Are eager to set up yourself in business selling things on the Internet? Your virtual storefront, where you are the only person in charge.

This is e-commerce. And in the modern world, where everyone wants to be on their own, such kind of business becomes more and more sought-after. According to the statistics, retail e-commerce sales increase from $1.3 billion in 2014 to $3.5 billion in 2019. And it will have reached $4.9 billion by 2021.

There is a lot of information available, that is why you should recognize your priorities and use the resources helping you make your personal business plan. Here is a guide on how to start the business, including some more detailed points relevant to the e-commerce market.

Major e-commerce business classifications

Online trading consists of all virtual marketplaces, which serve as a connection point between buyers and sellers. Both use the Internet for conducting web transactions. So, before starting the business plan, think what kind of transfers you want to make. When thinking about your industry, who do you imagine yourself selling things to? There are several kinds of e-commerce business, and we are going to discuss the major web transaction that may occur within your activity.

B2B e-commerce

This model aims at providing goods or services from one enterprise to another one (Business-to-Business). Both participants of transactions are businesses, and the final value and volumes of the industry can be rather big. As most online commercial facilities provide some services, the examples can be software, document hosting, office furniture, and other companies.

B2C e-commerce

Speaking about the e-commerce business, most people think about the B2C model (Business-to-Customer). Every article relating this topic includes the example with Amazon.com, where a huge company sells some stuff to individuals. This solution includes the traditional retail market rules, with the exception that the business is online. It is the deepest market, though, logistics complexity and costs can become a sticking point of B2C development and growth.

How to start an e-commerce business in 2019

So, are you ready to start your way to success? Check out the comprehensive list of steps, which you are to follow in order to have your commercial facilities up. Hope you will find them useful.

#1 Find the most profitable e-commerce niche

The selection of your niche plays a fundamental role in your online business establishment. Defining the profitable companies, you can see what you are eager to do. Choose a field that is competitive, though, not overcrowded. This also helps you identify the other companies doing similar, but not identical things, as you can cross-promote, increase the number of your customers and become partners.

#2 Research buyer personas for UX

Before you start to hunt for the things to sell, you should think about the target audience who you are willing to sell something. And when you determine your store persona, it should match the expectations about your ideal customers and carried products.

#3 Establish your brand

As you have identified your persona, turn to build your electronic commerce brand. This stage includes a range of steps to take, including your business registration, picking a name for your store, getting the required licenses, Employer Identification Number, your logo, etc.

#4 Think of shipping and fulfillment processes

Depending on the type of your product, you should think if you want to handle the fulfillment in-house. Some situations include the drop ship business model, within which you are an order taker and the fabricator provides the fulfillment.

#5 Create your online store

The next step includes the registration of your domain name. Along with the chosen design, you should select your virtual trading software. When selecting the platform, evaluate such points as reconcilability with payment mechanisms, loading speed, SEO-friendly features, etc.

#6 Attract and convert customers

One of the fundamental steps to assure the success is your store marketing. SEO is the issue to be concerned about. Implementing the keywords and some search expressions on your site, advertising companies, URLs, etc. Online marketing is an inherent part and using the relevant strategy shows impressive results.

#7 Launch your e-commerce site

There is no right moment for launching the business. There will always be something you want to change or split-test. Do not let your fears and hesitations get in your path. The only way to discover if your business is good enough is only starting it up.

What are the benefits of e-commerce business

The industry offers multiple advantages both for the goods owners and customers. Here is a list of benefits that you can enjoy whatever aims you have.

Benefits for buyers

• Low costs are assured with web-based management. Also, physical stores require more investments and utility costs.
• Attracting new customers is reached with the help of web channels, SEO tools, and marketing.
• You brand awareness boosts when you create more web pages related to your business. Using the right keywords, you can make the search engine index your site and increase the placement.
• Global reach to the consumers can be achieved with electronic media, which also lets you explore new markets and be discovered worldwide.

Benefits for sellers

• You can get access to a wide range of services and products being anywhere, regardless of time, location, etc.
• You can save money and time, comparing the prices in the whole Internet, making fast purchases, not standing in a queue.
• Online purchasing assures safety, as you make transactions through trusted banking methods, can reach the business anytime for any query, etc.

Final words: Ready to start your e-commerce business?

Hope, you don’t consider the e-commerce business to be odd now. As you can see, the steps to prosperous web business do not have to be complex, costly or struggling. Choosing the business type you want to conduct, you can use the practical steps described in the article.

The profitable results are easy to reach, moreover, if you know what you want, how exactly everything should look like and course. With the tendency of the growing market, the benefits you can get as both buyer and seller increase correspondingly. Thus, with the development of the industry, your business is also to show the progress.