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Like most average persons, I wanted some extra money to supplement my regular
income. I had considered a part time second job at times, but hated that option
because it would take me away from the family, make me more tired and probably
just pay minimum wage. I also wanted to be able to work from home.
I had surfed the internet for years and had often considered the idea of
participating in the internet revolution. I had read some statistics on the use
of internet and the increasing numbers of homes with computers and the
increasing percentage of Christmas shopping done over the internet. So I decided
to jump in with both feet.
First what is ecommerce? The online world designates web sites devoted to
retail sales as an e-commerce site. E-commerce sites sell either information or
hard goods such as cameras or knifes. E-commerce sites also have Shopping Carts
and Payment Gateways attached to them that non-sales web sites do not need.
Ok……so you want to develop an E-commerce site. You are now probably asking do
I have enough skill, mental patience or aptitude to be successful?
Well if you have average intelligence, I believe that you and thousands of
people just like you could have an E-commerce web site. All that is required is
the willingness to learn a few things, patience, and the determination to apply
yourself.
How? I am glad you asked.
Let’s begin. We first need to discuss the basics components you will
need.
1. Computer 2. Internet connection 3. Site building software 4. Graphics
Software 5. Web hosting company 6. Shopping cart 7. Payment gateway
The above elements are where most people stop when they think of what they
will need when they want to start an ecommerce site. However, there are other
elements that need to be considered, such as getting legal and product
sourcing.
Items 1 and 2 above are pretty straight forward and most people can
understand why they are necessary. The other items however are a little more
complex. Site building software allows the beginner to construct a web site
without knowing html programming code. What is Html programming Code?
Html is the programming language of the internet and stands for Hyper Text
Mark Up Language. The two best software programs currently available to write
Html are Microsoft’s FrontPage 2003 or Macromedia’s Dreamweaver. These programs
are more correctly known as HTML Editors.
These two programs are the best ones available. I have them both but use
FrontPage 2003 primarily. I think FrontPage 2003 is easier to use and does
better tables then Dreamweaver. Most professional web site developers, however
consider Dreamweaver the better of the two because some claim it has more
features, but I find it is a little more complicated to use. I would recommend
that you surf the internet and read the reviews on both of these programs and
make you own choice.
Next you will need a good graphic program such as Adobe Photoshop 6. A
graphics program allows you manipulate the size of images create images in
different formats and create special effects. “PhotoShop 6” is the current
version from Adobe and is the best software program for graphics. Adobe
“Photoshop Elements” can also be used, but is a limited version of the full
Photoshop software. The programs from Adobe are expensive so shop around for the
best price.
Web hosting is very important and you need to comparison shop for features
first, not on price. Web hosting and ecommerce are extremely related, and
learned by personal experience the mistake trying to separate ecommerce from web
hosting. The web host company is the company that rents room on their server for
your web site, but they can much more. They can offer an integrated shopping
cart.
The shopping cart is the heart of the ecommerce web site. The shopping cart
for all intents and purposes runs your ecommerce web site so it is critical to
get a good one. It contains and displays the products you intend to sell. It
also does other neat administrative functions that will make your store easier
to run. There are some stand alone shopping carts for sale but most come with
web hosting service attached.
The "Payment Gateway" is the cashier in the store and is also known as a
"Merchant Account." This is basically a business credit card account. The
payment gateway allows your se store to accept credit cards and transfer money
to you. Merchant Accounts are very important and you should also carefully
review their services and prices. If you do not get a merchant account you are
pretty much limited to papal. Search the web and check out the available
shopping carts and payment gateways.
Now what are you going to sell, and where are you going to get it? You can
look every where for the products you want to sell. How do you know what will
sell well? You need to do some market research. Not everything sells well,
including electronics. If you have no preference on what to sell, find some
marketing software that will allow you to determine which products ell well
online.
Next, you will need a source for those products. Assuming you are not making
them yourself. The best way is to drop ship them. The trouble is finding a
reliable drop ship source and avoiding the imposters.
Once you find you product source you need to open an account and stock your
store and start selling. There munch more to an ecommerce store then can be
explained in a brief article format. As someone who recently went from zero to
an online store Cynscorion.com), I know first hand of the pit falls that await
the beginning ecommerce site builder.
If you want to learn more about what to avoid in building an ecommerce site
go to either: www.cynscorion.com and go to the bottom of the page and click on
"Ecommerce Book For Beginners" ,or go to:
http://cynscorion.com/store/cart.php?page=what_yofuture_release_of_a_very_unique_ecommerce_book
This book is for people undecided on whether to start an ecommerce site and want
to find one point of reference to assist them in making their decision.
Lastly, I wish you good luck and success in your ecommerce endeavors. If I
can do it, so can you!
For additional assistance go to:
http://people.lulu.com/users/index.php?fHomepage=101573
The author created his own ecommerce web site going from knowing nothing to
having a fully functional ecommerce site on the web, and wrote a book on the
experience. The aptly titled "STEP 1: E-commerce for Beginners" explains to
BEGINNERS what "STEP 1" is, and what they should be prepared for and makes
recommedations to make the experience of building the 1st web site less
stressful.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
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