You're planning to launch an online store. How do you choose the best e-commerce platform?

Budget is definitely a big factor while considering which ecommerce platform to choose. Another important parameter would be to look out for the geographies and the demographics, whether they align with the audience that I would like to target with my product/service.

In e-commerce, success demands meticulous planning. I would like to explain the same with the example of EcoEssentials. This company shines by championing environmental awareness while thriving online. Understanding their 'eco-conscious audience', they select goods aligned with their values. Trust is paramount, ensuring reliable transactions and timely deliveries. Their exceptional customer service and intelligent digital marketing campaigns built brand recognition. Scaling responsibly, they met demands without sacrificing quality or sustainability. Prioritizing user experience and trust-building have been their cornerstone. EcoEssentials' journey exemplifies that planning, execution, and principled practices ensure e-commerce success.

It’s important to be clear on how far you wish to scale your store and this scalability in relation to your budget will play a key role. Some may say it’s ok I’ll change my platform at a later stage - one of the most difficult things to do is to change your platform so choose wisely from the start. This means having clear long and short term goals and working accordingly to find the budgets you need.

From my learning, it very much depends on what you are aiming to achieve, your current customer base and more importantly what level of business you are doing. If you can chose a platform that allows for a certain degree of flexibility in price and ability to adapt as the business scales, that could be prudent.

A great platform can have low performance if your implementation partner does not know what they doing. A and O is choosing a great agency to build your store on top of the platform.

Understand what you need. What kind of inventory management do you want/need? Do you plan on doing pop-ups or retail at any point? National or global? How many currencies? Connections to accounting software? Invoicing needs? Taxation? Shipping and tracking? Payment methods - do you want to offer BNPL, PayPal, etc. at check-out. Make a list of needs and wants and think longer term and then demo solutions to see what will work for you.

Tailor your e-commerce platform to fit your products or services like a glove. Controversially, argue for specificity: if you sell physical goods, demand inventory management and seamless shipping integration; for digital products, stress the need for a platform adept at managing downloads, subscriptions, and licenses; and for services, insist on features like smooth booking, secure payments, and customer review capabilities. Avoid one-size-fits-all solutions, championing platforms that align precisely with your business model.

The most important thing that has to be evaluted is the product and target… if you target is sensitive to that channel… if during the consumer journey has a big impact (saw an ad… and is looking for econmerce channels) After that… which is the bussines model: is a back to back, is a profit %… if the channel make your product too expensive, should be another way to sell

Understand the nature of your products/services. Some platforms are better suited for physical goods, while others excel with digital products. Ensure the chosen platform supports your inventory size, variations, and any unique requirements your products might have.

- Your Product and Services decide what platform is good for selling your service or product. - Target Audience, Total Budget and many other factors are dependent to choose a particular platform for your service or product. - We can check the Trends of Products using tools and can check where we can sell it in maximum volume. - Running Competitor Analysis can also be a good way to find your best-fit e-commerce platform.

Keep 3 things in mind: Instant, Personalization, (of) Customer Wish. As much as people dislike Amazon's UI, the platform cracks these 3 well and we all know the revenue/profitability of Amazon worldwide. Could you make the page load Instantly? Users hate waiting. Try to gauge their Wish even before they explicitly share the requirements using Personalisation. If this happens, most customers hardly care about other elements like pricing, delivery, etc.

Visually aligned with brand identity. Prioritize functionality, speed, and security. Mobile-friendly and easy navigation. Flexible design options with templates and plugins.

I would advise a new e-commerce client to consider the design of their platform first. They should outline the functionality of the site and put themselves in the position of a potential customer. You only have one time to make a first impression and the design of your site and how it works for the customer contribute greatly to their willingness to finish that first purchase and whether they return.

Personalize the experience for every visitor, be relevant and exceed expectations. Make it personal and umami, keep the human touch within but first understand the customers journey. The journey is more important than the destination and results will come even without controlling them and and can exceed expectations. Good luck! Read also Umami Strategy by @Aga Szostek

Evaluate the platform's design flexibility and user interface. A visually appealing and user-friendly site enhances the customer experience. Ensure the platform allows customization to reflect your brand identity and provides essential features like mobile responsiveness.

