How to open an online store

You recently decided to expand your business and make it more modern with the creation of an online store: for this reason you are wondering how to open an online store and would like to have a hand in completing this procedure. No problem, here I am ready to provide you with all the explanations you need to open an e-shop.

The solutions I have in mind are numerous, as I want to recommend platforms with different characteristics so that you can easily identify the one that best suits your needs. I assure you that even if you do not have particularly advanced knowledge in the field of Web programming, you will be able to obtain appreciable results and to open your own online store with which to reach a large number of customers.

What do you say then, are you ready to go? Yup? Very well! At this point, you just have to sit comfortably; take a few minutes of free time and carefully read the information I am about to give you; you will see that opening a shop on the Internet will be easier than you expected. Let it bet? I wish you a good reading and good “work”.

Index

  • Aruba
  • Shopify
  • Blomming
  • eBay
  • Etsy
  • Amazon
  • Alternative tools to open an online store
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Other tips for opening an online store

Aruba

If you are looking for a complete solution, which allows you to easily open an e-commerce on your domain, with your brand, at affordable prices, I can only advise you to contact Aruba: a well-known Italian company that operates in the fields of Web hosting, cloud and online practices.

With Aruba you can in fact create a professional e-commerce and manage it in every aspect: from the product list to the orders, through shipments and any discounts to be offered to customers; all in a very simple way and at the best price on the market. Together with your e-commerce, you will also get a custom domainhosting to host your site online, email boxes with a custom domain that will allow you to manage communications with customers and suppliers in a professional way and much more.

To create your e-commerce with Aruba, you can choose to rely on WooCommerce or Aruba SuperSite. The first is a plugin that allows you to transform the famous WordPress CMS into a complete e-commerce platform, but at the same time very easy to use (thus maintaining all the possibilities for deep customization and expansion of functions through WordPress plugins); Aruba SuperSite, on the other hand, is a site builder that allows you to create websites, blogs and e-commerce through a drag-and-drop visual editor really within everyone’s reach, in which each page is built simply by moving the elements on the screen with the mouse. and modifying them using the convenient tools displayed on the screen.

Both solutions are extremely powerful, flexible and easy to use. The difference lies in the fact that a CMS like WordPress offers more “room for maneuver” to more experienced users (allowing them to also put their hand to the code, in case of need); a site builder like Aruba SuperSite is instead designed for those who take their first steps in the world of the Internet and first of all seek ease of use (at the expense of some more customization possibilities).

That said, if you are interested in the solution that involves the use of WordPress and WooCommerce, I highly recommend Aruba Managed WooCommerce Hosting, which includes a ready-to-use WordPress and WooCommerce installation, registration and annual maintenance of a  domain name,  unlimited space on SSD, a  2GB database on SSD  with support for 200 connections, traffic up to  500,000 visitors per month, automatic functions for monitoring and backup ‌, the SSL DV certificate for secure connections in HTTPS (now required by most browsers and search engines),  unlimited 1GB mailboxes10 PEC mailboxes on domain and much more. Prices start at 124.50 euros + VAT in the 1st year and then 249.00 euros + VAT/year.

To purchase the service, simply press the appropriate button on the Aruba website, register your domain and follow the wizard to choose the services to purchase, log into your Aruba account (or create one) and make the payment using one of the secure payment methods supported by Aruba (eg PayPalcard or bank transfer).

At the end of the purchase, to create your store with WooCommerce, you just need to access it and follow a simple wizard in which to enter the basic information of your business, the payment and shipping methods to offer to customers and set up the integrations with services such as Facebook and MailChimp.

Once the store is open, you can manage it at 360 degrees from the appropriate section of the WordPress management panel, using the convenient on-screen menus. To learn more, check out my guide to Aruba Managed WooCommerce Hosting and the service’s official website.

If you prefer to use Aruba’s SuperSite site builder, know that you can try all its functions for 30 days, with SEO options, Cookie Policy, third level domain (eg.  iltuosito.spazioweb.it) And free assistance. At the end of the trial, the site will no longer be accessible and, within 10 days, you will have to purchase a paid plan.

