| 1. |
Review your products and services. Determine whether or not they
are suitable for selling on the web. Make notes of advantages and
disadvantages to selling on the web, actions that will have to be
taken and logistical issues (such as shipping, payment, etc).
|
| 2. |
Look at e-commerce web sites of other businesses in your field
and related fields. Explore them thoroughly. If they offer on-line
shopping, try out the shopping system. Fill up a shopping cart and
go through the purchasing procedures (but don't click on the last
"click here to purchase" button if you don't actually
want to buy the products). Look at sites in your country and other
countries.
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| 3. |
Make a list of goals you wish to achieve by selling on the web.
Brainstorm
with the management team and staff who would be involved in the
e-commerce side of the business. Aim initially to list as many ideas
as possible - no matter how crazy they might be. Once you've exhausted
your creative powers, cross off absurd ideas, undoable ideas and
impractical ideas.
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| 4. |
Decide which market(s) you want to target initially and over the
long term. Do you just want to sell to your local market, your country,
globally? To some extent, this may be limited by logistics or language
issues
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| 5. |
Determine your available budget for going e-commerce. Draw up a
cashflow chart; allocating funds for development,
marketing, customer service, setting up logistical and payment systems,
new staff, etc, and ensure your budget fits comfortably in that
cashflow chart.
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| 6. |
Determine what your unique selling points (USPs) are or will be.
The web is a crowded place and you will need to offer something
unique to bring customers (whether business or consumer) to your
shop and have them purchasing from you. Make a list of USPs that
you can currently boast and those which anticipate for your on-line
business. Also think about what features you can add to your on-line
business in order to create new USPs.
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| 7. |
Draw up a marketing plan (see marketing
1 and marketing 2).
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| 8. |
Outline the concept and structure of your web
site, bearing in mind the above points. You might do this as
a written outline, sketched web pages, power point presentation
or whatever works for you.
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| 9. |
Talk with suppliers including
- Your bank about on-line payment systems
- Web site development company
- Shipping service/logistics company
- Consultants
- Anyone else
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| 10. |
Do e-commerce! |