Todos os pontos s?o fundamentais para iniciar um e-commerce. Destaco o SEM e o SEO. Ter essas frentes bem desenvolvidas é importante para atrair e manter os usuários interessados nos produtos e/ou servi?os. As ferramentas integradas ajudam a otimizar a visibilidade nos mecanismos de busca e aumentam a produtividade, possibilitando análises de interesses mais focadas para conhecer o usuário com profundidade. Da mesma forma, na frente de SEM, a automa??o possibilita uma análise em real-time, o que contribui para mudar a rota das campanhas sempre que necessário, com foco nos aspectos de personaliza??o ao longo da jornada.

This is the Whip that gets the horse going. Most brand spend millions building their platforms without a clear understanding of how Marketing efforts will be accomplished through the platform. Most times this disconnect occurs because the website builders are not marketers themselves, hence no experience. Your platform must adequately adapt and integrate easily to new marketing technologies and methods

Forget about SEO. Focus on paid ads. Everything is CAC - LTV. When you know your LTV you can spend into growing your brand. The days of SEO in next to gone. It was never really what brands scaled with anyway. It was in addition to paid traffic. Stay focused on what works today

Without a great SEO strategy, your site will not have any visitors. Use an experienced performance maketing consultant and build your marketing strategy in direct collaboration with your site building agency.

Getting the right marketing mix and SEO is critical for generating sustainable demand for your business. Before one jumps into media (search, social etc), campaigns, budgets the key task should be to gain understanding of your category online. Who’s your TG ? How do they engage with your category (high involvement / low) ? What is the consumption pattern or frequency? How do they search your category (keywords, customer terms, brand reference etc) ? How is competition positioned ? Once there’s clarity on thought of the above, then it’s becomes easier to choose the right URL, SEO strategy, analytics platforms, media and campaign management. Then after the key aspect will be data analysis and inference !

Sure, you need to direct customers to the right section through phone menus but, sooner than later, they HAVE to speak to a human or interact with them over WhatsApp (as long as any wait time doesn’t exceed 5 minutes). Chat bots will disappear God willing, they are the most irritating, useless tool of communication ever invented. Someone needs to find Toby at Vodafone and fry his servers. To stand out as an online service, think logistics (ie accuracy & speed) first and customer service second. Pricing, marketing etc is all ‘permission to play’ stuff. If you don’t have the ‘backend’ sorted, you won’t go very far.

The real debate isn't in the list of options but the nuanced dance between efficiency and the risk of dehumanizing interactions. Does reliance on chatbots overshadow the value of human touch? In this landscape, the controversy isn't just about options but the strategic balance between technological convenience and the authenticity of genuine customer support. The challenge lies not just in selecting channels but ensuring they augment, not replace, the vital human element in customer experience.

Having a phone support option is of paramount importance. Many companies have eliminated that option. Being cut off from reaching a person instead of a chat bot or email ticket support may lead to frustration, anger against the brand, and even lawsuits.

Reliable customer support is crucial for addressing issues promptly. Choose a platform with strong customer service options, including live chat, email support, and extensive documentation. Look for a community or forum where users share experiences and solutions.

Evaluate the level of customer support provided by the platform. Quick and efficient support can be crucial, especially during critical times or technical issues. Also, user reviews and testimonials to understand the experiences of other businesses using the platform. This can provide valuable insights into its strengths and weaknesses.

Anticipate future growth and expansion. Select a scalable platform that can accommodate an increasing number of products, users, and transactions. Consider internationalization features if you plan to expand globally. Evaluate the platform's ability to integrate with other tools as your business evolves.