In this regard, the SuperSite Professional plan represents the most complete version of SuperSite: it includes a second level domain (e.g. iltuosito.it), 5 mailboxes, SSL DV certificate and free assistance at a cost of 39 euros/year + VAT the first year and then 99 euros + VAT/year upon renewal.

To create your e-commerce with SuperSite, all you have to do is visit the Aruba website and choose whether to buy one of the paid plans immediately or try SuperSite Trial for free. Then log into your Aruba account (or create a new one) and follow the wizard to complete the order.

Even the creation of the site takes place through a very convenient wizard, in which you have to indicate the type and name of the site, select a graphic theme among the many available and select a style for the home. You then directly access the Graphic Editor, through which you can easily build all the pages of your site. For the initial setup of the store, you need to go to the ☰ menu, top left, and select the Store item from the bar that appears on the side. You can find all the details about it in my tutorial on how to build a website with Aruba.

Shopify

With over 1,000,000 users worldwide, Shopify is one of the best services to create professional e-commerce without having knowledge in programming or Web design: to use it, just create your account, select a theme among the many available and add the products to the store, using the appropriate forms.

It all happens in a few clicks, from PC, via browser, or from smartphones and tablets, thanks to the Shopify apps for Android and iOS / iPadOS. Plus, unlimited hosting and bandwidth and a free shopify.com domain name are offered, with the option to purchase a custom one or use an existing one.

With Shopify it is possible not only to create your own store but to fully manage all the activities related to it: from payments to marketing (with the possibility of starting marketing campaigns via Google, Facebook, email or SMS), passing through the inventory. , checkout, shipping, customer list and more.

The service can be used for free and without renewal for a limited trial period, after which you can choose between various plans, starting from $ 29 / month, with unlimited products on the store, blog, the possibility of integrating discount codes, certificate Free SSL, Abandoned Cart Recovery, and more.

Creating an e-commerce with Shopify is very simple: all you have to do is connect to the official website of the service, type your email address in the appropriate field and click on the Start free trial button. On the next page, then provide the password you want to use for your shop, the name you want to assign to it, click on the Create your shop button and wait a few moments.

Then, fill in the form that is proposed to you, indicating if you have already started sellingwhat your current income is and if you are creating a store for a customer etc. and go forward; then enter the address to receive payments, go ahead and, within a few seconds, you will be redirected to the Shopify management panel.

The e-commerce management panel is highly intuitive. Through the left menu, in fact, it is possible to easily reach all the most important functions: Home to view the main e-commerce dashboard; Orders to manage orders; Products to add and manage products in the store; Customers to manage and add customers to their list; Analysis to visualize sales data; Marketing to set up marketing campaigns, Discounts to set up discount codes; App to install apps aimed at expanding the functionality of the store and online store to customize the look of the store.

To find out more, see my tutorial on how to create an e-commerce with Shopify, in which I have shown you how the service works down to the smallest detail.

Blomming

A great service to open an online store that I want to tell you about is Blomming. It is a paid platform that allows you to create an online shop that can be integrated into an external website, or into  Facebook, to sell your products. You can try it for free for 15 days, after which you need to subscribe to the service, with plans starting at € 9.99 / month or € 99.99 / year.

To open an online shop through Blomming, connected to its Home page, click on the Open your shop button and register, typing the required data in the appropriate text fields ( Username,  Email and  Password ). Then place the checkmark in the I accept the Terms & Conditions box and click on the Open your shop button.

On the next screen, compare the available subscription plans; select the one you want to try, click on Choose Plan and then select the button Upload a product now, in order to start creating the online store.

Now, enter the data required to create the advertisement: upload the image of the product, pressing on Choose file, fill in the text fields for the title and the price, select the shipping method (Shipping profile ), indicate the category of the product you want to sell ( Blooming Category ) and set the visibility in Published. To post your ad, click Create.

Then, click on the Publish menu item that you find in the top menu and then click on the Go button, corresponding to one of the options: Sell ​​on FacebookSell ​​on the Web or Manage your shop.

By choosing Sell ​​on Facebook you must select the Facebook page created previously and press the Add page Tab button, in order to activate the Shop tab in which all the products imported on Blooming will be visible.

