Is an e-commerce business inherently a micro-business? With regard to the size of this type of business, no one really knows. Historically there have been two ways of judging what size a business is. The first is the number of employees and the second, is how much revenue it generates. The trouble is, an e-commerce business can be run by a few or even just one person and the profits can be astronomical. This is why, if you’re setting out to start an e-commerce business you need to comprehend the different platforms that are out there. If you wish to sell products in small numbers, you will want a low-maintenance website platform. It should give you plenty of pre-made templates and simplified widgets to allow you to focus on your sales. If you’re selling a high volume of products, you’ll want more flexibility and the ability to customize your website.
Opening your store
If you want an e-commerce website that has everything provided for you, then Big Cartel is one of the best platforms out there. You also have Shopify which is very similar in nature. The central aim of these platforms is to simply provide you with a springboard. Both of these websites allow you to present your products, create your own brand and offer your customers a simple, easy to navigate space, in which to buy your products. As for the designs, you won’t have a lot of personalization options. The backgrounds will be quite simple and not presented in a categorized style. This means that all your products will be localized in one zone on the page. You will, however, have filter options on the side, giving your customers the chance to find what they’re looking for through deduction. You can write a profile of who you are and what the business is about, as well as present all your social media links. Essentially, it’s like opening up a market stall in the online world. You present your products openly and allow customers to sift through them.
A more professional desire
If you’re building an e-commerce store for large volume product sales, you’ll want to explore WordPress or Magento. Both are open-source platforms, meaning you can utilize their coding feature, allowing you to build the website to your exact desires. Over a quarter of new e-commerce business owners will use WordPress. Around 27% go for this option because the ability to make your website unique, present your profile and products however you wish, is so alluring. These two platforms are also fantastic for SEO optimization, such as product browsing and store credits. Keywords and keyphrases can be planted into product descriptions and titles. The downside is, these open-source platforms do ask you to be somewhat skilled developers. However, you can get around this by hiring coders and website designers as the industry is very well accustomed to the WordPress and Magento platforms.
If you’re starting off in the e-commerce world, go with a small open market stall platform like Big Cartel. If you’re looking for something more professional and permanent, go with WordPress.
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