I often say that the core of my business boils down to ‘make stuff and sell it.’
OK, you can add on various things such as workshops and consulting but essentially that’s the beating heart of it and a model I heartily recommend.
But where do you sell it?
Off your own site is always a good idea but there are a plethora of other platforms to complement that which will not only bring you more sales but may suit particular products better.
So how do you find and choose those?
Look no further than here because I’m doing a two-part rundown of my tried and tested favourites.
And no, we’re not just talking the usual suspects. Stay with me as we take a wander through the various ways you can get your stuff out there and in front of buyers.
Let’s start with that idea of your own site and how you can include a shop. First, WordPress solutions and some no cost themes that lend themselves to ecommerce include:
Leto is a WooCommerce compatible theme that is suitable for any shop:
https://athemes.com/theme/leto/
The Shop is also compatible with WooCommerce:
https://athemes.com/theme/theshop/
The Vantage theme has some features you’d normally only find in premium themes and is fully integrated with Page Builder so easy to customise:
While the Neve theme is flexible and easy to set up as well as being gorgeous to look at:
You can find even more themes here:
https://justfreethemes.com/themes/ecommerce/
And the no cost WooCommerce shopping cart plugin along with other goodies is here:
Here’s how to set up a WooCommerce store on WordPress:
With another useful tutorial here although keep in mind that these kinds of tutorials often plug a particular kind of hosting that is not necessarily the best – it just pays the best affiliate commissions so do your due diligence:
https://www.wpbeginner.com/wp-tutorials/how-to-start-an-online-store/
Aside from WordPress, other options to build your own store for nada include:
SquareUp with all kinds of eCommerce tools included:
https://squareup.com/gb/en/online-store
Mozello, again with all kinds of integrations plus you can build a multilingual site:
https://www.mozello.com/create-online-store/
And Wix which is vastly improved since I first used it in the bad old days:
https://www.wix.com/ecommerce/website
With even more options here, including the ones I have picked out above:
There are some excellent general tips here on setting up an online store from ecom expert Chris Barling:
Don’t forget your store can simply be a bolt-on addition to your blog or site. Many themes include a shop option to configure. You can also link to external solutions and I will be exploring those in next week’s edition.
Your TED talk this week is a thought-provoking one that explores whether you should live for your resume or your eulogy:
