How many times have you thought of launching your Ecommerce marketplace?

Or, are you still puzzled about taking your Business online with an app similar to ecommerce mammoths like Walmart or Amazon? 

This year’s old question has been answered by the unprecedented shift in shopping dynamics during the COVID-19 outbreak. The ecommerce industry is flaring up in regions where it was never heard of; on the contrary, now online purchase and contactless product deliveries are becoming the new constant. 

With consumers singing different tunes, this is the right time to hire ecommerce developers to ensure high sales and higher revenues.

All in all, shopping online is not anymore a convenience or a luxury, now – “It’s Needfulness”.

“Online Shopping is one of the most popular online activities worldwide.”

From the above stats, it’s clearly defined, Ecommerce has been booming in the past few years.

Simply put, the amount of interest in ecommerce at present is undefined! But, on the contrary, many people want to know how to start an ecommerce business.

So, if your business is to make huge profits quickly – the goal should be a scalable and profitable business that lasts. And, to last, you need to have a long-term vision for creating an asset that brings financial worth to the market.

Also Read: How much does it cost to build an app?

And, what can be better than “eCommerce Marketplace”.

How To Kickstart An Ecommerce Marketplace From Scratch In 6 Easy Steps

1. Explore and Analyze Ecommerce Business Models
2. Outset with eCommerce niche Research
3. Ratify Target Market and Product Ideas
4. Sign Up Your Ecommerce Business & Brand
5. Decide Your Business Plan
6. Build Your Online Store & Attract Customers

Online retail business is a thriving vertical, that’s right! But, I have seen numerous ecommerce businesses struggle to get traction. So, use the information pocketed here to establish your ecommerce business, secure yourself legally, get your finances streamlined, market and sell your product quickly and start the development of your online store. 

Trust me; there’s nothing more rewarding than starting your own business from scratch and watching it grow.

Creating an ecommerce business takes more than choosing the right ecommerce development company, jotting product listings, and starting to sell products online. Remember, even the best business ideas can flop if you aren’t bringing enough traffic to your app. So, without any ado, let’s uncover how to build an ecommerce marketplace in 6 easy steps. 

Step 1: Explore and Analyze Ecommerce Business Models

Starting your research is the first imperative for building an ecommerce app. But don’t operate off of a hunch. 

After all, growing any business is a healthy investment. 

There’s not even a single business structure that fits all shoes. Service-based business, digital product sales, software and physical products are merely the tip of the iceberg. So, before you decide what to sell online, you need to understand the different business models available.  

It’s not rocket science to understand, but it does impact your business structure.  

Let’s have an insight!

If you love the idea of having your own warehouse full of products, then you should invest more upfront and work with a warehousing or wholesaling model. Have a business idea for the perfect product or a favourite product you wish to sell under your brand? 

Simple, look into white labelling and manufacturing. 

Then, there comes subscriptions, where you precisely curate a set of products or a single product to be delivered at regular intervals to your customers. Besides, if you want to convert a profit without touching your product or investing heavily at the starting, dropshipping is a good choice.  

Step 2: Outset With Ecommerce Niche Research

It’s painstaking to find ecommerce websites that are flooded with numerous products, dozens of categories and no real focus. 

Until you have a behemoth budget, it’s daunting to be the next big mammoth or Amazon. You have to niche down to run a profitable ecommerce store. 

So, choosing your niche is the most crucial step in starting your online business. Start this process by identifying the right ecommerce developers in Dubai that are already working in this space. 

But, make sure the area is competitive – an absence of competition often portrays that there’s no market, either. Simultaneously, don’t select an overly crowded niche, however, skip anything dominated by big brands. 

If, still, you are perplexed with this, drill down further on what you want to do – the more specific you will be, the lesser the competition you will face. 

Funnelling down the choices also benefits you from having a lot of “shoulder” niches related to what your business is about. 

Step 3: Ratify Target Market and Product Ideas

Possibly by now you would have identified a specific niche and business model for your ecommerce store, and you would be curious to start hunting for products to sell. 

But, before you brainstorm about product ideas, consider personas. You can’t expect people to purchase if they don’t know who you are and what you are selling. 

Notably, it would be best if you found answers to a handful of questions for validating your target market

• Who are you?
• What does your store present?
• Who are your ideal customers?

Besides, all you need to do is project a consistent brand image that represents your brand name.

Moreover, before you invest in the product, though, evaluate it precisely. Even if you have opted for the dropshipping model, you want to validate it carefully and get a feel for the product in your store so you can identify any potential challenges and prepare customer service scripts to answer FAQs. 

