I’m thinking of setting up a website to sell a small line of items.

Setting up the site seems to be pretty easy, with an e-commerce provider like Weebly/Square.

However, i wonder about what things i should be wary of.

Has anyone here any experience with this sort of thing?

captain_spalding said:

I’m thinking of setting up a website to sell a small line of items.

Setting up the site seems to be pretty easy, with an e-commerce provider like Weebly/Square.

However, i wonder about what things i should be wary of.

Has anyone here any experience with this sort of thing?

I sold software on line about 20 years ago, the process was simple and straight forward.
I forget which provider I used but it was a reputable one.

One of my friends uses Etsy. She said the setting up was a little bit fiddly, but it works fine apparently.

buffy said:

One of my friends uses Etsy. She said the setting up was a little bit fiddly, but it works fine apparently.

Oh, and I just ordered a new hand made bowstring from someone using the Etsy setup and from the customer point of view it worked well.

I looked at Etsy, but they appeared to me to be more for enterprises that are more established, larger, and more polished.

Also, their fees are somewhat daunting, especially for someone who’s unsure as to whether their project is going to be in the least bit viable.

I was wondering about things like the level of commitment needed, impacts on personal/home life, problems with postal and delivery services, hassles with customers, stuff like that.

I used bizland, I don’t know if it’s still going, that was 25 years ago.
That long ago, blimey.

https://steelstubs.bizland.com/

I know a couple of people who use Shopify. They seem to be happy with it.
https://www.shopify.com/au/start

ruby said:

I know a couple of people who use Shopify. They seem to be happy with it.
https://www.shopify.com/au/start

Thanks, Ruby, i have heard good things about Shopify, and my look at it shows that it seems to be comprehensive resource.

Again, the fees seem a little steep for someone who’s just venturing into the business.

captain_spalding said:

ruby said:

I know a couple of people who use Shopify. They seem to be happy with it.
https://www.shopify.com/au/start

Thanks, Ruby, i have heard good things about Shopify, and my look at it shows that it seems to be comprehensive resource.

Again, the fees seem a little steep for someone who’s just venturing into the business.

Yes, if you only have a small range and are putting your toe in the water, then perhaps this is not for you, unless you could team up with other people who want to also do something similar?

ruby said:

captain_spalding said:

ruby said:

I know a couple of people who use Shopify. They seem to be happy with it.
https://www.shopify.com/au/start

Thanks, Ruby, i have heard good things about Shopify, and my look at it shows that it seems to be comprehensive resource.

Again, the fees seem a little steep for someone who’s just venturing into the business.

Yes, if you only have a small range and are putting your toe in the water, then perhaps this is not for you, unless you could team up with other people who want to also do something similar?

A lot of people use Gumtree don’t they?

roughbarked said:

ruby said:

captain_spalding said:

Thanks, Ruby, i have heard good things about Shopify, and my look at it shows that it seems to be comprehensive resource.

Again, the fees seem a little steep for someone who’s just venturing into the business.

Yes, if you only have a small range and are putting your toe in the water, then perhaps this is not for you, unless you could team up with other people who want to also do something similar?

A lot of people use Gumtree don’t they?

Or Ebay

ruby said:

captain_spalding said:

ruby said:

I know a couple of people who use Shopify. They seem to be happy with it.
https://www.shopify.com/au/start

Thanks, Ruby, i have heard good things about Shopify, and my look at it shows that it seems to be comprehensive resource.

Again, the fees seem a little steep for someone who’s just venturing into the business.

Yes, if you only have a small range and are putting your toe in the water, then perhaps this is not for you, unless you could team up with other people who want to also do something similar?

Perhaps find a shop that looks lke the right place to sell such and then putting in a number of items on consignment.

sarahs mum said:

ruby said:

captain_spalding said:

Thanks, Ruby, i have heard good things about Shopify, and my look at it shows that it seems to be comprehensive resource.

Again, the fees seem a little steep for someone who’s just venturing into the business.

Yes, if you only have a small range and are putting your toe in the water, then perhaps this is not for you, unless you could team up with other people who want to also do something similar?

Perhaps find a shop that looks lke the right place to sell such and then putting in a number of items on consignment.

Yes, Weebly/Square seems to be the best suited to the absolute beginner.

captain_spalding said:

I’m thinking of setting up a website to sell a small line of items.

Setting up the site seems to be pretty easy, with an e-commerce provider like Weebly/Square.

However, i wonder about what things i should be wary of.

Has anyone here any experience with this sort of thing?

Credit Card fraud – when you start out – call the people placing orders to confirm, sites like Shopify give a ‘risk’ assessment, anyone above Low gets a call otherwise you can end up losing a lot of money. There are third party apps you can add in or other payment gateways you can use by the either cost money or time to set up.

GoogleAds – you’ll need it if you want your stuff seen by those that want it (SEO takes at around 6-12 months).

poikilotherm said:

captain_spalding said:

I’m thinking of setting up a website to sell a small line of items.

Setting up the site seems to be pretty easy, with an e-commerce provider like Weebly/Square.

However, i wonder about what things i should be wary of.

Has anyone here any experience with this sort of thing?

Credit Card fraud – when you start out – call the people placing orders to confirm, sites like Shopify give a ‘risk’ assessment, anyone above Low gets a call otherwise you can end up losing a lot of money. There are third party apps you can add in or other payment gateways you can use by the either cost money or time to set up.

GoogleAds – you’ll need it if you want your stuff seen by those that want it (SEO takes at around 6-12 months).

Thanks, poik.

I’d be starting out very small, inexpensive items, loss to a fraud would be only a couple of dollars. Unlikely to be a big thing, with a niche market for items with little value to a wider clientele.

I’ll have a look at Google ads, perhaps once things are set up, and i see how tings are running (or not running).