Online commerce is developing at a rapid pace, and today more and more entrepreneurs are seeking to open their own online store. However, despite the low entry threshold and simplicity of this business, many owners often make mistakes when creating an online store, which lead to the closure of their projects in the first few years of operation.
The statistics are inexorable – about 80% of new online stores cease to exist already within the first year, and another 50% close in the next 2-3 years. We understand that these figures may scare you off, but in fact they only emphasize the importance of thorough preparation and understanding of all the pitfalls before launching your own resource.
After all, to create a successful online business it is necessary not only to guess with the assortment and customize order forms. It is a complex process that covers many aspects, from promotion and logistics to tech support and working with people. And if you do not pay attention to any of these components – it can be a fatal mistake for any beginner.
Top 5 mistakes when preparing to open an online store
Famous online entrepreneurs and business gurus advise not to delay the launch of your own project. They say that while you are thinking, your competitors will make all the money. However, in pursuit of a quick start, you can make a number of serious mistakes when opening an online store at the preparation stage. Let’s look at the main ones.
No clear goal
Many people are driven only by the desire to make a quick buck without thinking about the value their business will bring to customers. However, this approach is doomed to failure. A successful online store is obliged to solve customers’ problems, satisfy their needs and make them happy.
If you only see them as “stuffed wallets”, you will quickly lose their trust and loyalty. Your goal should not only be financial, but also social – to create products and services that people really need.
The right formulation of the goal is the key to success. It should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound (SMART criteria). For example, “In 3 months, sell 500 smart watches with a 10% profit margin through a modernly designed and customized Facebook campaign”. Such a goal is a clear benchmark for further actions and allows you to track progress.
Set up winter clothing advertising in Google Ads and attract 100 first customers in six months.
Increase profits during the New Year holidays through targeted advertising in social networks by 50% compared to the previous period.
A clear and inspiring goal is the foundation of your business. It will help you stay on track, make the right decisions and create products that will be truly in demand and useful to your customers.
Choosing the wrong niche
Not only the assortment of an online store depends on this decision, but also its target audience, marketing strategy, and even logistics processes. A mistake at this stage can cost the success of the entire project. For example, most newcomers to e-commerce try to cover as many categories as possible, hoping to attract the maximum audience. However, this approach rarely works.
Consumers are more likely to trust highly specialized sites whose owners are experts in their niche. It will be extremely difficult to compete with large marketplaces offering the widest range of products.
So how do you choose the right niche? Here are a few factors to consider:
Is there demand. Analyze the frequency of search queries for the product group you are interested in. High competition in a niche will be a serious obstacle for a newcomer – contextual advertising is expensive, and it can take years to move into the top ten in organic results. But the complete absence of competition is a worrying sign. Perhaps no one is simply not interested in your chosen product.
Do you have an interest in the niche. You don’t have to be a professional in your chosen field, but a basic understanding of the product and the target audience is essential. If you are not interested in the topic at all, it will be difficult for you to create relevant content and provide quality advice to clients. Therefore, it is better not to engage in something that you are simply not interested in.
Difficulties in the transportation and storage of products. For example, food products tend to spoil quickly, and a very large warehouse will be needed to store large household appliances. Take these costs into account when estimating start-up capital.
Whether there is a pronounced seasonality. For example, most people buy Christmas trees or garlands only once a year. All the rest of the time the business is idle. It is the same with goods for gardeners – they are mainly bought only in the summer.
Too long a start
In an effort to learn all aspects of online business and provide for every detail, beginners are often immersed in an endless search for information, postponing the launch of the project indefinitely.
Of course, creating your own online platform is a serious and responsible step. You need to think about a lot of things – come up with a name and domain, develop a design, set up a content management system, integrate payment systems, launch social networks, set up advertising, train employees and set up analytics. The list of tasks will seem endless.
However, trying to anticipate all the nuances before launch is more likely to play tricks on you than actually help you. The reality is that you will never anticipate all the possible challenges you will face in the process. There are no ideal starting conditions here. Endless preparation for the launch of the project risks dragging on for months or even years, and the online store will never see the light of day.
