What exactly is e-commerce? Primode.com defines e-commerce as:
“E-commerce (electronic commerce or EC) is the buying and selling of goods and services on the Internet, especially the World Wide Web. In practice, this term and a newer term, e-business, are often used interchangeably. For online retail selling, the term e-tailing is sometimes used.”
So what should the “Do It Yourselfer” be concerned with when considering the e-commerce capabilities of a Web Host provider? That’s a tall subject that would require many pages of detail. Fortunately HostIndex.com has developed a “E-Commerce Step-by-Step Guide” that will take some of the mystery out of e-commerce selection. Take a few moments and review their guide to determine your requirement and consideration needs in Web Host selection.
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The choice of shopping cart can be a personal one. The novice will probably not have any experience with any kind of shopping cart software. While there are a number of popular choices, and most hosting companies will provide one, if not a variety, from which you can choose, it is important to find a shopping cart that suits the individual user. Why? If you decide you don’t like your selection somewhere down the road, changing your shopping cart can be a long process that will grind things to a halt during the change. Since there are many types available, don't jump at the first cart your host of choice offers. See if they have demos and try them out. Ask them for other business sites that are using this type of cart so you can get a well rounded feel for how the cart functions under various implementations. Also, make sure that it is not overly complex and is easy to learn since it is the primary way you'll be doing business from this point forward.
Typical Web Host providers that offer you a Store Front option (or feature) are basically providing you with the capability of being able to easily upload numerous products, easily change pricing, monitor inventory, and track sales; all vital components of a store whether online or at your local mall. This is probably overkill for most people reviewing this material, but should you find yourself needing this capability, carefully consider the offerings of each Web Host provider, and do your research into each of the storefront types to determine which will best meet the needs of your business. Here are a few types to get you started:
Also, make sure the shopping cart supports SSL, a common site security protocol that helps to keep your customer's credit card numbers safe when they order online. It needs to support your merchant account and payment gateway. If you secured your merchant services separately from hosting, be sure they are compatible. In many cases, however, your web host will bundle these services, so compatibility isn't an issue, but you’ll need to consider compatibility when it is not a standard offering. Find out if the cart has a recommended maximum product limit and try not to exceed it. The store may slow down and perform poorly if there are too many products in it.
Finally, make sure the shopping cart will do everything you want it to do. Some merchants sell services and downloadable items that don't conform exactly to the order-product-ship-product flow. If your cart doesn't support these features by default, there may be 3rd party add-ons that will provide this functionality. Miva Merchant is one shopping cart with a very active 3rd party developer community providing a wide range of add-ons, to extend the feature set of the original program. The merchant will have to buy these add-ons and have them installed on their own initiative, though, and the hosting company will not be able to support them. Keep in mind that some web host providers will charge a fee for the installation of add-ons.