The Internet is a simple and easy way to reach out to millions of customers all over the world. Of course, it also means you need a great website that will act as your virtual store. As customers search through the vast hyperspace of the Internet, eventually they will stumble across your website. If your website is attractive, easy to use and contains good products, there is nothing stopping the customer from buying online. However, this is not the norm.

There are thousands of websites online and most of them are quite good. Still, only a few manage to become popular, famous and successful. If you are planning to go online and start your own online store, your website should be accessible to customers, display your products attractively, encourage customers to buy, etc. and all of this is quite easy to do. So here are a few tips that will help you get your online store up and running.

Costs

Most people think that setting up a website is expensive but they could not be more wrong. There are several great free hosting domains online that will help you design and set up your website for free or for a nominal monthly fee. Ideally, the cost of hosting should be around $5 to about $30 per month. Most of these hosting systems already have a free open source shopping cart system and you can use it freely. To ensure customer shopping cart security, you may have to pay for an SSL certificate, and this will come to about $1.50 per month. If you require a credit card processor, it will cost you another $30 a month. The total set up cost will come to about $100 but additional costs like content, customization, personal design, etc may raise the cost of setting up your website but these are optional investments.

Unique Features

Once your website is up, it’s time to make it unique and this is possible only with research. For example, look at the competition and find out what these websites have in their own design. If you can add these features to your website, do so but make sure that they bring value to your website. If a website has a beautiful design, it does not mean that it will have more customers. For example, look at Craigslist. This veteran classifieds website uses minimal color-shading and navigational features but it is very popular with customers. Unlike its competitors, Craigslist provides a valuable service that works, and it does not need additional features like color, design, etc to make it stand out. Build your reputation on quality products, pricing and customer service and keep up with trends but do not add every trend that comes along.

Get Customer Input

Customers are your bread and butter and their opinion counts. If possible, ask customers to provide product reviews, personal testimonials or just ideas about the website. This is a good way to make sure that you get unbiased opinions about your website. Incorporate as many of these views in to your website, as it will make the website a much better browsing and shopping experience.

Secure Your Website

Every website needs website security and this is possible only by installing an SSL certificate. Getting this certificate is easy and it will definitely protect your customer’s credit card information and private data while they use your website. If you require it, you can install additional security features that will protect your customer data but it may cost more.

Promote Your Website

With the advent of social media, it is now possible to advertise and promote your website online to millions of customers. Almost all websites now have a Twitter account, a Facebook account, and Pinterest account that can be used to promote themselves online. No matter which social website you use, try to reach out to as many customers as possible by using email networks, direct mailers, banner advertisements, affiliate networks and so on. This will not only establish you online but also create customer awareness and product recognition.

Interact with Customers

Social media is a great way to reach out to customers but you can also address common customer issues and let them know that you are invested in the success of your website. For example, have a clear T&C page, an up-to-date SSL certificate, multiple deals and discounts, customer accounts options, customer service, etc. to encourage customers to use your website.

With so much competition in the market, it makes sense that your website should be different enough to catch the browser’s attention. The only way to do this is by incorporating smart but simple tips in to your website and working as hard as possible to make your website successful. With the right features, your website can easily become the go-to website for its product on the Internet.