Making an ecommerce website (Help and advice required)

[NARMAK]

I figured splitting off this specific request from my main business advice thread would get a better and more focused response from members here. For information on my business and other aspects of what I've done so far, please find the thread here:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=229165

So, as mentioned in the title, i'm looking to make an ecommerce website. I've never had one before, and i'm not 100% sure on how to go about it. My budgets very, very limited.

From the reading I've done so far, it seems like my best bet is to go with PayPal for payments which means I can save on having to buy an SSL certificate.

That said, it's now a case of whether there are DIY methods available that would be best suited for me like using 'Wix' and their premium service and linking my own domain name to it, or getting somebody to make my site for me from scratch.

I'm hoping there are members here, who have had a first hand experience and can maybe nudge me in the right directions. I've already on the suggestion of a member looked at SEO and PPC. I don't have the money for paid ads atm, so i'm going to rely on good old word of mouth and sales via the website I get made. Also, i'm going to register and get involved with forums in my products area.

TIA

[sycro]

How technically competent are you?

[NARMAK]

Originally Posted by sycro

How technically competent are you?

Probably zero. Well, in terms of where coding etc. is concerned. I was looking into things like Wix etc. as mentioned, but they have their own drawbacks it seems.

[sk33tr]

Originally Posted by NARMAK

I figured splitting off this specific request from my main business advice thread would get a better and more focused response from members here. For information on my business and other aspects of what I've done so far, please find the thread here:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=229165

So, as mentioned in the title, i'm looking to make an ecommerce website. I've never had one before, and i'm not 100% sure on how to go about it. My budgets very, very limited.

From the reading I've done so far, it seems like my best bet is to go with PayPal for payments which means I can save on having to buy an SSL certificate.

That said, it's now a case of whether there are DIY methods available that would be best suited for me like using 'Wix' and their premium service and linking my own domain name to it, or getting somebody to make my site for me from scratch.

I'm hoping there are members here, who have had a first hand experience and can maybe nudge me in the right directions. I've already on the suggestion of a member looked at SEO and PPC. I don't have the money for paid ads atm, so i'm going to rely on good old word of mouth and sales via the website I get made. Also, i'm going to register and get involved with forums in my products area.

TIA

a complete web site isn't cheap to have professionally created; just so you know. as well, the costs to maintain a web site can be substantial depending on how much you need/want done.

i'm not trying to scare you or anything, i just wanted you to know because i've seen first-hand how expensive they can be to create from scratch and then maintain.

there are quite a few places that have pre-made templates that you can use for whatever purpose you need. you might wanna check out squarespace.com.

but whichever route you choose, good luck.

[NARMAK]

Originally Posted by sk33tr

a complete web site isn't cheap to have professionally created; just so you know. as well, the costs to maintain a web site can be substantial depending on how much you need/want done.

i'm not trying to scare you or anything, i just wanted you to know because i've seen first-hand how expensive they can be to create from scratch and then maintain.

there are quite a few places that have pre-made templates that you can use for whatever purpose you need. you might wanna check out squarespace.com.

but whichever route you choose, good luck.

Thanks. I felt this might be the case, and it's looking more and more like 1and1.co.uk or Wix with their pre-made drag and drop type sites might be the way to go.

It seems like I just have to select the premium option for e-commerce and then add a PayPal cart to them. I was just concerned with those types of sites being a bit more rigid in the long term.

Truth is, atm I only have 5 products in the launch edition range, and in future, it might grow to say 25 in little over a year when things get moving.

I'd also include contact details which will be via e-mail and maybe a few other pages for a gallery for photos and videos, an 'About' page and just generally keeping the site as basic and straight forwards as possible.

[HyperRealist]

I'm sure there are ways to do it virtually for nothing. I buy DVDs from no budget companies that have their own websites. I guarantee they didn't put any money in the sites to sell their DVDs because they didn't put any money in to their films.