Therefore, having studied the basic principles of trading on the net, boldly start. Do not be afraid to make mistakes and learn by practice. And only in the process of work you will understand in what direction to develop, understand all the nuances of the topic, understand the characteristics of the target audience and determine the most effective channels of promotion.
Renting premises
You may be convinced that it is impossible to run any business without a physical premises. However, in reality, only about 10% of new online stores can boast of having their own office and warehouse.
After all, all trade usually takes place online. Therefore, investing in the rental of premises at the beginning will be either unaffordable or simply an unnecessary financial burden. Instead, the funds are better spent on expanding the range and promotion, which will directly affect sales growth and future development.
When working with suppliers of goods, you can choose one of four options. And only one of them involves having your own warehouse:
All in stock – the goods are stored in your own warehouse. You will need to invest in your own premises and inventory, but the products can be shipped to the customer on the day of the order.
Bespoke – You buy products from the supplier only after the customer has ordered them. This saves on warehousing costs, but increases the time it takes for the customer to receive their purchase.
In stock and on demand – popular items are kept in stock and less popular items are delivered on demand. This is a hybrid approach, which is optimal for most retailers. In addition, you can buy popular products from the dealer in bulk, getting a lower price.
Dropshipping – the supplier sends the order directly to the client, and you act as an intermediary. This frees you from the need to rent a warehouse and purchase large stocks of goods.
As for the office, at the very beginning its functions can easily be performed by a home workplace or co-working space. Meetings with partners can be held in cafes or business centers, renting meeting rooms as needed.
Of course, if the specifics of your products require physical demonstration (for example, furniture or large household appliances), it makes sense to open a showroom combined with a self-delivery point. But even in this case, rent a full-fledged office is better to postpone until the moment when the company will stand on its feet and begin to bring a stable profit.
Purchasing large quantities of goods
Driven by enthusiasm and faith in the success of your project, you may think that you should immediately fill your warehouse with large quantities of products without considering actual demand.
However, this approach can lead to freezing a significant portion of your budget in inventory that will sell much slower than expected. As a result, you are likely to run out of money for critical expenditures such as advertising, purchasing hard-to-find items, and employee salaries.
However, predicting demand is difficult enough, especially in the absence of experience. Therefore, you should always have a financial safety cushion that can be used to cover unforeseen expenses or purchase additional batches in case of a sharp increase in sales (for example, during the New Year holidays).
Carefully analyze the statistics of purchases and stock balances in order to timely replenish the stock of popular items and avoid overstocking with illiquid. Also, try to diversify your assortment so as not to depend on the sales of one or two items. If one of them suddenly ceases to be of interest to people, it should not critically affect the turnover.
What mistakes should be avoided when creating an online store website?
As a rule, the most common mistakes when creating an online store are made at the stage of development of the web resource. And the saddest thing is that later they will be very difficult to correct. After all, if from the start to choose an unpopular CMS you will be difficult to find an adequate developer for it. And to solve the problem, sometimes, you can only at the cost of creating a new site. Below we list the most popular blunders at this stage.
Development of a too complex site
The desire to stand out from competitors and offer all possible conveniences is understandable, but it may well turn out to be unreasonably high costs. Statistics show that the development of large-scale projects at the level of Rozetka or Comfy is a long and expensive process.
Large teams are constantly working on such platforms, the first launch takes more than a year, and investments run into tens of millions. At the same time, the project can work for many years in a more “raw” form, and its owner – to make a profit, introducing in parallel new features based on the analysis of visitor behavior.
If a complex online store is launched from scratch, there is a high risk of spending the budget on unnecessary options. At the start, it is still unclear which modules will be in demand among the target audience and how long the project will last, whether it will be profitable. That’s why we recommend starting with the simplest functionality, even if your ambitions are great.
