Getting Started in eCommerce
All the best resources from Commerce Journey in one place! Here are the essential webinars, podcast episodes, and articles that will help you get started in eCommerce quickly.
1. Getting Yourself Ready
- Begin with yourself. It's completely natural and appropriate to face a major new project with some anxiety. Listen to Brian and Cory talk about overcoming your fear of starting a new business. ποΈ
- Make Time and Choose Your Costs Wisely. Some costs are way too high! Get the flexibility and fulfillment you want from your eCommerce business β but not at the cost of your relationships and emotional health.
- Slay your dragons. Imagine your adversary as a mythical monster.π οΈOvercome fear and envision success by facing your biggest barriers and adversaries in a story where you can find what you need to prevail. π
- Play to your strengths. Topher DeRosia busts the myths and explains the realities of eCommerce. (It's not about the technology. Focus on business fundamentals.)
- Take the first step. Look at the big picture, but begin at the beginning. It's simpler if you break your journey down to The Key Steps to Starting Your Store. πΊ
Get the Commerce Journey Guide to Building an eCommerce Business Plan
2. Learning by Example
- You may not think your online store will have anything in common with the world's biggest online retailer, but there is a lot you can learn from Amazon.
- Are your already operating a small business or are you just starting out as a small retailer who wants to go online? Learn the special advantages of small town and rural retailers in eCommerce. Local retail expert Becky McCray explains the hometown advantage.
- You can gain confidence and great advice from others' success β especially when they've succeeded under difficult conditions. πΊ Ana Nunez started TheVidaBars.com while holding a full-time job and being a single mom to two children. She also finished her Masters's degree while launching her business! It hit 6 figures in sales in 9 months!
The Vida Bars was born out Ana's personal mission to create hair products that are free of harsh chemicals and have a minimal impact on the environment. It's a great story about a solopreneur winning at eCommerce through smart sales and marketing β and lots of hard, rewarding work!
3. Planning Your Strategy
- Arm yourself with knowledge. Fear of risk and the unknown will diminish as you gain knowledge and develop a plan. Research emerging trends in eCommerce to discover opportunities to leverage and risks to look out for. ππ
- Envision your success! Imagine the outcome you want and create a compelling vision of your future business.ποΈ
- Create your roadmap. πΊοΈ Map out the paths you can take to a winning eCommerce business with the Message, Audience, Product, and System Framework. πΊ Use MAPS to evaluate your business and build a roadmap for its future.
- Write a business plan. Check off these Ten Steps to Starting Your Store. πΊ (They're focused on developing a business plan.)
- Plan your grand strategy. Read “How to Plan an eCommerce Business.”
4. Get Down to the Details
- Get a business bank account and put your financial and legal house on a solid foundation.
- What should you sell? Read “How to Choose a Product to Sell” to decide how to focus your store. πΊ
- Consider selling personalized products to a niche market. πΊ
- Recurring revenue has huge value. Does your business model include memberships or subscriptions? Read eCommerce for Membership Sites and Why you should consider selling products through subscriptions.
- How should you sell?
- Is Dropshipping a good option for you?
- What if your business model is not commercial or for-profit? Read eCommerce for Non-Profits.
5. Building Your eCommerce Site
Choose your platform.
- WooCommerce or Spotify? π You have many options, but these two are the most popular and versatile. Use them to build a storefront customized for your needs.
- What makes a cost-effective site? Learn how to get the most out of your investment.
- What makes a good eCommerce web host? Hosting expert Kevin Ohashi explains how to find a good eCommerce host. πΊ
Define β and protect β your brand.
How to…
- Choose a Domain Name and Set Up Your Store. πΊ
- Find and Protect Your Business Identity and Trademarks β with Suzann Moskowitz of the Moskowitz Firm. πΊ
- Choose a Payment Processor.
- Create a winning customer experience with our Tips for Better Checkout Pages.
- Learn from expert Clayton Griffin about the best ways to imprive your customers' checkout experience.
Build and Launch Your Site
- How to Prepare for a Product Launch. ποΈ
- How to Optimize your WooCommerce site β make it fast! πΊ
Get the Commerce Journey eCommerce Site Pre-Launch Checklist
Our two-part breakdown of the essential steps in building and launching a new storefront is a concise but deep primer on everything you need to get started in eCommerce.
6. Marketing Your Store and Products
- Omnichannel marketing can be the ideal online strategy for reaching and relating to your customers everywhere they can be found, on any device or channel.
- Writing Content for Your Store πΊ is the first step in online marketing.
- How can you sell products when you don't have an audience built up yet? Learn how to start from scratch in this podcast episode.ποΈ
- Building Your Tribe β Your Customer Community. ποΈ Find your customers, build your membership or subscriber base, and nurture your biggest fans.
- Support your customers' journey with a great online experience. πΊ
- Social media marketing works! Learn how to create and buy ads on Facebook and Instagram. What makes an effective social media ad? Find out here.
Email Marketing
- Why you need a newsletter β Don't overlook this powerful marketing tool.
- Building Your Email List πΊ β Email marketing is one of the strongest ways to find and reach your customers.
- Learn how to make your store's default, transactional emails an effective marketing tool with our WooCommerce Clinic: 7 Ways to Make Your Transactional Emails Shine.
- Read our Introduction to Automated Email Marketing. πΊ
- Check out these great Examples of Automated Emails!
7. Operating Your Store
- Learn the Best Practices for Customer Service πΊ β an essential task for keeping your customers happy and coming back for more.
- Optimize Your Shipping Strategy to save on costs and delight your customers with quick deliveries.
- Find out how to reach a key milestone: Getting Your First Review . πΊ
- Get Ready for Holiday Sales πΊ β Black Friday and Cyber Monday are huge for online sales.
- Make More Money from Your Existing Customers πΊ