More and more people are thinking about how to open a store on the Internet. This is quite natural, because the pace of life has accelerated markedly and many have no time to walk leisurely around the trading floor. It is much easier to purchase the necessary directly from home, so online stores always have customers. But is any product selling well online? And what is needed to open such a business?
Niche Selection
Before you engage in trading on the Internet, you need to determine which area of goods is most interesting and close to you. In addition, it is worth considering your financial capabilities. So, if the starting capital is not too large, you should not try to sell expensive electronics or jewelry.
You should also not choose a product without appreciating its relevance. You can understand whether this or that product will be sold through your own research or a visit to professional marketers. Assess how much this market area is occupied by other sellers, and take into account not only sites, but also ordinary stores.
What will sell best?
You can buy almost anything on the net. But the demand for different products is far from the same. Therefore, choose what you can trade on the Internet, you need to wisely. The most popular are discs and print media, office equipment and household appliances, as well as office supplies. However, pay attention to the fact that books are successfully traded on large-scale sites, which are extremely difficult to compete with.
Nevertheless, every second buyer at least once ordered a disk or a printed publication, every third bought a household appliance, and two out of five people chose a computer and accessories. Slightly less popular are such categories of goods as concert and theater tickets, all kinds of cosmetics and perfumes, and food.
Internet trading also depends on the territorial location of customers. In large cities, the demand for cosmetics and tickets is much higher than in regions where they buy more home appliances.
Search for a supplier
Before you open a site on the Internet and get started, you should search for suppliers. Long before you start preparing the necessary documents, you need to have an accurate list of partners. It is best to immediately establish personal contact with distributors and manufacturers.
If there are no reliable connections, at the time of opening the store you risk being left without goods. So it will be very reasonable to discuss all the conditions of cooperation in advance and conclude partnership agreements. You can start a business with confidence in the future.
Paperwork
Solving administrative issues is another step that must be taken before opening a site on the Internet. You can register both LLC and IP. Each form has its advantages and disadvantages. As a rule, IP requires less expense, but is also more convenient for a small business.
It will take more money to open an LLC, an official current account and other formalities will be required, but it will also be possible to conduct activities on a larger scale. It is worthwhile to calculate your approximate incomes and turnover in advance in order to choose how to conduct business. Perhaps it is best to seek the advice of a specialist in the field of law and economic activity.
Warehouse and office rental
Before you open a web page on the Internet and start trading in a particular product, you should consider whether you need a warehouse and office space. If you will work with foreign suppliers, and are sure that the products will be sold quickly, which means that some stocks will be needed, look for a small room for a warehouse to start with.
Rate the convenience of its placement, spaciousness, technical conditions. Calculate your expenses and consider the possibility of courier delivery. If there are a courier and an administrator in the warehouse, you do not have to personally monitor the goods. Office space is not a prerequisite for success.
There is no need to rent an office before opening a site on the Internet, but you can plan such a future in the future. When things go well, you can set aside a portion of rental income. The office will have documentation, it will be possible to place a consultant who will communicate with clients online or by phone, as well as technical support that will monitor the status of the site.
There you can hold business meetings with partners. For the first time, a neutral territory, for example, a cafe or restaurant, is quite suitable for this purpose. A rented office at this stage can make your business unprofitable.
Design development
For successful business, it is important not only to immediately understand what is profitable to trade in the online store, but also to choose the site design style well. A comfortable and understandable solution will allow customers to use your services without problems. It is best to seek the help of a professional designer who will create not only the page, but also its logo.
Attractive design for customers will be the key to their regular visits to the page. Therefore, immediately pay attention to the portfolio of the selected specialist, because the result of his work will accompany your business for a long time. The logo should be memorable, because customers will focus on it when you place contextual and banner advertising on other resources.
Acquisition of hosting and domain
Hosting is a service that stores all the materials and data of the store. A domain is the address where your site can be found on the network. Often they are provided in a package of services that can be purchased quite cheaply. In addition, you will need an engine, a special set of codes that regulates the operation of the online store.
They are also delivered ready-made, there are many options from which you can choose the right one for implementation and price. In addition, before you open a site on the Internet, you should think about filling it with information and the beginning of advertising. These items should be included in the cost plan.
Site content
If you do not have time to write descriptions of goods and write informative articles on the topics of your store, try to find a competent and talented copywriter. Do not copy ready-made texts, as this can lead to sanctions by search engines, which will significantly reduce the flow of visitors. A copywriter can be found on specialized sites, cooperation with him can be either temporary or permanent.
Keep in mind that an interesting and informative text is no less important than a design decision, so try to familiarize yourself with the work style of the employee you hire in advance. In addition, you will need photos of the goods. It is best to choose studio photography, but sometimes the products are too oversized, and sometimes you do not want to spend a large amount.
In such situations, it is worth hiring a photographer who will conduct professional photography right at the warehouse. It will be optimal to hire him for further cooperation, because the arrival of new products and the expansion of the range will require new and new images. If you have a full-time photographer, you won’t have to look for a specialist for photo shoots again and again.
Advertising activity
The final step before the opening of the online store will be the start of website promotion on the network. Without advertising, no one will know about your services, so the costs of it should be included in your business plan right away.
The first way to promote is to optimize texts for the most popular search queries related to the topic of your store. This can be done by a copywriter. In addition, you must use ads and banners on other sites, as well as on social networks.
In the most popular of them you can make public pages. So the cost of advertising will be minimal, and the information will receive a maximum of people. If possible, you can use outdoor advertising. If you rent an office, order business cards and brochures for it, hang a banner on the facade.
If finances allow, start advertising on television, in magazines and newspapers, on the radio. Track the effectiveness of such actions to understand which type of advertisement really effective, and which one can be excluded from the list of expenses. Subject to these rules, you can ensure a reliable influx of customers in your online store.