[NARMAK]

Originally Posted by HyperRealist

I'm sure there are ways to do it virtually for nothing. I buy DVDs from no budget companies that have their own websites. I guarantee they didn't put any money in the sites to sell their DVDs because they didn't put any money in to their films.

I hear ya. The whole idea about my website is that it has to look very professional and inviting. My products as mentioned in the other thread are representing a brand, that in comparison to some products in the market is more premium. So having a snazzy looking website ties into that.

PayPal itself is a worldwide known gold standard for payment to some, so I don't foresee many issues in implementing it.

I'm just trying to get a feel for what members have done in the past if they made their own website to sell a small range of products, and the exact steps taken from the idea to inception in putting the website together.

[NARMAK]

I just came across this website builder

Getting Started with Squarespace Commerce - YouTube

Seems like it's quite robust for ecommerce.

This was the review site I've been using to try and gauge whether the site builders might be what i'm looking for and so far on paper it seems to tick a lot of boxes and it appears the payment system they partnered with is a little bit cheaper as well as being integrated into the actual site as opposed to taking customers offsite like PayPal typically does. I think if memory serves correct they also pay money direct to your bank account compared to PayPal who tie it up for a bit.

http://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/...siness-review/

The payment system SquareSpace use is called Stripe and seems only became available recently in the UK, and the review was last updated October 1st 2013 which is really recent. Also, it seems the only platform mainly focusing on the ecommerce side of website creation and the tech support seems to be very swift in response if their claims are to be believed.

Thoughts?

[NARMAK]

Hey guys and girls. Just a little update to this thread. I started messing about with squarespace using their free trial to set up a website, and for a first timer I've found it ok and i'm still learning many things, but I think for now i'd like a bit of feedback on what people like, don't like etc.

Now, before I give the link, there are a few points I feel I should make:

NB - THIS WEBSITE IS NOT LIVE FOR COMMERCE. EVERYTHING ON THERE IS IN DEVELOPMENT.

*Pictures of 'products' were amateur pictures used as placeholders. These will be replaced with fully professional images done by a photographer
*Currently the layout aspect is all up in their air as I seem to have stripped down the 'AVIATOR' template I was using to basically zilch

So, with all that said, here's the link and I look forwards to seeing what you all think and what would hopefully compel you to make a purchase for the products

http://www.exhalez.squarespace.com

[NARMAK]

BUMP

Any input from fellow members?

[blurayisnice]

Try shopify

[NARMAK]

Originally Posted by blurayisnice

Try shopify

I'm open to looking into Shopify as I hear it's a good ecommerce platform as well, but what drew me to this was the payment integration they've managed to do.

Anybody able to offer specific feedback on how the current design and layout look with the above caveats from the post above in place?

[blurayisnice]

Originally Posted by NARMAK

I'm open to looking into Shopify as I hear it's a good ecommerce platform as well, but what drew me to this was the payment integration they've managed to do.

Anybody able to offer specific feedback on how the current design and layout look with the above caveats from the post above in place?

I tried to create a shopify store, but after calculating expenses etc. it was better (more effective) for me to just sell via Amazon and eBay. If you're interested in having a look at my unfinished website (and I'll probably never finish it xD), just send me a PM. I made it with Shopify and it costs around $50 a month (apps etc. to design the website included, listing unlimited products, etc.). That's without the fee you would have to pay. You pay 1% of what you earn to Shopify on top of that, but that's really low considering Amazon/eBay charg like 15-20% (but you don't have to worry about CEO, or Website design, payment gateway integration, and server costs with eBay & Amazon, that's why I prefer them instead).

I am offering my website for sale. I experimented a few months, so I wasted around 150-200$, trying to get some money for the domain name, won't be much (if anything at all xD ).

[NARMAK]

Originally Posted by blurayisnice

I tried to create a shopify store, but after calculating expenses etc. it was better (more effective) for me to just sell via Amazon and eBay. If you're interested in having a look at my unfinished website (and I'll probably never finish it xD), just send me a PM. I made it with Shopify and it costs around $50 a month (apps etc. to design the website included, listing unlimited products, etc.). That's without the fee you would have to pay. You pay 1% of what you earn to Shopify on top of that, but that's really low considering Amazon/eBay charg like 15-20% (but you don't have to worry about CEO, or Website design, payment gateway integration, and server costs with eBay & Amazon, that's why I prefer them instead).

