Do-It-Yourself versus Professional E-Commerce Website

by Maggi Hall, E-Commerce Adviser staff (rev022208)

There are three main options for building an e-commerce website:

• Hire a full-service company for design, development, optimization, etc.
• Do all the work yourself
• Hire an independent all purpose professional to do part of the work and you do some of the work yourself

Budget and technical ability are usually the deciding factors in selecting which option will work for your business. Any of options can produce a successful website. Each approach can have issues.

How Do You Decide

? If you haven't already done a "Start Up Budget" for your online business, now it the time. The details of the Financial Analysis will determine if all three options are available to you.

If you're like many small businesses and home based business, hiring a full service company isn't feasible. It's too expensive. Choosing between the remaining two options depends on your situation.

• How much time can you commit to the process?
• How soon do you want the website up and running?
• Do you really want to learn everything you need to know to build an e-commerce website?

Do-It-Yourself

. Building a website is not all that difficult, but building a successful e-commerce website requires both technical knowledge and online marketing experience. The four main tasks for a Do-It-Yourselfer are:

1. Find an e-commerce mentor
2. Enroll in e-commerce workshops
3. Complete an E-Commerce Business Plan and Implementation Plan
4. Implement an E-Commerce Website

Professional

. If you decide to work with a professional and if this is your first e-commerce website, your first three tasks are the same as those listed above for a Do-It-Yourselfer. Basically, you need to learn the process. If this isn't your first e-commerce project, start with task #3.

An E-Commerce Business Plan should be completed before engaging the website professional. The Implementation Plan should be a joint effort. The specific distribution of responsibilities depends on the situation, i.e. what do you want the website the professional to do.

E-Commerce Mentors

. The role of an e-commerce mentor is to help you outline the project, to keep you on track and to minimize the learning curve. If you are going to work with a professional, the mentor will also help you in find the best professional for your situation.

Mentoring services are available at SCORE, Small Business Administration, Center for Women & Enterprise, as well as other non-profit organizations and government agencies. And don't forget, E-CommerceAdviser.com specializes in providing e-commerce mentoring services.