How to open an online store and quickly make it profitable

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Lifehacker spoke to an entrepreneur who has built 12 successful niche online stores in seven years and received tons of advice for newcomers to e-commerce.

How to choose a niche for an online store

Assessing a niche for an online store is not easy. You need both independent business intelligence and specialized analytical tools. You can write a whole book about this (which is what I am doing now). I will just say that today there are several topical areas:

1. Goods that are constantly consumed: groceries, cosmetics, etc.
2. Discount goods.
3. Used goods, plus services for their maintenance and repair.
4. DIY segment. People are increasingly doing something with their own hands.
5. Microbusiness products. The segment of microentrepreneurs is growing. For example, baking cakes at home and the like.

How to find suppliers

First, you need to choose an assortment for a niche and figure out how to open an online store. Because it all starts not with suppliers, but with a good platform that will inspire confidence not only with buyers, but also with suppliers.

It is possible, even without having contracts with suppliers, to upload products of popular brands from your niche there. This will shorten the negotiation time and provide more favorable terms. It is important to create the image of a good live online store. Then, after signing contracts with suppliers, put everything in order.

If you go to suppliers without a good online store, no one will seriously talk to you.

There is a lot of human and partnership in working with suppliers. You need to understand your current interests and the interests of your partners and rationally assess future opportunities.

As for the search itself, there are three main approaches:

1. Search the internet.
2. See labels for importer information.
3. Request information about the importer from the manufacturer.

It is quite possible to use dropshipping, but only if it is a niche dropshipping or from the suppliers themselves. The use of universal aggregators, as a rule, does not provide the proper service or marginality.

We use dropshipping in two cases: if these are large-sized goods (we do not have our own logistics for them) or some exotic goods outside the main range.

How to resolve legal issues

You need to register an individual entrepreneur or LLC. Better is a limited liability company, since buyers have more confidence in this legal form. Also, an LLC has a less degree of responsibility: an individual entrepreneur is responsible for all property, in contrast to legal entities.

In terms of logistics, it is possible to work entirely through courier services at first. Just choose old and proven couriers, not new ones. We use IML, CDEK.

How to start an online store if you are not a programmer

Use simple and straightforward tools that can generate long-term economic benefits. For me, the CS-Cart engine became such a solution. I was bribed by good functionality with a margin for the future and Russian-language support.

CS-Cart is not just a cool modern online store out of the box. This is a whole e-business management system: from launching and SEO-optimization of the marketplace to accounting and repeat sales.

It scales easily to fit your needs. An online store grows with your business.

In an e-commerce show, I described in detail how to launch a stylish online store based on CS-Cart without expensive programmers and designers, which will be loved by search engines, and most importantly, buyers. I will repeat the main points.

Stage 1. Setup and start

Resources for aspiring entrepreneurs are limited. Before investing in any CMS for an online store, it would be good to "feel" it.

CS-Cart understands this and provides a 30-day trial. During this time, you will be able to fully customize the store and try out all the functions. If you like it (and I'm sure you won't want to go anywhere), buy a license and keep working.

After installation, you will be greeted by a "Setup Wizard" to help you fill in your online store details. For example, the site address and other basic parameters.

In the admin panel, you can customize the appearance of the storefronts. Built in layout editorallows you to drag, resize and group information blocks. Everything is literally in one click. This creates a unique structure for your online store.

Theme editorwill help make your store truly yours: set a logo, customize the background and fonts.

You can edit product cards and pages without going into the admin panel. In one click, you can correct the title, price or description of the product. CS-Cart calls it content editor.

All of these settings are intuitive. No coding skills or any other specific knowledge required. But even if you do not understand something, there is always the most detailed documentation at hand and clear ones. And of course, the support will not let you stall at the start.

Stage 2. Filling the assortment

At the first stage, a good CMS for an online store saves you money (you do not spend money on a programmer). Further, it is important to save time. Imagine a vendor sent you an Excel file with two hundred products. How many will you manually drive them into the base? And if there are several thousand goods?

In CS-Cart, product import takes seconds, and categories and subcategories are automatically created.

Also, characteristics are automatically imported, on the basis of which you can quickly create product filters.

If in the future you need to edit product cards, this can be done not one by one, but in bulk. N more minutes saved.

