The digital age has changed the way business is done. A company, no matter how big or small, that doesn’t have a strong online presence is missing out on marketing opportunities. With consumers spending more time than ever before in front of their computers and smartphones, it’s not surprising that most people prefer to do business from the comfort of home with just a few clicks rather than making an appointment for later in the day at an office building. If you’re one of those companies looking to take advantage of this trend by shifting your focus from traditional brick-and-mortar sales to online commerce, here is the step-by-step guide.
Create a Professional Website
The first step you’ll want to take is creating a web presence. According to Forbes, only 1 in 5 small businesses have an online presence. This means that there’s plenty of opportunities for you to catch up with your competition. There are various ways you can go about creating a website, including hiring someone else to do it or using a free service like Blogger or WordPress, but the important thing is to just get started.
Make Your Website Simple and Easy to Navigate
Consumers are always on the go with their smartphones, which means they don’t have time to look at your site with tiny fonts and complicated user menus that are difficult to understand. So always make sure your website is mobile friendly and adjust to smartphone screens quickly. The best websites allow people to find what they need quickly, so be sure that any information you put up is easy to read and doesn’t take forever to load when opened in a web browser.
A website that looks professional and has an easy-to-navigate layout requires minimal upkeep, which means you have more time for other important business matters. At the same time, it gives you a presence on the internet that is highly necessary to attract customers and turn them into loyal patrons.
Connect Your Business to Social Media Channels
Social media is huge as one of the most popular ways to connect with potential customers or clients. You will want to establish social media accounts on sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest, etc. This will allow you to interact with consumers, announce new products or services, advertise special offers and discounts. By replying to consumer’s questions, concerns, and praises and interacting with them on a personal level, you’ll be able to establish trust and credibility—two things that are vital when someone’s trying to decide whether or not they want to do business with you.
Sell Products That People Would Love to Buy From You.
Identifying the products that you want to sell is one of the most important steps in opening an online business. It may seem tedious, but take your time and make sure that each product aligns well with your customers’ expectations because this decision will affect how much money you earn from them down the line.
How to Find Profitable Products to Sell?
You need to understand what the needs of your customers are. You must figure out what they are looking for in a product and how much they are willing to spend. You also need to know how you can create a product that is something that people will be interested in buying.
Furthermore, you need to make sure that if you look at the whole picture of selling a product online, the profit margin should be higher than what it would cost for someone to go buy it somewhere else. This means adding more value or lowering the price as opposed to just selling an individual item.
Provide Detailed Descriptions of Your Products and Include Images
Sellers are always told that “show don’t tell” is the key to successful writing, but this happens to be much more important in product descriptions for online commerce. It’s best to add a lot of details about the product that will help shoppers grasp everything they need to know before making a purchase. Be sure to give as many specifics as possible so users can feel confident that what you’re selling is worth the money and has good value.
Whether it’s an image of the product on a model or next to other objects for size reference, videos of how your product works, detailed descriptions of its functions and purpose will be key in increasing conversions. You can also embed additional reviews (from customers who have already purchased the item), which are extremely valuable, especially when asking users to take that leap of faith by purchasing something online without physically seeing it for themselves.
Integrate Payment Processing Solutions.
Payment processing is something that every business needs to deal with. The payments are the lifeline of the business, and without them, it will die. The payment process should be as simple and streamlined as possible for the customers so they can feel confident about their purchase from you without having to worry that hidden costs or surprises are waiting down the line. There are many ways to handle this part of a company’s operations, including relying on third-party payment processors or finding a solution that works for your business.
If you’re considering an in-house system, it may require you to purchase hardware and software for a complex solution that takes time to install and configure. Alternatively, you could outsource your payment processing requirements to companies like Finical, which can quickly and easily provide you with everything you need to process credit cards quickly and easily. Finical also offers 24/7 customer service support, so if there are any questions about the system or how to use it, we will be glad to help.
Develop A Refund and Return Strategy
It’s important to have a refund and return strategy in place before launching your store. It’s also important to ensure that you have this information on your site, so customers know what they can expect if they order something which doesn’t work for them. If someone is unhappy with the product, they should be able to request a refund or return it without any hassle. The reason for this is that someone who is not satisfied with their purchase may leave negative reviews, which could harm your reputation and sales in the long run.
How Finical Can Help With Payment Processing For Your Online Store
Finical offers credit card processing solutions that are reliable and secure. We offer tailored solutions that can fit the needs of any business type or size. Finical’s innovative systems offer layered security with EMV capability so you never have to worry about fraud!
At Finical, we make sure your credit card processing needs are handled with the utmost care and attention. We offer online credit card processing solutions that will connect you to various shopping carts and payment systems so all of your Internet transactions can be processed securely through end-to-end encryption technology. Plus, you won’t have to deal with any contracts or complex setup procedures. Contact us today and we’ll provide you with a free processing quote so that cost will never be an obstacle for your eCommerce business as it grows.
