According to Shopify, worldwide eCommerce sales topped $3.5 trillion in 2019, creating opportunities for countless prospective entrepreneurs. With an increasing number of web-based businesses competing for space in the eCommerce market, understanding the startup costs associated with opening and operating a web-based business can help you plan accordingly and launch a successful business. With that in mind, here’s how to launch a web-based business on a budget.
Invest in web hosting
Your web domain name is the URL associated with your website, social media handles, and online store. Depending on the web hosting provider, you may need to pay an upfront fee for the domain name, as well as an annual fee to renew your domain. Domain names cost between $50 and $100, while annual costs total approximately $20.
For web hosting, startup costs typically depend on the size of your company and the volume of online traffic you anticipate. If you’re expecting a high volume of daily traffic to your website, investing in a platform that can host more visitors will pay off in the long run. You can choose to pay annually or monthly for web hosting services, but web hosting platforms typically require an upfront flat fee of a few hundred dollars.
Focus on web design and experience
After securing your domain name, make sure your website is responsive on mobile devices. Creating a mobile-friendly website allows users on mobile devices to easily access your website on their phones, allowing your website to rank higher in Google search results. To save money, search for a web hosting service that includes mobile responsiveness in its base price.
To make your brand stand out among the competition, consider hiring a professional web designer to optimize your homepage and overall web design. Professional web designers can use your preferred colors, fonts, and graphics to design the website content in adherence to your brand’s standards. Depending on the time needed to design your website, hiring a professional web designer typically costs a few hundred dollars. If you can’t fit a professional web designer into your budget, using a free website template can help you convey your brand image to consumers.
Keep your finances organized
To keep your productivity high while keeping track of your business expenses, it’s important to properly organize and file your financial documents. For most small business owners, keeping a monthly account statement, a monthly bill for utilities, copies of tax returns, and insurance statements is necessary. With folders guaranteed to be compatible with the most popular tax preparation software programs, MinesPress tax folders can help you stay organized and provide financial peace of mind as you scale your web-based business.
In addition to tax software-compatible folders, MinesPress collection of promotional products provides everything your small business needs to create and maintain a strong brand presence. From branded business cards and calendars to tax return folders and envelopes, MinesPress promotional products will help you stay organized while keeping your brand in your customer’s minds.
Utilize affordable digital marketing strategies
Because online marketing can have a direct payoff depending on how well you do it, it’s one of the most important costs associated with launching a web-based business. Utilize free digital marketing strategies, including search engine optimization (SEO), social media advertising, and content creation to drive organic traffic to your website and raise brand awareness.
If you’re working with a limited marketing budget, consider investing in an affordable virtual phone number to increase customer engagement with your business. Virtual phone numbers, also known as DIDs or access numbers, are telephone numbers that are not directly linked to a telephone line. A virtual phone number acts as a virtual receptionist and is programmed to forward incoming calls to a set of telephone numbers, allowing small business owners to provide exceptional customer service by forwarding incoming calls to your team members, call centers, or sales teams as needed.
With more prospective entrepreneurs breaking into the eCommerce space, understanding the startup costs associated with launching a web-based business can contribute to your success.