eCommerce Website Pricing
E-Commerce is the fastest growing industry and the best one to make money and never go out of business. Building an eCommerce website might be easy using simple tools, but many factors affect the cost of an online store you are building for your business. As a business person, you might be looking to start an online store but knowing the cost of building an eCommerce store is important as it helps you calculate the initial investment needed. Read the article to get a clear picture of eCommerce website pricing and also help you in avoiding overspending.
Things To Consider Before Starting Online Store
The pandemic situation created by Corona Virus has made many people shop online, and as a result, the online revenues are projected to grow to $6.54 trillion by 2022. The increase in online shopping has also done many businesses to start their online stores and increase their sales and revenue. As a business person, you need to consider some factors and calculate costs for starting an eCommerce store. Here are some of the things to consider before starting an online store
1. What Type Of Online Store You Are Expecting
The type of online store you choose is important while initiating the start process of building an online store. An online store that sells services is different from that one that sells products. If your business plans to sell products, you need to have a clear idea of how many products need to be included and for whom you are selling these products, either B2B or B2C. By knowing these things, you will get an idea of which platform to choose for your online store.
2. Are You Having Physical Store Also or Only Online Store?
Selling products online means that you need to maintain inventory and an eCommerce platform to integrate all the functions. Some businesses establish online stores and physical stores to increase their sales and expand their business globally. Some businesses also have given an option to their customers to order online and pick up the goods from the physical store.
3. Budget Allotted To eCommerce Development
After starting research on eCommerce solutions, you can easily get sidetracked by the different designs and feature options available. It is time to decide on the features that you need for your store so that your budget stays within the limit.
4. Shipping Options For Your Store
Shipping options for your store are important, and know your shipping capacity. In addition to shipping options, there are similar considerations for the payment options for your store.
Factors Affecting eCommerce Website Pricing
1. Hosting Costs
Every site on the internet needs web hosting and where all the website files are stored. The domain name is also needed for a website given by hosting, providing for a particular cost. For eCommerce hosting, there are two options available.
- Hosting cost for Self-Hosted eCommerce site: WordPress and WooCommerce are the popular eCommerce platforms powering most online stores. Even though the platforms are free, you need to have a hosting plan and SSL certificate for running an online store. For a self-hosted website, there are many advantages like complete freedom while developing, paying only for the service you are using, making total sales, and using the payment gateway of your choice.
- Hosting Costs for SaaS eCommerce Platforms: The cost of hosting a website is included in the software, and there is no need for you to host the website for yourself. Shopify and BigCommerce are the best examples of SaaS eCommerce platforms. The main advantage is that both the platforms include an SSL certificate, but you need to pay for the domain.
2. Web Design Costs
As the eCommerce industry grows every day, many online sites pop up, and the competition for attracting customers increases. Having a professional and customer-centric website for our store helps you be ahead of competitors. The design cost varies by the platform and features were chosen for your online store. Here is the estimated design cost based on the platform
- WooCommerce: Free, $99 for Premium, and $5000 for Custom design
- Shopify: Free, $160 for Premium, and $5000 for Custom design
- BigCommerce: Free, $160 for Premium, and $5000 for Custom design
For WooCommerce free version, there is access to thousands of themes, while for Shopify and BigCommerce, the free version has limited access to themes.
Other factors must be included in the design cost, apart from platform cost. Here are some of the factors that define the total cost of website design
- Number of Pages in Site
- Customization Level of Website
- Graphics and Products pictures included
- Responsiveness of site
- Interactivity of Website
3. Functionalities And Features Cost
The functionalities and features included in your site also impact eCommerce website pricing. Irrespective of your online store’s size, scope, or goals, you must have at least basic features like a shopping cart, product listing, a payment system, etc. If you want to include all the key features, WooCommerce is the best platform but customizing your online store is possible only by hiring a professional WordPress developer.
4. Cost Of eCommerce Software Fulfillment
Developing back-end software for your eCommerce site is important to fulfill your online store’s requirements. Ideally, one should invest in automation software for inventory management, tracking orders, taking feedback, and sending notifications to customers.
5. eCommerce Website Pricing For Marketing And SEO Services
When hiring a professional eCommerce developer, be sure to ask about marketing and SEO services included in the pricing. Having in-built SEO features could be a huge plus for generating leads for your online store. Unlike the other development features, SEO requires monthly investment for ranking well in search engines. To beat the competition, one has to work continually on the site to earn more customers.
6. eCommerce Website Maintenance Pricing
Every website requires maintenance which includes fixing bugs and introducing new elements. For your online store, there is a need to add new products and fix any errors given as feedback by the customers.
7. Payment Processing Costs
Payments processing is crucial for any online store, and there is certain pricing for including the type of payments you are planning to include in your eCommerce store. You need to pay fees for each payment gateway like PayPal, Stripe, or Authorize.net. The pricing depends on the transactions done through the gateway, and the banks also charge fees for transactions. WooCommerce and BigCommerce offer the lowest pricing for payment gateways and are also flexible in accepting payments.
8. Some Other Costs Included
Apart from the above, other costs are included while setting up your online store. Here are some of the ongoing costs
- Data backup cost
- Inventory Management
- Email Marketing Costs
- Product Marketing Cost
- Security or SSL certification cost
Conclusion
Apart from the above factors, hiring a professional eCommerce developer for your online store is crucial in deciding the budget of an online store. Having a clear idea of eCommerce website pricing is needed before the actual development of your online store. After knowing the development cost, you can set up your budget and ensure that you do not divert from your actual development. At Ayatas Technologies, we have a top-notch team of eCommerce experts to create a stunning website for your business. Contact us for more details.