An element of validating your idea is to find its viability. Can your suppliers meet your pricing? What about the backup plan if suppliers fall through? 

Step 4: Sign Up Your Ecommerce Business & Brand

If you want to kickstart a successful business, you certainly need a brand that portrays your business ethics. Identifying your persona makes developing an ecommerce brand a lot easier. For instance, you can keep the girly element and images aside if your target audience is corporate personnel that are interested in living a sustainable life. 

But before you establish your store and get into the nitty-gritty of developing a brand – there are some basic steps you need to pay attention to.

• Register your business
• Choose your store’s name
• Get your business licenses
• Get your employer identification number
• Get your business licenses and permits
• Find the right suppliers
• Create logo
• Get a prototype

Step 5: Decide Your Business Plan 

Finally, you have a groundbreaking idea of what your business should look like. You have your target audience, your product niche and also your brand name. 

Now is an excellent time to step ahead and put your business plan on paper and evaluate your startup budget and financial considerations. 

• Inventory Management 

Several entrepreneurs steer away from selling physical products online because of inventory concerns. But, with online stores, you don’t need to store products in your garage. You can utilize fulfilment centres to manage the inventory on your behalf. 

Also, inventory management software helps keep your business organized, especially if you are dealing with a big inventory of items. But, it’s not recommended for beginners. Rather, it’s better to keep it simple when you start off. Just order products straight from the manufacturer and have them sent directly to the fulfilment centre. 

• Financial Management

The most crucial aspect of a business is finance—Breakdown it into pointers, both in unit sales and time durations. 

Remember, any actual business is an investment of resources. Indeed, it’s a thumb rule to take resources (like an ecommerce store) and turn it into a return. 

But, still, many entrepreneurs don’t consider the time to project their revenue and expenses. And, if you are among them not figuring out the profit margin, you will fail. 

The business planning phase is part of financial planning, especially when you want to iron out details like staff, product sourcing, logistics and choosing among leading ecommerce companies in the UAE. Make sure you vet them precisely before making any decision. 

Step 6: Build Your Online Store & The Word-Of-Mouth For Your Marketplace

When you are officially an ecommerce owner, you must register your domain name or any redirect URLs that are relevant. Besides, you will need the design into your app as you are on the last step of finally building your store. 

Whatever design you choose needs to be compatible with your ecommerce software. To be precise, there are numerous ecommerce shopping cart platforms, but choosing the right ecommerce software is not as easy as it may sound. 

It would be best to be cautious in evaluating features like features, loading speed, compatibility with other payment gateways and business structures, ecommerce development company expertise, and experience. 

Now, you have your app but, the most important thing is “How To Attract Customers”?

At the time you choose your cart, it’s essential to consider its search engine friendly features. They are not all the same. 

The conventional approach of keyword stuffing is long gone, but SEO is still a game player. All you need to do is keep keywords and search terms in mind on each page of your site, in your URLs and in your ad campaigns. 

Keep in mind driving traffic to your site.

Ultimately, the best ecommerce apps and websites invest significantly in online marketing.

Why Should You Really Consider Ecommerce Marketplace?

Releasing an e-commerce marketplace for your business needs investments. But rest assured, it offers impeccable returns. Here, I have pocketed some irresistible reasons to make your business pervasive with eCommerce apps:

• Beginners Luck Works

While industry giants are drifting to online shopping, startups also benefit by having an eCommerce app. While we are discussing the benefits of e-commerce apps for startups, 42% of small scale businesses are already online and reaping benefits. 

• Consumer Inclining For Online Shopping

Approximately 5.27 billion phone users globally, and 64% of smartphone users use their mobile devices to make online purchases. It clearly portrays the online shopping trend that has outgrown during the pandemic. 

As per reports, e-retail sales generated approximately $4.2 trillion in 2020, which portrays a staggering growth of more than 25%. 

So, without any second thought, bring your business where your customers are – ONLINE! 

• Bigger Customer Base 

No doubt taking your business online with e-commerce apps allows you to reach out to a global audience. A more considerable number of people are able to find your business and access the products/services offered by you, surpassing the location barriers. 

This eventually leads to higher sales and increased revenue for your business. 

All Set To Start Your Ecommerce Marketplace?

What’s holding you back? 

With so many successful ecommerce businesses flooding the market, it’s time to think big and start your own. Yes, with the right ecommerce developers in Dubai, you can sell almost anything online!  

Hopefully, this blog will have answered your questions on how to start an ecommerce store? After all, developing and running a successful ecommerce store doesn’t need to be pricey or an arduous journey.

Besides, if you have got your elbow grease and time, you could roll out a profitable online store for a few dollars per month.