It is more sensible to move in small steps – to launch a basic version of an online resource, and then gradually expand the functionality, guided by customer feedback and requests. This will save you from unnecessary expenses at the start, when every cent counts. Even a free template and CMS can be adapted to yourself and supplemented with useful plugins. And expand the functionality is better already on the income from sales.
Creating a website on your own
The desire to save money often leads the owner of a small business to the decision to create and fill the website on their own. However, this approach doesn’t work in most cases. The main problem is that usually the store owner has only a rough idea of what the online version of the business should be like.
You can, of course, study the stores of competitors, noting for yourself the elements that caught your eye – somewhere will attract usability, somewhere – a bright design or a successful name. But it is extremely difficult to build a full-fledged platform from these disparate ideas without the help of professionals.
The result of amateurishness is often something inarticulate, made literally “on the knees”. The entrepreneur himself photographs the products, writes long and boring descriptions, and promotes the project incorrectly. You can’t expect high sales and profits with this approach.
Even with a limited budget, we advise you to invest in the services of specialists in design, usability, copywriting, and SEO. A professional team will translate your ideas and wishes into a high-quality selling online platform that will stand out from the competition without unnecessary difficulties.
And you should focus on those tasks in which you are really competent. For example, looking for reliable suppliers, working out trade offers, finding the best delivery methods. The success of online commerce also depends on these factors.
No or little contact information
In an effort to minimize costs and copy the model of large marketplaces, owners of small online marketplaces sometimes forget about the importance of direct communication with customers. However, this approach will seriously reduce conversion rates and alienate potential customers.
And if, for example, Rozetka can afford to remove all phone numbers from the site and disband the call center, small online stores have not yet earned the authority and trust of the audience.
Users are cautious about new resources, especially if they have to leave personal and payment information. The lack of contacts of the seller or the impossibility to call the specified number only increases suspicions. People have fears that after entering their bank card information, their money will simply disappear from their account.
Therefore, it is better for start-up online businesses to provide visitors with as many ways as possible to contact them:
phone number;
e-mail address;
contacts in popular messengers;
online chat.
It is also important to include the company’s business hours and time zone. This will prevent people from getting frustrated when they try to call after hours.
As for online chats – prepare to respond promptly to messages. Otherwise, you will get the impression that your store is not functioning, and people will prefer to go to your competitors. The best option is to add a button in this module for switching to messenger. This is convenient for both parties – the customer asks a question and quietly goes about his business without keeping an extra tab open in his browser, and then reads the manager’s answer at a convenient time. And you get a valuable contact base for further work.
Adding unclaimed functionality
Often newcomers do not focus on the real needs of their target audience or analytics data, but on their own ideas of what would be better. As a result, the budget is spent on options that are not useful and clutter up the platform interface.
For example, they introduce a list of favorites on the site when only about a hundred products have been added to the catalog. It seems useful, but definitely not now. To avoid this, it is better to communicate regularly with the CA and find out what points in the interface cause difficulties.
It is also extremely important to connect web analytics tools, such as Google Analytics, to an already working online store. This service allows you to track the behavior of visitors to the web site – what elements they click on, whether they read the page to the end, what attracts their attention, and what goes unnoticed or confuses them.
Confusing catalog structure
The main principle in catalog design is that the user should easily find any product he is interested in. Everything should be user-friendly and intuitive. As for the names of categories – focus on the frequency of search queries from Google Ads. If you use keywords on category pages, there is a chance that the resource will rank better in the search engine.
Let’s say you sell clothing. In this case, you should not mix men’s and women’s jackets in one section. It is better to make separate categories. A properly structured catalog with well thought-out filters will allow users to easily find the necessary items, which will reduce the bounce rate and positively affect the conversion rate.
Too complicated order form
Always remember that a customer’s time is invaluable and they want to spend it as efficiently as possible. If the buying process is confusing and protracted, there is a high probability that the user will simply leave for a competitor.
And here are the most common difficulties that may encourage him to “escape”:
Forcing a person to register before buying. It is better to offer to create an account after a person has decided on a choice and made a payment.
