What is E-Commerce?

The purchase of goods and services over the Internet by people is called e-commerce. E-commerce, which entered our lives with the increase in internet usage in 1995, started to spread around the world in 2000.

E-commerceis one of the many popular ways people buy and sell things at retail. Some companies only sell products by e-commerce online. E-commerce is a tool that enables small or large businesses to easily reach their products not only to the immediate environment, but also to everyone around the world.

How to Start E-Commerce?

To do e-commerce, you must follow the steps below.

1. Finding a Business Idea: First you have to decide what to sell. After deciding on the product or service you will sell, you should research the needs of your potential customers to differentiate yourself from other e-commerce sites. Identify your products or services and research the needs of your potential customers. We can suggest the following ideas to help you with this.

• Product Sales: You can sell products in a special product or category. For example; such as organic and vegan cosmetics, yoga materials, natural foods. It will be a choice that will contribute to you, especially when the healthy lifestyle has gained popularity recently.
• Personalized Products: You can produce special products according to customers' requests. For example; Notebook with name, pen, printed T-shirt.
• Subscription System: To send products to customers regularly every month for a certain period of time. Creating packages for them allows you to get to know more and the customer to remember you constantly.
• Second Hand Product Sales: By selling second-hand products, you can both do an environmentally friendly business and make an economic profit. There are online applications for this. For example; Wardrobe, Wardrobes, Letgo.
• Training and Consulting Services: You can offer online courses, webinars and consultancy services on a subject you are an expert in. For this, it will be advantageous for you to use the Linkedin platform, which is generally used by business people.
• Special Design Products: You can sell your own designed special products. For example; handmade jewelry, wooden toys, hairpins, clothes made with knitting.

1. Gathering Product Information and Getting it Ready for Presentation: To prepare a content article about the product you will sell and to indicate the aspects that will be especially beneficial. This step will make your product stand out. You can follow the 8 steps below to collect product information.

• The market research: First, you need to do market research on the product you are going to sell. Check out competing sites that sell similar products, check out their products' features, prices, shipping policies, etc. take note. You can also research online forums, social media, and surveys to understand customers' needs and demands.
• Product features: Determine the features of the product you will sell. Product weight, size, material, colors, brand, warranty period, etc. Note down important features such as
• Product Photos: It is important to include product photos so that customers can better understand your product. In addition to high-resolution photos, photos taken from different angles should also be attached.
• Product Descriptions: Product descriptions allow you to tell customers about the features of the product. Your explanations should be clear, descriptive and original.
• Pricing: Pricing is an important factor influencing customers' purchasing decision. You should set a competitive price based on the prices of competing sites.
• Shipping Policies: It is important for customers to know when they can receive the product and how much shipping they will pay. You should clearly and clearly define the shipping policies.
• Return and Exchange Policies: Another factor that influences customers' purchasing decision may be your return and exchange policies. By clearly defining these policies, you can make it easier for customers to make a purchase decision.
• Product Reviews: Product reviews help customers learn about the product from other customers' experiences. Therefore, you may need to create a system so that customers can add product reviews.

1. Preparing an E-commerce Site: Preparing a site that attracts attention is very important to be able to sell on the internet. In order not to risk your business, you can professionally work with Falcon X Software company, a web developer, or use other e-commerce platforms. (For example; Shopify, WooCommerce (with WordPress), Magento, BigCommerce, OpenCart, PrestaShop). Falcon X Software company prepares a site for you within 24 hours. You can see below what you should pay attention to when preparing your site and our recommendations.

• Ensure security: The security of your e-commerce site is extremely important. You should take the necessary measures to protect your customers' personal information, credit card information and other sensitive data.
• It Should Be Easy Design: The design of your e-commerce site should allow your customers to navigate easily. Factors such as an easy-to-find search box, a clear and understandable menu, product images and descriptions, and the order processing process should be carefully considered.
• Mobile compatibility: The use of mobile devices is increasing day by day. Therefore, it is important that your e-commerce site is mobile-friendly and easily accessible to your customers on mobile devices.
• Be SEO friendly: Take an SEO-friendly approach when preparing your e-commerce site. Use SEO techniques to show your products higher in search engines.

