How to build an e-commerce website in 2024

Whether it's starting a new side hustle or selling products full-time, more and more people are turning to e-commerce. For the past five years, online sales have grown by double digits per year on average, and Morgan Stanley says now is the perfect time to get involved, as there is “plenty of room for growth” in e-commerce. I'm watching it.

Sites like Amazon and Walmart offer services for small businesses to list products, but many businesses prefer to create their own e-commerce store for more control over the selling experience. . From finding the right platform to designing and testing your site, learning how to build an e-commerce website puts you in control.

Step 1: Choose the right e-commerce website builder

Choosing the right e-commerce website builder is essential to creating your online store, as each business has different needs, such as product sales, appointment scheduling, and cross-channel integration. This software displays products and services, hosts customer reviews, and even processes transactions. These platforms typically charge a monthly fee.

There are many website builders out there, each with their own benefits. Popular platforms include:

• Shopify: All-in-one platform for creating an online store with an integrated marketing platform. The most popular e-commerce website builder, with plans starting at $39 per month.
• wicks: Easy-to-use website builder with specific templates for online stores. It also features SEO tools, site analysis, and other services.
• Big Commerce: An e-commerce platform for businesses of all sizes that offers rich integrations with other software and services, including Affirm (a buy now, pay later app) and Advanced Shipping Manager.
• square online: A free-to-use e-commerce platform that works with brick-and-mortar stores and POS hardware. We also offer paid plans with additional features.

Step 2: Register your domain and choose a hosting service

After choosing a platform, you need to register a domain name (the Internet address of your online store) and a website host. Most platforms, like the ones highlighted above, include this in their plans. You can select and register a domain through the platform and use its hosting services.

When choosing a domain name, choose something short and easy to remember that fits your brand. Avoid using hyphens and numbers within your domain, as this can cause confusion. WPBeginner provides some additional tips to follow when choosing a domain name.

You can also register your name using a domain registry like DreamHost or GoDaddy, but if you're using an e-commerce site builder, it's usually more efficient to use that platform. Similarly, you can choose a third-party host for your site (DreamHost and GoDaddy also offer this service).

Step 3: Design an attractive e-commerce website

There's a lot of debate about the best e-commerce website design, but ultimately you want your potential customers to have the best user experience when navigating your website so they can make a purchase. Masu. You want your website design to be simple and logical. Using the right colors, fonts, and layout will make your e-commerce site scannable and help your customers find what they're looking for as quickly as possible.

Customers don't have to click multiple pages or perform multiple steps to accomplish their goals. This is especially important on checkout pages. According to the Baymard Institute, a user experience research organization, 25% of consumers abandoned their carts before completing checkout because they were required to create an account. Another 18% were abandoned because the checkout process was too complicated.

Product Description

Product descriptions should be concise, fit the tone of your brand, and explain who needs your product and why. It also needs to be informative and completely accurate, which reduces return rates and increases the likelihood of repeat purchases. According to a 2019 Google/Ipsos study, 85% of consumers consider product information, including photos and descriptions, to be an important factor when deciding where to shop online.

product photo

Product presentation is essential when designing an e-commerce site. Since your customers can't physically touch your products, it's up to you to present them with vivid photos and accurate descriptions.

Thanks to smartphones and inexpensive photo editing software, the playing field has been leveled, so you don't need an expert to take photos of your products. Best practice is to showcase your entire product on a white or light background, but you should also include detailed photos. For example, if a store sells his T-shirts, one photo should have a close-up of the fabric so that the customer can see the quality of the product. You can also experiment with lifestyle photography of your products (such as seeing them in real environments or in use).

According to a 2023 study by Salsify, high-quality product images are the third most important factor (after product descriptions and customer reviews) in helping consumers make purchasing decisions. Additionally, nearly 30% of survey respondents said that better images or videos influenced them to purchase more expensive items.

Step 4: Integrate with other online marketplaces and social media

Once your store is complete, leverage multichannel integration to sell across different channels. Software like Shopify already has multichannel capabilities built in to connect your store to other marketplaces like Instagram Marketplace, Etsy, Amazon, and Google Shopping.

Making the most of these marketplaces will increase your sales by giving your brand and products more exposure to potential customers.

Step 5: Test before launch

Before you direct customers to your site, it's important to make sure your store is up and running, working properly, and looking good.

You can easily test your site by accessing it from a different device or by asking a friend to access your site from that device. Be sure to click on all pages, not just the main landing page, to see how long the page takes to load. If your online store is slow, you may need to improve your hosting.

You can also use tools like Hubspot Website Grader and Uptrends to make sure all pages in your store are working properly.

EC store example

Good e-commerce design combines web page layout with vibrant copy and images to create a powerful user experience that converts browsers into customers. Here are some well-designed e-commerce stores.

monju des studios

Monjude Studio is an independent jewelry shop that sells handmade earrings, necklaces, rings, bracelets, and more. In addition to easy site navigation with a top menu bar to find products, this shop features great product photography.

We use a combination of detailed shots and modeled photography to showcase the intricacies of each product. Monjude Studio's photos are well-lit and shot with minimal backgrounds that don't distract from the jewelry.

Claire

Clare is an online paint shop with a selection of high quality designer colors. We also sell paint samples and painting supplies.

Clare's e-commerce shop has a great homepage that takes customers directly to the product with a CTA button and also has discount offers in the top scroll. The site also excels in product descriptions, using bright words like “sunny” and “icy hue” to describe paint colors and evoke emotions in shoppers.

everlane

Online clothing store Everlane has a simple and logical web layout, including the checkout. The checkout page is clean and minimal, but provides all the information a customer needs in one view. No need to click back and forth or wait for pages to load to apply coupons or select shipping. User experience is further prioritized as we offer express checkout through PayPal and do not require you to create an account to complete your purchase.