Today, stepping into an eCommerce industry and launching an online store site is quite easy & fast. You pick a clever domain name, choose a platform, get a nice-looking theme and voila! - you are ready to launch. In fact, if you are using an eCommerce solution like nopCommerce, you can have your store site up and running in less than five minutes.
Many new entrepreneurs (naïve business owners) assume that starting an eCommerce store site is a slam dunk that will make them successful overnight and all they have to do is to launch a website. But there are many things that can easily go wrong while launching your store site and your online business can turn into an extreme frustration when sales are not meeting the expectations.
Below there are some common eCommerce launch mistakes that you should do your best to avoid.
Trying to sell a product that doesn’t blend in the market
Following your passion is great but in some situations, it is not a good idea and this is one of those cases. Of course, investing time and money in something that you are passionate about is a part of entrepreneurial life. But, in order to maximize your success rate, it is important to spend some time in research before investing weeks, months or even years in developing a product and later on discovering that no one actually wants it.
Try to invest some time in finding out what’s trending in the market (what customers want). Whether you are selling products/services or building your brand, it is important to understand the behavior of your target audience. A good understanding of analytics can help you in keeping a track of detailed information on what are the trends in the market and what to focus on in order to draw customer’s attention. If you have an idea about a product, see how that particular product (or a similar product) is already doing in the market. These days many business owners and entrepreneurs make use of Google Trends tool to keep an eye on the market trends. This tool uses real-time search data to help you gauge consumer search behaviors over time.
Tip: Take a look at our guide on selecting a profitable product to sell online
Lack of customer service
Customer satisfaction is the key to a successful business. Never assume that you know what your customers want. In order to be successful, try to follow a customer-oriented philosophy in which you ask your customer’s feedback and then act on it. Many naïve business owners launch their website without a functional contact us page, no information about their business on about us page or not putting any kind of contact information on the store site.
Make sure, you have a working “Contact Us” form that is easily accessible (or visible) on your website. This simple form allows your customer to get in touch with you to get more information about your product / services, complain about your product or simply tell you how great your product is. By adding a “Contact us” page on your website, you can prove to your potential customer that you are real and running a trusted business.
Poor design
One of the most common thing that discourage a consumer from buying anything on an eCommerce site is poor design and navigation. It is important to understand that a right proportion of content and white-space keeps the users (i.e. customers) focused on the content of the site. Too many advertisements, buttons and unnecessary login forms will only drive away your customers from the store site as they can act as obstacles in the buying process and customers can easily be overwhelmed by a cluttered layout. Remember, sometimes less is more!
Tip: You may find this helpful - How to start an online business: a startup guide
Author: Lavish Kumar
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