Q: How do I sell products online?
If you want to get started with e-commerce, one of the most important steps is figuring out how to create an online store. Today I'll go over the most popular ways to sell online, so you can decide what type of e-commerce platform is right for you. Let's get started.
Hi I'm Tom Malesic, Founder and President of EZMarketing, and you're watching AskEZ. This is where small business owners go to get real answers to their marketing questions.
There are lots of ways to sell online but the most popular choices fit into four basic categories. First you have Marketplace sites, like Amazon, EBay, and Etsy. Next you have Social Media like Facebook. Third you have E-commerce website builders, these are things like Shopify or Wix. And finally, you have adding a shopping cart to an existing website. Let's take a look at each and figure out which one is right for you.
1. Marketplace Sites:
Marketplace sites like Amazon or Etsy are extremely popular for selling online because they're easy to get started.
Their big advantage is traffic. Tons of people already shop there, which means tons of potential customers even if you're just getting started. The flip side is there's so many sellers who all look the same it's hard to stand out.
The big problem with marketplace sites is you don't own your own store. You're renting online space so if Amazon decides to change their rules or increase their fees overnight there's not much you're going to do about that.
The bottom line is marketplace sites are certainly great, but if you really want to grow your business you're going to need a more professional online store.
2. Social Media
Another option that's similar to marketplace sites is selling on social media, primarily Facebook. Again, you have to play by Facebook's rules but selling on Facebook gives you access to a huge audience, power for advertising, and the ability to link other e-commerce platforms to your Facebook page.
The bottom line is you probably don't want to rely on just Facebook. But it can be a great supplement, and it's worth keeping an eye on especially as they roll out new e-commerce features.
3. E-Commerce Website Builders
If you want to be in control of how you sell your products online you need your own e-commerce website.
E-commerce website builders like Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace give you the tools to design your own branded store without advanced technical skills or coding.
The downsides are, like any website builder, you're often stuck doing it yourself. Next each e-commerce platform has different features which can limit your flexibility. And finally, you're going to have to pay an ongoing subscription fee, which can get expensive.
The bottom line is an e-commerce platform is a step up that gives you your own professional e-commerce website, but does have some customization and design limitations.
4, Add a Shopping Cart to an Existing Website
Finally you can add your own shopping cart to ANY existing website. The most popular way to do this is WooCommerce. Which is a plug-in to Word Press that powers 23% of all online stores.
At EZMarketing we design all of our websites in Word Press so you can use WooCommerce to add a shopping cart to any site we build old, new, or a redesign.
The bottom line is WooCommerce gives you total control to build an e-commerce website that you want, but it does require a lot of technical knowledge, which often means hiring a website design company like us. At EZMarketing we build custom e-commerce sites for small businesses that help you sell more products online.
If you'd like to get started with e-commerce, contact us today for a consultation and a free quote. And of course, if you like this video don't forget to like and subscribe.
