E-commerce store start-up

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Spitfire77

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Hi
I'm wanting to set-up an online store. To date, I've only been using olx and Gumtree to sell stuff but it's not reaching the right audience.

I've recently created a FB and Instagram page, been considering selling through FB marketplace but I still think having my own website will be better.

I'm not really sure where to begin or how to go about it, in terms of domain registering, web page development, integrating payment options and ensuring security.

Where do I start?
 
Hi, this is our domain of expertise ;). Having your own website means, if you do it right, you'll be able to reach the right audience anywhere on the planet.

You can buy a WordPress or WooCommerce hosting package from us that includes a free .co.za domain. Then you can set up your WordPress website and your WooCommerce store.

Getting started can be daunting, so we created a handy guide to walk beginners through the entire process step by step: https://www.hostafrica.co.za/blog/web-tutorials/create-website-wordpress/

Hope it helps! If you have any more questions, feel free to phone support at +27 21 554 3096.
 
@Spitfire_imported

Having your own eCommerce store will definitely help you target your customers more effectively when doing marketing campaigns like Facebook, Google & Instagram ads. When it comes to marketing we can go into depth with this but for now, I'll only share the basics with you to get started.


Website:
I highly recommend WordPress + WooCommerce plugin to display our products online, combined with powerful page builders you can really create something stunning and unique.

Domains:
You can purchase these with most hosting companies, an example would be with @HOSTAFRICA (Pty) Ltd, @Kyle @ Absolute Hosting

Web Page Development
As mentioned before, WordPress + WooCommerce is a great platform, you can do this yourself if you have the knowledge or you can get someone (like us :giggle:) to design and develop your eCommerce store.

Payment Methods
Local companies like PayFast, PayStack are leading in the eCommerce industry. We've been using them for a while now as well as your clients and have not experienced any problems. Both of these companies take about 3% as a transaction fee.

Ensuring Security
When WordPress is configured, set up and maintained properly not a lot can go wrong, we've been managing client eCommerce sites that drive over 100k in visitors each month for a couple of years now and we've successfully blocked numerous attacks on their sites.


I hope this info helps,
Regards
 
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May I suggest putting your name down for a beta hosting package and you can test out Wordpress hosting at no cost

Beta Testers Required - New WordPress Server

Good afternoon MyBB. In the pursuit of ever improved WordPress hosting services we have launched a new server catered toward WordPress and are looking to run a beta test for some real world usage and feedback from those who participate. If you are keen on taking part in this beta test for the...
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HOSTAFRICA (Pty) Ltd said:
Hi, this is our domain of expertise ;). Having your own website means, if you do it right, you'll be able to reach the right audience anywhere on the planet.

You can buy a WordPress or WooCommerce hosting package from us that includes a free .co.za domain. Then you can set up your WordPress website and your WooCommerce store.

Getting started can be daunting, so we created a handy guide to walk beginners through the entire process step by step: https://www.hostafrica.co.za/blog/web-tutorials/create-website-wordpress/

Hope it helps! If you have any more questions, feel free to phone support at +27 21 554 3096.
Click to expand...
Thank you the guide was very useful.
 
Ruan @ Webluno said:
@Spitfire_imported

Having your own eCommerce store will definitely help you target your customers more effectively when doing marketing campaigns like Facebook, Google & Instagram ads. When it comes to marketing we can go into depth with this but for now, I'll only share the basics with you to get started.


Website:
I highly recommend WordPress + WooCommerce plugin to display our products online, combined with powerful page builders you can really create something stunning and unique.

Domains:
You can purchase these with most hosting companies, an example would be with @HOSTAFRICA (Pty) Ltd, @Kyle @ Absolute Hosting

Web Page Development
As mentioned before, WordPress + WooCommerce is a great platform, you can do this yourself if you have the knowledge or you can get someone (like us :giggle:) to design and develop your eCommerce store.

Payment Methods
Local companies like PayFast, PayStack are leading in the eCommerce industry. We've been using them for a while now as well as your clients and have not experienced any problems. Both of these companies take about 3% as a transaction fee.

Ensuring Security
When WordPress is configured, set up and maintained properly not a lot can go wrong, we've been managing client eCommerce sites that drive over 100k in visitors each month for a couple of years now and we've successfully blocked numerous attacks on their sites.


