E-commerce is a highly profitable and competitive sector in the online world. Statista reports that global e-commerce sales are projected to reach $6.5 trillion by 2024, an increase from $4.3 trillion in 2020. This means businesses have a tremendous opportunity to explore this market and attract more customers while generating higher revenues.
How can you develop a unique and effective eCommerce website tailored to your business requirements and objectives from scratch?
What are the essential steps and tactics for establishing a prosperous and long-lasting online store? How can you overcome any difficulties or obstacles you may encounter?
Zethic is a top company in Bangalore that solves all difficulties in developing an eCommerce website. Our blog post will guide you through the steps to develop an eCommerce website from scratch. Whether you are a beginner or an expert, this article will help you understand the steps.
So, let’s get started!
Table of Contents
Steps for How to Develop an eCommerce Website from Scratch
Define Your eCommerce Website Goals and Requirements.
The first step to develop an eCommerce website from scratch is to define your eCommerce website goals and requirements. This is a crucial step, as it will help you clarify your vision and expectations and guide your decisions and actions throughout the project.
Some of the questions that you need to ask yourself and answer are:
What is the purpose and objective of your e-commerce website?
The purpose of develop an eCommerce website from Starch is to sell your products or services online and to reach and satisfy your customers. Your e-commerce website should have a clear and specific goal, such as increasing sales, generating leads, building brand awareness, or creating loyal customers.
Who is your target audience and niche?
Your target audience and niche are the people most likely to buy your products or services and have a specific problem, need, or preference that your business can solve. You should identify and understand your target audience and niches, such as their demographics, psychographics, behaviour, and pain points.
What are your products and services?
Your products and services are what you offer and sell to your customers through your e-commerce website. It would be best to have a clear and unique value proposition and competitive advantage that showcase the features and benefits of your products and services and how they are different and better than your competitors.
What are your value proposition and competitive advantage?
Your value proposition and competitive advantage explain why your customers should choose your products or services over your competitors. They should be compelling and convincing, highlighting your products or services’ unique and superior aspects, such as quality, price, convenience, or innovation.
What are your desired features and functionalities?
Your desired features and functionalities are the tools and elements that you need to create and manage your e-commerce website and provide a great user experience and customer service. Some of the standard and essential features and functionalities for an e-commerce website are hosting, domain, design, payment, inventory, marketing, analytics, security, SEO, navigation, search, filters, product pages, cart, checkout, reviews, ratings, FAQs, customer service, etc.
What are your eCommerce website budget and timeline?
When developing an eCommerce website from scratch, it’s essential to consider your budget and timeline. These factors can vary depending on the type of platform you choose, the complexity and quality of the website, and the developer’s fees.
The cost of developing an eCommerce website from scratch can range between $2,500 and $95,000, while the development time can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 months.
By answering these questions, you will be able to define your eCommerce website goals and requirements, and communicate them to us. We will then analyze and understand your goals and requirements, and provide you with a proposal and a plan that outlines the scope, deliverables, milestones, and costs of the project.
How To Choose An eCommerce Platform
The second step to develop an eCommerce website from scratch is to choose the best eCommerce platform for your website. The eCommerce platform is the software that powers your online store and provides the tools and features you need to create and manage your eCommerce website.
Many eCommerce platforms are available in the market, each with pros and cons.
Some of the most popular eCommerce platforms in 2024 are:
Shopify vs WooCommerce vs Magento
| E-commerce Platform | Features | Pros | Cons | WordPress Plugin Availability |
| Shopify | Shopify is a cloud-based e-commerce platform that simplifies creating and managing online stores. | All-in-one platform for online selling with hosting, domain, design, payment, inventory, marketing, and analytics. Has an app store and a community of experts. Best for small to medium-sized businesses. | Limited customization, additional transaction fees for third-party payment gateways, not suitable for SEO and content-driven brands. | Yes, WordPress plugins like Shopify Connect for WooCommerce, Shopify eCommerce Plugin, and WP Shopify integrate with Shopify. |
| WooCommerce | WooCommerce is a plugin for WordPress that creates an e-commerce store. | WordPress gives you complete control and flexibility over your online store with customizable themes and plugins. It integrates with hundreds of third-party services and is suitable for businesses with a WordPress website or those wanting a more advanced solution. | Online stores need technical skills to establish and maintain. You need to purchase hosting, domain, and security separately. Excessive use of themes and plugins can make it slow and buggy. | WooCommerce is a WordPress plugin with many extensions such as WooCommerce Bookings, Subscriptions, and Memberships. |
| Magento | Magento is an open-source e-commerce platform for large and complex online stores. | Manage multiple stores, languages, currencies, and products from one dashboard. Rich features include catalog management, marketing, security, and performance optimization. Ideal for businesses with high sales volume and need for a scalable solution. | Developing and managing an online store requires high technical skills and expertise. It can be expensive, time-consuming, and has a steep learning curve. | WordPress plugins don’t integrate with Magento due to different platforms and technologies. But third-party services like Mageplaza, FishPig, and WP Engine can help connect WordPress and Magento websites. |
These are just some of the eCommerce platforms that you can choose from.
