7 steps to Build an eCommerce Website

In the age of the internet, eCommerce is attracting more and more customers. An online store is becoming a crucial element to any business plan, but starting one can seem to be a monumental task. This article will give you some simple steps to get your store up and running in no time.

Amanbo is an international e-commerce platform that focuses on China and Africa two-way trading, this online mall provides African buyers a wide range of high-quality Chinese goods. The first branch - Amanbo.co.ke was set up in Nairobi,

1.Decide What You're Selling. You should consider narrowing your scope to capture a niche market, however, not so narrow that it's hard to find customers. For example, if you are thinking of selling books, selling vintage books might be a better option. On the other hand, only selling 17th century Mongolian ghost stories probably won't take you very far. If you are serious about your online store, you will probably spend a lot of time constructing and tweaking your website and especially marketing it, so choose something you have some interest in.

2.Select a shopping cart. The shopping cart software allows you to set up your products and services for sale on the Internet. There are many commercially available shopping carts available to choose from. You will want to select the cart that offers the functionality you are looking for.

• You will want to look for a cart that offers merchant tools, supports many payment options, offers configuration for shipping and taxes, offers real-time statistics and reporting, and has the appropriate security.
• You will also want to select a shopping cart that is compatible with your payment gateway. This will illuminate the cost associated with integrating your shopping cart and merchant account.

3.Choose your Ecommerce platform. There are a ton of options out there, so before you choose you should sit down and decide exactly what features you do and do not want in an online store.

4.Set Up Your Store. This is where the work comes in. You'll need to get all of your details together and sit down and fill out all of the necessary information. All of the above mentioned sites are easy to use and don't require much tech savvy.

• Enter all your products, payment options, shipping options, applicable taxes, etc first. Check and double check them; it doesn't matter how good your site looks if the customers can't use it. That being said, it is extremely important how your site looks. Obviously, you need to make sure it is professional and aesthetically pleasing, however, you also want to make sure it is easy to navigate and find products.
• You should organize all of your products into intuitive categories and sub categories. If your hosting site has "featured products" or "best selling products" options, you should set those up as well. You should visit your store front often and try to navigate yourself frequently during the set up process.
• Having friends and family test it out can also be quite helpful in figuring out any problems with your layout or checkout process.

5.Set up your payment gateway. The payment gateway is the application that connects your website shopping cart to your merchant account. The job of the payment gateway is to collect the credit card information from the customer, encrypt it and sent it to the merchant account for processing.

• When selecting a payment gateway you want to select one that is compatible with your shopping cart, offers good pricing, has the ability to facilitates all 
• payment functions (payments, voids, refunds, etc), offers robust fraud protection, is PCI compliant and has an interface for you to run reports on your sales.

6.Select a merchant account. The merchant account’s job is to authorize the card that is being used for payment and then deposit those authorized transactions into your bank account. It’s important to choose a merchant account that offers good rates on processing, has 24 hour turn around on settled transactions, offers live customer support, has high approval rates and low merchant attrition. You want a processor that stands behind your account and consults you as to the very best way to set up your eCommerce website.

7.Market Your Store. There are a lot of stores out there, so make sure to market, market, market. An online store is not like physical store where people will just pass by on their way to other things even if you aren't advertising.

• You will need to make sure to use a lot of keywords in your store text and create many back links (links to your store from other sites) in order to drum up traffic and move your way up the search engine results.
• First you should research keywords by searching for them in Google or Yahoo! or your search engine of choice and gauging the popularity of the keyword. If it gets millions of hits in .25 seconds, it's going to be very hard to climb up the results and get your store seen. At the same time, if it gets 4 hits, odds are you aren't going to drum up much business that way either, so be sure to choose a happy medium.
• Once you choose your keywords, be sure to use them! Blogging is a great way to do this, especially if you are posting relevant, interesting posts and not just advertisements. For example, if you have a vintage book store, you might have a blog where you discuss interesting passages or tidbits or articles about vintage books with links back to your store. #*Make sure to use your target keywords in your blog frequently. You'll also want to get as many subscribers as possible and try to get as many people as possible to link back to you.

5 Ways to Shop for Clothes Online

   Online shopping in Kenya is thriving, and many shoppers are taking advantage of the many benefits it offers. So, if you are planning on shopping for clothes online, a wide trendy selection of choices awaits you. There are several reputable online shopping Kenyan sites that offer the latest fashion styles, giving you access to varied fashion trends just with a click of a mouse. Yeah, it’s facile as it sounds. You only need to place your order on one of the Kenyan online shopping sites and wait for delivery, which can take up to seven business days depending on the site you use. Well, here are top five places to buy clothes online in Kenya.

