To quote a phrase from George R. R. Martin’s hugely popular A Song of Fire and Ice series of novels, “winter is coming”. With the dawn of brisk winds and rainy weather by the day, winter’s harsh conditions are a sign that December 25th is also on its way. As gifts, gadgets and gizmos are going to be in high demand in the run up to Christmas, the few months before that fateful day represent an ideal time to start an ecommerce business.
However, it can be a tough, intimidating task to start selling online for those with little to no experience in the field. Consequently, here is a quick guide to help sellers get started in the wonderful world of ecommerce.
Business structure
It’s all too easy to simply set up an eBay account, upload a logo and start selling items willy-nilly. This is an extremely quick way to flog your wares before the holidays but without a business plan and structure in place, your ‘shop’ will be on its digital knees very quickly. Those looking to start an ecommerce business should first decide their firm’s ecommerce structure, their product range scope, their Unique Selling Proposition (USP) and a basic profit/loss sheet.
According to the Guardian, some of these factors will influence every single strand of your ecommerce business so it’s important to get them right. Those looking for a quick sale should try ready-made ecommerce platforms like eBay or Etsy while simple website solutions like Shopify can get store owners up and running quite quickly.
Product range
Your product range will be absolutely critical to your store’s success. The most successful online businesses are either incredibly wide-ranging in their product scope – Amazon being a prime example – or very niche. A niche product range could certainly work well during the Christmas period as Christmas accessories are always in demand.
However, there’s quite a few stores that already sell everything from baubles to Santa costumes. As a result, sellers need to think of a USP to separate them from the competition. What is it that will make your store different? Will your prices be cheaper than competitors or will homemade Christmas products set your store apart from your rivals? Will your USP be a quick delivery schedule from a reputable courier? All these questions need to be given some thought as the answers could be the driving force behind your ecommerce site.
Inc suggests that ecommerce stores should not try to be “everything at once” as this seems to be a common killer of ecommerce start-ups. “Stick to what you’re good at” seems to be an accepted piece of advice in the world of ecommerce so focus all your efforts into the best aspects of your store.
Hopefully this has enlightened a few would-be sellers in the process of launching an ecommerce business. With a strong business plan and work ethic, ecommerce store owners should have a successful run-up to Christmas and potentially beyond depending on their product range.
Written by Ash Curtis on behalf on I Post Parcels
Hi, Great post.
Whilst the post is great, I personally belive anyone considering to start an ecommerce business, should focus on building an audience first.
To many ecommerce businesses fail within the first 12 months.
This is usually because the lack of understanding – typically around what it take to build an engaged audience.
Hi, Awesome article!
I think it’s key to point out that many new store owners have been sold the idea that it’s easy, and it couldn’t be further the truth.
An understanding of the target market, branding, marketing, SEO, and much more determines the success of a new store.
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thankyou for the amazing blog. These traits can make a business successful. However I believe that small business mentors are also important for the growth of small startups.