Website questions

[Niks]

Hi everyone,

I am in the process of starting up an online shop, and have been making enquiries about a website.

Quotes have ranged from $500 to $10,000 (and having provided them with similar examples of what I want), and rather than continuing to hassle the people who are providing me with quotes with a million questions, I am wondering if some of you might be willing to give me a hand about some of the different options that might be available.

It will be a small store initially, but I would like the option to expand it in the future if it is successful.

- What are the key questions I need to ask the people building the site?
- What might be the difference between the cheaper sites and the more expensive? I have only contacted people who have portfolios that really stand out to me and look great
- Can anyone explain the difference between various shopping cart options?
- I have found several domain names that relate to each of the different products. How beneficial is it to have keyword domain names directly linking to various products as well as having one main domain name?

Thanks in advance for any help, I have been trying to look around online but it is so difficult to know where to begin.

[MihadAli]

Hi Niks,

Nice to meet you. I'm not an expert but there are many people who do this for a living. I'm sure they'd like to help you out.

Maybe look at other websites that sell similar items and see what they have done to get an idea about things?

Don't forget other than a website you need someone to write the words for you which will help sell your products, that is just as important. Many great people who do that here as well.

[Chris Bates]

Hey Niks,

There's really a lot that could be said, but to be honest with you - none of it matters. If my experience holds true, you've already decided what you're prepared to invest into your startup. If this is the case, approach the people in that range tell them your budget and negotiate the finer details.

What are the key questions I need to ask the people building the site?

More importantly, what are the questions THEY are asking YOU? Unless you've done a pretty in depth brief, there's a lot a company needs to know in order to quote accurately.

Specific to eCommerce, you'll want to know what they plan to build with (is it open source, or proprietary). What are the ongoing costs. How does their solution leave room to grow in the direction you plan to.

What might be the difference between the cheaper sites and the more expensive?

It's as with anything in life - generally the price reflects quality. The quality of the design, the service, the development, the support. More importantly, I would HOPE that the people at the higher end of the scale are offering you some very indepth consulting as well (not JUST design).

Can anyone explain the difference between various shopping cart options?

No. There's pros and cons to any system. It's a matter of picking the one that most closely serves what you want, then doing what is needed to refine it.

How beneficial is it to have keyword domain names directly linking to various products as well as having one main domain name?

There's a lot of value in keyword domains. There's no value in duplicate content. It's possible to legitimately utilise these domain names, but it's a very fine line.


My only warning is to take everything with a grain of salt (your own plans and expectations included). Setting up an eBusiness is NOT easy, like any business, and many people have the misconception that it is an easy route.

[v2Media]

I have only contacted people who have portfolios that really stand out to me and look great

I find it amusing that most people judge web design studios by the look of of the websites in the portfolio. Little do they realise that many sites are designed to the client's preferences, not the web studio's preferences. In other cases the sites are designed for the target market, or to accommodate the site's content and functionality. Rarely do web design companies get carte blanche for a design brief and an opportunity to let their creativity roam wild.

The old adage, "Don't judge a book by it's cover" applies to web design companies. It's a narrow criteria to assess capability and return on your investment. In some cases it will lead to your undoing, especially with complex sites such as eCommerce. Many web design businesses are focused on graphic design skillsets, not development. A site from such companies may look great, but do they work great?

Many a time I have scored clients for site redesigns, which looked great, but their site failed to fulfil functional requirements. Bottom line, judge a company by the look of their portfolio at your own peril.

[Fred]

that's very well answered by Chris, however i would like to tell you that as an starter you can try your hands on Magento
its a free shopping cart and is widely used all over the globe by numerous companies.

[ITAdvocate]

Hi Niks, you need to make the right decision as some store solutions are far better than others. With a price range from 500 to $10,000 your scope may not have been very well defined. It's important to ensure your getting quotes for the same thing.

A fully customised store with custom designed graphics etc will be 10k +, but a template vanilla shop will be $500. Although in my opinion you should stay right away from anything as low cost as $500.

Helping businesses make better decisions is something IT Advocate specialises in. If you email me the quotes you have I'll give you a broad outline of their differences, for no charge. If you want more detailed assistance in finding a solution I can help with that too.

Edit: As Chris made a good point of, don't send me the quotes out of your budget, it's important we only look at options you will realistically go ahead with.

[lixgo]

Hi Niks,

I think you should start that by asking what do you want your business to look like? and have your website reflect this "look".
This might take a while to figure out - The reason for the variance in price is mainly due to design/branding - the artistic element which is expensive, especially if the deign is "open ended" and poorly defined.

If are have not created your corporate identity, it may take time to create it - so budget for the long term and don't spend all your money at once.

Nick

[dfl]

I find it amusing that most people judge web design studios by the look of of the websites in the portfolio. Little do they realise that many sites are designed to the client's preferences, not the web studio's preference

Well put. Just check out our portfolio

One possible reason for a large difference in cost can be whether the company will use an out-of-the-box system to build your site (cookie cutter approach) or custom build you something. Or perhaps something in between.

If you're just starting out and what you want to do isn't revolutionary, then jumping on the back of an existing framework or content management system may work well (reference to Magneto for the shopping cart). Otherwise if you have big plans, want to do everything your way and envisage some non-standard website functionality, then custom building is worth considering.

[cathym]

Alot of the requirements and cost will be.
1. What value add features do you need?
2. How much of the business/website do you want automated to handle certain parts (emails,payments and accounting etc etc.?)
3. User Experience( Do you want pages loading inside with AJAX? meaning customers get a better user experience)

Overall if you can get an outline in your head on what you need graphically, then you need to look at other websites and think what features do I need, write them all down and give that as an example to business.

When choosing a business name or domain name. Try look to Googles external keyword search, to get a hint on what exact keywords your customers are searching for, relating to your product. This will help you define your SEO and acquiring your domain name.

[bwendo]

I would spend more time building your own concept of what you expect your website to do. Have a storyboard and a list of features and even go as far as a portfolio of favorite sites and designs.

Initially, it may be convenient to just preset a basic site so you can get off the ground and start accepting orders.

As you build momentum and gain some experience of where you are headed and what you expect to encounter, then you will be better placed to know exactly what you want.