What is eCommerce?

eCommerce allows consumers to electronically exchange goods and services with no barriers of time or distance. Electronic commerce has expanded rapidly over the past five years and is predicted to continue at this rate, or even accelerate. In the near future the boundaries between "conventional" and "electronic" commerce will become increasingly blurred as more and more businesses move sections of their operations onto the Internet.

How do I start to trade online?

There are a few basic steps to follow in order to start trading online:

1. Website

First thing you will require is a website to house your online shop. Fluid New Media has an eCommerce Website Package available, to suit all your online trading needs. This can be fully customised to compliment your brand including logo, colour scheme, address etc. Click here to see a live demo of the Sensational Kids online shop.

2. Payments

The next step, you need a means of accepting online payments. This usually entails obtaining a merchant account and accepting credit cards through an online payment gateway (some smaller sites stick with simpler methods of accepting payments such as PayPal). Fluid New Media can assist you in finding a suitable payment gateway.

3. Marketing Strategy

You must make plans to market your Website online so your new store will be found by search engines. Our software comes standard with a search-engine-friendly shopping cart, but we would also recommend that you consider investing in Google® AdWords to begin your online marketing efforts. We can also provide a solution for you with something from our Email Marketing services.

4. Security

If you are to accept your users’ credit card details, Fluid New Media would strongly recommend that a secure certificate is obtained for the website. Internet shoppers demand a high level of security, to ensure their privacy and data are protected - If you accept credit cards on your Web site you'll need to secure your transactions with a digital SSL Certificate from an industry-leading provider. We can assist in this process. Each payment gateway company will have their own guides and rules on setting up as an online merchant and this will ultimately be up to you to decide on what level of security that you would like to invest in.