By clicking on Sell ​​on the Web, you can create a custom embed code, to be copied and pasted on any HTML page (useful if you already own a website or intend to create one ). By choosing the item Manage your shop, instead, you can sell the products directly on the Webspace offered by Blomming.

If you need more information on how Blomming works, don’t hesitate to consult its official guide.

eBay

Another solution for opening an online store is eBay. It is a very famous auction site that can be used from the web or via apps for Android and iOS to sell products even with the “ Buy now ” formula.

To open an online shop via eBay, you need to create an account. Furthermore, it should be noted that in case of sale of the objects, a commission equal to 11.5% of the amount of the product sold is applied (to which we must add a commission of 0.35 euros per transaction + taxes also on shipping costs. ). Ad serving is free, but has some limitations, such as the maximum number of advertisements that can be published per month (50 or 100). For more information on this, consult the eBay Sellers Area.

To open an online store through eBay, connected to its official website, click on the Register button at the top left and create an account, indicating all the required data ( Name, Surname, Email address and Password ), then press the Subscribe button.

At this point, associate a payment method to the account created: click on your name from the eBay home page, then click on the Account Settings item and, finally, on Connect the PayPal account. To complete the connection of the PayPal account to eBay, indicate the contact information that is requested ( ZIP code, city, province, mobile number ), then log in with the PayPal account data, in order to complete the procedure.

At the end of this operation, press the Sell button located at the top and indicate the information relating to the publication of the ad: first of all enter the description of the object, using the text field Describe the object offered for sale.

Continue by clicking on Start and type in the other information required for the sale of the object including its conditions and specifications. Also, provide the other details about the sale such as those regarding the formatduration and price.

You have two options for selling an item on eBay: Auction Online or Buy It Now. The Online Auction option puts an item up for sale with an auction that can last 1, 3, 5, 7 or 10 days. This sales format features a starting price, a buy it now price, and a reserve price. This means that the asset is initially sold at auction in the starting price (which may vary until the auction expires). However, it can be purchased at the buy it now price or it can be sold when the amount indicated as is reached reserve price.

The buy it now option to sell, on the other hand, only allows you to sell the asset at a fixed price but, possibly, purchase proposals can be made. At the end of the completion of the advertisement, check whether paid options have been selected and, if so, also the cost of the advertisement; then click on the Put on sale button at the rates shown.

If you want to learn more about how eBay works, I suggest you read my guide dedicated to this platform.

Etsy

If during your free time you like to make handmade products, the solution I propose to open an online shop is the one offered by Etsy. This is a very popular website that allows you to sell and buy exclusively handmade products or vintage items that are at least 20 years old.

To open an online shop on Etsy, you need to create an account. Opening a shop is free but, as indicated in the official rules, an insertion fee of $ 0.20 (approximately € 0.17 at current exchange rates) is charged. In addition, in the event of a sale, a commission equal to 3.5% of the value of the product, excluding shipping costs, is applied. In addition, when accepting payments through the main Etsy Payments method, an additional 4% fee plus € 0.30 per item sold is applied.

To open an online shop on Etsy, connected to its home page, press the Register button, fill out the form dedicated to creating an account, indicating your nameemail, password and password confirmation, then click the Register button. Alternatively, press the Continue with Facebook or Continue with Google buttons to register faster through these latest social profiles.

Once registered, select the Sell ​​on Etsy button at the top and then click Open your shop on Etsy. At this point, you need to customize the store you intend to create, indicating information such as languagecountry and currency. Click on Save and Continue to continue, type the name you want to give to the shop, click again on Save and Continue and start publishing your advertisements by clicking on the Add an advertisement button.

On the next screen, enter all the details regarding the product to sell: in the section Photos import a maximum of 10 photos of the product, in the Listing DetailsInventory and Prices and Shipping tabs, fill in as much information as possible, in order to create a full listing.

When finished, press Save and continue again, in order to enter a valid payment method (your bank account details are required for the payment to be made). This way you have finished creating the online store that will have been published.

If you need to learn more about how Etsy works, I suggest you read my specific guide on this platform.

Amazon

Another solution that I want to advise you to consider is the sale of products through Amazon, the well-known e-commerce site that is also available as an application for Android and iOS.

