Ecommerce Website Development Guide For Beginners

Posted on Jun 21, 2021
Having your own eCommerce store is daunting enough, but do you know what's more challenging? Keeping it a secret when your competitors go global.

Yes, you have to scratch your head, strategizing day in and out to keep up with your competitors’ pace, but every effort is worth the wait.

E-commerce website development involves a lot of things, including selecting the products for the website, choosing the design layout, fixing the on-page and off-page SEO, and marketing your brand.

But nothing is possible until you genuinely decide to step out of your comfort zone.

20 million e-commerce websites are expected to exist in 2021, and 2.14 billion people are expected to shop online in 2021. you should create an online path that draws people to your store, so you have a chance to grab a substantial share of the market.

We are here to help you develop an eCommerce website if you have decided to take up the challenge with your rivals.

Therefore, let's build an eCommerce website from scratch in 2021 and generate endless business opportunities.

First, you need to determine what kind of eCommerce website you will be building. Find out what type of business is ideal for you.

Do you sell wholesale or retail? What is your target market - final consumers or other businesses? A successful eCommerce business is determined by its objectives. The following three types of eCommerce can be categorized:

Types of eCommerce

B2C Online Stores

Specifically tailor your product for each end-consumer? Afterward, you should sell, display, and promote your products using this type of eCommerce site. Amazon, Alibaba, Flipkart, etc. are some examples.

B2B Ecommerce Platforms

Is your business looking to promote or sell off its products and services? In order to reach a specific demographic using other established companies in your area, you need an eCommerce platform that supports B2B transactions. A few examples are Amazon Business, Alibaba Wholesale, and IndiaMart.

C2C Ecommerce Stores

Are you interested in offering a platform to private individuals so that they can conduct business with one another? In addition to developing your eCommerce website, you will need a third-party eCommerce company that will help promote and sell your products while earning you commissions and ads. A good example is eBay.

Develop eCommerce websites strategically rather than mindlessly. It is crucial to understand the concept of eCommerce website development before analyzing its hows and whens. The following are the three most important things you need to know before diving into development:

Things to know before development

Budget

If you don't have a budget strategy in mind, your eCommerce website might prove to be overly expensive. If your budget is constrained, you should look forward to an alternative platform such as eStoreApp where you can create your online store or website for free. eCommerce objectives don't always require spending millions. The right approach and the right tools can get you sales, the required return on investment, and facilitate growth.

Market study

E-commerce trends can change quickly. In the future, what works today will be stale. Be sure you study the market before moving forward with the development of your store, learn about web design trends, understand what works best for customers, and avoid what might hinder their purchasing decisions. Utilize surveys, meet-ups, events, etc. to create an eCommerce guide from the perspective of the customer.

Competitor analysis

Become more competitive by studying & analyzing your competitor's performance, market reach, customer interaction, marketing and SEO techniques, etc. Online tools such as SEMrush, M.O.Z., Google AdWords, etc. allow you to knock on your competitors' doors and learn what they're doing right and wrong.

eCommerce Platform

If you already have a selected eCommerce model and all the data you need, pick the most suitable eCommerce building solution once you've selected the best eCommerce model for your business.

There are a variety of eCommerce solutions designed to meet different business objectives, needs, and online store natures.

It's important you take into account a few factors when selecting an eCommerce solution. Before choosing any platform, you should check out:

The price of the builder that corresponds to your budget.
Convenient payment options for your customers.
Integrate easily with other business tools and plugins.
The search engine optimization of your store will boost its ranking.
60% of mobile searchers are converted when a web store is mobile-friendly.
Help with technical problems from customer service.
Your site's data and credibility are protected by a robust firewall.
Easy scalability for large organizations.
Easily deployed and used.

In order to ease your selection headaches, we have handpicked some of the best eCommerce building platforms. There are top most popular platforms for eCommerce designing:

Shopify

It is probably the easiest platform to use of the four - Shopify-based stores are easy to design and customize. For experts and beginners alike, it offers a seamless, unbiased developing experience. The number of Shopify stores has grown from 500,000 to over a million-thanks to its integrated eCommerce solution.

WooCommerce

Self-hosted and open-source platforms where WordPress controls the eCommerce design and WooCommerce handles the payments. Platforms with the largest number of themes and plugins present an excellent platform for eCommerce website development. With over 3.3 million WooCommerce websites live, WordPress has made many enterprise dreams a reality. For a fully-functional store, you'll need a little technical knowledge.