1. Determining and Setting up a Payment Method: You must select a payment provider. Finding a payment provider allows customers to pay seamlessly. The next step is to obtain an SSL certificate to ensure the payment security of your customers. Your e-commerce site URL should start with "https://" and be marked with a lock icon. Having these means that the payment will be made securely and provides confidence to the customer. You can set several Methods for the customer to pay. For example; Such as Credit card, PayPal, Bank transfer. After completing all these processes, you should test these works you have done, check the security of your payment systems to see how it can cause problems for customers or how I can make it better. For ease of payment, we present the details below.

• Security: We talked about the importance of security. When choosing a payment method, you must first take precautions for the safety of your customers. It is important to protect your customers' personal and financial information by using security measures such as SSL certificates. As Falcon X, we issue an SSL certificate to your company, and we can facilitate your work and speed up the process.
• Payment options: Having different payment options for your customers makes it easier to complete the purchase. The fact that there are many payment options for customers provides convenience and confidence. When choosing a payment method, you should also consider transaction fees. Transaction fees for different payment methods vary. You should choose the one that is most suitable for you. If your e-commerce site is used around the world, you should also consider the payment methods that your customers in different countries can use when choosing a payment method.
• Ease of integration: When choosing a payment method, you should choose payment methods that are easy to integrate with your e-commerce site. This speeds up the checkout process and makes your customers' shopping experience better.

1. Supply of Products and Transportation to the Customer: You can supply your products or produce them yourself. After you find your product, you should make an agreement with the logistics company at the stage of delivering it to the customers. In terms of customer satisfaction, the product or service received should arrive on time. Easy accessibility is very important for e-commerce.
2. Marketing Your E-Commerce Site: Open accounts on social media platforms and post regularly. You should determine your target audience and share for them. With SEO Strategies, you can increase the visibility of your website. You can collect the e-mails of your shopping customers and send them information in your future campaigns and remind them of yourself. You can reach a large number of people by reaching an agreement with the influencers who are interested in the sector you are selling. We have more suggestions for you to move forward strategically.

• SEO (Search Engine Optimization):It is very important for your e-commerce site to rank high in search engines for potential customers to find you. You can create SEO strategies by using keywords correctly.
• Social media:Social media is a great tool for marketing your e-commerce site. You can increase your brand awareness and interact with your customers on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social media platforms.
• Email Marketing:You can increase your sales by informing potential customers about campaigns and discounts via e-mail.
• Google Ads:Google AdWords allows you to create targeted ads based on your keywords and target audience. These ads can increase the traffic and sales of your e-commerce site.
• Content Marketing:Content marketing is a strategy that you can use to drive traffic to your e-commerce site and increase your brand awareness by offering content tailored to your customers' needs.
• Affiliate Marketing:Affiliate marketing allows you to collaborate with other websites or blogs to promote your products. This strategy can increase your potential customers for your e-commerce site.
• Influencer Marketing:You can increase your brand awareness by collaborating with influencers for your business. Influencers can promote your products to their followers or share them on their social media accounts.

By using these strategies together, you can market your e-commerce site, increase your brand awareness and increase your sales.

1. Providing Customer Satisfaction: Customer satisfaction is important in the continuity of your company. Answering customer questions and resolving complaints is the foundation of trust for customers and you must be available. You should consider customer feedback and make improvements.

Business Models in E-Commerce

The business models used in e-commerce are the factors that determine how the business's activities are organized and generate revenue. You can manage the activity of your site by choosing one or several models. Here are some e-commerce business models you can use:

B2C (Business-to-Consumer): In this model, the business sells its products and services directly to the end consumers. For example; B2C e-commerce sites such as Amazon, Walmart, Toyota or Airbnb can be given.

B2B (Business-to-Business): In this model, the business offers its products and services to other businesses. Examples include B2B e-commerce sites such as Alibaba, IBM, Siemens, SAP or ThomasNet.

C2C (Consumer-to-Consumer): In this model, product and service exchange takes place between consumers. For example; Platforms such as eBay, Uber, Fiverr or Etsy can be given.

C2B (Consumer-to-Business): In this model, consumers sell their products or services by offering them to businesses. For example; Platforms such as Upwork, Hometap, LendingTree or Fiverr can be given.

