In this day and age, it's not enough to create a basic website with details about your company's line of unique products. People want to be able to purchase them online as well. No amount of store locators or lists of retailers will take the place of an online store when it comes to convenience, so if you want to stay competitive you had better make sure customers can shop on your website. Here are the essential components you will need to arrange to have a working online store.


Catalog

The essential part of any shopping experience is being able to look at all the products, compare them, and choose which one is most suited to your needs and budget. As such all online stores need to have a catalog of products available for purchase. Catalog items should contain pictures, sizing info, price, and what they can be used for in your industry. We love the user friendly design of the website for Wheels Auto Dealer Supplies. If you click on the link you will see an easy-to-navigate left-side menu with hundreds of marketing accessories, and each menu link leads to full product descriptions and photos, along with a price and an add-to-cart option. Great functionality and intuitive design. Pre-made store templates are available in many website building programs as well as through affiliate marketing programs run by companies like Amazon, which come complete with products.

Basket

If your company website already contains a catalog of products, you're one step ahead. Now what you need to do is design a shopping basket system which will allow customers to add products from the catalog into a virtual cart or basket for purchase. Don't forget that if your company offers choices in the form of different sizes or colors, there needs to be a form on the site in which people can specify which version of the product they want to buy.

Secure Checkout

Once the customer has loaded his basket with the items he wishes to purchase, now you need to provide him with a way to pay for his purchases without leaving home. You can set up online merchant accounts with credit card companies and banks but you will have to make sure your site is as tight as a drum and that the customers' information cannot be stolen. Often the best way for amateurs to start out is to use Paypal.com, the online intermediary, so that customers will not have to trust you with their payment info.

Shipping and Handling

Once the order has been submitted and paid for someone - perhaps you, perhaps your warehouse staff - will have to package and ship the items to the individual in Toronto who ordered them. Automatic email messages are the easiest way to keep orders straight. You will also need a shipping and tracking business account with the postal service and couriers who can deliver your items for you.