Long and confusing order forms with duplicate fields. The more fields you have to fill out to make a purchase, the fewer people will be willing to go through them to the end. For example, some engines require you to fill in two addresses by default – residential and shipping. But it would be logical to leave only one.
Unclear error messages. If a client makes a mistake when filling in one of the fields, it is important to give him clear instructions on how to correct the situation. Often this point is not paid attention to, and the visitor simply closes the window.
Problems with form confirmation. For example, a non-working submit button or endless loading after clicking. Such moments cause irritation and the desire to close the page.
Before rolling out the web resource to users, test the application process yourself. Try to fill in all the mandatory fields, evaluate the time and convenience. Perhaps the analysis will reveal weaknesses that are worth working on to increase conversion.
The main mistakes when filling an online store
As a rule, most of the typical mistakes when creating an online store happen at the stage of filling the site with content. Thus, according to a study conducted by Forrester Research, about 50% of potential purchases are not made due to a lack of information about products.
Another study from the Baymard Institute showed that 20% of users leave the site if they cannot quickly find the product they need. These figures clearly demonstrate how important it is to work competently on the content of the resource. Further we will tell you about the most popular problems at this stage.
Copying texts for categories and product cards
Non-unique content makes it very difficult to promote in search engines. And if you simply copied texts, photos and video reviews from suppliers or competitors, your resource will not be of any value to Google, and customers simply will not be able to find it in searches for the right queries.
Therefore, from the very beginning, fill the store only with quality content with uniqueness of 90-100%. To check it, use special services, such as Grammarly. It is not necessary to hire a full-time copywriter – order texts on an exchange for 1-2$ per 1000 characters.
Photo and video products are better shot by yourself. Cropping, adding a frame or reflecting the image does not make the shots unique. And reposting other people’s videos to your YouTube channel is simply stealing content.
All goods from only one supplier
At first glance, cooperation with a single supplier at the start seems to be a reasonable solution. The logic is simple: it is easier to establish work with one partner than with several.
However, this approach carries serious risks:
The supplier may suddenly raise prices, suspend operations, or cease operations altogether. Your business will be in a vulnerable position.
You become completely dependent on one partner. Any failure on his part will directly affect your business.
It only makes sense to work with one supplier if you become the exclusive representative of its brand in your region. In all other cases, a competent solution is to search for and select several reliable partners.
To choose a supplier, start from the following criteria:
Wholesale purchase prices (they should be significantly lower than the average retail offer, usually at least 10%).
How warranty service is provided (whether defects can be exchanged, whether there is a service center).
The location of the warehouse (if it is in your city – you can get the goods faster).
Delivery terms (where the goods are located, in Ukraine, or you have to wait).
Terms of delivery (who pays and organizes transportation).
Minimum order size (whether it is possible to order a small batch).
The breadth of the assortment (if the supplier has only the most popular items – you will have to look for at least one more partner).
Payment terms (whether you can pay after shipment, whether there is a deferred payment).
Product descriptions are of poor quality or missing
Today, when everyone is selling plus or minus similar products, the main way to set yourself apart from the competition is to add a quality description and “juicy” photos. In this regard, a product catalog should be:
Complete. There is nothing worse than if descriptions are added to only a small part of the assortment. This gives the impression of unprofessionalism or “raw” unestablished business.
Clearly structured. A complicated and confusing menu will put off potential customers. No one will want to spend time looking for the right product among hundreds of items.
With actual prices. The “price on request” option is suitable only for the most persistent clients who are ready to write to you personally. The rest will simply go to your competitors.
Supplemented with high-quality photos and detailed descriptions for each item. The idea that no one reads texts on websites is nothing more than a well-established myth.
Special attention should be paid to photos. In an online store, they perform a key selling function, because the buyer does not have the opportunity to see and touch the product in person.
Images should be:
Of high quality and resolution;
extremely clear, so that you can see every nuance;
with correct color reproduction (remember the famous story of the dress that some people saw as blue-black and others saw as white-gold);
showing the product from different angles.