Dropshipping: In this model, the business ships the products to the customer after receiving orders from the suppliers, rather than stocking the products directly. In this model, the business typically generates revenue without stocking products and managing the supply chain. For example; Oberlo, SaleHoo, Doba can be given.

Subscription Model: In this model, customers receive certain products or services for a specified fee each month, quarter, or year for a specified period of time. For example; Platforms such as Netflix or Spotify can be given.

Freemium Model: In this model, the business offers some basic features for free, while charging a fee for more advanced features. For example; Platforms such as LinkedIn or Dropbox can be given.

Each of these business models can vary based on businesses' goals and customer base. Businesses generally operate using several business models.

Target Audience in E-commerce

Identifying your target audience is one of the most important issues in e-commerce. We would like to inform you about this. In e-commerce, the target audience is the name given to your customers to whom you aim to sell your products or services. Target audience identification is important to properly market your products and services, increase customer reach, build customer loyalty, and drive more sales. Here are the steps to determine the target audience in e-commerce:

1. Demographic features: Learn about your customers' demographics such as age, gender, education level, occupation, income level, and geographic location. In this way, you can share their needs.
2. Subjects They Are Interested In: Do research to understand your customers' interests and buying behavior. For example; You can look at the feedback and comments of your existing customers. You can also analyze your website traffic, visitor behavior and customer profile using tools like Google Analytics and other analytical tools. Using this data, you can see which pages are visited, which products are of interest, and which search terms are popular. Apart from that, you can survey our customers and find out what they are interested in.
3. Social Media Analysis: Social media platforms are an important tool for getting to know your target audience. By doing social media analysis, you can examine your customers' shares, likes, followers and comments.
4. Competition analysis: By examining competitor e-commerce sites, you can understand the purchasing behavior, preferences and expectations of customers.

By following these steps, you can know your target audience and create suitable marketing strategies for your e-commerce site.

Identifying the Brand Name

Identifying a brand name in e-commerce is important to ensure your business's identity and retention in your customers' minds. Here are some important points to consider when determining a brand name in e-commerce:

• It should be easy to pronounce: Your brand name should be easy to pronounce and designed to be memorable to customers.
• It should be short and concise: Your brand name should be short and concise. People are more attracted to names that are short and easy to remember.
• It must be meaningful: It is important that your brand name is meaningful to your customers. The name may reflect the scope of your business or your target audience.
• Must be compatible: Your brand name should be compatible with the scope and products of your business. It should also be appropriate as a domain name and in a way that your customers can easily remember.
• Must be suitable for international use: If you want to open up to the global market in e-commerce, it is important that your brand name is suitable for international use.

Brand Paying attention to these factors when determining your name, you can increase the brand value of your business and ensure your customers' retention.

Proper Domain Purchase

Domain in e-commerceis a unique name that identifies the address of a website. Domain represents the name and identity of a website and allows internet users to access the website.

For example, "www.falconx.az" is a domain. This domain determines the name of your website and its identity on the internet. Domains are usually purchased from a domain registrar and are renewed every year.

Domains are very important in e-commerce. It reflects your brand and website name, makes it easier for customers to access your site and allows you to be recognized by search engines. Also, choosing the right domain is important for your SEO (search engine optimization) strategy. A domain with the right keywords can help your site rank higher in search engines.

Here are some tips for choosing the right domain:

• It should be short and concise: Your domain should be as short and concise as possible. A short domain makes your website easier to access and more memorable.
• It should reflect your brand: Your domain should reflect your business brand. It may contain part of your brand name or keywords. Including keywords is important for the easy availability of your company.
• Keyword should be used: Keywords are important for SEO Service. By using keywords in your domain, you can reach higher rankings in search engines. This increases your visibility.
• Must be unique: Trying to use another website's domain can harm your brand and business.
• Appropriate extension should be selected: The extension is the piece at the end of your domain (eg falconx.az , falconxdemo.com ). The most common extension for your e-commerce business is .com. However, if you are focusing on a local market, you can choose an extension for your country (eg .az).
• It should provide easy memory: It is important to choose your domain name with a name that people can easily remember. Thus, your repeat customers can access your website more easily.
• It should be easy to say: Choose your domain name with an easy-to-understand and easy-to-understand name. This can also bring traffic to your website through word of mouth marketing.

