Is It the Right Time to Invest in an E-commerce Website?

The Covid-19 pandemic and changing buyer behaviour confirmed for a lot of businesses the importance of having an established online presence to sell online. Could your website offer direct-to-consumer buying or service options?

During the last 12 months, we have helped our clients to set up new ventures or, add an online purchasing channel to their existing business.

We look at four key areas for consideration for small businesses thinking of investing in online retail – the steps to follow before you start your e-commerce offering and how to maximise the benefit from online transactions and sales.

Planning for e-commerce

Take time to consider which transactions you would like to offer your customers via your website. Appointment booking, reservations for collection, sample orders, or a more traditional online store are all possible.

Plan out the likely ‘journey’ your customers would take on your website. How would this be different from physical sales? How can you help visitors to meet their need at that moment in the quickest, most simple way?

If your consumer’s requirements are more complex you might consider how a bespoke app could best be used to meet your clients’ needs.

Selling your product online

Before starting to sell online, research your target audience and the potential market for your products. Consider how you will get your product to customers after they place an order – do you need to adjust packaging for transit?

Also, what is the competition doing in your market? Having competition isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but you do need to understand how your product will offer a unique selling proposition if you are new on the scene.

Promoting your online store

With people spending increasing time on social media, it’s important to understand where your demographic is spending the majority of their time so you can promote your e-commerce site on the correct platforms to increase sales.

Shipping & customer care

When you launch your e-commerce site, shipping is an important factor. If you don’t have a warehouse or fulfilment centre, be sure to research an appropriate shipping company that can scale with your business as you grow.

As for customer care, this is the most important piece for your e-commerce business. To build a sustainable brand, you must focus on fast and effective customer care to keep your customers satisfied. Your shop website can ensure customers can reach out to you in many different ways.

Here at b4b, we have over 13 years of experience designing bespoke online shopping solutions.

Magento e-commerce website for The Electrical Showroom

The team at The Electrical Showroom operates in a competitive market, alongside high street names such as Argos, John Lewis and Curry’s, as well as online sellers such as Amazon.

We designed a more user-friendly shopping website and installed a countdown timer to increase urgency and one-step checkout, which increased order numbers by 72% and a 130% increase in order conversion rate.

We continue to work with The Electrical Showroom to make ongoing improvements to increase their sales and performance further. You can find out more about this project here.

Browse more of our e-commerce projects here.

If you’re looking to create an online store or you feel you have outgrown your current e-commerce platform, get in touch today to speak about Magento development.