Common Mistakes People Make When Starting an Ecommerce Business

Common Mistakes People Make When Starting
an Ecommerce Business
Starting your own ecommerce business/website can be a hectic and lengthy process
– one that many new business owners underestimate. Underestimation of the
process forces business owners to make costly mistakes. These mistakes can ruin
your website and/or business before it’s even started. However, knowing what
these mistakes are and how to avoid them can help you create a seamless,
remarkably successful ecommerce site. Below are four of these common mistakes
and how to protect your business from them.
Creating an Ecommerce Business Without a Business Plan
Long gone are the days of lengthy, detailed business plans. Today’s businesses
don’t need plans that address every possible issue that might arise, they only need
plans that address certain areas. Creating a business plan that addresses these key
areas will be the foundation of your new venture. These key areas include:
Knowing what problem your business is trying to solve
Deciding whether the website will be competitive based on its position or
value
Knowing your product and market
Making sure your business has a unique online presence that sets you apart
from your competitors
Securing your target market
Identifying your key competitors
Understanding the weaknesses and strengths of your key competitors and
how you can capitalize on them
Underestimating How Much Work an Ecommerce Website
Requires
Running an ecommerce website is about more than shipping products to
customers. Of course, you’ll have to do plenty of marketing, create and maintain
social media profiles, employ a service to build a winning website for your

usiness, use the most effective web platform and software, create a pricing model
and so much more. However, to alleviate the stress of having all these jobs and to
make your business as successful as possible, outsource these duties to reliable
providers. For example, employ a web design company like SOS Media Corp to
build your website.
It may be tempting to use a standard ecommerce website builder, but web
designers have the skills, the tools and the resources to make sure your site is userfriendly,
well-maintained and optimised for the web. For new business owners,
choosing to develop your own website can be a costly mistake. However, services
like SOS Media Corp offer packages that cover many jobs at once. For example:
A professional website builder will monitor your web traffic via Google
Analytics
Ensure Search Engine Optimisation
Track your marketing efforts
Optimise your site for mobile devices
Provide the best Content Management System (CMS) platform
Setup your domain name and hosting
Improperly Displaying Your Products
Properly displaying your products on your website means putting yourself in your
customer’s shoes. This means creating a virtual storefront that’s simple,
aesthetically-pleasing and responsive. Web designers make this easy for you by
creating easy to navigate product pages with attractive designs as photos, topquality
generated product descriptions, seamless carts and checkout and inventory
tracking. All of this will enhance your customers’ experience, making their
purchases simple and ensuring their return.
Neglecting Your Marketing Strategy
An ecommerce business can’t be successful without a proper marketing plan and
strategies. Good marketing strategies are the key to generating web traffic,
acquiring new customers, retaining customers and growing your brand and/or
business. The best marketing plans especially include ongoing SEO, an analytics
system, social media marketing and promotional marketing. But, marketing plans

should include a diverse set of ongoing strategies to build brand awareness and
ensure your ecommerce site is popular, reputable and successful.