By using the tips you read above, you can buy the appropriate domain for your own e-commerce site.

Set up a company

Let's come to the issue of legally establishing your company in e-commerce. One of the most difficult stages for e-commerce is establishing a company. However, we can make it easier with the information we will pass on to you.

• Company Type Should Be Selected: It is necessary to choose a company type for the e-commerce company. For this, check with the government agencies in your country where there are legal rules that determine the type of your company. You can choose one of the options such as a limited company or a joint stock company.
• Company Name Must Be Determined: You need to choose a suitable name for your company. The company name determines the identity of your brand. Consider several different names and choose the one that suits your preferences. You should also do some research to make sure that the name you choose is not used.
• Tax Number Must Be Obtained: You need to get a tax number for your company. This can be done by contacting the tax authority in your country. The tax number allows you to file your company's tax returns and other tax procedures.
• Bank Account Should Be Opened: You need to open a bank account for your company. This helps you manage your business' financial transactions and receive payments from your customers.

Individual, Limited and Joint Stock company types are the most preferred company types in e-commerce. If your capital is low, you can choose to establish a limited liability company or joint stock company if the sole proprietorship is high.

Integrating with Marketplaces

Let's start by explaining the integration first. Integration means that a system or application works together with another system or application. In e-commerce, integration means data sharing and collaboration between different platforms or systems. For example, solutions that provide cooperation between different systems, such as automatic transfer of orders on an e-commerce site to a logistics system, integration with stock management systems, or secure payment transactions, are called integration. Integration is important for increasing the efficiency of e-commerce businesses, improving the customer experience and contributing to the growth of the business.

Your e-commerce businessIntegrating it with a marketplace can enable you to bring your products to a wider audience. You can follow the steps below to integrate into the marketplaces:

• Market Place Selection: Choosing a marketplace starts with choosing a platform that suits your products. For example; Etsy is a good option for handmade items and artwork, while Amazon and eBay offer a wider range of items.
• Register: You must register to sell on the marketplace. Marketplaces often offer free sign-up options, but in addition, you may need to create a merchant account. This account allows you to upload your products, set their prices and manage orders.
• Upload Products: Once you're integrated into the marketplace, you need to upload your products to the platform. Define your products in detail and make appropriate pricing. Also, make sure the images are of high quality and appropriate size.
• Manage Orders: As customers place orders, you will receive notifications from the marketplace. To manage orders, you can use the tools provided by the marketplace. These tools allow you to communicate with customers, get paid and manage your orders.
• Manage Customer Relationships: Instead of communicating directly with marketplace customers, you communicate with customers through the marketplace. Respond quickly to customer questions and complaints to maintain the quality of customer service.
• Manage Payments: When you sell on marketplaces, you receive payments in your marketplace account. The marketplace pays you and you ship the products.

The integration process can take time as it is necessary to adapt the products to the marketplace format and provide the correct information to reach your customers. However, once configured, it is possible to grow your business by integrating with marketplaces.

As an example of market places; We can say companies such as Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Alibaba, Rakuten and Hepsiburada.

You can make your campaign and start sales

By making a campaign in e-commerce, you can attract the attention of customers and promote your products. Here are some suggestions for campaigning on e-commerce:

• Discount campaigns: You can offer discounted products to your customers for a certain period of time. This can attract customers and increase your sales.
• Free shipping offers: You can offer free shipping to your customers when they shop over a certain amount. This encourages customers to shop and can increase your sales.
• Gift voucher campaigns: You can offer your customers the opportunity to win gift certificates when they shop above a certain amount. This encourages customers to shop again and can increase their loyalty.
• Social media campaigns: You can attract the attention of your followers by organizing contests or sharing campaigns on your social media channels. This can increase awareness of your brand and gain customers.
• Season discounts: You can organize special discount campaigns for special days or seasons. This encourages customers to shop and can increase your sales.
• remarketing campaigns: You can do remarketing campaigns to remind customers browsing your website of their visit. This encourages repeat customers and can increase your sales.

When campaigning in e-commerce, you should know your target audience well and plan your campaigns accordingly. It's also important that your campaigns are within your budget so that they don't overwhelm you.