Starting a business from home has never been easier. If you have a good idea, the tools and know-how, you’re pretty much ready to go. The final step is attracting potential customers to what you have to offer and to do so in a professional manner. Utilizing the internet for your endeavor in form of an online store is the logical next step, but also proves to be the first hurdle for quite a few. The market for books and articles on web design and programming language is endless, which could lead to you spending more time trying to understand HTML, CSS and Java than building your business. However, there are some very simple and basic rules in addition to several customer- and business-friendly options that you can use.
Basic Rules of Web design
Certain things like keeping your design attractive and easy to navigate are logical goals. There are a few other concepts that are considered a general rule among designers. Decide on a color scheme that represents your business and product, but does not dominate it. A scheme will make customers associate your product with this combination of colors and remind them of it. Also try to keep the design elements minimal. While an individual appearance is always the goal, adding too many little things will not only make it difficult for the customer to concentrate on your product, but slow down the loading time of your online store. Pick a few main design elements and stick to them.
Tools You Can Use
With the basics cleared, the next issue is actually building your online store. Building a website from scratch is not a simple or short task for a layman. You must consider finding the right server and hosting space, set up payment methods, and make sure the layout works for different web browsers, all while managing your business online and offline. Thankfully, there are countless eCommerce hosting sites that offer easily navigated and operated online website builders. If you are worried about your shop looking like everyone else’s, you can compare Shopify stores and see that each one is as individual as the person or company who runs them.
Spreading The News
When your online store is set up, the job is not quite done. While your products are now accessible worldwide, they need to be found. A keyword search will not necessarily present your store as one of the first results. One of the solutions to this issue is constructing a related website or blog that addresses anything around and about your product. If you’re planning on selling handmade pottery, blog about how to best shape and fire the clay, the tools you use, and show the results. Link your shop with this page and your chances for getting more hits go up. Also take advantage of social networking sites and link your posts and tweets related to your product and shop. The Internet may be vast, but if aimed correctly at the right people, you can make your business flourish.
