5 Mistakes To Avoid When Starting An E-Commerce Site

Running an e-commerce store can be quite complex and requires a lot of patience. There is a learning curve that can take a while to figure out when starting a eCommerce business. That means entrepreneurs need to know the right tactics, strategies, and practices to remain successful. With these in mind, you’ll be able to start a business that is successful, profitable, and scalable.

Unfortunately, many new e-commerce store owners think that once they have their fulfillment companies researched, their PPC strategy mapped out, and their e-commerce platform was chosen that they are pretty much all set.The reality is that it is a procedure that can get quite involved and there are plenty of opportunities for mistakes to be made.

There are many common mistakes that many new owners go through when they get started. In this article, we will go over several of those mistakes so you can try to avoid them.

Not Finding The Right Audience

There is a perfect person out there who is the right match for your product. There are likely a lot of people just like that person that will want and enjoy the product you are selling. The trick is to figure out who that person is. The reason for this is that if you try to market your product to anybody within earshot you end up wasting a lot of resources on people who will never be interested. If you try to find the right audience and focus your attention and resources there then you will have a greater return on your marketing investment. Take some time to come up with an ideal customer profile and then figure out what type of messaging will most resonate with that person. Then you can craft your content around that and even use the right social media platforms to get the word out to them.

Not Giving A Good User Experience 

Your site needs to be thought of as if it’s a physical store. Think about if a person walks into your store and the staff is unfriendly, or it’s hard to find the things they are looking for. This would make them leave and not want to come back. The same goes for an online store. The user experience is very important for generating eCommerce success. You should make sure the site is easy to navigate so they can find the products they want. The checkout process should be easy and secure. The entire look and feel of the site are also very important for the experience. Make sure to work on any problems such as slow load speeds and technical glitches that make it difficult to use the site as intended.

Not Watching The Competition

Are you sure your prices are attractive to an online shopper who has been looking around and doing their research? If you aren’t taking a look at what the competition is doing on occasion then you have no way of knowing. It’s important to think about what your competition is doing as far as their pricing goes and other things like deals, marketing, and content. You shouldn’t always be comparing yourself to the competition but it is important to understand what they are doing and if you are running an attractive alternative to them. Of course, avoiding this mistakes can help you grow a successful eCommerce site.

Not Having Enough Shipping Options

Of course, you want to have enough shipping options that fit every customers preference. While you may not need to offer services from all carriers, you should still provide a diverse selection of shipping options. Certainly, consider implement shipping services with more affordable rates such as delivery through the U.S. Postal Service. Or, offer expedited shipping with 2-day or express local delivery options. This could be the deciding factor that makes a customer purchase from your store instead of a competitors. Certainly, avoid the mistake of not having enough shipping options when starting an e-commerce site.

Not Investing In Security

Certainly, a mistake to avoid when starting an e-commerce site is not investing in security. Without security precautions, fraudsters have easier access into your site and can ruin your business. They can steal sensitive data including customer payment details, personal information and business-specific documents. Also, they can attack your company with financial fraud, infected links and phishing scams. Leverage technology to secure your business including SSL certificates to protect customer payments and antivirus software to keep payment data safe. Definitely avoid the mistake of not investing in security when starting an e-commerce site.

There are several mistakes to avoid when starting an e-commerce site. First, ensure you find the right audience to save resources and determine what type of marketing message to use. Secondly, don’t forget to give your customers a good user experience since you could lose sales if the site is confusing or difficult to use. Next, keep an eye on your competition to discover and outshine their new deals, small business marketing strategies and content. More so, confirm you have enough shipping options since customers want a site that provides cheap, quick and reliable delivery. Finally, invest in security to keep all business data, including customer information, safe and secure. Certainly, avoid the mistakes above when starting an e-commerce site.

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