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Online selling is becoming more popular by the hour. In fact, if you own a physical store, many experts would suggest that you need an Internet presence for your store to reach out and communicate to all your customers. That seems easier said than done; selling online can’t be the same as operating a brick and mortar business, can it? 1. Choose a domain name If you already have an existing business, then this is the simplest step. Your first option is your own business name. If www.yourbusinessname.com is not available, then may be you can try a country-specific name like www.yourbusinessname.com.au or www.yourbusinessname.co.uk. If possible, choose a domain name with a relevant keyword in it. For example, if you plan to operate a travel website you might consider www.yourbusiness-travel.com. It might increase the odds that you’ll be able to find a good domain name. 2. Build a web store and upload your products Setting up an online store is not hard. Most hosting companies can sell you a package that will allow you to collect payments and manage inventory. Some even give you email accounts, traffic statistics and analytics. Make sure you choose an ecommerce package; they’re different than a standard website plan. If you are selling physical goods, you'll also have to plan your means of delivery. Go to your post office and check out the prices for mailing goods to different parts of the world. To be safe you can simply take the most expensive option and add a few dollars to it for shipping and handling fees. 3. Start marketing your products Use search engine marketing to get the best return on your promotion efforts. Submit your site to search engines for indexing, then keep your site active and fresh. Everyone loves a change, and so do search engines. Continually update your site with new content, products, helpful information or anything else that might lure your customers back for more. You should also consider paid search. Paid search allows you to pay for ad space on the top of search results for certain keywords. Since customers are actively typing these queries, this method of advertising targets people who are specifically interested in what you have to sell. When doing paid search, you should design your site so that your customer can find the information, product or service details he or she is looking for on the landing page itself. If you have different products, then create different landing pages for each of them. 4. Learn and improve Businesses grow and evolve over time. You generally can’t make millions overnight. Once your site is in the search engines and is visible to your target audience, your website traffic will increase. Within the first few weeks you might see website traffic picking up; if you’re lucky you may even get some orders. Remember that prompt delivery and quality service will retain those customers and keep them coming back for more. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t generate piles of orders in the first few months. Hang in there and keep your site fresh and rolling. In first few months, sales are not as important as generating good word-of-mouth. Make sure people talk about your website and tell their friends about it. Your orders will soon increase. Remember, slow and steady wins the race. Stick to the simple principles of good business and apply them online, and your business will prosper. About Homestead.com Homestead.com is dedicated to providing small businesses with affordable, easy-to-use tools and services that help them tap the Web to compete more effectively and win more business. Since 1996, more than 12 million businesses have used our award-winning products and services to establish their presence on the Web, maintain and promote their site, and sell or market their products and services—all without mastering programming or design. See what Homestead.com can do for you. Start a free trial now.
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