1. Jumia Kenya

 We all know Jumia as it has already built a stellar reputation in Kenya as one of the biggest online clothing stores Kenya. Actually, it is a favorite for many, and it has continued proving that you should choose them every time you desire new clothes. Jumia offers clothes for both men and women.  The brands you can find on Jumia include JunaRose, Desire, Chic Lady, Coral Fashions, Johari, Style in Grace, The Arrow, and many others. You can find tops, trousers and dresses that you’ve always admired. You can check them out and decide if the site offers what you need.

 

2,Amanbo

 It offers a huge collection of clothes that you can choose. This site has different styles including Cotton, chiffon, denim shirt, swimwear and other options. They have many sellers from china, offering different clothes,And they promise you can get a better service at an unbeatable price，With the many options it offers, Amanbo Kenya is indeed a good place to buy clothes online in Kenya.

3. Kilimall

   This site seems to be earning the trust of many online shoppers in Kenya. I have heard claims that their prices are lower compared to what Jumia Kenya offers. Kilimall too offers dresses, skirts, tops, sweaters, shorts, lingerie, sleepwear and many more. Visit the site to check what they offer. You can make it your favorite shopping site if it meets your interest.

4. BidorBuy Kenya

  Here is another good option that lists items from different clothing stores in Nairobi. Buyers can choose between new or secondhand items, and some items have warranties. You can add your favorite items on your watchlist or buy immediately. This online shopping Kenyan site allows shoppers to bid on products.

5. Rupu Kenya

  They do not offer quite a huge collection, but it is worth checking them out. You can find a good item while browsing the site.

  

  Well, here are the top places to buy clothes online in Kenya. You can choose any that you want, or you can compare prices before choosing one. One good tip is to choose Kenyan online shopping sites that offer a huge collection. This gives you the privilege to compare brands and also lets you shop all your items from one place.

How to make shopping online

Online shopping is a best way to save time and get unconditional discounts, it helps you getting better prices and finding an item that’s not available in the market or stores.

Imagine shopping before the trend of online shopping was launched. It was never so convenient for us to shop products before the online shopping came into introduction. Physically visiting stores, suffering, travelling long in critical conditions and getting tired were the parts of shopping in old days. Through online shopping, we are having access to different stores, brands, products and services from all around the world.

Although, the online shopping has become very common now but some people still worry about it and consider it as an unsecured move without experiencing it. It is purely a secured process and improving its security measures day by day as the technology is growing more advanced.

1,Have a solid research before making an online order for any product. Use different search engines to increase in your product-knowledge and try searching for different shopping

engines.

2.Have a well-determined budget before placing an order. Watch out all the online shopping terms like tax and shipping.

3.Make strong analysis over the product you are going to purchase. This will determine if you need a long lasting product or a product that will just get you through the year.

4.Browse for some online websites after having an idea of what you want and where you want to get it from. Get a detailed overview of the website and check what options can be suitable for you. There are different standards available on different shopping websites, you can search your required product categorically and by size, style, price, color and a variety of other factors.

5.Go through the online reviews if available on the website from the stores. You can get a firm knowledge for the product you are going to purchase from the online reviews.

6.Search through your choices closely. Once you have found what you need, click on it. You can add numerous items to the cart or a wish-list to get back to. The items added can always be deleted if you decide you aren’t going to buy them.

7.Provide the necessary information required and pay. Usually paying through credit card is allowed on all the stores, but some work with PayPal or electronic checking as well.

8.Determine your shipping preference, product shipment usually takes longer time. You may find many sites that offer free shipping.

9.You get a confirmation email after the order is placed, check that out.

How to Buy Shoes Online

You should be aware of any foot problems or conditions you have, such as flat feet.Do you love shoes but hate physically going shopping? Shopping for shoes online may be a good choice for you. It can sometimes be difficult to purchase a shoe without trying it on, but these steps should help you out.

1.Be sure you know exactly the size of your foot. Since you will not be able to try the shoes on before buying, it is important to know the exact size of your foot. Look at the size of the shoe which currently fits you well.

•  If you want to be very precise with your foot size, buy a Brannock foot measurer online. This is the tool that stores use in order to measure the length and width of your foot. Buying this device will help ensure you are buying the correct size.
• Shopping for style is slightly harder online since you can't see how they actually look on you.Buying shoes for comfort is generally easier to do online

2.Determine what kind of shoe you want to buy. Are you looking for comfort, style, or a mix of both? These are important considerations to make before you decide on any shoe to buy. Determining the type of shoe will also help you narrow in on proper search terms.

