Your Blueprint for a Successful eCommerce Launch

You want to build your strategy. Find the right platform. Execute your plan to perfection. We want to help you lift your e-commerce brand and surpass the competition with the perfect ecommerce launch. 

Having the right e-commerce platform in place is only the first step to growth. But one thing to realise is that, in eCommerce, it’s the small things that ultimately make the difference between modest results and big-time earnings.

This guide will help you to optimise your plan and get your product ready to market.

What’s your eCommerce strategy?

How do you draft the right strategy to ensure a favourable outcome for your business? While your central idea is important, proper execution is king. 

• Branding and awareness. Create awareness for your brand, in order to generate demand for your product. Market and competitor research are your building blocks.
• Products. Having the right product for the right market and at the right price – every element is vital to your success.
• Channels. Depending on the nature of your product and its market, a strategy of selling only via your online store can be enough. However, to take it one step further, you may also need to be present on marketplaces, retailer websites, and so on. 
• Launch. After making sure that your customers can buy your product, launch your offer with a bang! Getting the right start is crucial.

Pick a platform, but not just any eCommerce platform

Shopify, Woocommerce, Magento, and Salesforce Commerce Cloud are all good options, but none of these is ever a one-size-fits-all solution for your ecommerce launch. 

it’s about choosing the right platform for your business. You don’t want to spend the time and money making the wrong choice.

• Multi-language. If you operate in more than one market, you may want a platform that can serve your website in more than one language. If Google likes the way you handle multiple languages, it may just reward you with a good ranking.
• Multi-currency. If you wish to offer payment options in more than one currency, you need a solution that can convert pricing seamlessly. Will it be a native conversion or will buyers have to pay a conversion fee?
• Payment methods. Depending on the market you are selling in, you may need more payment options than just credit card or PayPal. Sometimes a mobile wallet or cash on delivery method works best for your target customers.
• Small or big catalogue. Most platforms can handle many products and large volumes of product data. But what about ease of use or uptime guarantee? 
• Integration with external systems. If your online platform is not just a standalone store, ensure that it integrates well with external systems. Leverage third-party options either by using plugins or having a developer code against the API. Some examples are ERP, CRM, and through E-Mail marketing, and the list goes on.
• Ease of use and the need for developers. Some platforms are hosted and easy to use, while others may need you to host it yourself. In that case, you will have to work with a developer to help you make major changes to the website. 

The usual ecommerce suspects…

Getting ready to launch your eCommerce platform

Once you have chosen the right platform, you can start your new eCommerce business or begin migration from your existing eCommerce platform. If implementation is well-planned, you can minimize the time it takes to execute and thus, start selling faster.

• Layout. Does your layout match your brand and your products? The first impression of new customers is important, and the help of a good graphic designer can make a colossal difference.
• User Experience and User Journey. Make the online store easy to use and comfortable for users to get to checkout by addressing any potential concerns.
• Technical Implementation. No matter whether your eCommerce site is hosted by the platform provider or you have your own Web hotel, make sure you’re on top of the site’s technical aspect; the foundation has to be just right.
• SEO. Sometimes a platform is very good on on-page and technical SEO right out of the box. Other times, you need to install plugins and/or have developers oversee the platform a bit, making sure it’s perfect.
• Tracking. You want to be able to collect data to track activity on the website. Google Analytics and Facebook tracking are examples of excellent tracking tools, which, if implemented in the right way, can help you make flawless data-driven decisions.
• Launch. Pointing the domain correctly. SSL certificate. Redirecting old URLs. Checking if Google has discovered your new website. The checklist is long.

Learn more about what to be on top of after launch

Operations and growth hacking for eCommerce 

So you have successfully launched and are enjoying some traffic. Some people are buying, but there can be more. How do you determine what you can do to bring in even more eyeballs and increase revenue? Where do you start?

• Digital Marketing. Drive the right kind of traffic to your website without spending too much on marketing. If the acquisition cost is low, drive even more traffic to the website.
• Traffic Analysis. Look into how many visitors you have on the website, how much time the visitors are spending on the website, and how they spend their time there. 
• UX and user journey. Make sure that there are no problematic pages. If there are, fix them immediately!
• Conversion rate optimisation. Analyse data and improve important actions such as product view rate, add to cart rate, and checkout rate.
• Customer Lifetime Value. Make the customer want to return to your store to place more orders by incentivizing them with each purchase. Not just once, but many times.
• Order Management. Ship on time. Ship with a courier that delivers fast and safely. Ensure door-to-door tracking
• Customer and After-Sale experience. Be the online store that doesn’t forget about the customer after the order has been placed. Offer excellent customer service and put the customer in the front seat. They pay your salary, not your boss.

More and more online companies are launching every day, fighting over the same market. With this step-by-step guide, you are better armed to neutralise the competition and future-proof your own business.

Ready to launch your eCommerce site? Let’s have a chat about how you can execute on your plan to perfection and with even greater confidence.