When you start the journey of selecting an eCommerce platform, the options can be daunting (and expensive). In order to choose the right option, it is important to know what features you really require for eCommerce. Here is our starter list of some of the top questions you should be able to answer:
1) How many products (skus) do you have?
2) How many categories of products do you have?
3) What type of payment do you expect to take?
4) Does your pricing account for handling and fees from transaction processing companies (PayPal, Authorize.net)?
5) How will you ship?
6) How will you charge for shipping (actual, flat fee, free)?
7) If actual, do you have dimensions and weights for all products (including packaging)?
8) How many people are involved in order processing and shipping?
9) Do you expect to implement drop shipping (from 3rd-party suppliers or manufacturers)?
10) Explain what types of sales you will have; or your expected discount, coupon, or bundling strategy.
11) Do you have product images, descriptions, and dimensions available from the manufacturer, will you provide them, or will you need help gathering those?
12) Do you want end users to be able to see past and current orders?
13) Do you require deposits/pre-pays?
14) What is your current accounting/POS system?
15) Is your current purchase/inventory information downloadable to a CSV or spreadsheet?
16) Do you have a significant amount of other content that will need to co-exist with your store, such as a blog, support FAQs, or ancillary information?
Answers to these questions will give you a good start on selecting an eCommerce solution that will meet your needs.