More and more entrepreneurs are deciding to create an online store. They have a good business idea and wish to realise that idea quickly, by getting the benefits of electronic commerce over traditional. The main goal will always be to get sales as soon as possible, but techniques and strategies change when it comes to selling online.

Spend in promoting your business, achieving your potential and attracting new customers who will return to you regularly and buy. These are the aims for creating a profitable online business store. You should employ these techniques to increase your online sales:

1. Find relevant SEO Long Tail Keywords

Generating traffic to your web site is important, but more importantly, it comes through good SEO positioning. To achieve it is necessary to position your online store with SEO long tail keyword terms that will differentiate you from your competition and help you capture new leads. Use a set of words (between 2 and 4) and analyse it through web tools like Google Adwords keyword tool or Google Trends.

2. Intuitive navigation – speed is all

As with most websites, an online store should have a good search engine browser. There are many existing websites that spend too much time on browsers instead of solving the problem of complicated customer’s web navigation. This can be inconvenient when getting your first online sales. It is essential that there is minimal obstacles between the customer reaching your online store and making their purchase. Everything has to be fluid and fast or you will lose the opportunity of closing your online sales.

3. Importance of high quality images

Creating an online store is very fast, but getting your first sales might take a longer time. Remember that you must earn your customers trust. Undoubtedly one of the key factors that will help you achieve this is to publish high quality images of the products you are selling.

4. Trust and feedback

Many entrepreneurs who decide to start their online business live in fear that someone, usually their competition, can leave negative comments on their web-site. That is one of the biggest errors start-ups make by not giving the opportunity to new customers to express their feedback of the products or services you sell. As the business owner you can filter the type of customers you want to receive feedback from. Accept negative reviews instead of deleting them and using them to take positive change to your online store. You can also include the voting option for your products.

5. Global Competition.

When launching your online business you have to keep in mind to use universal language. Set a certain currency with option of currency converter for selling worldwide. Having international business can be a risk. You must evaluate if it will be profitable in the long term.

6. Payment gateways

It is essential to ensure that there is no vanishing point and that the payment gateways work perfectly. Analysis tools such as Google Analytics or Piwik – the leading open source alternative have to be an essential tool for your online store. Through analytics you will be able to find out if your customers are on the desired page.

7. Quality labels

The number of customers who choose to shop online is constantly increasing. But the fear of putting card details to pay online product has not yet disappeared. With this type of distinctive quality try to overcome their resistance to leave personal data you will get more sales that way.

8. Packaging

An online store is a complete change from one of traditional distribution. It is very important that the packages you send will be the first contact that a customer has with your business. Remember that your customer’s relationship will remain virtual without having any physical contact. Do not forget that box that your customer receives is the first way of your company’s branding. Customer can save your box or use it for any purpose, so make sure that your brand is always well designed.

9. Delivery time

A customer has to know exactly when he will get the product. This data must be explicit. Ensure that you deliver the product or your service on the agreed time.

10. Order tracking

Some logistics companies offer the order tracking services. It is not essential but your online store will generate confidence and make sales if you have one.

11. Return Policy

This is one of the most common complaints of any online store. Flexible returns will help your business overcome resistance to buy and will get you more sales.

12. Funnel of online shopping

When promoting your online store there are five essential steps that you should always keep in mind: generating traffic, capturing records, nourishing desires, creating buyers and converting them into loyal customers. The last step is perhaps the most important. Spend all your efforts in getting loyal customers and take care of them.

13. Customer loyalty through branding

There are three keys to drive traffic to your website and get loyal customers: using search engines (SEM and SEO), blogging and being active on social media networks – all essential components in any online business.

14. Capturing leads

Maybe your page is generating a lot of traffic but if you do not get leads (a name and email of a visitor to keep in touch) that will not help your business to grow. When getting new leads it is very important having contests on your social media channels (actions through which users provide us with their e-mail).  You will need a good email marketing strategy in order to get sales with these newly created leads.

15. Growing interest

Especially through social media and buzz marketing (or word of mouth marketing) you will be able to grow the interest for your online store.

16. Using tools to increase your sales

Affiliate plans (banners on affiliate networks that pay per click), retargeting (chasing cookies) and M-Commerce (online shopping via mobile phone) are some of the techniques to create buyers in your online store.

17. Monitoring your performance

To get your online sales you have to build your customer loyalty, and to retain them is achieved by the use of web analytics. An online business cannot exist without constantly analysing the actions and try to correct the current errors. In a physical store it is much easier to observe every made move by a customer and from that point draw conclusions. But in e-commerce we need to bear in mind the analysis of actions and conversions.

18. Hiring the best freelancer to create a self-managed online store

The best way to create your online store is to create it with PrestaShop or WordPress as it is easy to manage by anyone. A specialized and experienced freelancer in creating this kind of business can guarantee the success of your first e-commerce business presence and save you some time.