Building a Successful Online Store

E-commerce is growing at an unprecedented speed. Nearly 83% of online retailers generate monthly revenue from ecommerce solutions. By 2018, Online Stores are estimated to bring about $414 billion. The importance and value of ecommerce is obvious. This article helps companies figure out how to build a successful Online Store.

Be competitive:

Convenience, better selection, and free shipping are all reasons why 84% of people prefer to shop online. One of the biggest determining factors, however, is to get better deals. Studies show 71% of shoppers believe that they’ll get a better deal online than in stores. Having an online store will help you stay competitive by capturing this audience as well as being able to sell when your storefront is closed.

If your competitors are offering the lowest prices, then find the areas where your product excels. If you can’t discount your products, perhaps you can sell to consumers looking for better quality products. The best way to stay ahead of the competition is to watch and review your competitors and to stay on top of your industry’s trends.

Going mobile:

Online shopping extends to more than just computers. Plenty of people are shopping online through mobile phones and tablets alone. Sales are expected to increase to $114 billion by the end of this year. Successful Online Stores and websites are optimized for mobile. Having a mobile-ready Online Store will allow your customers immediate access to buy from you.

Upon selecting an Online Store platform for your business website, check if the company offers an app or mobile website that allows you to manage your store on the go. Having the ability to manage your store via smartphone is a powerful and extremely useful feature.

Product recommendations:

Chances are if a person likes one thing from your store, they might like another. Capitalizing on increasing your average order size can help increase your sales. Vendors who have added recommended products to their Online Stores have seen up to a 300% increase in revenue.

Show store visitors items you would recommend to go along with their initial selection, such as accessories that would pair nicely with the blouse they have chosen. In the example below, Amazon has done a fantastic job of adding recommended products, including individual items as well as bundles.

Frequently asked questions:

Adding a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page to your ecommerce website will do two big things for your business:

·         Save time – Cut down on customer inquiries by having a page dedicated to simply answering the questions your customers are bound to ask.

·         Gains customer trust – Having FAQ’s prepped and ready for you customers to peruse will boost your website credibility.

These answered questions can include everything from what your products are made of and where they’re from to countries you service and return policy.