Magento

The site-building process for Magento is more complex than that for Shopify and WooCommerce. If you're going to design and tailor a really custom customer-centric store, Magento can provide an ocean of customization; however, it can be challenging to update or manage something with it. Magento upwards 250,000 live stores on the internet. Go for it if you have the skills to create anything you imagine.

Prestashop

A feature-rich, free e-Commerce system, Prestashop comes with a huge number of features. The 'freemium' version has quite a few complex modules, but other premium platforms are quite expensive. We power over 300,000 eCommerce websites on the internet. If you want to go online quickly and on a budget, we will be your best choice.

eStoreApp

Create your online store for free in few seconds without any technical experience. eStoreApp is a powerful eCommerce software that allows you to create and manage your own virtual store with ease. just follow basic steps to launch your eShop. you dont need hosting if you go with eStoreApp.

Setup Store like store name, logo and address
Add Products
and Start Selling with your customers

eCommerce Hosting Platform

Your store is now available to the customer or other business on the internet, if you have chosen the right eCommerce platform. It is called eCommerce web hosting when you publish your store online.

As with the selection headache, you will need to select a platform from the pool. You should consider these factors when choosing a web host

Cost is probably the most obvious factor. Web hosting platforms are generally affordable.
Make sure you choose the site with a high page load speed and low performance issues.
Host your site on a platform that allows you to easily scale when you want to expand nationally or internationally.
If you want 99.99% access to your store, choose the one that provides high uptime.
Choose a hosting provider that offers customer support.
Choosing a platform according to the amount of receivable data or the bandwidth can handle is a good idea.
Choose a hosting that gives you high storage, the requested domain name, mobile capabilities, and security compliance.
E-commerce platforms such as GoDaddy, SiteGround, iPage, and Bluehost

Create an e-Commerce layout that makes a strong first impression

The business profile data on your website has little relevance to customers - they are not interested in the building solutions & hosting platforms that you use.

The designs must be visually appealing, easy to navigate, have psychologically-provoking elements, be actionable, and simplify the purchasing process, as much as possible.

This is quite important when they visit your store for the first time. As an excellent host, you want to create a lasting impression. A responsive design allows for that.

Attention-grabbing details are key to creating a successful e-commerce design:

Customers make purchasing decisions based on your e-commerce design. When designing, keep them in mind.
Do not overwhelm them with designs. A minimalist web design can solve paradoxes of choice.
All your business's webpages should be branded to a minimal but effective degree. Don't overdo your logos and color palettes.
Personalize the customer journey at every stage of the purchase cycle.
By including breadcrumbs, you can improve the usability of your website. Users can easily go back to the homepage by removing the home button.
A major complaint is blurriness and theme issues. Ensure the customer can see the fine details.
Make the product video and image 360-degrees wide for tangibility.
Include a testimonials and reviews section.
On the homepage and in the product description, use brief, compelling copy.
Ensure that the navigation menu is simple and straightforward. Keep menu bars clear and uncluttered to avoid sensory overload.
Organize your products into different categories and structures.
You can easily find products by sorting, using filters, and searching.
You can use grid-layouts for online stores, as they have been quite successful.
At the end of the buying process, an easy cart view and frictionless checkout are essential.
Contact details, shipping details, and billing information are all important for clarifying last-minute doubts.

Make sure you don't forget these essential elements. Your store's perfection will be determined by them.

Shoppers get the best shopping experience and play a critical role in bringing high-revenue eCommerce websites. To reap the most revenue from your store, you need to utilize these elements:

A search engine with perfect results:
Give your users the ability to browse relevant content and ease the buying decision with fast, accurate, and customized search.

Create categories for products and services:
Provide quick access to relevant information and products by categorizing them.

Tags that can be searched:
Tag products with relevant phrases and keywords. Select the ones with the highest search volume.

Rank well on Google:
Optimize your store for better search-engine visibility and S.E.R.P. rankings.

Apply eCommerce rich snippets:
Rich snippets help you beat your competition in search results. Put a bit of code on your site to help search engines organize & display your product.

Firewalls should be secure:
Protect the brand image and customers' interests by adopting appropriate security protocols.

Speed and page optimization:
eCommerce product pages often leave customers confused. Make your website faster and easier to purchase by optimizing its speed.

Before launching your eCommerce store, test it first. Don't be afraid to give yourself an honest rating. Business is based on the quality of the site. There is little room for second opinions in the industry. By conducting testing, you can see your website from your customers' viewpoint and make measurable improvements.

