7 Steps You Need to Follow to Move Your Business Online

The world is continually changing and included in that change is how people consume products and services. As the day goes by, more and more companies and businesses are shifting to digital or online platforms to sell and market their brands.

In the Philippines, this shift is happening at a really fast pace. With the prevalence of Shopee, Lazada, Carousell, and other e-commerce platforms, people’s appreciation of the convenience these virtual stores provide continue to rise.

In fact, in the Philippines alone, there are already 76 million Filipinos who are opting to buy online rather than go through physical stores to shop. Out of this population, more than 95 percent are active on social media networks, which has also become an avenue for selling, specifically with the advent of the Facebook Marketplace.

For this reason – or reasons in this case – it’s important for businesses, big or small, to channel some of their energy towards the digital marketing space.

By extending their reach to a place that’s already saturated with potential customers – the internet – they’ll be able to effectively market their products and services without the need to drag consumers to a physical store.

And the process couldn’t be easier nowadays – with information available at you at all fronts and at all times, what’s stopping you?

Now, if all that talk got you interested in taking your business for a spin online, here are the steps you need to follow! Read below!

1. Get a domain name

Getting a domain name is one of the most important parts of transferring your business online. Your domain name will serve as the center point of your business, which will tell people who you are and create recall for your service or product. 

And ideally, your domain name should match your business’ name. Once you’ve settled on a domain name, you can then purchase and register it with your chosen web hosting provider.

2. Set up a website

After successfully acquiring a domain name that’s authentic to your business, the next step is to create a website.

In this step, it’s important to take into account the kind of business you have. If you’re selling a product, e-commerce platforms like Shopify, Wix, and GoDaddy would be ideal for you.

These platforms are all beginner-friendly and only have a short learning curve, which will enable you to quickly get your product out there without much struggle.

3. Work on your website’s design

Once you’ve chosen the right platform for your website, the next step would be to work on its design.

This step is crucial for your business as this will serve as the online home for your products or service and is the place where you tell your story and where you start establishing credibility.

Here are some tips you can use as a guide in designing your website:

• Keep your font plain and easy to understand.
• Make sure the colors don’t clash. Your website should be inviting to the eyes.
• Make your navigation simple and consistent throughout, especially when it comes to checking out products.
• Use graphics, videos, and audio to liven up your page.
• Make it customer-friendly and informative.

4. Add content to your site

A great way to showcase yourself to your customers online is by adding content to your site. It’s an effective way for customers to get to know you without going to your physical store first hand.

The best way you can do this is by adding content on the key pages of your website. These will include your:

• Home Page – This page should feature impactful images and memorable one-liners.
• About Page – This part should tell the story of your business, specifically your humble beginnings and how you’ve improved through the years.
• Product / Service Page – This page should contain information about your product or service – get into the details and kinks.
• Contact Page – This one should feature your store’s physical address, your e-mail, contact number, social media pages, and a contact form.

5. Create social media accounts

As we’ve mentioned earlier, more and more people are using social networks to sell products and services, specifically for the large and varied audience it hosts.

With this in mind, it’ll be really helpful for your brand or business to create social media pages where people can interact directly with you and the products you offer.

Creating these accounts will also help you pinpoint your audience and market, allowing you to respond to their ‘needs’ and ‘wants’ immediately.

This process is easier to accomplish nowadays as many social media management agencies in the Philippines have sprung up – ready to do the work for you with little risk but big rewards.

6. Set up payment options

To kick-off product sales through your website, you have to set up payment options. While it’s certainly possible to work things out by using a single payment method, it’ll be much better to support an array of different ways for customers to pay.

By employing more payment systems, more orders will be processed, which means more money for your business!

7. Adopt an SEO strategy

The internet is a very large place – and that has its ups and downs. One downside would be is that’s it’s too crowded, specifically when it comes to search results.

A way to counter this is by employing an SEO strategy. SEO or search engine optimization will help your customers pinpoint your website immediately through specific keywords.

This will lead to increased traffic to your website and improved sales.