When launching an online e-commerce store, look beyond the now. Think about platforms that would let you scale as your business grows. Also consider platforms that integrate seamlessly with other e-commerce functionalities - payments, inventory, order management, user friendliness, discoverability, etc. One powerful platform that a small to medium-sized business could consider is Facebook Shop. No page hosting fees, opportunity to leverage FB SEO, simple layouts for product listing, pricing features, this platform enables you to operate a business page, a social website, and an e-commerce store, all in one place. For large businesses, e-commerce sites that allow for complex and vertical products' listings are a valuable investment.

Others will be recommended, but the giants are the giants because they meet the need to scale successful brand development, albeit with caveats. Shopify works. It is the powerhouse because it equips brands to realize speed to market while keeping customer UX in mind. They'll have best practices ready for you to use, and your brand can focus on how the brand is experienced on the e-comm website. WooCommerce is best for brands that want to control every little detail of their customer experience and have the funds to build and maintain it. It's tedious, expensive, and has a high learning curve, but it provides granular control over the e-comm website.

chieving growth and expansion for your online store involves strategic planning, scalability, and adaptability. Here is a structured approach to address the key aspects of growth and expansion: Market Research and Analysis: Identify Market Opportunities: Competitor Analysis: Diversification and Product Expansion: Niche Targeting: Consider targeting niche markets within your industry to cater to specific customer needs and preferences. E-commerce Platform Scalability: Technology Upgrades Global Market Entry: Evaluate the feasibility of expanding into international markets. Consider factors such as shipping logistics, local regulations, and cultural nuances. Multilingual Support:

Growth & expansion are key parameters for traveling to become a brand that people like to react out, experience, shop & refer to their network. An e-commerce platform must have clear vision of growth strategy that enables attracting new & exsiting customers and generating more sales revenue. Adding new products, launching new rewards rewards scheme for monetising users on their purchases increase them to come back. Expanding e-commerce business by enabling cross-border operation opens door for larger business opportunities that takes a brand from nation to a global vincity.

A plataforma é um meio, mas n?o o fim do seu negócio. Ela deve representar o seu jeito único de ser e estar em total alinhamento com as experiências geradas em outros canais que eventualmente possua. Por exemplo, quando fui Gerente de E-commerce na Shoestock, fui até a loja física e passei um tempo entendendo como as clientes se relacionavam com os produtos, como era toda experiência. Percebi que a cliente amava experimentar os sapatos todos ali disponiveis em prateleiras de sua numera??o. Ent?o, no e-commerce havia sess?o por númera??o para a cliente se sentir como na loja, só vendo o que era pra ela. Além disso, todas as fotos, seus angulos eram baseados na forma como as clientes seguravam e interagiam com o sapato. A plataforma é meio...

Points you can consider for launching an e-store: Network Connectivity & Ecosystem: A supportive network partner. Mobile Optimization: Prioritize platforms with seamless mobile experiences for you and your customers. Abandoned Cart Recovery: Choose a platform with built-in or integrated abandoned cart recovery tools to win back potential customers and boost sales. Data and Analytics: Opt for platforms offering insights on trends, consumer behaviour and data analytics tools to optimize your store, marketing, and products. Legal and Regulatory Compliance: Ensure your chosen platform supports compliance efforts. By considering these, you'll select a platform that not only meets your core needs but fuels your long-term success.

Choose a platform that developers like. This gives you a much bigger freedom of choice when selecting your implementation partner.

I would not establish an online store. Too much hype for something that impacts the environment and employment very negatively.

?? Choosing the best e-commerce platform depends on your specific needs, such as your budget, your products, your design preferences, and your marketing goals. There're many options available, to help you narrow down your choices, here’s a summary of the best e-commerce platforms in 2024: ☆ Wix: A website builder with AI and e-commerce features. ? Good for beginners and small businesses. $16/month. ☆ Shopify: A leading e-commerce platform with dropshipping, omnichannel, and selling tools. ? Good for entrepreneurs and businesses. $29/month. ☆ Shift4Shop: A free e-commerce platform with unlimited products and fraud protection. ? Good for businesses who want to save money. Free or $29/month. I hope this helps you.???