Many other alternatives exist, such as BigCommerce, Squarespace, Wix, PrestaShop, etc.
We can assist you in selecting the most suitable platform for your eCommerce website based on your requirements and budget. Our team can work with any platform and provide you with the best features and functionalities that suit your online store. Additionally, we offer assistance in migrating your online store from one platform to another, if you need it.
Choose The Best Ecommerce Website Design For Your Business
The third step to develop an eCommerce website from scratch is to design the best eCommerce website for your business. The design of your eCommerce website is crucial, as it affects your business’s user experience, conversion rate, and brand image. A good eCommerce website design should be:
Attractive
- Design your eCommerce website with a visually appealing and consistent style that matches your brand identity. Use colors, fonts, images, and icons that reflect your brand tone.
- Create a clear and balanced layout by using white space, contrast, and hierarchy.
Responsive
- Your eCommerce website should be responsive, meaning that it adapts to different screen sizes and devices.
- More than half of the online shoppers use mobile devices to browse and buy products, so you need to make sure that your eCommerce website is mobile-friendly and easy to navigate on smaller screens.
Fast
- Your eCommerce website should be fast, meaning that it loads quickly and smoothly.
- A slow eCommerce website can frustrate your customers and make them abandon your site.
- According to Google, 53% of mobile users leave a site that takes longer than 3 seconds to load.
- You should optimize your eCommerce website for speed by using a reliable hosting service, compressing images, caching pages, and minimizing scripts and plugins.
User-friendly
- Your eCommerce website should be user-friendly, meaning that it is easy to use and understand.
- You should make sure that your eCommerce website has clear and intuitive navigation, a simple and secure checkout process, and a helpful and accessible customer service.
You should also provide useful information and features like
- product descriptions,
- reviews,
- ratings,
- FAQs,
- search, filters,
- and wishlists.
We can help design your eCommerce website to reflect your value proposition and competitive advantage. Our team creates responsive, user-friendly, and optimized websites for SEO, performance, and security.
Add Your Products And Content To Your eCommerce Website
The fourth step of develop an eCommerce website from scratch is to add top-quality products and content. They are the core of your business and showcase what you offer and why customers should choose you.
Therefore, you need to make sure that your products and content are:
Relevant
- Offer relevant products and content that solve your customers’ problems, needs, and preferences.
- Avoid adding unnecessary products and content.
Unique
- Create original products and content that showcase your value proposition and competitive advantage.
- Use images and videos to demonstrate your products’ features and benefits.
Optimized
- Optimize your products and content for search engines and users. Use accurate and attractive keywords, titles, tags, and meta descriptions.
- Structure your content with headings, subheadings, bullets, and paragraphs for readability.
We can help you add relevant and unique products and content to your eCommerce website, optimize them, and integrate with third-party services.
Test And Launch Your eCommerce Website
The final step to develop an eCommerce website from scratch is to test and launch your eCommerce website. Testing and launching your eCommerce website are essential, as they ensure that your online store is ready and functional for your customers.
Before you launch your eCommerce website, you should test it for:
Functionality
- Test your eCommerce website’s functionality on different browsers, devices, and resolutions.
- Try different scenarios such as adding products, applying coupons, making payments, tracking orders, etc.
Usability
- To ensure your eCommerce website is user-friendly, conduct user testing, surveys, feedback, and analytics.
- Evaluate usability for different types of customers, like new, returning, loyal, and potential ones.
Security
- To ensure your eCommerce website is secure, use SSL certificates, encryption, firewalls, backups, and updates.
- Verify the security of personal, financial, and transactional data.
We can test and launch your eCommerce website, including functionality, usability, and security testing. Our team help with marketing and monitoring performance.
Conclusion
Developing an eCommerce website from scratch is not a simple or easy task, but is rewarding and profitable. By following the steps and strategies that we have shared in this blog post, you can create an eCommerce website that meets your business needs and goals.
However, developing an eCommerce website from scratch is not a one-time or static process but a continuous and dynamic one. You need to keep updating and improving your eCommerce website to keep up with the changing trends and demands of the online market.
That’s why you need Zethic, a leading eCommerce development company in Bangalore, that can help you develop an eCommerce website from scratch that is customized, optimized, and secure.
