For Small Businesses and Home Based Businesses

E-Commerce 101 Introduction

You're ready to start your e-commerce business and probably have a lot of ideas floating around about what you want to do. At the top of your "to do" list is build a website as soon as possible and start selling. That's great, but before you start building a website, you need to write down your ideas and some details.

A successful e-commerce website requires preparation and a clear strategy. The heart of your preparation is an E-Commerce Business Plan, which includes details on:

• Products & Services Analysis
• Competitive Analysis
• Marketing Analysis
• Financials Analysis

The E-Commerce Implementation Plan is about building your place of business and serving your customers. It focuses on applying the recommendations of the E-Commerce Business Plan, including the functional and technical features of your website:

• Design
• Shopping Cart
• Hosting
• On-going Maintenance
• Search Engine Optimization

The E-Commerce Business Plan and the Implementation Plan are equally important, because both are required for success and either one can cause your business to fail.

E-Commerce 101 provides an overview of primary topics, top "Do's and Don'ts" and links to Related Articles for each topic.

Detailed information is available in the "How To" Articles. If you don't see what you need or want additional information, submit a question or comment at Q & A.

E-Commerce 101 -- Topics
E-Commerce Business Plan	E-Commerce Implementation Plan