Our clients often ask us what the initial steps should be when setting up a new web store. We have written this short checklist as a guide.
Checklist for setting up a new web store
- Develop your catalog.
- Build product names, descriptions, images, price points.
- Build category list.
- Create cross-selling associations and bundled packages, if applicable.
- If you have a large catalog then start thinking about what products you want to highlight on the front page.
- Obtain a merchant account and payment gateway. These two pieces allow you to accept credit cards over the internet. The gateway interfaces with the web store. The merchant account sits between the gateway and your bank account. Here is a thorough overview of how to obtain a merchant account from Daniel Tenner’s blog.
- Develop a shipping scheme. How will you charge for shipping? What shippers will you be using? Make sure to secure your relationship with your shipper.
- Will you be using a fulfillment house? If so, then coordination needs to be done between the web store and the fulfillment house. We provide two-way communication with our fulfillment partner, Fulfillment Works.
- Develop sales tax policy. Sales tax will be charged for all items sold within the state where you have your business or have retail locations.
- Develop store policies. These include Returns Policy and Privacy Policy.
- Build the store sitemap. How do you see the hierarchy of the site flow being?
- Obtain a Secure Site Certificate. A secure site certificate enables your site to provide an encrypted connection with the client. This secure connection shows up as a padlock on the customer’s browser.
Trackbacks