5 Things you should know for your ecommerce site

Online shopping is here to stay. Why pay the high price of gas to drive 20 miles when you could do your looking from the comforts of your own home? As a result of the rising popularity of online shopping, more and more business people are fitting their own ecommerce websites to fulfill the needs of shoppers and after all, earn massive cash online.

There's a terribly bright future for ecommerce websites. As long as there are needs that should be met, there will be customers. For ecommerce web site owners, earning money on-line can be this easy. If individuals need your products and services, your web site will stay alive so long as you want.  But there are a few things you should know.....

1. Understand that e-commerce goes beyond "products."

If you're business is based on services, rather than physical products, you might not think that e-commerce is appropriate for you.  Think again!  While ecommerce started out with physical goods such as DVD, books, CDs and other stuff, it can now be used for selling your professional services too.  Whether you are offering salon services, design packages, carpet cleaning, or even tennis lessons, your website can now be used to collect payment for those types of services.   This opens up ecommerce to all types of businesses.

2. It's here to stay.

Let's face it, most people these days will make at least one purchase online this year.  OK....   they make a lot more than one.   It's convenient!  You can sit in your jammies and order those shoes you found on sale, or motor bike you've been eyeing.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, unadjusted U.S. retail e-sales were $61.8 billion for the quarter. The estimate of total 2011 retail e-sales was $194.3 billion—4.6 percent of total 2011 retail sales. The most recent data are available at www.census.gov/estats.

In its recent US Digital Media Usage report, eMarketer estimates how digital media usage will grow in 2013

"Nearly 190 million Americans will research and browse for products online, leaving relatively little room for growth. Average spending levels, and mobile commerce usage, will be bigger growth areas."

3. If you build it.... they will come... or not

This is often one factor that the majority of ecommerce website homeowners don't fully understand. Most of them suppose that when they have built their websites, they don’t have to do anything more. They will simply sit and await sales. This may be true ages ago, however with the robust competition currently, if you don’t do something, you won’t get any sales.

There are 2 things to consider. 1st is planning and also the second is marketing. Before setting up the website, there must be an intensive designing first. In coming up with your site, you need to consider the target market, budget, design and alternative factors that will have an effect on the performance of the website.

Second is website marketing. Once you have set up your website, you need to work on a promoting campaign. Through marketing, you'll create your website to be more fashionable and visual to your target market. There are several net marketing options that you can use. The choice of the internet selling choice depends on the requirement of your website.

We, here in sunny Jacksonville, would love to help you with all those ecommerce issues.

Bear in mind not to stop tweaking your web site once it is set up. If you stop operating on it, the sales can also stop. Regularly market your website for continuous sales.

4. Get social.

Social media lets your customers tell their friends just how great you are. Or where they found that terrific deal!!  In a single click, your shoppers can share their favorite products with friends on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. After completing their order, they can share their purchase on Facebook, Twitter or Google+.  This is a win for you!

Another great way to use social media is to make it easy for them to keep up with you by displaying beautiful social media icons at the bottom of every page. Select standard or theme-specific icons to display for services like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr, Pinterest and more.

5. Go mobile.

Smartphones are everywhere.  Think of how many people you see fiddling with their phones or tablets.  Now think of how many of those people you can get to fiddle their way to your store.  Mobile computing shouldn't be disregarded by small businesses.  Make sure your site can be seen properly on different devices.  This isn't always the case, make sure when you design your site you specify that you want it to be "responsive".  This will let your designer know that you want your products sellable at the touch of a finger and not just a mouse.