The radical growth of eCommerce businesses within the last decade has rocked the economies of the world. With over 1.9 trillion people now using the world wide web and in the U.S. alone, eCommerce revenues are expected to top $200 billion by 2011, it's obvious that many new businesses should be considering an eCommerce presence to address this market.
Developing a marketing and an eCommerce sales plan must be seriously undertaken as a systematic way to exploit new opportunities in this market . The approach of this article assumes that the business plan is attempting to raise capital for a new venture or an existing business desiring to enter the eCommerce marketplace for the first time. It is important in the marketing section of the plan to stress any new or original approaches to the manner in which the business model will addresses the eCommerce market.
eCommerce Business & Online Business Management
Setting up operations for an eCommerce business relies solely on the ability of the web site and other marketing venues to generate traffic to the e commerce website. There are several important issues, but perhaps the most important one is the website's ability to steer traffic into the shopping cart and effectively process eCommerce transactions.
These are all part of the website sales and marketing mix within the marketing section of a business plan. They will include:
- Staffing
- Website design & website maintenance
- Shopping cart software & online transaction processing
- Search Engine Optimization - SEO
- Social Networks, Online Marketing & Pay per Click Advertising
Staffing
When proposing a business plan to an investment group, typically the most expensive area will be the staffing of the business. Depending upon the requirements, any business will require someone performing the marketing function. This can certainly be the owner of the company, however there may be certain specialized skills that are required that even a web savvy entrepreneur simply will not possess. This might include SEO or web design skills and capabilities alluded to below. Fortunately, much of this can be outsourced to contractors which becomes a line item in the financials.
Website Design & Maintenance
The manner in which a website is used and viewed by potential customers is crucial in making online sales. A website should be easy to use, with a clean design without overburdening visitors with too much verbiage or text. The site should also tie into an accounting system. Certainly, the cost of having an integrated ERP software package to handle this may be extremely costly. Of course, using a basic Quickbooks eCommerce accounting system may be best answer for a start up. There are some excellent design tips and rules of thumb that have been published on the web and are worth reviewing. The costs and expenses for these can be minimized, but should not be neglected.
Shopping Cart Software
Depending upon the budget for development for an e commerce marketing website, expenditures can range from a free shopping cart (PayPal) to a complete custom designed eCommerce software package. One advantage with the PayPal approach is that they offer a complete processing service with an online debit/credit card for withdrawal and transfer into a user's commercial bank account
Search Engine Optimization - SEO
SEO is a mandatory requirement which will provide an eCommerce website visibility in searches with Google, Yahoo! or Bing. Typically, this can be performed by the website owner or an outside web service. The plan must state this requirement and the manner in which it will be addressed.
Online Marketing, Pay per Click Marketing, Social Networking
With the rise of online marketing via articles, social networking and pay per click (Google Adwords), the marketing function has become somewhat more complex. Google AdWords is a paid service where the website owner bids on certain keywords for placement on a Google search page and would be listed as one of the "Sponsored Ads." Social networking and web article marketing are free. Having outside professionals perform these functions is very common and should be considered in the plan.
Ultimately, the marketing/sales plan is the centerpiece of an online business plan. It is probably the most expensive part of the business, initially. A start up should prepare for a relatively inexpensive ramp up to full operation as the transaction volume increases. Ultimately, eCommerce will allow even a modest business to address markets on a world wide basis and do it inexpensively. Obtaining funding is the point of a business plan and the plan should be original and provide a true competitive edge that the funding source can readily understand and appreciate.
Sources:
"Internet Usage Statistics," Internet World Stats.com, Accessed 8/9/10
"Ecommerce Trends," Access-ecom.info (University of Minnesota Extension), Accessed 8/9/10
Nick Schklair - Nick Schklair, author, writer and business consultant has published a work on business startups in today's economy.