• Shopping for style is slightly harder online since you can't see how they actually look on you.Buying shoes for comfort is generally easier to do online.

3.Enter what you are searching for into Google, Amanbo, or your favorite search engine/shopping website. For example, if you are looking for high heels, search "high heels" in the search field of whatever service you are using.

• You may also wish to add the size in your search term, but many websites will allow you to select a size.
• If you know of a particular company that you want to buy from, add the name of the company to the search term.
•  If you have a certain color or design in mind, also add these words to your search term.

4.Once you have found a shoe which appeals to you, look up the exact name of the shoe and read customer reviews.Customer reviews will be very useful, and something you do not necessarily get when shopping for shoes physically.

• Amanbo may be the most helpful in finding these reviews, even if you do not intend to buy the shoes from Amazon.
• If you have any foot condition, be sure to look for reviews mentioning problems the shoe may have with the condition.
•  Determine the correct size for the shoe. Sizing is not uniform across all companies, so you will need to figure out which size is right for the particular company. Many online stores will have a chart, but reading customer reviews will also help with this task.

5.Compare prices for the same shoe from multiple websites. Certain online stores will have sales or offer the shoes at lower prices. Spend some time scouring through different search results before making your final purchase decision.

•  There are also websites which help you with this process. Look up "compare shoe prices" in your favorite search engine to find these websites.
• Avoid sites like eBay when buying shoes since they will likely be used or have problems.

6.If you have any concerns with the shoe, feel free to call or e-mail the company with questions. 

If you have flat feet, for instance, ask the company how the shoe can support your condition.

•  Be wary of any company which refuses to respond to questions or is dismissive of you. When buying shoes online, you want a company which will be responsive to concerns.

7.Once you feel confident with your shoe choice, buy the shoe. Be sure whatever service you are using is safe and secure before entering credit card information. You can also use services like PayPal if you are unsure about the website.

•  Be sure the service accepts returns. There is a high chance that the shoe will not fit exactly right once it actually comes. No matter how much thought goes into the purchase, you will never know until you try it on.

How to Create a Shopping Cart

If you sell products online through a website, you need a shopping cart to make it easy for buyers to pay you. A shopping cart is a program that allows the buyer to select products; it also calculates tax and shipping charges, if appropriate, processes payment and records shipping and billing addresses. Shopping carts are so common that many buyers won't bother dealing with a website that doesn't have one.

1,Obtain a merchant account either through your bank or an online merchant service. Both will charge a number of fees in order to process the buyers' credit card charges and deposit the money into your checking account.

2,Check with your web hosting company to see if it offers a shopping cart free of charge or for a small monthly fee. If so, you can can add it to your website with a few clicks of your mouse. 

    The hosting company will provide you with instructions on how to do this, as well as a means to access your shopping cart directly to get reports, including total sales per month and sales taxes collected.

3,Use Paypal's shopping cart. Paypal is trusted by most online buyers and if you add its shopping cart to your site, Paypal handles your transactions for a small fee. If you use Paypal, you do not have to get your own merchant account to accept credit cards.

4,Take advantage of open source software to get a free shopping cart you can add to your site. Open source software is developed in a collaborative manner, and anyone can download it for their own use. An open source shopping cart comes with documentation and technical support, making it as easy to use as shopping carts you pay for.

5.Buy software that will help you install a shopping cart on your website. You will be able to customize your cart and add features as needed when your business grows. The price of shopping cart software ranges from about $65 to more than $200.

6.Program your own shopping cart if you're able to, using Hypertext Preprocessor and Structured Query Language. This is usually too complex a task unless you're a professional web designer.

Tips:

1.   You may be able to make additional sales by inviting your buyers to create user accounts on your website and then save items in their carts to return and purchase at another time.

2.The more your shopping cart acts like a real shopping cart, the more comfortable your buyers will be. They should be able to "drop" items into the cart, see a list of what's in their cart, have the option to remove an item, and see the total cost of all items in the cart before checking out.

3.It is highly recommended to use Cross-border platform resources Amanbo.This platform can offer you shopping cart with no annual fee,Amanbo has launched it one-stop shopping project,this e-commerce platform deserve a try !

How to Start an eBusiness

With the online retail sales steadily growing, Amanbo predicts that e-commerce sales in Africa will continue to grow at a 10%, even capturing a small piece of that pie, would be a huge success.

How do you break into this e-commerce market? What steps should you take to and start ? And most importantly, how do you do so in a manner that sets you up for success.Maybe this follow

step will help you to build an eBusiness.