By fixing a few things, here and there, you can make your online store more customer-centric. The website performance will be checked at the good, the bad, and the worst cases with the help of testers. What you should test is:

Verify that all links work. There are no broken links.
Get rid of all website bugs.
You should put the usability of your website first.
Assess what factors might cause a cart to be abandoned.
Consider user-convenience across all channels.
Make sure your website content is completely spell-checked.
Visitor mobility & all-device compatibility should be checked.
Invest in an eCommerce online payment solution. Offering choices using solution(s).

eCommerce Payment Solution

Choosing an eCommerce payment solution is the same as choosing any other procedure. Choose the ones that meet your business criteria and please your customers. If you're looking for a great eCommerce online payment solution, check the following criteria:

Credibility & reputation of the online payment solution. Your brand will be tarnished if you use an untrusted payment solution.
Payment solutions can appear tricky to your customers, as some will impose hidden charges only to repel them. Fix any problem by reading all terms and conditions.
In addition, you should ensure that your service can be scaled, developed, and updated in the future.
Hold on to the payment methods that your customers prefer.
Pay online for the security of the customer's financial data.
Your users can choose from a variety of online payment options.
Launch your store, and go live.

Once you've completed all the steps above, you can begin the deployment phase. Don't wait for it to be perfect. While running your website, you can make changes. Early implementation ensures a buyer's mood is known and that potential clients can be reached. Here are some things you should do to avoid deployment disasters:

Deployment Plan

Whenever something unexpected or beyond your control happens, have a rollback strategy prepared.
If you have refurbished your store, consider deployment time. Consider the time slot when the least number of customers engage with your website.
If a problem arises, break up a large release into smaller parts.
Deploy during the week. Launching on a weekend can lead to traffic problems.

Branding is important

Digital marketing can be used to announce your arrival. When your product is launched, you will want your customers and competitors to know that you are here. Integrated digital marketing services help promote your brand across as many digital channels as you desire and generate sales and revenue. Profit from these consistent techniques:

Press Release
Create news articles about your existence that will create interest in the media and journalists. Declaring your eCommerce launch is a great start.

Marketing via social media
Use social media and their respective analytics to share relevant content to niche audiences and create online relationships steadily. Using paid social media advertising tools like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, you can showcase your brand identity.

Marketing via email
Use email marketing to reach your contact list and subscribers. Using ultimate individualized targeting, you can serve dynamic content and boost your conversion rate.

Marketing content
Create online content, such as blogs, graphics, videos, etc. to inform and persuade customers and market them organically and via paid campaigns.

Viral marketing
Create and share content that sparked controversy. Promote word-of-mouth advocacy by letting users share your content organically like viruses.

Return and Exchange Policies

In order to make up for the lack of immersive and tangible experiences, make sure you give your customers a hands-on experience.

It's the reason why most companies have effective return and exchange policies. If you cannot offer a lifetime warranty on your product, you can still win your customers' attention by paying for shipping. Here are some tips to help you build an effective return policy:

Return and exchange policies can be confusing. Remember, K.I.S.S. stands for Keep It Simple, Stupid!
Engage in human-to-human interactions to build trust and gather feedback.
Provide easy access to your return or refund policy.
Refrain from making complex demands on return policies. Customers may never return.
Clarify the return and exchange policy with your staff.
Describe in detail how to return your ordered products. Give examples and photos.

Sales and discounts

You're driving a lot of traffic to the store and you've got a lot of followers on social media- but are you converting enough? Let's be honest: if you're not getting sales, your marketing efforts are worthless.

Take advantage of your marketing efforts by serving up offers, discount coupons, and promo codes to grab the attention of your visitors. These are some promotional ideas that you can use to convert them:

Set up contests or sweepstakes to give out prizes to the winners.
Organize short-term flash sales.
If shipping costs are covered, you can give away free samples of your products.
Deals based on multiple purchases can help you upsell and increase your average order value.
Display complementary cross-selling products to convince customers to make a purchase.
For customers that are urged and in need of a limited-time offer, offer coupons and discounts.
Up-sells and bundles will be tailored to your specific needs.
Giving away free stuff from the influencers' hands.

Conclusion

In an era of fierce competition, every aspect of eCommerce must be perfect. In order to succeed in today's eCommerce craze, you must first decide your products, plan all your strategies, and then nail each one.

It is important that even a task as small as naming your business and choosing a domain name is done thoughtfully. Your customers' shopping experience depends on every little detail.