I hope this info helps,
Regards
Click to expand...
Thanks, you summed it up very nicely as I'm still getting used to all the jargon
 
Jade @ Absolute Hosting said:
May I suggest putting your name down for a beta hosting package and you can test out Wordpress hosting at no cost

Beta Testers Required - New WordPress Server

Good afternoon MyBB. In the pursuit of ever improved WordPress hosting services we have launched a new server catered toward WordPress and are looking to run a beta test for some real world usage and feedback from those who participate. If you are keen on taking part in this beta test for the...
mybroadband.co.za mybroadband.co.za
Click to expand...
This will be great, would love to try this. Do I just add a post to the mentioned thread?
 
Please go and check out Shopify, really easy to use and they start at $29 per month.
 
Spitfire_imported said:
I've recently created a FB and Instagram page, been considering selling through FB marketplace but I still think having my own website will be better.
Click to expand...
Why not...FB marketplace is free.

Forget about a website (for now) and start using the free tools with tons of traffic. You can even run FB ads to your marketplace ads. Sign up for YOCO for free and setup payment page/link. From your Yoco app you send the link to your FB customers for payment via email or whatsapp. All for FREE, minus the processing fee of course...if you want to accept credit/debit cards.

...and then there is bidorbuy too. Forget about a site for now.

I'm not really sure where to begin or how to go about it, in terms of domain registering, web page development, integrating payment options and ensuring security.
Click to expand...
Precisely why you should not do it. And most responses here don't care, they just want your business. Beware...

 
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JustAsk said:
Why not...FB marketplace is free.

Forget about a website (for now) and start using the free tools with tons of traffic. You can even run FB ads to your marketplace ads. Sign up for YOCO for free and setup payment page/link. From your Yoco app you send the link to your FB customers for payment via email or whatsapp. All for FREE, minus the processing fee of course...if you want to accept credit/debit cards.

...and then there is bidorbuy too. Forget about a site for now.


Precisely why you should not do it. And most responses here don't care, they just want your business. Beware...

Click to expand...
Thank you. I definitely will be using FB marketplace because it's free.

My only reservation is that I haven't used FB marketplace for my own shopping, and I'm not sure how likely or comfortable others are to use FB marketplace. But it's a great platform nonetheless.

Hosting can be quite expensive especially when you are just starting out. I don't mind having a website which pays for itself but at the begining its rough.
 
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werfie said:
Please go and check out Shopify, really easy to use and they start at $29 per month.
Click to expand...

+1 for Shopify. Set and forget solution and all you have to do is make sure your products and content is correct and frequently updated.

Wordpress and Woocommerce can **** with all their bugs, issues, and almost daily plugin updates needed to patch holes.

It is free for a reason.

Don’t forget your marketing though. Websites need traffic and you need to go and find those people and bring them to your site.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Spitfire_imported said:
Hi
I'm wanting to set-up an online store. To date, I've only been using olx and Gumtree to sell stuff but it's not reaching the right audience.

I've recently created a FB and Instagram page, been considering selling through FB marketplace but I still think having my own website will be better.

I'm not really sure where to begin or how to go about it, in terms of domain registering, web page development, integrating payment options and ensuring security.

Where do I start?
Click to expand...

Have you considered bidorbuy?
 
maxxis said:
+1 for Shopify. Set and forget solution and all you have to do is make sure your products and content is correct and frequently updated.

Wordpress and Woocommerce can **** with all their bugs, issues, and almost daily plugin updates needed to patch holes.

It is free for a reason.

Don’t forget your marketing though. Websites need traffic and you need to go and find those people and bring them to your site.
Click to expand...
I've also heard that WordPress is not user friendly. But I'm keen on giving it try with the beta testing and see how it goes.

Have you any experience with Wix? How does it compare to Shopify?
 
Spitfire_imported said:
I've also heard that WordPress is not user friendly. But I'm keen on giving it try with the beta testing and see how it goes.

Have you any experience with Wix? How does it compare to Shopify?
Click to expand...
I’d stay away from Wix and Shopify. Those services provide an all in one solution and is quite easy to set up but it comes with a price and if you ever wanted to migrate, it would be a real pain. (Shopify is better suited for an online store.)

WordPress + WooCommerce is free. You’d just need to pay for hosting and spend a bit of time to set things up. A bit of a learning curve but not too tough.
 
I'm also not 100% sure that getting your own site is really the way to go. I've done this before and its fine, but the main conundrum you will be facing is the fact that you can spend loads of time and money building this thing and nobody is going to go there unless you actively drive traffic there - and early on that will be via paid ads, social media, email lists (which you probably dont have yet) etc. So by all means start looking into it, and I'd probably recommend giving Shopify a try, but also consider platforms where there is already MASSIVE traffic that you could capitalise on e.g. Facebook Marketplace as has been mentioned, but maybe also selling your stuff via Takealot.
 
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