It is estimated that E-commerce will be a $4 trillion industry by 2021 with endless opportunities for people across the globe to turn their entrepreneurial ideas into inspiring brands.
but,
There are numerous people who find it a hard nut to crack to set up their own website.
So, do you count yourself as ‘Perplexed, half-hearted, and confused’ individual when it comes to establishing your online retail store?
If yes,
You don’t need to worry at all because I’m going to share 5 fastest ways to start an e-commerce website.
They are tried-and-tested.
And most importantly, you can start applying these steps right away.
Be ready as your idea-on-paper is about to go digital.
Let’s get started!
WooCommerce – An Effective Plugin which Converts WordPress Websites into Revenue-Generating Online Stores
If you want to start an eCommerce website easily without wasting too much time then no other solution is better than WooCommerce. It’s a really effective plugin that can turn any WordPress website into a giant eCommerce store. And, it is completely FREE.
It is an open-source plugin that helps its users in the creation of top-notch eStore with zero difficulties.
That’s why; for this post, I’m going to use ‘WooCommerce’ as a medium to help you start an eCommerce website.
Well,
Following are the key advantages of using WooCommerce for starting an Ecommerce website:
- Variety of Themes
- Full Customization
- Lots of email templates
- Comfort of managing orders without having Admin
Step 1: Get Hosting Service and Select Domain Name
For starting your eCommerce site, a thing you’ll have to do first-hand is ‘getting a hosting service and selecting a domain name.’ Hosting service should be relevant to your requirements. Since, thousands of people visit eStore daily, getting a reliable hosting service provider is mission-critical. Since there are many companies available; I would recommend you to use Bluehost: A leading hosting service provider across the globe. It is affordable as compared to other competitors i.e. GoDaddy. Plus, they will help you greatly with round-the-clock services.
Next to hosting service, you’ll have to select a domain name. Always choose short, easy but catchy domain names. Alike hosting service, BlueHost is also helpful in finding good domain names. So, make sure that your domain name represents your brand. It should be easy to remember and highly unique to help you stand out in the competition.
Step 2: Select Ecommerce WordPress Theme
Artelier – A WordPress Theme for eCommerce Websites
Since you’ve already chosen to host service provider for your new website and the domain name for your new online shop is a catch, easy-to-understand, and reflects your industry/niche. So, now is the time to get an eCommerce WordPress theme. There are hundreds of themes available for WooCommerce which you can use for your eStore. Well, a drawback with these ready themes is that they are cookie-cutters and generic. On the other hand, getting a customized theme for your eCommerce store will add more credibility and professionalism to your online shop. If you want to get highly customized WordPress themes for your online store, it will be better to hire affordable and professional eCommerce development company and it will provide you well-customized themes as per your requirements.
If you’re insistent on using ready-made themes, then I’m going to share the few best ones below. They work best with all types of online shops. So, either you want to sell fashion products or home appliances, they will make your eStore look visitor-friendly with an eye-catching yet minimal interface.
Following are the best WooCommerce-Friendly WordPress themes in 2019
- Porto
- Atelier
- XStore
- Ciyashop
- Cayto
- The Retailer
- April
- Kleanity
These are the WooCommerce WordPress themes that you must try while establishing your eCommerce store. Interestingly, you don’t need to be an expert programmer or coder to set-up these themes, just follow instructions along the way and start using one of the themes of your choice and enjoy.
Step 3: Finally, your Online Store is Ready!
Now, as you’ve got a WordPress theme, the next thing you need to do is to customize your theme in a way you want it to look. Again, you don’t to be a programmer to do customization, just work sanely with widgets and options available with your theme.
And it is the real part where your online shop is ready. Now, all you need is to include more products to your store.
Step 4: Add Products to Sell on your eStore
Now is the time for you to display your products to online shoppers. Now, log in to your dashboard and add products with ease to your WooCommerce-powered eCommerce website.
It will be good for you to create eCommerce product categories relevant to your product types, because:
- It will organize your website content for thorough visibility.
- It will help visitors to navigate your website for finding their desired products.
- Likewise, sub-dividing your main category into sub-categories will help visitors to more about you, and they will have started to buy things right away. For example, if you’ve Men’s Wear as the main category, divide it into other sub-categories such as Formals, Casual Wears, Winter Wears, or Summer Wears, etc.
Step 5: Product Title, Images, and Descriptions
With WooCommerce, adding product titles is really easy. It will take just a few minutes to add products to your online store. Well, there are three most important things that you should be careful about while starting your online Ecommerce website.
1.Product Title
Make sure your product title is short and catchy. With the quick availability of smart devices and relevant information, the attention span of people has declined greatly. So, create the best product titles that could communicate your message directly to your targeted audience.
2. Adding the Product Images
An image worth a thousand words. That’s why, always use eye-catching, presentable, and relatable images for your products on eStore. There are many options available where you can find royalty-free premium and genuine photos for your online shops. If you can’t afford to buy images; Pixabay and Freepik are the platforms to find photos for your product images.
While using images for your products, keep the following things in mind:
- Always use the exact image of your product.
- Don’t use irrelevant images for your product pages.
- If possible, use photos from different angles for the same product.
- Use high-resolution photos for quality results as they will help in quick optimization of your online store.
3-Product Description
The product description is a short summary. It conveys the complete message in a few characters. You will have to be precise and clear about good points related to your product. In other words, a product description creates a ‘Maker-or-Breaker’ situation for visitors to your online site, if it will be convincing, people will come back to you, and if it won’t then they will not come again ever. Therefore, don’t forget the following things and coming up with audience-centric and search-engine friendly product descriptions will be easy for you:
- 1- Always use ‘Relevant Keyword’ wisely.
- 2- Try to write in plain English, don’t need to overuse technical jargons.
- 3- Keep your product limited to 80 – 100 words.
Conclusion – What does it take to start an eCommerce website?
In this post, we discussed in step-by-step formation about what does it take to start an eCommerce website.
We came to know five important steps to embark on your eCommerce journey: a) – Hosting service and domain name, b) WordPress WooCommerce themes, c) Completion of Online Stores, d) why categorization is important for your online products, and e) how to write better product titles, descriptions and how to select good quality images for your products.
Long story short, with WooCommerce on your disposal, it will be as easy as A-B-C for you to create eCommerce websites. Rest assured: You don’t need to be an expert, genius to get things done. WooCommerce is an incredible platform that will help you to set up websites – Effectively, Timely and Comfortably. You just need to apply these steps wisely, and you will start running your online store like an ‘Expert.’