What is ecommerce?
Selling online has and continues to be the fastest growing sales channel for many businesses. In the online world things are always changing so it’s good to keep up with the latest trends but it’s also important to get the basics right.
If you are selling goods that customers do not need to touch, taste or smell before buying then the web is an excellent place to sell your good and services – especially if what you are supplying is hard for customers to find.
The web can offer your customers the convenience of being able to shop when it suits them, without having to travel or queue. And it offers a level of automation and low start up investment that keeps your costs in check, so you can offer competitive pricing to your customers.
Building an online store is no longer rocket science, and there are numerous applications and web services that can help you.
So what is ecommerce and what are the basic items of hardware and software that you will need to get started?
Obviously you will need a PC, an entry-level one is fine, an internet connection and a method for processing payments.
Given these essentials, you need a solution to make it relatively easy to create your own online store from scratch, provided you have some basic computer skills. But even if you start out this way, make sure you retain the option to have a professional site makeover at some time in the future. Choose an ecommerce supplier that offers that service, or has partners that do. One very cost-effective solution is to build the site yourself by customising a template design.
You can get an internet connection from your phone line supplier, or one of the many Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Check out the latest reviews to find the best ones. Broadband does leave your PC permanently connected to the internet, so you will need a firewall to prevent unauthorised access. The Windows operating systems includes a firewall that can be turned on to protect you.
Most shoppers will want to pay by credit or debit card. In order to receive card payments, you must have either a merchant account with card issuer, or an account with a bureau service. If you want to handle the credit card details yourself, your company must comply with the PCI DSS data security standard. Compliance is complicated, difficult and expensive to achieve. For this reason, most companies outsource card processing to a third-party Payment Service Provider, or PSP.
A PSP can authorise a payment from the customer’s card at the time of ordering and arrange transfer of the payment directly to your bank account; either immediately, or when the goods are shipped. They will charge a monthly fee for this service, or a percentage of each transaction –or a combination of the two.
Actinic Payments is a payment processing system that is fully PCI DSS compliant; is tightly integrated with our ecommerce software for greater efficiency; and is competitively priced. It offers the benefit of a single point of support if any issues arise with your e-commerce operation.
Actinic is also fully integrated with other leading online payment processors. Research has shown that allowing alternative payment methods such as cheque or PayPal can significantly increase the number of orders you receive.
Your shopping cart software will need to be able to calculate taxation and shipping charges accurately for all the countries you sell to. Once orders are received, you will need to print invoices and packing notes; and maybe deal with back-ordering, and monitor stock levels.