I am offering my website for sale. I experimented a few months, so I wasted around 150-200$, trying to get some money for the domain name, won't be much (if anything at all xD ).

Sure, PM me the link.

SquareSpace give a 14 day free trial and after that, you can pay month to month. That includes everything from support and unlimited hosting and listings. For payment systems, you sign up to Stripe and you only pay on what sells. If a customer requires a refund, Stripe won't charge you.

Overall, I think it would work out much cheaper to run a SquareSpace ecommerce site than a Shopify site.

If somebody can, please do use:

exhalez.squarespace.com

and give me some feedback on whether you would buy from it at present (NB - The product pictures are placeholders and please also note that the formatting on mobile devices isn't quite accurate. Especially smartphones

[NARMAK]

Hi guys. Thought i'd post a small update. I've actually got to grips with the site a bit more and its been going through a few changes and iterations to get it to where I hopefully think it really should be, but this latest change i'm really happy with and hope you'll all give me feedback.

Simply visit:

exhalez.squarespace.com

Click 'visitor access' and type in the auto generated password.

Same caveat applies as last time where product pictures are temps and you can't actually purchase products; but you can add to cart to replicate the experience of purchasing.

TIA

[NARMAK]

Bump

[NARMAK]

Bump

Would love for some of you lurkers to post up what you think

[shredking9000]

Originally Posted by NARMAK

Bump

Would love for some of you lurkers to post up what you think

Alright, I just checked out your site on squarespace.

Overall, the website is well-structured and easy to navigate. My complaints would be mostly be visual; the logo could be a bit more distinctive (maybe incorporate the product in some way?) and the background should be ditched altogether (it seems a bit too busy.)

I'm not sure if the product pictures are temporary or not (EDIT: just seen that they are), but they're a bit bland. The products would be more appealing if you photographed them with the flavors they are based on (cut up some fresh peaches to photograph with the peach flavor, etc.) Also, I'm not sure that the gallery is needed: it seems bit extraneous to be honest, and the pictures don't really sell me on the product; maybe replace it with a review/testimony page?

Let me know if you have any specific questions. Hope this was somewhat helpful.

[HyperRealist]

the font is too hard to read

[NARMAK]

Originally Posted by shredking9000

Alright, I just checked out your site on squarespace.

Overall, the website is well-structured and easy to navigate. My complaints would be mostly be visual; the logo could be a bit more distinctive (maybe incorporate the product in some way?) and the background should be ditched altogether (it seems a bit too busy.)

I'm not sure if the product pictures are temporary or not (EDIT: just seen that they are), but they're a bit bland. The products would be more appealing if you photographed them with the flavors they are based on (cut up some fresh peaches to photograph with the peach flavor, etc.) Also, I'm not sure that the gallery is needed: it seems bit extraneous to be honest, and the pictures don't really sell me on the product; maybe replace it with a review/testimony page?

Let me know if you have any specific questions. Hope this was somewhat helpful.

Unfortunately I don't see any way to incorporate the product into the logo as what I have is already registered with that name and font style. I did emboss it somewhat to lift it off the page.

Regarding the background, I did go through a few iterations but this is the only one that 'popped' and made it more engaging for almost everybody I asked, so if you got any specific designs in mind you can post up, i'll definitely try them out.

Gallery wise, I thought it would give people a good idea how they look in use by other people and I will probably incorporate a review/testimony page at some point down the road.

Regarding the product pictures, I am in the process of trying to get proper professional looking photographs done and hopefully having them placed with fruit is definitely one of the aims as well as with models.

Originally Posted by HyperRealist

the font is too hard to read

Any specific improvement or different font you might recommend? I'm trying to make sure it looks neat and clean but also engages and fits in with the idea of being premium and luxury in nature.