promote special deals or new products on these sites by linking out directly from them.
8. Improving conversions with A/B testing
A/B testing is an absolute must if you want to develop a successful e-commerce website.
With A/B testing, you are able to quickly determine what designs, headlines or value propositions work best for your audience.
Although running tests is relatively simple, understanding conversion rate optimization (CRO) can be complex.
9. Localizing your site for local markets
One of the biggest mistakes you can make with your ecommerce website is to not understand local needs, customs, and language.
While you can create an online store that’s available in multiple languages right out of box using a good web host, many marketplaces and shopping networks may want or require that you customize your ecommerce site for specific markets.
For example, Amazon requires that products listed on its marketplace be offered in English; other countries may want or require that you list prices in their native currency.
You’ll also need to consider how shipping rates are calculated. Will there be different rates based on location? It will take time, but spending time developing localized sites helps grow businesses quickly by increasing local reach and awareness.
Include key cultural insights as well: Is money wired differently? Are delivery times different? You should also include information about holidays that might impact shipping schedules or sales trends (for example Chinese New Year).
Localizing your ecommerce website helps unlock international opportunities by making it more appealing to potential customers from all over the world.
10. Reviewing analytics regularly
You can learn a lot about how your website is performing through analytics. It will help you figure out which parts of your e-commerce site need more attention.
You can also monitor how customers interact with your e-commerce platform. Are they spending more time on certain pages? Are they looking at certain items more than others?
This information will be valuable in helping you improve sales.
Remember, it takes time to build a successful website, so don’t expect overnight results; but these steps should give you everything you need to start developing an e-commerce business today!
Final Thoughts
There is no such thing as an overnight success. There is so much hard work that goes into achieving your goals.
If you are looking for shortcuts, you will only be disappointed.
The first step to building an e-commerce website is knowing what you want out of it. What will people see when they visit your site? You must know what products you plan on selling, how those products will be sold, and how customers can pay for them.
After you have defined these details, it is time to look at e-commerce website development options for your new site.
