do-it-yourself web stores for dummies

Web Stores FOR DUMmIES ‰ DO-IT-YOURSELF by Joel Elad 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page i Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies ® Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River Street Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2008 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, elec- tronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing, Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, (317) 572-3447, fax (317) 572-4355, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIF- ICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFES- SIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DIS- APPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2007942002 ISBN: 978-0-470-17443-2 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page ii Web Stores FOR DUMmIES ‰ DO-IT-YOURSELF by Joel Elad 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page i Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies ® Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River Street Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2008 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, elec- tronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing, Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, (317) 572-3447, fax (317) 572-4355, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIF- ICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFES- SIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DIS- APPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ. For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2007942002 ISBN: 978-0-470-17443-2 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page ii About the Author Joel Elad is the head of Real Method Consulting, a company dedicated to educating people on how to sell on the Internet, and eBay in particular, through training seminars, DVDs, books, and other media. He holds a Master’s Degree in Business from UC Irvine, and a Bachelors Degree in Computer Science and Engineering from UCLA. Joel has written several books in the field of e-commerce, including Starting an Online Business All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies , eBay Your Business, and How to Sell Anything on Amazon . . . and Make a Fortune! He has contributed to Entrepreneur magazine and Smartbiz.com, and has spoken at regional and national conferences on the topic of eBay and/or e-commerce. He is the lead eBay instructor for the Learning Annex in New York City, Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco. He has taught at institutions like the University of California, Irvine. He is an Educational Specialist trained by eBay and a proud member of eBay’s Voices of the Community. Joel has previously worked for companies like IBM Global Services, where he was a project man- ager and software developer working for Fortune 500 clients. He operates several e-commerce sites, including NewComix.Com, which has quickly become a low-priced leader of comic books, toys, and action figures to US and international customers. While he was the Marketing and Sales Director at Top Cow Productions, Joel implemented an eBay sales channel and helped revamp their e-commerce operations. He continues to consult for various clients to add or improve their e-commerce operations. Joel lives in San Diego, California. In his spare time, he hones his skills in creative writing, Texas Hold ’Em poker, and finance. He is an avid traveler who enjoys seeing the sights both near and far, whether it’s the Las Vegas Strip or the ruins of Macchu Picchu. He spends his weekends scouring eBay and local conventions for the best comic book deals, catching the latest movie with friends or family, and enjoying a lazy Sunday. 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page iii 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page iv Dedication I hereby dedicate this book to two dear friends, Anthony Choi, and Michael Wellman, who help make my dreams a reality and make my reality that much more enjoyable. They have defined my success with my online ventures and I wouldn’t be where I am without their help, knowl- edge, patience, dedication, and drive. You two are my inspiration! Author’s Acknowledgments I have to give a BIG thanks to the superb team at Wiley for making this book a reality and trusting me to guide the way. I have to especially thank Blair Pottenger for his infinite patience, advice, and steady guidance, as well as Steven Hayes for his encouragement and faith. I also have to thank Michael Bellomo for keeping me on the straight and narrow, an exhausting job to be sure. And where would I be without the editors at Wiley, like Jenn Riggs, to make me sound so clear and grammatically correct? Secondly, I’d like to acknowledge the various e-commerce store owners, IT professionals, and friends who gladly gave their time, advice, and opinions to help me craft this book: Anthony and Yvonne Choi, Lynn Dralle, Phil Dunn, Joshua MacAdam, James Marchetti, Chandler and Sharon Rice, and Joshua Schwartz. Also, I have to thank several assistant managers at the San Diego Kinko’s locations for helping me as I holed up there for weeks and weeks to get this book writ- ten. (Thumbs up to Christine Seliger and Dan Chandler.) The Napa and Point Loma locations are ACES in my book, and the 24-hour Hazard Center Mission Valley location was my lifeline! Lastly, thanks to my family for putting up with my late-late-night writing sessions and frequent seclusion to get this book ready for publication. Your support is always invaluable. 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page v Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development Project Editor: Blair J. Pottenger Executive Editor: Steven Hayes Copy Editor: Jenn Riggs Technical Editor: Michael Bellomo Editorial Manager: Kevin Kirschner Media Project Supervisor: Laura Moss-Hollister Media Development Specialist: Angela Denny Editorial Assistant: Amanda Foxworth Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com) Composition Services Project Coordinator: Kristie Rees Layout and Graphics: Carrie A. Cesavice, Stephanie D. Jumper Proofreaders: Laura Albert, Linda Quigley Indexer: Potomac Indexing, LLC Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher Mary Bednarek, Executive Acquisitions Director Mary C. Corder, Editorial Director Publishing for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director Composition Services Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page vi Table of Contents Introduction 1 About This Book 1 What You Can Safely Ignore 2 Foolish Assumptions 2 How This Book Is Organized 2 Part I: Planning and Gathering 2 Part II: Constructing Your Web Store 3 Part III: Filling In the Blanks (and Shelves) 3 Part IV: Finalizing Your Web Store 3 Part V: Promotion and Outsourcing of Your Web Store 