April 13, 2023
All,
e-commerce
website development,
You have something you want to sell online. All you need is a website to sell it from and you're good to go, right? Well, not so fast. Ecommerce website development isn't that simple. It's a challenging process that requires heavy lifting, either from your team or one you outsource.
You need a secure, well-designed, and glitch-free website that does much more than just provide a place for customers to make a purchase. With the right functionality, your website can also help convert leads into sales and increase repeat business by focusing on each stage of the customer journey.
If you're ready to think about launching your e-commerce site phone number list , you've probably already put in a lot of work to get where you are. When you finally introduce your product to the world, you want to give it every opportunity to succeed.
There are a few ways to get a website up and running. You'll want to carefully consider your bespoke website development (depending on the industry) options before deciding, while also ensuring you fully understand everything an eCommerce site needs to do.
What are the options for launching a website?
Let's look at the three main ways you can get an eCommerce website up and running:
Hire a professional website developer to build your site
Build your website from scratch
Use a website builder to avoid the hassle of coding
Hiring a professional
The first option is to hire a professional web developer to build your site. This option is the easiest when you consider your time commitments and the hassle associated with launching a new website.
Of course, you'll need to spend some time consulting with the developer, but you can offload the tedious task of coding. And if you do your due diligence before selecting someone to take on the task of developing a website, you shouldn't have to worry about whether your site will have the functionality you need.
Hiring a developer means getting someone who knows how to do the job to build a site to your specifications. This relationship is a particularly good option if you have unique needs that a standard, off-the-shelf site may not offer.
However, this option is also the most expensive. A professionally developed website can easily cost you over $10,000 , and the price increases with each additional feature.
When researching pricing, make sure you have a complete list of your requirements, so you aren't surprised by additional costs down the road. You should also ask about upgrades and technical support. This website will be an ongoing budget item for your business rather than a one-time result.
It is also essential that you create a professional website development proposal that outlines the tasks each party will be responsible for, the stakeholders involved in the process, the preferred methods of communication, the expected timeline for site development, the elements that should be included in the final product, etc.
You'll also want to consider your timeline if you hire an outside company to build your site. Depending on their current workload, it could take several weeks to get your site up and running.
Building your own
The biggest advantage of creating your own website is the ability to fully customize it without the high price of a professional developer. The biggest disadvantage of creating your own website is the time and effort you will need to put into making sure you get it right.
While some DIY projects are fun and low-risk, your eCommerce site is not low-risk. Your leads, conversions, customers, and sales are at stake. However, choosing free eCommerce platforms can mitigate your risks.
Coding a website requires (at the very least) knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. And remember, you'll need to continually update the site throughout its lifespan. Websites aren't something you can just set and forget without any issues.
Think of getting a customer to buy as a problem that your website is meant to solve. Consider using a problem-solving framework if you're leaning toward coding your site. But keep in mind that the advice you'll find is specifically for developers, so if you don't have much coding experience, you may quickly find yourself out of your depth.
You may find it feasible to build your own website. But just because it's feasible doesn't necessarily mean it's the right choice. Code is a high-value commodity. On the contrary, today, if you want to give it a try, you can find no-code tools to build entire applications, not just websites. It may take some research, but it's possible.
The important thing is to make sure you know what it means to build your own eCommerce site if that is what you decide to do. You need a custom website, regardless of whether it is a single-vendor or multi-vendor eCommerce website optimized for the ever-evolving world of eCommerce, no matter which direction you choose. Approximately more than 2.64 billion people around the world are expected to shop online by 2024.
Using a website builder
Your third option, which is quickly becoming the most popular, is to use a website builder for your eCommerce site.
Think of this option as building your website without needing to learn to code. These website builders have already done the coding and you can choose which code blocks to use. You can mix and match designs and features to find the right combination for your needs.
You've probably already heard of many of the eCommerce solutions out there. Top competitors include Wix, SquareSpace, Shopify, WordPress, Magento, GoDaddy, Weebly, and more. The number of website builders is growing, which is good news for you.
As website builders compete for your business, they offer more advanced solutions at affordable prices.
A modern website builder should provide the following:
An evolving library of design templates
Secure payment processing
The latest marketing capabilities
Continuous security updates
Continuous technical support
Another advantage of using a website builder is time. You can create a website almost instantly with many of these solutions.
The hardest part of this option might be choosing which platform to go with. Try to prioritize your desired features and set a budget before you begin your research.
What should an e-commerce website do?
To make an informed decision, you need to have a good understanding of what makes a high-performing eCommerce website. The final transaction is a comparatively small piece of a larger puzzle.
Important aspects of an e-commerce website
Design
When customers land on your site, you want them to stay, and your design plays a huge role in making sure they do. Unfortunately, you can lose around 40% of online shoppers due to poor design.
An important element of modern design is making the most of AI. You need to have a chatbot available at all times that acts as your 24/7 customer service representative. These robots are always working and can help your business put out fires and provide basic customer service during nights, weekends, holidays, and other times when your human customer service representatives are not available.