Step:

1,Plan your dream. Before you start thinking about all the tactical stuff you’re going to need to accomplish over the next little while (getting a website, finding products, getting your name out there etc.). Slow down and think strategy for a moment or two. What do you want to sell – you literally have millions of options, and you can’t sell all of them, so narrow your field and look for your own little niche. A good starting point: think about your interests and brainstorm if there’s a target market that can spin out of that. Watches, Baby Clothes, Sports Memorabilia. What strikes your fancy?

2.Create a business plan. Next, sit down and write a serious business plan for yourself. It doesn’t need to be a behemoth of an undertaking. Simply set a few realistic goals, reasonable budget, time frame and take a good hard look at what you’re trying to accomplish. Is it feasible and is it a viable money-making opportunity? Consider your target market – is it too much for a small start up to tackle? If so, focus your efforts on a smaller and more manageable niche and then work on growing it out once you’ve reached profitability. Is it too small to reach and sustain adequate levels of profitability over time? If the answer is yes, look to expand your product offering so it meets the needs of a larger market. Or look to sell something else. Then create a road map of all the tasks you need to accomplish and the due dates and milestones you’re going to attach to each one.

3.Find suppliers. Most online sellers, don’t create their own products from scratch, they locate and resell those products for a profit. A significant advantage to selling on line? Such as Amanbo give you a new choice,they have millions items and a large number of Chinese wholesale supplier,they promise you can save purchasing cost 10%,Amanbo locate a wholesale supplier who rather than shipping inventory to you, will ship straight to your end customer once an order is placed. This is called a drop ship supplier.

4.Market your new store. Once you’ve got your inventory built out and have your ebusiness up and running, you’ll need to spread the word, and get your name out there. This can include submitting your site to search engines, sending out press releases, pay-per-click advertising campaigns, and a number of other options. Whatever strategies you tackle ensure you can track the performance of each one. This allows you to assess which strategies resonate with your target market and which are a drain on your precious capital.

5.Provide good customer service. Providing great customer support will set you apart from the competition and encourage repeat business, which in turn will make you money and keep you in ebusiness.

6.Keep it fresh. Keep updating your product lines, your website, stay in contact with your customer base so they keep coming back and you keep making sales.

How to start an online shop

If you're ready to be in charge of your own destiny, but don’t have the capital to buy a franchise or open up a storefront, consider starting an online business. When your store is online, you can reach millions of customers instead of whoever happens to wander in - plus, you don't have to pay for retail space. However, like with any business, you'll need an excellent product and a solid marketing plan. See Step 1 to learn what it takes to start your business online.

Part 1: Setting Up Your shop

Define your product or service. Starting an online business gives you the benefit of having access to millions of customers, but you also have a lot more competition. No matter what you're trying to sell, you can bet that hundreds more online retailers have a similar idea. What differentiates your product from other similar products? To help your product stand apart from the rest, you'll need to find a niche.

1,Offer expertise in an area. Even if the product itself isn't very unique, your expertise might be a strong selling point. If you're selling a line of skincare products, for example, it helps if you have a degree in a field related to skin health.

2,Check into the competition. Figure out what isn't already being offered, and find a way to fill the hole with your product.

 Part 2: Creating your online store

Register your business.  Your online business needs to be registered according to your state's laws. Choose an official business name and fill out the appropriate paperwork to make your business official.

1,Before you register your business. it can help to have a business plan laid out. Consider your production costs, shipping costs, taxes, and web hosting fees.

2,Know the business regulations in your state. and be sure to comply when you get things up and running.

3,Name your shop and goods.Like the name of any other business, go for something short and catchy that will be easy for people to remember. Visit the website of a registration company and test out some of the names you're interested in to determine whether they're available. Once you land on a good name, go ahead and register it.

Part 3: Selling your products

1,Be social. Whatever your business, whatever your venue, keeping your name in the the air is key to internet success. Have a business account on Facebook, Twitter, and Linked-In. If your business is graphically oriented, Whenever there is news of any kind—a new contract, a new page, a new entry, a new photo—cross-post it to all your social media sites. Also make sure those sites link back to your main website, and that your website has links to all of them.

2,Become an wholesale marketer. There are many companies and webmasters who use online wholesale programs to boost their online sales, and most of these wholesale programs are free to join. When you sign up for an affiliate program, an affiliate link with a unique affiliate ID will be assigned to you. The affiliate link is used for marketing the products of your merchant. When a visitor buys an item through your wholesale link, you earn wholesale commission.

   For example, if you are an distributor partner In Amanbo E-commerce platform,As an online clothing wholesaler you can advertise your products on their site. If a person visits your shop page, and clicks on the link that takes them to the Chinese Clothing page, and they purchase an t-shirt within a certain amount of time, you get your order profit on the sale.