Selling your products and services online can help you reach more customers. Learn how to expand your eCommerce horizons including how to build a web store and ways to sell on social media.
There are many benefits to starting an eCommerce business. With online shopping on the rise, investing in an online business presence can help you reach more customers and boost your brand’s reputation.
The term eCommerce refers to the practice of buying and selling online and includes online shopping and online trading. Many Australian small businesses participate in eCommerce by selling their products and services online via web stores and on social media platforms.
As outlined by business.gov.au, eCommerce may help you:
Ready to connect with online shoppers? Or just want to increase your online presence? Keep reading for tips to start, and evolve, your eCommerce business to help you stay competitive in the online marketplace.
Just because online shoppers are looking for products and services online, it doesn’t mean you should rush into your eCommerce journey. So, the first step is to write a business plan.
According to HubSpot, a strong eCommerce business plan includes:
Once you've finalised your business plan, the next step is determining how you will source your products (if you are selling physical products). It's crucial not only to select the right products but also to identify trustworthy suppliers.
Here are some options for sourcing products for your eCommerce store:
The realm of online business can help connect you to customers in more places. According to business.gov.au, some of the options for doing business online are:
Selecting the right shipping strategy is an important part of ensuring your eCommerce business can meet customer expectations around delivery and costs. The right strategy can help you enhance customer satisfaction, boost loyalty, and optimise operational efficiency.
The right shipping solution can also help you avoid logistically challenges that could you’re your attention away from more strategic work. If you’re wanting to expand to overseas markets, you should also consider how your shipping solution will support you with navigating customs and regulatory complexities smoothly, to help ensure seamless cross-border delivery.
Read on to explore some different shipping cost methods for eCommerce stores.
Your website is a digital portal to your business, allowing online shoppers and potential clients to engage with you anytime, from anywhere. In addition to introducing customers to who are you are and what you offer, your website can also help you make sales online.
A well-designed, accessible web store will allow your customers to buy your products and services. To help increase customer engagement and online sales, make sure you include the following website design elements when creating your online store.
Never underestimate the power of well-written descriptions for your products and services. In lieu of a sales representative serving your customer in-person, your website content is responsible for “closing the sale” so to speak.
Explore the benefits of product descriptions.
When you accept the payment methods that your customers prefer, it can help to boost business. To help the success of your eCommerce business, make sure you offer online shoppers a range of payment methods.
Popular online payment methods in Australia include:
Learn more about the payment methods your customers want.
According to marketing platform Omnisend, designing your eCommerce site to be fully accessible to all online shoppers, regardless of their digital ability, is key to providing the best user experience.
To improve the accessibility of your checkout, remember to:
Learn more about digital accessibility and how it benefits businesses.
Nowadays, most customers want (and expect) a seamless online shopping experience. To meet this demand on your website, it helps to create an intuitive shopping cart process. This process begins once your customer has added everything they want to their cart and is ready to place their order.
The following techniques can help improve your shopping cart flow:
To deliver great customer service online, it’s important to keep customers informed. In the world of eCommerce, online shoppers will almost always want to know delivery and shipping information. So, to pre-empt any queries your customers may have, be sure to include a page on your website the clearly outlines delivery and shipping information.
Explore how to manage your eCommerce supply chain as an online business.
To help further enhance your online customer service, consider including an FAQ page on your eCommerce website. This can help provide immediate answers to common questions, reducing the need for customers to contact customer support. This can help save time for you and for your customers
An FAQ page can help builds trust and credibility by demonstrating that your business anticipates and addresses customer concerns proactively. It can improve site navigation by linking to detailed information on policies, shipping, and product details, helping customers make informed decisions.
Discover how to create FAQ pages.
You can still benefit from eCommerce even if you don’t have a website. In fact, many Australian small businesses thrive by selling their products and services via social media.
Selling on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook is also referred to as social commerce, a popular choice among brands that embrace digital marketing for business by investing in social media advertising campaigns.
Creating an eCommerce business plan takes time, but 'you can’t wait for customers to come to you,’ Paul Graham, co-founder of startup accelerator Y Combinator, once said. ‘You have to figure out where they are, go there and bring them back to your store'
All businesses, big and small, now have the power to attract customers in this way online thanks to the world of eCommerce.
Originally published May 2023, updated April 2025.
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