Ecom: How to start ecommerce business

Steps to set up ecommerce:

1. Business models:

• Consider whether it’s been random or niched products

2. Create business branding:

• Business name and lingo
• Logo (create logo)
• Branding identity impression

3. Register business and create a  business account:

• Register as sole trader or limited corporation

4. Set up email and website:

• Set up host and purchase domain

5. Cover legal issues:

• Tax law (consider each country)
• Copy right product and content reused
• Return policies
• Insurance?

6. Set up a financial system:

• Open a business bank account
• Set accounts system (bookkeeping, tax system and financial report)
• Work out tax (products and international fees)
• Have date set for annual financial report, tax return and annual fees
• Set your business account to the selling platform and turn on the automatic payment method

7. Establish store policies and documents:

• Receipts
• Shipment policies (who pays)
• Policies and procedures for missing items, damaged items, wrong orders, refund & exchange
• Complaint system

8. Stock management system:

…

9. Find wholesaler: 

• Register wholesaler

10. Set up selling platform:

• Create a selling platform such as amazon, eBay, Shopify (connected to domain) or WooCommerce (via WordPress)
• Some account require you to specific if it is a personal or business account.
• Set up your profile page and personalised it.

11. Sales and Marketing strategy:

• Up sales
• SEO and 600 word blog
• Marketing (facebook and instagram ad)

12. Commence ecommerce operation:

See below under the Standard Operating Procedures.

 

Standard Operating Procedures:

 

eBay procedure:

1. Product research:

Things to consider during market research:

• Competition in the market: is it saturated or not?
• Price:
• Features: extra features? different variation?
• Consider software:

 

2. Find supplier vendors: 

…

3. Stock management:

…

4. Upload information on website:

Tips to take photos:

• Avoid using other people’s photo
• Use high quality photo with good lightings
• Show any blemishes for transparency

Titles that sells:

• Include main features of the items. Here are are important aspects: handmade, colour, product (???)

Category listing:

• Include the categories, product models, manufacturer part number or global trade item number.

How to write a description:

• This includes whether handmade or not, brand, style, model, colour, size and dimensions.

Purchase details:

• Price
• All fees displayed are inclusive of VAT at 20%
• Fixed price (with buy now) or auctions (that requires to set a period of time)
• Sell
• Duration
• Sales tax
• Return options
• Shipping details:

• Shipping fee
• International option
• Package weight and dimension
• Item location

Payment method:

• PayPal (…)
• Payment Gateway (online credit card via PayPal or off line credit card sales via an intermediator)

Shipment information:

• Shipping options includes: free shipping, flat (same cost to all buyers), calculated (varies based on location, freight (items over 150 GBP) and pick-up only.
• Calculated options may provides shipping calculator for shipping services such as UPS, USPS and FedEx.

What policies to cover:

• Shipping policies: Faster the better. 71% eBay products are free shipping. But may consider combined shipping for large items.
• Return policies: Allowing refund can help your business. If you decide to allow refund, consider how many days refund is available and who covers the shipping cost.

Listing optimizing support:

• Using product listing optimizing support such as eBay’s Best Algorithm.

5. Receiving orders:

• Check order list or email notification
• Send an email/message to notify customer order have been received.
• Order is define as a number of items with the same shipment method.

6.  Transaction payments:

• Send an email/message to the customer that you have received their payment and will be dispatching their product soon.
• Time to receive payment depends on the payment method. PayPal is immediate. Online credit/debit card through PayPal depend on the gateway. Offline credit/debit card depends on the gateway.
• You can check the status of the payment
• If payment not receive then contact the buyer or customer service team.

7.  Include extra fees:

Consider extra fees when selling products:

• Payment Processing Fees: Transaction fee can be taken from using third-party payment gateway, PayPal or eBay’s Management.
• Printing shipping labels: If you use supplemental services, such as buying and printing postage labels through eBay, you’ll pay any costs or fees associated with those services
• Listing fee: eBay has insertion fees for listening items. After the first 1000 free listing of items, there is a 35p charge per items. You get charged per category (i.e. 1 product can have more than one category listed) and if you relist the item. Fee can be reduced with monthly subscription.
• Final value fee: This is automatically deducted before the rest is paid into your account. eBay has  percentage of a product’s final sale price is charged once an item is sold. It covers price, postage, taxes and any other applicable fees. There is also a a fixed 30p fee for products over £100. A single item above £5000 get charge 3%. Final value fee can be deducted if offer or reference  your contact. The percentage depends on a few factors i.e. product category listed, price and seller’s performance. Most rate is 12.8%.
• Additional fees such as advertisement, international site visibility and international fees can be found here. There is also a 2.5% currency conversion rate.

8. Creating posting labels and packaging:

…

9. Shipping:

Consider these shipping options:

• Delivery label
• Normal stamps
• Local Pickup

10. Customer service system:

…

11. Dealing with refund and exchange:

Drop-shipping: don’t provide return address in policy page but instruct the customer to contact you first before returning item, include tracking shipping number). Allow returns (shipped to your address) even if your supplier doesn’t.

Wrong order (allow return), didn’t match description (allow return) or damaged/defective item (provide return via email).

12. Record checking:

Banking reconciliation

13. Record keeping:

Store documents

14. Managing & monitoring system:

You can use software that

More reading:

Oberlo

InventorySource

Quora

WooDropShip

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/297744

How to Start a Dropshipping Business in 48 Hours – My Dropshipping Guide

https://www.salehoo.com/blog/how-to-start-a-drop-shipping-business-in-5-easy-steps