There is no denying that e-commerce has grown exponentially in the last ten years, and the previous 12 months alone have seen growth beyond most expectations. Retail is moving online faster than predicted, and whether you are a long trading company or a new startup, it is a piece of the pie you cannot afford to miss out on. So here are some key things to consider when starting an e-commerce business.

Do your research.

As with any new company, you need to undertake market research and due diligence. You will want to scope out the competition and seek to avoid saturated markets. If it is a saturated market, how can you stand out from the crowd? What is your USP? Why would someone choose your product over the other five the Google search results have offered? What is your competition doing, or not doing, that you can do differently and better? Take your research that one step further. Don’t just peruse their online shop; shop with them. Order something and utilize their online shop, buying procedure, and shipping to see how you can do it better.

Market market and market again.

Marketing your e-commerce business is vital. You could have the best product in the world, but if nobody knows about it nobody will buy it, it is as simple as that. What is more, you want to ensure you are targeting the audience most likely to make a purchase.

Marketing is multi-faceted; some ways it can be achieved are search engine optimization, Google ads, Google shopping, or digital PR such as featuring in podcasts. You will want a website that ranks well on Google, is user-friendly, high performing, and has strong reviews. Handing over to an expert e-commerce marketing agency will see all this taken care of for you and ultimately resulting in more sales.

When it comes to marketing be sure not to forget the importance social media plays. Having a solid social media presence will increase your brand awareness immensely. It is ‘word of mouth’ for the 21st century. Your customers will be on social media most likely for hours a day so it stands to reason that you should be too. Active social media accounts and targeted ads are a proven way to increase online presence and sales. Not to mention Facebook and Instagram have ‘view shop’ facilities integrated into a business’s profile allowing customers to see and purchase stock at the press of a button.

Choose the right platform.

There are many e-commerce platforms available to retailers, so you want to be sure you pick the one that is best suited to you and your products. Do the groundwork and research what each platform can offer you. Do you need customer support 24/7? Can the platform cope with large numbers of listings? Is it easy to use? Researching the right platform for you and your business is time, and ultimately money, well spent.