What eCommerce solution would you use for a one product website?
We are planning a product that a homeowner would use to coat their doors to protect them from UV and weathering. It will sell online. The story of the coating and it's value will be told on the initial landing page with branches to show videos of "how to apply" and the effects of untreated exposure.
We like to have a cart or store that allows the buyer to select quantity and provide payment info. The cart/store needs to handle credit card, Paypal, calculate UPS shipping and export to QuickBooks. We prefer a monthly service with no to minimal code development. Something we can adjust ourselves if we add a few more products.
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Mar 22, 2014
Our favorite is Shopify! http://www.shopify.com/
We currently have two clients that use it and the feedback has been consistent. It is easy to use and the data it reports on a daily basis allows for really building a brand. We have had great luck on customization for design and the few times we have needed to use Shopify's customer support, they have been great.
Mar 22, 2014
Hi Jack,
If you're looking for a monthly service that will allow for credit card, PayPal, and exporting to QuickBooks, depending on how much you want to spend, something like Zencart or Agora Shopping Cart might do the trick. You'll also need to look at a credit card processor, no matter which system you use, and that will add to your costs. Zencart is free, and so if you go that route you'll only need to pay for credit card processing and of course you'll want to go with something that handles your PCI compliance. Stripe is good for that and it's also versatile if you find that in future you need to do some coding or hire someone to do some coding to add more functionality. If you're using wordPress, WooCommerce would also work, and I think they have an addon for exporting to QuickBooks, but this would be plus the credit card processing.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Mar 23, 2014
Choosing an eCommerce platform should be a secondary consideration to a decision on how to drive traffic to your website. The choices for eCommerce are many but most severely limit your traffic options to those you generate yourself. You need a marketing as well as eCommerce solution. Choose your marketing strategy first: SEO, affiliate program(s), etc.. - The Pragmatic Web Designer
Mar 30, 2014
It seems you're off to a good start Jack. You've identified some items to integrate into your system. Most shopping carts will handle all of your needs right down to the export to quickbooks.
My only additional questions is would you want email addresses, do you have a domain name?
Do you have materials discussing the story of the coating. If you don't plan on doing it yourself (internally) these are areas and expenses you may have to pay for. Same with marketing. Now a days marketing materials and search engine optimization are the biggest expense. It's no longer the design or implementation of the website.
If you have a question you'd like some more advice on please let me know. Before I throw a product out there to recommend I'd need a little more information. If you want a cheat sheet to help gather potential needs I can send you one via linkedin. https://www.linkedin.com/in/raymondtstevens
Good luck with your project.
Ray
Mar 22, 2014
I'd suggest to use PayPal only + Soldsie. Payment gateway integration is really simple, everything is in one place.
UPS shipping calculator can be created on landing page.
For more product paypal shopping cart can be used.
I assume you will need to spend some time or hire somebody (freelancer?) for the minimal code development but it's definitely is not a fortune to spend.
Amazon can be another option, actually.
Feel free to contact me for further info.
Mar 22, 2014
From what you have said here, I would build you a WordPress Site using Woo Commerce for the shopping cart. Once everything is set up it will be very easy for you to maintain. Adding products and updating existing products will be quick and painless.
Mar 24, 2014
I agree with Rohit Gupta!
How much volume would be going through the site? If the dollar amount makes sense to pay the hosting fees of hosting an e-commerce site, then a company like shopify or if you are faith-based I can help you.
If you are not sure about the sales in the beginning, you can start with Paypal. You would set up a paypal account and then the link would be embedded on the page on your website.
Mar 22, 2014
Hello Jack,
I can help you with building this portal for selling your product.
I have some questions for you as well:
1) Do you have other online sales channels for selling this product?
2) Will you have a majority of users that access your website from a tablet or smartphone?
Do contact me with more details and I can help show you a mock page with how it will look like.
Best regards and good luck!
Chacko
Mar 22, 2014
I love Shopify, they are a simple one-stop solution for all your needs. Their designs are clean and professional and there's a strong community there. http://www.shopify.com/
Mar 24, 2014
I would recommend Drupal CMS with the Commerce bolt on. The site would look amazing, sell the product and offer a decent user journey. Let me know if you need help
May 17, 2014
There are many free open source eCommerce platforms available in the market, some of them are:
1. Magento
2. Drupal
3. Joomla
4. osCommerce
5. OpenCart
6. PrestaShop
7. VirtueMart
8. Ubercart
9. Zen Cart
10. X-Cart
Mar 21, 2014
I know that google has a solution for that. It is pricy if you ask me. I think it depends on who do you have your website with and does it support this at all?
Mar 22, 2014
We have been very happy with 3DCart. You can check them out here: http://www.3dcart.com/754.html
I do believe they just started a lower end system for 25 or less items for $9,.99/month.
Good luck
Mar 22, 2014
Look at Shopify, one of the most complete commerce site builder with the ability to modify the developed code.
Mar 22, 2014
PayPal has a solution for what you're looking for, and it's as simple as copy-pasting an automatic code that they will generate for you.
https://www.paypal.com/webapps/mpp/shopping-cart
Mar 22, 2014
Sounds like a great product. The comments here are great and as you can see there are several options. Does the product already have the exposure you need to reach your Target Market?
That's something you should take into consideration when going with a website host. You have to make sure the site has widgets in place that will allow you to connect to other platforms for exposure and SEO (search engine optimization). Most website hosts today let you do eCommerce, but that's all they give you. It's up to you to know the tools you need to achieve your goal. You choose the website host based on that so you are not wasting your time.
That's what I do if your interested.
Mar 22, 2014
hi Jack.
i see 3 options:
1. you can hire freelances to design your website according to your specific needs and a developer to build the website, connect to paypal, or any other payment method.
- this option will give you exactly what you are looking for, but will cost you the most of the three options.
2. using WordPress you can setup the website yourself. you will need to find a template suitable to your needs and install it to the site. you can then install a PayPal plugin to enable purchasing on the site, connecting to your paypal account.
- this option is the cheapest for you, but requires you to do most of the work.
3. search for services that give you a ready/template site, were you can play a bit with the design, change the texts and graphics and hoot to your paypal account.
take a look at some results here: https://www.google.com/search?q=single+product+website
- this option will give you what you are looking to some degree.
you can get some inspiration here: http://onepagelove.com/gallery/product
good luck with the project
;-)
Mar 23, 2014
Hi Jack,
I can help you with building this website. We do offer monthly service too.
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Mar 23, 2014
There are a number of ecommerce solutions out there. Shopify (as mentioned by others here), Volusion (I have a client that is very happy with them), osCommerce, and Miva Merchant.
Mar 23, 2014
You could use bigcommerce - good starting point and adding additional products also would be quite easy.