To sell on Amazon you must already have an account dedicated to the service, after which you can sell your products through two types of accounts: the first is the basic account, which allows you to make less than 40 sales per month and has a commission for each item sold equal to € 0.99. The Pro Account, on the other hand, is suitable for sellers who intend to make more than 40 sales per month and has a monthly sales subscription fee of € 39 / month.

Furthermore, as indicated in the official regulation, for both types of plans there is an additional management fee that varies depending on the product sold: € 1.01 for the sale of books, € 0.81 for the sale of products belonging to the categories  Music,  Video,  DVD  and  Video Games and Software.

If you have already created an Amazon account (if not, refer to this tutorial of mine ), connected to its official website, click on the Accounts and lists button, then click on the Sell ​​on Amazon link and on Register now.

After indicating the basic information on the country of your business and the type of the same, click the Accept and continue and fill out the information requested in sections Business informationvendor informationinformation on paymentsmore and Name store by pressing the Save and Continue button when prompted.

Once you have created a seller account on Amazon, you are asked to choose the plan that best suits your needs ( Basic or Pro, as explained in the previous lines). At the end of this operation you are ready to sell on Amazon.

On the main screen of the newly created Amazon store, click on the Catalog button you see at the top. Now, to start creating a listing, click on the Add a new product button, locate if there is a similar item via the internal search engine ( Search button ) and indicate the price, quantity and conditions for the product.

In case there is no similar product on Amazon, click on Create a new offer, indicate the product category, referring to the All product categories menu and enter all the essential information for the sale of the same, which vary depending on the product to be sold.

In both cases, once you have filled out the form for creating the Amazon ad in its entirety, select the Save and Finish button to publish the ad.

If you want to learn more about how Amazon works in relation to the sale of products, you can read my tutorial dedicated to the subject.

Alternative tools to open an online store

In the following lines, you can find useful indications for opening an online store, as well as other advice for the purpose of this tutorial.

Facebook

Facebook, the very famous social network founded by Mark Zuckerberg, accessible from its official website and also available as a free application for Android,  iOS and Windows 10 Mobile, can be used for the sale of products and to open an online store, through two options.

The first choice concerns the sale of individual products, through the use of the integrated market, called Marketplace. In this case it is a section accessible from the Web and also from smartphones/tablets in which adult users of the social network can publish advertisements for free (button  Sell ​​something ). Potential buyers will be able to privately contact the seller to manage the transaction.

The second solution, however, is that relating to the opening of an online store. This is the use of the free Showcase function which is integrated into the Facebook Pages and which is accessible from the Web but also from smartphones and/or tablets. In fact, just access the Showcase tab and press the Add product button to fill in the details of the item you want to sell. Furthermore, the latter option can also be integrated with Blomming, a service I have told you about in detail in this paragraph.

In this regard, if you believe that the use of Facebook can be for you, read my guide dedicated to the subject, for more information on how to sell on Facebook.

Instagram

Even Instagram, the photo social network of Facebook, can be used for the sale of products, opening a real virtual shop.

It is possible to do it for free, through the social network application for Android and iOS (it is not possible to do it from its Web version ) but, to succeed, it is necessary to have at least 5/10 thousand followers and, in addition, it is necessary to perform the switching from personal Instagram account to business profile.

In addition, to open an online store on Instagram, the Showcase tab of the Facebook page  (which I told you about in the previous paragraph ) that you connected must be integrated into the photographic social network, following the transition to the company profile.

After this procedure, you have to wait for the Instagram team to approve your request, so they can start tagging your products in the content you post on the photo social network.

Do you think the topic might interest you? In this case, I suggest you read my tutorial: I explained to you in more detail how to sell on Instagram.

Other tips for opening an online store

To open an online store there are also other solutions, in addition to those I told you about in the previous lines. For example, a choice that you can consider is the opening of an e-commerce on a Webspace purchased separately, using a CMS such as the aforementioned  WordPress or Magento.

An alternative is to use pre-configured websites, such as Wix or OneMinuteSite, which are designed for opening an online store and can be used to create an online store quickly and easily. I told you more about these resources in my guide on how to open an e-commerce.

 

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