Ecommerce Guide

Why Should I Open An Online Store?

Simply put, we are experiencing an Ecommerce Renaissance, where having an online presence is fundamental to operating any successful business. Online stores are accruing billions of dollars in revenue, and growing, making it foolish to ignore this fertile marketplace.

Ecommerce is the ability to sell products through an online store. In recent years, many small businesses have managed to double or even triple their revenue by making their products available on the Web. Additionally, an Ecommerce site is a less expensive alternative to owning an offline store because of staffing, storage and distribution costs, all with the added benefit of exposure to the millions of shoppers who surf the Web daily.

Why Should I Open An Online Store?

Simply put, we are experiencing an Ecommerce Renaissance, where having an online presence is fundamental to operating any successful business. Online stores are accruing billions of dollars in revenue, and growing, making it foolish to ignore this fertile marketplace.

Ecommerce is the ability to sell products through an online store. In recent years, many small businesses have managed to double or even triple their revenue by making their products available on the Web. Additionally, an Ecommerce site is a less expensive alternative to owning an offline store because of staffing, storage and distribution costs, all with the added benefit of exposure to the millions of shoppers who surf the Web daily.

What's Needed To Operate An Online Store?

An integrated solution, there are several different components that are necessary to sell online, including:

1. Web Hosting
2. Shopping Cart
3. Merchant Account
4. Payment Gateway

First, you must choose an Ecommerce Web hosting package. From there, you can select a store creation and management tool, which is generally known as a shopping cart. Shopping carts make it possible for you to display your products to potential customers and allow them to purchase items for checkout. Reputable Web hosts offer Ecommerce packages that include shopping cart software.

A Merchant Account allows you to accept credit card payments online. It handles fraud checks on each transaction, as well as the transfer of funds from your customer's credit card to your bank account.

Lastly, you'll need a payment gateway, which often comes included with a merchant account.

Who's Going To Build and Administer My Store?

It's necessary to choose a hosting company that can accommodate your online store as well as your Web site. The hosting company should be able to provide a reliable, secure, easy and powerful environment within which to establish your store. A reliable host will be able to give you the connectivity and resources you need to get your online business created and available for the world to see.

How Much Will It Cost?

Hostway's ecommerce Web hosting plan costs $89.95 a month, but you can add ecommerce options to any of our other hosting plans for a monthly fee. To choose the right option for you, should consider the number of products you'll be selling, your customer base, your data needs and your anticipated site traffic.

Did Someone Say Hostway?

Absolutely! Since 1998, Hostway has been providing ecommerce solutions to tens of thousands of businesses like yours. Our ranks of successful and satisfied customers are growing each day.

Hostway offers a range of ecommerce solutions that include the traffic allowance, disk space and powerful shopping cart options you need. Our Ecommerce Business Hosting Plan even includes the extra marketing and analytical tools you'll need to truly take the online market by storm.