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E-commerce, or online trading, means using the internet to sell products or services. It is a very popular way of doing business today. E-commerce covers all kinds of transactions conducted online, from buying and selling products and services to processing payments and dispatching goods. Most online stores use e-commerce software to manage the store, dispatch orders and pay invoices.
Sales platforms
The choice of sales platform depends on the type of products sold and customers’ needs. The two most popular forms of online stores are:
- Your own online store: creating a store where you can sell your own products and services is a good idea for a brand with an established market position or the resources to market and attract customers to its platform.
- A marketplace: a trading platform allowing sellers and buyers to list and purchase goods and services. A marketplace is useful for people seeking a quick, easy way to obtain the goods or services they need. It can also help small businesses looking for new ways to reach a broad audience.
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Examples of marketplaces
Amazon Marketplace is a trading platform enabling sellers to list and sell products and buyers to purchase products from different sellers. Amazon also offers tools facilitating work with customers, such as order management, goods shipping and invoicing.
eBay is a global trading platform enabling sellers to list and sell products and buyers to purchase products from different sellers. eBay also offers a range of tools supporting work with customers, such as order management systems, goods shipping and invoicing.
Etsy is a trading platform aimed at small businesses, enabling sellers to list and sell products and buyers to purchase products from different sellers. Etsy offers tools facilitating work with customers, such as order management, goods shipping and invoicing.
Allegro is Poland’s largest online store, where you can buy everything from clothes and consumer electronics and household appliances to books, films, music, games and other products. It is an ideal place to shop for anyone seeking a wide selection of products at good prices.
Top 10 sales platforms
- Shopify
- Magento
- BigCommerce
- WooCommerce
- OpenCart
- PrestaShop
- Squarespace
- Wix
- Volusion
- BigCartel
Shopify is one of the best e-commerce sales platforms. It offers a wide range of features, including built-in SEO tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with a broad range of external tools. It also provides many design options to help customers create the appearance of their target website. Shopify also has built-in support for multiple currencies, making it an ideal choice for businesses engaged in international sales.
Magento is one of the best e-commerce sales platforms. It offers highly advanced features, including advanced website creation tools, built-in product management tools and personalisation features. Magento also integrates with many external tools, including payment systems, website copying and creation tools, and order management systems.
BigCommerce is another popular e-commerce sales platform. It offers built-in website creation tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with many external tools. BigCommerce also offers many design options to make creating target websites easier, along with support for multiple currencies.
WooCommerce is another popular e-commerce sales platform. It is a free solution for owners of smaller businesses. WooCommerce offers support for multiple sales channels, built-in website creation tools and integration with many external tools, including payment systems, website copying and creation tools, and order management systems.
OpenCart is another popular e-commerce sales platform. It offers users a wide range of features, including built-in SEO tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with many external tools. OpenCart also offers many design options to make creating target websites easier.
PrestaShop is another popular e-commerce sales platform. It offers built-in website creation tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with many external tools. PrestaShop also has built-in support for multiple currencies, making it an ideal choice for businesses engaged in international sales.
Squarespace is another popular e-commerce sales platform. It offers a wide range of features, including built-in SEO tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with many external tools. Squarespace also offers many design options to make creating target websites easier.
Wix is another popular e-commerce sales platform. It offers built-in website creation tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with many external tools. Wix also offers many design options to make creating target websites easier.
Volusion is another popular e-commerce sales platform. It offers built-in website creation tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with many external tools. Volusion also has built-in support for multiple currencies, making it an ideal choice for businesses engaged in international sales.
BigCartel is the final popular e-commerce sales platform. It offers built-in website creation tools, support for multiple sales channels and integration with many external tools. BigCartel also offers many design options to make creating target websites easier.
What should a business with many transactions choose?
A business with many transactions should choose an e-commerce sales platform offering extensive capabilities, such as integration with existing systems, advanced analytical tools and fast website loading. The business owner should also check that the chosen platform supports their selected payment platform, such as PayPal, Stripe or Square, as well as shipping and other logistics tools.
What should a business with few transactions choose?
A business with few transactions should choose an e-commerce sales platform that is easy to use and has low maintenance costs. Such platforms should offer many features that can help manage an online store. They should also be easy to configure and allow quick changes when the business needs to handle more transactions in future.
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Summary
Choose between your own store and a marketplace according to your products, audience and marketing resources. When comparing platforms, consider integrations, payments, logistics and ease of management. A high transaction volume calls for strong technical capabilities, while a smaller operation may prioritise simplicity, low maintenance costs and room to grow.
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