Poor quality, blurry photos that distort the color and texture of products are guaranteed to repel potential customers and undermine trust. In this case, it is better not to post pictures at all.
Typical mistakes in the work of the store
So, the online store is launched, all the tips above are taken into account, but sales are still low. What could have gone wrong? Let’s look at the most common reasons for this situation and what mistakes can be corrected.
Lack of promotion
Many people think that after paying for a domain, hosting, development and design, everything will work on its own. But, unfortunately, successful online business does not work that way. A website is a storefront on the net, which still needs to attract customers.
Without investment in advertising and promotion, the store will remain unnoticed by the target audience and will not bring the desired sales. Imagine that you have opened an offline store in a shopping center, but keep the doors permanently closed – no one will ever find out about your offer.
Therefore, it is extremely important to think through a marketing strategy even before the launch. The choice of tools and channels for attracting traffic depends on the specifics of a particular niche. But the most universal and effective method for most topics is contextual advertising in Google Ads.
Especially well-proven product ads Google Shopping, which allow you to show photos and the cost of the product directly in the Google search engine. Statistically, these ads drive significantly more conversions for the same budget compared to regular text ads.
If there is a stable organic demand in your niche, it makes sense to invest in SEO optimization of the website. This will allow you to attract free traffic to your site from search engines and receive traffic at a much lower price compared to contextual advertising. However, you should realize that SEO is a long-term investment, the first results of which will be noticeable in at least 4-6 months.
For the promotion of absolutely new and unknown to the market goods, search engine promotion is ineffective due to the lack of generated demand. In such cases, it is better to run targeted advertising in social networks – Facebook, Instagram, TikTok. It allows you to familiarize people with the brand and generate initial demand.
Before drawing up a promotion strategy, don’t forget to study your competitors. For this purpose, you can use special services like Serpstat or Ahrefs. Look at what channels they use to attract traffic and estimate their approximate budgets. This will help you more accurately forecast the necessary investments in advertising and get a quicker return on promotion.
Working with only one carrier
Many online retailers still adamantly refuse to send “Ukrposhta”, believing that it loses every second parcel, and delivery is at best within a week. However, things have changed a lot in recent years.
Today, Ukrposhta has the widest network of branches and can deliver a parcel even to the most remote settlements, and at lower rates than the same “New Post”, which recently raised prices for its services again. This is especially noticeable for inexpensive orders, where the cost of delivery can be higher than the price of the goods themselves.
Therefore, to reach the maximum audience, offer people maximum options. Send by “Ukrposhta”, “Novaya Pochta”, sign a contract with “Rozetka” to use their self-delivery points and open your own point in your city. The more ways to get the goods, the higher the probability of conversion.
Prices are the main competitive advantage
In the pursuit of dumping, some stores set such ridiculous prices that the business becomes unprofitable. Of course, the cost of goods is an important, but not the only criterion that buyers are guided in their choice. In addition, delivery conditions, payment methods, quality of service, and the existence of a loyalty program are all important to them.
Therefore, you should not blindly chase the prices of your competitors. Determine the minimum threshold below which it will be unprofitable to lower the price. Analyze your assortment and identify the most marginal items that will bring maximum profit. At the same time, you can select a number of goods for which it makes sense to slightly reduce the mark-up. This approach will allow you to stay “on the plus side” while remaining competitive.
Lack of a CRM system
Many novice salespeople think that they can simply enter orders in an Excel spreadsheet or in a notebook. And if with a small number of requests it really works, as the turnover grows, chaos begins to reign.
CRM allows you to accumulate all the data about customers in one place, see the history of interaction with each customer, segment the base. In addition, such systems help automate many processes – sending reminders about abandoned baskets, sending thank-you notes, collecting feedback and reviews.
Without CRM implementation, there is a high risk of losing important customer information and making mistakes in order processing. According to research, the use of CRM increases sales by at least 10% and company revenues by 25%. So don’t neglect such a powerful tool and implement it at the very start.
