Imagine 2 scenarios; moving from one location to the next in order to market your products & services. OR

Having cool money rolling into your account even while you slept, by just a click of your link. Which would you rather have? Yes, I heard you echo the later option. You definitely won't choose stress over comfort. But before you can start selling online, you need to first own and set up an ecommerce website.

This article highlights the elements of a good ecommerce website, the various types of ecommerce businesses and how you can implement these UX elements while creating a captivating WordPress website for your business.

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What's an E-commerce Website?

The term E-commerce is a modern-day technology that facilitates the trading of goods and/or services through electronic means, or more precisely, the internet. It involves a wide range of online activities, including online shopping, electronic payments, digital marketplaces, and more. E-commerce has become increasingly popular and has transformed the way people shop and conduct business, offering convenience and ease of accessing the global marketplace.

WordPress has emerged as the number one option for anyone hoping to launch their own website. WordPress has more than doubled in reach between 2012 and 2022, increasing from powering 15.98% of the web, to 43% as of August 2022. Business and website owners across the globe use WordPress because it is one of the simplest, most flexible, and most versatile content management systems (CMS) on the internet.

The creation of WordPress by Mike Little and Matt Mullenweg was inspired by a desire for a more elegant personal publishing system for business owners. The solution is built on MySQL and PHP, and licensed under the GPLv2 guidelines, so it’s free to use and modify.

Types of E-commerce Websites

There are 6 different categories of e-commerce platforms, each of which caters to different business models. They include:

1. Business- to- Business (B2B)

This involves the trade between two or more businesses/companies. An e-commerce website must be set up first before you can start making money.The wholesalers and producers who work with retailers are typically included in the trade channels.

2. Business- to- Customer (B2C)

The B2C model of business deals with the retail aspects of e-commerce, i.e. the selling of goods and services to the final consumer via online medium.

This model enables the consumer to have a detailed look at their proposed goods before placing an order. After placing your order, the company/agent receiving the order will then deliver the same to the consumer in a convenient time-frame. Some businesses that utilize this model of trading include Amazon, Flipkart, etc.

3. Customer-to-Customer (C2C)

customer can utilize this business model to sell old products and/or services to other consumers across online platforms. These transactions are conducted via a third-party platform; examples of such platforms are Quikr, OLX, and others.

4. Customer-to- Business (C2B)

C2B model is the exact opposite of a B2C model. The latter is provided to the customer by a company, whereas the C2B model gives end users the chance to market their goods and services to businesses. Examples are freelance platforms like Fiverr, Upwork etc.

5. Business-to- Administration (B2A)

(B2A)--This model enables online dealings between companies and public administration, i.e. the government by enabling the exchange of information through central websites.

It provides businesses with a platform to bid on government opportunities such as auctions, tenders, application submission, etc.

While the latter is serviced to the consumer by a business, the C2B model provides the end consumers with an opportunity to sell their products/ services to companies.. It provides businesses with a platform to bid on government opportunities such as auctions, tenders, application submission, etc.

6. Consumer -to-Administration (C2A)

The C2A platform is meant for consumers, who may use it for requesting information or posting feedback concerning public sectors directly to the government authorities/administration.

Elements of a Good E-commerce Website

Among the most important design considerations for ecommerce sites are simple website navigation, category page, product page and customer checkout. Generally speaking, a user must only need to click three times to get any information on your website. In the case of an ecommerce website, all action should lead to the checkout, and that’s what superior navigation is all about.

Look out for these features when building your WordPress e-commerce website:

A user-friendly menu that simplifies website navigation.

An advanced search function and filtering section, that enables shoppers to narrow down product lists and actually focus on only products they're interested in.

The products page should have high-quality photos of available products to include sections for featured products, best-sellers, exclusive items, product recommendations, customers reviews, and pop ups. These will encourage customers to continue exploring your website.

A customized call-to-action button which encourages customers to swiftly decide on their purchase.

Special offers and discounts options and lastly,

A check out option.

To improve user experience (UX) for your ecommerce websites, ensure your web page is visually appealing and easy to navigate so that any user who lands there would want to stay there and complete a purchase.

Create your WordPress website in 5 quick Steps

Want to know how to create an ecommerce website in a nutshell? Here’s the quick rundown.

1. Choose a Domain Name and web Hosting provider:

Your domain name is your store’s unique address on the web which represents your band For example, ComputerWiz.com.

Meanwhile, web hosting is like a remote computer that stores your website and then serves it to people whenever they visit it. An excellent example of a web host is Bluehost. Bluehost offers fast loading speed, cheat subscription plans and highly reliable network service.

Click onto the Bluehost website and create an account. Consider subscribing to the plan that well suits your budget.

Enter your account details to finalize the deal after creating a domain name.

2. Install WordPress on Bluehost with

zero installation charges. A number of hosting providers offer one-click WordPress installations. You will receive an email confirmation with your login details as soon as you join up with Bluehost. Upon logging in with this information, Bluehost will walk you through the installation of WordPress.Once the installation is complete, type in the name for your website, followed by the username and password.

Now that you have a WordPress website that is ready and blank, it's time to turn it into an e-commerce store that works perfectly.

3. Install an E-commerce Plug-in

Since there are no existing ecommerce features on the WordPress website, you'll need to install an e-commerce plug-in to enhance this functionality of your website.

Go to your WordPress dashboard, click on "plugins" and then "add new".

WooCommerce plugin is most popularly used for ecommerce. Upon activation, the WooCommerce setup wizard will help you through the complete setup process.

Easy digital downloads and WP ecommerce are two other ecommerce plugins.

4. Setup your WooCommerce website

This step has multiple tasks that involve you creating essential store pages, setting up a locale, understanding sales tax implications, and choosing a payment method. Next up is formatting your content using the WordPress block editor, which allows you to add text, images, videos, and more.

Customize the theme settings, including colors, fonts, and layout, to suit your branding.

Add a logo and other visual elements to make your site unique.

5. Extend the functionality of your WooCommerce website

Another great feature of commerce is you have hundreds of extensions and plugins available to extend its capabilities. Here’s a list of a few extensions that are worth installing on your site:

*Payment methods

*WooCommerce subscription

*Taxjar

*Shipping extensions

*WooCommerce bookings

*Accounting extensions

Other plugins like Yoast SEO for search engine optimization and Akismet for spam protection can also be installed.

Congratulations! You have successfully created your e-commerce website using WordPress.

Now all you need to do is to keep updating your online store by adding highly engaging content that converts cold viewers to high paying customers. Also, don’t forget to optimize your product descriptions to rank higher organically.