smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

in association with Lloyds TSB Business Banking:

Building a website will allow you to reach your customers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This article takes you through the first practical steps you need to take to put your business online.

Start with a plan
Becoming an e-trader and selling products solely online requires more than a website, your business idea will still benefit from a well researched plan.
Writing a business plan…
You should consider all the elements from a traditional business plan, but in addition think about the following:
• Can your product be sold online? It is easier to sell a tangible product like a book online than a service such as a taxi booking.
• Are delivery costs low? Your customers will consider delivery charges as part of the overall product cost, if the charge is too high they may prefer to buy from a bricks and mortar store instead.
• Is your product in digital form? Electronic products such as software, music or e-books can be downloaded directly from your website eliminating the need for delivery charges.
Choosing a name…
An important part of the planning stage is to choose a name for your business. It is often beneficial to use your business name as your web address (domain name), so keep it short and memorable. Purchase several types of domain, including .com and .co.uk, to make it easier for people to find your website, this will also stop other people trading on a similar web address.

How do I build a website?
Websites come in many guises, and the type of site you need depends entirely on your business:
• Information page – at first you may simply want to use your website to advertise your business. In this case the only information you need to display are your contact details and some basic information about your business; this could be in a very similar format to a Yellow Pages advert.
• Brochureware site – the next step would be to display your product information and prices on your website. You can give your customers a choice of purchase options, such as a telephone number, the address of your shop, or a form that they could print out and post/fax to you.
• E-commerce website – if you want your customers to be able to buy online then you will need to add a transaction service to your site. This is usually in the form of a virtual shopping basket and an online payment service.
Once you have decided on the level of website you need for your business you will need to think about designing and building the site.

Do it yourself…
If you feel confident enough to build the website yourself then there are many programmes available; titles include Microsoft FrontPage, Dreamweaver and Coffee Cup but there are many more to choose from. Most packages offer templates or automated wizards to help you get started.

Ask an expert…
If you would like an e-commerce site, but do not feel confident enough to build one you can employ the services of a web designer to do the job for you. Don’t forget that you will want to make ongoing changes to your website, such as amending prices or adding new products. Your site designer may charge for this service so it might be cheaper to buy your own copy of the software and make your own changes.
Planning your site content
When planning your content a good place to start is your competitor’s websites. Ask yourself the following questions:
• What information and services do they have available?
• What do they look like?
• How easy is it to find the information you need?
Take the good bits from the websites you have visited and then improve on them when building your own website.

Keep it simple…
Your content should be relevant, up-to-date and written in short sections to make it easy to read and understand. Pay attention to grammar and punctuation, and ask someone else to check your writing in case you have missed any typos or used too much jargon.

Make it easy for people to move around the website by using consistent navigation, and avoid using too many graphics as this increases the time it takes for your pages to load. If you need to use images to enhance your product descriptions make sure they are clear but keep the file sizes low.

Make it accessible…
By law your website must comply with the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA 1995), which requires you to ensure your site can be accessed by anyone with a disability. The RNIB website has detailed information to help you make sure your website is accessible.
Include important information…
If you are trading online then you should add the following:
• Your contact details, including address and telephone number, and VAT details if relevant
• A privacy policy explaining how personal data is protected and how financial transactions are carried out
• Your terms and conditions of sale
• A clear exchange/refund policy
• Delivery costs and timescales

How do I collect payments from my customers?
If you wish to collect payments from your customers through your website then you will need to include a virtual shopping cart and a secure way for them to pay.

Shopping with a virtual cart…
As your customers browse your site they can select items to put in their shopping cart. When they are ready to pay they visit your check out page, where they can supply you with their delivery address details and the details of their credit or debit card for payment.

The shopping cart must be easy for your customers to use. You should also consider how simple the shopping cart is for you to manage, especially if you wish to use it to run special offer promotions or to send newsletters to your customers.

You can purchase shopping cart software and integrate it into your website, or you can use a third party provider who will host the cart for you. Many providers can sell you the full package including the shopping cart and the payment gateway you need to collect the card payment details. The downside is they are usually a standard design and cannot be customised.

Collecting the payment…
In order to collect the payment from the customer you will also need a merchant account. You can use a provider like WorldPay or PayPal, or you can approach a bank. You will need to check the service charges with the providers but you will usually be charged a percentage of each transaction charge, and in some cases there may also be a set-up fee and/or monthly service fee.

To read the full version of this article please visit www.lloydstsb.com/business.

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