A Guide to E-Commerce
An e-commerce website is a website that allows an end-user to purchase a product or service online. E-commerce websites come in various shapes and sizes, from those stocking a few products to massive online shops like amazon.com or johnlewis.co.uk.
The amount of trading online has grown in recent years exponentially since the spread of the Internet and higher speed broadband access. It was estimate that in 2007, £130 billion was spent online (including travel) which was an 18% increase from 2006!
No matter how large the e-commerce website is, the backend structure and logistics are the same – they generally have a backend system that is used to update products, categories, discounts, shipping and review customers and orders.
In order for an e-commerce website to become successful, there are a number of important factors that need to be researched and looked into before a site is designed, developed and created. These are outlined below:
- Full market research to ensure the business niche exists and that you have a commercial sound business model
- Efficient management of orders/clients
- Secure method of payment needs to be established
- An attractive website must be used
- Streamlining business processes and IT systems
- End users must be able to see value in the products or services you are selling to buy online over the high street
- Incentives could be used to encourage repeat custom or word of mouth referrals
We would recommend using a professional web design company to create an e-commerce website as it is a complex process that needs experience as well as industry standard support for when things go wrong.
E-COMMERCE COSTINGS
It is difficult to give an indication of an e-commerce website as it really does depend on the level of functionality that is needed - for example DIY.com has cost B&Q millions of pounds. As a rough guideline, you should expect to pay between £5,000 and £20,000 for a good e-commerce website.
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