How To Set Up An Online Store
There’s a right way and a wrong way to do anything. If you have a hardware store, you set it up so that your customers can easily find anything they want quickly and easily. The store is divided up into sections and everything is clearly marked. Nobody feels lost when they enter the store, because everything can easily be found.
The homepage of your online store is like the entrance to a hardware store. When you get a visitor to your site, you want them to feel comfortable immediately. If they are looking for a chainsaw, they should be able to find the chainsaw department easily.
When they find the chainsaw department, they will be pretty disappointed if there is only one chainsaw on display. They may be after a husqvarna chainsaw, but if there are not several models to choose from, odds are the model they want won’t be there if you’ve only got one to offer them.
You also want them to notice the echo chainsaw you’ve got on sale. Therefore, you display that one prominently, so that it catches their eye.
Aside from having a full range of chainsaw models, you also want to have a full range of brands. Some of your customers are going to have a preference for a McCulloch chainsaw, for example. The more selections you have to offer them, the more sales you will get. You want to make it easy for them to make their decision, too.
So, the first thing you do is set up your homepage so that your visitors can find what they’ve come there for. However, a well set up hardware store is also designed to entice people to buy things they didn’t come in for. If they come in for a box of screws, you want them to buy a set of screwdrivers, too. If you display the screwdrivers next to the screws, they are likely to grab a set of those before they leave the store.
Think about this concept, too, when you’re setting up your online store. You want to sell items that are related to your core products. Perhaps your core business is selling metaphysical books. While there is not much profit on a book sale, if you also sell ereaders and ebooks, you can make big profits from the readers.
You can see that there are a number of things to consider when you’re setting up an online store. Cover all your bases and you maximize your chances of converting a visit into a sale. Finally, when people do go to your virtual checkout counter, make sure it’s set up so they can quickly and easily make their purchase. Your website is your store. Set it up like you would any other store and you’re on the right track.