E-commerce Web Site Builders

We are going to tackle these types of products as a genre and not offer a specific review of just one of them. There are several places that you can go on the Web to get a recommendation for a specific product. What we wish to help you with is deciding if this is the way to go for you and if so what you should do to get the best results you can given the limitations of these products.

First, just what are we talking about here? Well what we are covering is both a product and a service.

The product is software that allows you to enter information about your business and the products you sell into preset page templates. Once you have given the software all this information it auto-magically creates an e-commerce store for you! If you need it and can afford it some products also offer database interfaces, inventory tracking.

The service allows the store you have just created to function. It is comprised of servers to host the site, site promotion services, site search capabilities, and that all-important facet of e-commerce, credit card transaction processing.

As with almost everything these days, these two aspects of a functioning e-commerce store are sold in a dizzying array of shifting price structures. Some companies offer the software is free while the services are expensive, in others it is the reverse, and in most they mix it up enough that you are going to need an extensive spreadsheet based cost analysis to figure out the bottom line. It is worse than trying to choose your long-distance phone service.

All said, perhaps the biggest problem is that the sites these products build look like what they are; generic template produced clones. There is nothing to distinguish them from each other or from the Internet mall schlock being created 3 and 4 years ago. This factor seems to be true across the board. Subscribers to this newsletter also know that the site promotion packages usual amount to very ineffective automated search engine submissions that just don't work well. When they do work enough to get you found there is nothing about the presentation of these sites to impress your potential customer. Another issue is if you have a big investment in your database or inventory-tracking software, the site-builder software that is out there is not customizable.

The upside here is cost. There is no other solution that will allow you to create and operate a small e-commerce site faster and cheaper.

What we must remember is that we are in business to get our products into peoples hands, to serve mankind, and oh yes, to make money. So, just saving money to create a store is not the only goal. We must create stores that actual generate sales. So unless you have what I call the "sure fire two barrel shop-gun" approach and even if you do, you want a store that appeals to browsers and motivates them to buy from YOU rather than the gazillion other places they can buy from.

The two "sure" ways to make money on the net are 1) have products that are NOT locally available in Podunk but still wanted there anyway 2) have products that are be significantly discounted.

Even you have the "sure fire two barrel shop-gun" in your favor, having a well thought out and professionally designed site that uses powerful Internet optimized images is a good idea.

Think of your site as you would a job interview. Even if you have the skills that an employer is looking for do you show up in your shower shoes without having had the shower?

If you just can't come up with the money to design a site that is custom made to present your image, you may feel compelled to try out these offerings. If so, here is the best advice that I can give. Think about colors A LOT. Get a primer on design principles and FOLLOW THEM. Do get a professional web developer to touch up your images, I know it is spending a bit more money but, it is these images that you are using to sell your products. If the picture doesn't look good or it takes FOREVER to download (In Web time that is as little as 20 seconds) the customer will move on and take their money with them.