What are the best platforms to sell from?
Okay, let's breakdown some options on where to sell your products!
Here are four things to consider when you are choosing a platform to sell your products on:
Cost: How much is the platform going to cost you to have a shop on a monthly or annual basis? There is usually a discount for signing up for a full year- at least that is the case on Squarespace.
Ease: How easy is the platform to navigate and add products to? You will be doing this all the time- make sure it is easy to upload new products as you make them. Many platforms offer a free trial period of two weeks, so you can go in and see how it works to add products and your own brand information.
Features: Look at all the bells and whistles- does the platform offer shipping or payment processing? Abandoned cart emails? How fancy do you want to get?
I like to think about my future business and what features I may want to add later.Support: It is inevitable you will need to contact customer support- how easy is it to talk to an customer service agent and get your questions answered?
What are the most common platforms to use? These are not all of the options, but definitely the most popular.
Squarespace- this is where I have my current shop set up. I started here and have loved using Squarespace. It is easy to upload products and create a clean look using their fancy templates.
Shopify- This is a huge platform for e-commerce and integrates really well with inventory management systems and has a lot of nifty plug ins to make your commerce site sing!
Woocommerce- This is a great option if you are familiar with WordPress.
Wix- This is drag and drop option for those that don't want to mess with coding, this is good for beginners.
Etsy- I also use Etsy for my items. It's very interesting to see what sells on Etsy vs. my website. There are fees for uploading items to Etsy, however, you have an audience that comes with the platform which may help you get sales when you are starting out.
Faire- This is a platform set up to sell wholesale to stores looking for product. I sell on here and it is a very good option if you are wanting to grow your wholesale business. There are fees associated with orders placed on Faire. You will be given a custom link to direct stores to your shop on Faire, which will eliminate the commission.
As mentioned above, it is really important to do your research, use a trial period if it is offered, consider your budget, and look at the goals for your business.