4 Part VI: The Part of Tens 4 Icons Used in This Book 4 Where to Go from Here 5 Part I: Planning and Gathering 7 Chapter 1: Web Stores Overview: Discovering Your Purpose 9 Deciding What to Sell 9 Finding Products to Sell 13 Start with what you own 13 Pound the pavement 13 Work on the wholesale 16 Establishing Your Store Information 18 Creating a Skype Phone Number 20 Chapter 2: Developing Your Store Policies 27 Putting the Service in Customer Service 27 Finding your level of customer service 28 Writing your Customer Service policy 28 Writing Your Return Policy 32 Making Your Privacy Policy Public 34 Preparing your Privacy policy 35 Writing your Privacy policy using the Direct Marketing Association 36 Writing Your Shipping Policy 39 Writing Your User Agreement 42 Policies — The Final Word 43 02_174432 ftoc.qxp 2/6/08 1:35 AM Page vii Part II: Constructing Your Web Store 45 Chapter 3: Finding Your Storefront Provider 47 Evaluating Web Storefront Providers 47 Evaluating storefront accounts 48 Evaluating storefront services 51 Picking Your Storefront Domain Name 52 Registering Your Domain Name 53 Using WHOIS to Find a Domain Owner 57 Researching Other Domain Name Options 60 Chapter 4: Yahoo! Merchant Solutions 65 Why Yahoo? 66 Yahoo! Account Types 68 Starter 69 Standard 70 Professional 70 Signing up with Yahoo! Merchant Solutions 73 Creating Your Store Design 76 Adding an Item to Your Store 80 Completing the Open for Business Checklist 83 Chapter 5: ProStores 89 Why ProStores? 90 ProStores’ Plan Types 92 Express 92 Business 93 Advanced 93 Enterprise 93 Signing Up with ProStores 95 Creating Your Store Design 99 Adding Categories to Your Store 104 Adding an Item to Your Catalog 106 Completing the Getting Started Checklist 110 Chapter 6: 1&1 eShops 119 Why 1&1 eShops? 120 1&1 eShops’ Plan Types 122 Business eShop 123 Professional eShop 124 Developer eShop 124 Signing Up with 1&1 eShops 125 Creating Your Store Design 131 Adding an Item to Your Catalog 135 Publishing Your 1&1 eShop 137 Chapter 7: Establishing Your Payment Options 145 Features, Fees, and Required Information for a Merchant Account 145 Features and Fees of a PayPal Account 149 viii Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies 02_174432 ftoc.qxp 2/6/08 1:35 AM Page viii [...]... your Web store URL into every single thing you do in your business I then talk about an extensive site-wide review of the Web store, looking for any outdated or incorrect information, cleaning up any spelling or grammatical errors, and making sure that each page is correctly linked to each other Finally, I have you check to make sure every section of your 3 4 Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies Web. .. reach, by the way Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies shows you how to set up your Web store and all the steps you should think about before, during, and after the setup process I take great pains to give you step-by-step instructions whenever possible to get you up and running But it’s also a real-life-situation kind of book I show you what to consider as a Web store owner without forcing you to pick... specific Web storefront provider I throw out some business techniques and give you options for how you want to build your Web store and interact with your customers As you’ll see, there are a lot of things you can sell, and a lot of ways you can build your Web store This book is designed to be your guide, with flexibility and assistance throughout these pages 2 Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies. .. keep them coming back for more, from a discussion board so they can chat with each other to a Web store specific search engine and customer accounts (For specific ways you can enhance your Web store, check out Web Sites Do-ItYourself For Dummies, by Janine Warner, as she focuses on the non-commerce ways to improve your Web store.) Finally, I talk about the importance of tying your Web store operations... ix x Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies Part IV: Finalizing Your Web Store .243 Chapter 13: Putting Your Web Store at the Hub of Your Sales 245 Updating Your Literature and Signs 245 Updating Your Online Presence with Your Web Store .248 Creating a Microsoft Outlook Signature File .250 Creating a Yahoo! Mail Signature File 252 Creating a Discussion Forum... policy, return policy, and other policies that should be defined before you open for business so everyone knows the rules of your business Chapter 1 Web Stores Overview: Discovering Your Purpose Tasks performed in this chapter ߜ Determining what to sell in your Web store ߜ Finding products to sell in your Web store ߜ Establish your store information ߜ Getting a Skype phone number W hen you think of opening... “resale license” and your state into a search engine for more information on how to get one Beware of middlemen helping you get this license — go directly to a state government Web site for more information Establishing Your Store Information When you set up your store, you typically need to have some contact or business information to provide when signing up for everything If this is a home business, you... Your Web Store 255 How do I know I’m ready for this step? .256 What to inspect on each Web page 257 Inviting a Select Group to Shop Before the Grand Opening .258 Inspecting Your Store for Multiple Web Browsers 260 Testing Your Check Out Process 264 Sending Out a Grand Opening E-mail 267 Chapter 15: Load, Look, and Launch — Final Steps Before... stock in their stores for the next year Go to http://www.cesweb.org for more information Work on the wholesale As you work your way up the “food chain” of products, your ultimate goal as a Web store owner is to purchase your inventory via wholesale channels and pay a lower price than the common person, so you can afford to re-sell it at retail (or a fraction thereof) and make money for your store As your... getting started with building a Web store? Turn the page Do you have a specific topic of interest? Use the index or the Table of Contents to find the topic and turn to that page 5 6 Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies Part I Planning and Gathering I In this part n this part, I cover the first steps and thoughts you should undertake when trying to build your own Web store Chapter 1 talks about . Web Stores FOR DUMmIES ‰ DO-IT-YOURSELF by Joel Elad 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page i Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies ® Published by Wiley Publishing,. 2007942002 ISBN: 97 8-0 -4 7 0-1 744 3-2 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 01_174432 ffirs.qxp 2/6/08 1:34 AM Page ii Web Stores FOR DUMmIES ‰ DO-IT-YOURSELF by Joel Elad 01_174432. Required Information for a Merchant Account 145 Features and Fees of a PayPal Account 149 viii Web Stores Do-It-Yourself For Dummies 02_174432 ftoc.qxp 2/6/08 1:35 AM Page viii Applying for Your