CS-Cart offers two options for working with product options:

1. Combination (for example, by price or color of goods). It is a great tool for selling related products. Combinations of options are set by modifiers and look like a separate product for the administrator.
2. Product variations. Suitable for selling the same products with different characteristics. A child product is created here, which can be configured as flexibly as a separate product.

Another very pleasant moment when working with assortment is integration with popular inventory control systems. Is free. In many CMS for online stores, you have to pay extra for this.

Stage 3. Attracting buyers

The battle for traffic starts with search engine optimization.

The more friendly Yandex and Google are towards you, the more people will come to you from search.

All SEO features are already built into CS-Cart. Register keywords and tags, automatically create attractive snippets of product cards, set 301 redirects - all this and much more can be done through the admin panel. Very easy.

For search engines, site speed and optimization for mobile devices are also important. Both of these parameters are excellent for CS-Cart, it was generally recognized as the # 1 engine for online stores for being mobile friendly. You can make purchases even from a tablet or smartphone, even from a TV. Not all CMS for online stores can boast of this.

An excellent increase in buyers is also given by:

• Uploading goods to Yandex. Market. For this, CS-Cart has a price list builder.
• Integration with social networks. You can copy the finished widget code and embed it on your store page on Facebook. You can also attach like and share buttons to product pages.
• Content Marketing. People are more likely to buy from the pros. Prove that you know what you trade by blogging in-store. In CS-Cart, this is a boxed function.

Step 4. Converting Visitors to Buyers

The more comfortable a person is on the site, the higher the conversion. Shopping convenience is provided by:

• Filters - allow the buyer to quickly find the desired product among hundreds of similar ones. Customized based on product characteristics.
• Comparison Lists - Ease the pangs of choosing doubters. Your order manager will immediately see which products the customer is comparing and will be able to advise them.
• Simple and convenient checkout - gives the buyer the opportunity to choose the most convenient payment and delivery method. CS-Cart has 80 (!) Variants.

Built-in marketing tips will help nudge the customer to purchase. These are gift certificates, abandoned baskets, reviews, and, of course, special offers. All this is included in the basic configuration. In many other CMS for e-commerce marketing tools are not included in the package.

You decide what kind of compliment to give to the client: a discount, a gift or free shipping. For example, the average bill can be greatly increased by providing a discount depending on the number of purchased items. A block with bestsellers will allow you to promote the desired assortment.

You can also use the layout editor to increase conversions. It allows you to turn an ordinary product card into a promo page, filling it with photo and video materials on the topic.

Stage 5. Orders, accounting, legal issues

When orders are poured one after another, efficiency and clarity are important. Buyers should receive orders on time, and the government should know that everything is transparent with you.

CS-Cart has a cool feature for separating roles between managers. You can hire two guys: give one to the rights to manage the catalog, and the other to process orders.

The order manager will be able to instantly find and edit existing orders. For example, if you want to change the delivery method or form several parcels. He will also be able to create new orders. This is usually needed when a customer requests a call back.

CS-Cart is more than just a CMS for an online store. The engine helps to solve even bureaucratic issues. The program integrates with CRM and accounting systems. There is a function of requesting consent to the processing of personal data.

The system allows you to create invoices and receipts, work with online cash registers, keep records of sales and design invoices for yourself. The latter is especially convenient.

Stage 6. Repeat sales

The bulk of the income comes from regular customers. They already like your store and service, they just need to remind about themselves in time.

Here are some powerful tools that CS-Cart has to offer:

• Bonus points. Give your customers bonuses for purchases, and people will definitely come back to spend them.
• VIP groups. Combine customers into privileged groups when they reach a certain amount spent on purchases. People love to feel special.
• Mailings. Good old email marketing still works. Send emails with special offers through CS-Cart or mailing lists integrated into the engine.

Output

The answer to the question of how to open an online store is quite simple. Find a niche, register a company and build a website. Moreover, the first two points are more difficult and more troublesome.

It is possible to launch a professional sales tool with a design template, a powerful set of modules and SEO-optimization without programmers. All this is in. At the same time, you have ample opportunities for online marketing: any types of promotions, combinations of goods, communication with customers.

Everything in CS-Cart is clear intuitively, but if anything, the service team will come to the rescue. I have been working with them for seven years, and this is only a positive experience.