The term “cloud e-commerce” refers to the process of outsourcing of a remote network of servers hosted on the Internet to use application services, store and process data. Essentially, it is a cloud-based e-commerce versus software installed on a local server. … But for most of the year the servers are not in use. 

Ecommerce stands for “electronic commerce” and refers to the process of conducting transactions through the internet. As such, ecommerce covers all activities related to buying and selling products or services online. 

Ecommerce operations are run by individuals and businesses alike and may be hosted on websites or within online marketplaces (Amazon, eBay, Etsy). Ecommerce hosted on websites is powered by software called ecommerce platforms. Modern ecommerce platforms also include advanced functions to help sellers provide buyers with streamlined and personalized customer experiences. 

 Types of ecommerce: 

The two primary types of ecommerce are B2C (business-to-consumer) and B2B (business-to-business), although C2C (consumer-to-consumer) and C2B (consumer-to-business) models exist as well.  

B2C ecommerce is defined by online sales relationships between businesses and individual shoppers. Products purchased through B2C ecommerce might include personal items like clothing, electronics, and food, while services ordered might range from personal transportation to travel accommodations. 

B2C ecommerce is defined by online sales relationships between businesses and individual shoppers. Products purchased through B2C ecommerce might include personal items like clothing, electronics, and food, while services ordered might range from personal transportation to travel accommodations. 

B2B ecommerce is defined by online sales relationships between businesses and other businesses. Products ordered through B2B ecommerce might include manufacturing materials or office equipment, while services ordered might range from financial auditing to SaaS (software as a service) solutions.  

Some businesses encompass both B2B and B2C models of ecommerce. Referred to as B2B2C companies, they support the entire value chain from manufacturing to distribution to end consumers. One example might be a major soft drink company selling to business clients as well as directly to consumers. 

Impact of e commerce market store on today’s business: 

Today, 87% of shoppers begin their customer journeys through digital channels. Whether a given customer’s final purchase occurs online or in a physical retail store, it is absolutely vital for brands to have a well-stocked and well-designed ecommerce store. Providing innovative, personalized digital experiences is also key to ecommerce success, as 72% of consumers and 89% of business buyers say they expect companies to understand their needs and expectations. Whether they’re buying on behalf of themselves or on behalf of their businesses, customers are human beings. They’re people, and at least 70% of people appreciate seamless, connected online shopping experiences. In fact, 82% of business buyers want their B2B ecommerce experiences to feel like high-quality B2C ecommerce experiences. 

How ecommerce market platfrom works: 

Ecommerce markets  platforms provide the building blocks of the online shopping experience. At its core, an ecommerce platform is cloud-based or local software that hosts an online store — but a good ecommerce platform also includes advanced tools to help sellers create great shopping experiences across the entire customer lifecycle and keep pace with evolving customer expectations. 

  High-quality online stores are supported by powerful and flexible ecommerce platforms, which allow for a fast launch process and frequent innovation thereafter. The platform also needs to support equally robust shopping experiences on desktop and mobile, and must easily integrate with the rest of the brand’s online presence, including the ability to scale the brand’s online stores for new markets in different languages and currencies. The best modern ecommerce platforms include functionality for providing shoppers with engaging and personalized experiences that are unified across all channels. This often means extending digital shopping experiences into physical retail stores, as well as delivering the ability to buy, service, and fulfill anywhere. Artificial intelligence built into an ecommerce platform can also improve and streamline online shopping experiences with features like intelligent search and automated product recommendations.  

Importance : 

Ecommerce is important because it empowers and connects. It harnesses the connective power of the internet to allow people to conveniently obtain items and services they might never otherwise have known about or had access to.  

  Ecommerce has improved commerce for consumers and businesses alike by connecting the two like never before — giving consumers increased choice and value, and giving businesses increased reach and insight. Advances in digital technology have forever changed and connected the way the world shops, and will only continue to change and connect the world of shopping. 

How to Start an Ecommerce Business :

Step 1: Research the ecommerce space and find your niche. 

The first step in learning how to start an ecommerce business is performing the necessary research. Just as if you were starting a restaurant and looking into different locations, food options, and themes, you’ll want to investigate the ecommerce area you’re interested in and make some decisions with regard to your specific business. 

For example, you’ll want to consider what exactly your ecommerce business is going to offer. Will you be selling products or services? If you’re selling products, are they physical or digital? Where will you source your products? Along these lines, you’ll also want to think about the type of business model you want to employ—will you offer single products, packages, subscriptions, or something else? 

Additionally, you’ll want to think on a broader scale during this process as well: How will you get your products or services to your customers? What will your startup costs look like? Are there legal or other regulations on your product or service that you need to keep in mind? 

These lines of questioning, among others, will be integral to the beginning of your business and will help you start to create and write your business plan. This process will give you a better sense of your specific goals and how you’re going to reach them. This being said, particularly in the ecommerce space, an important part of this step is finding your niche. 

Although the growth of the ecommerce industry is a great benefit for those looking to learn how to start an ecommerce business, it also means more competition. Therefore, you’ll want to perform competitor research and find a space where you think you can establish your brand and find success in selling your products and services. 

Step 2: Select your business name and choose a legal structure. 

Once you’ve solidified the plan for your ecommerce business, the next step is to choose a name. Like any other business, you’ll want to choose a name that’s unique, but also that clearly indicates what your business is or does. 

This being said, although you won’t want to invest too much time on a website quite yet, it will be worthwhile to check to see if your potential business domain name is available. If your domain name is currently being used, you may consider a different business name, or a different structure, such as “yourbusinessname.co” instead of “yourbusinessname.com.” 

After you’ve selected a name for your business, you’ll want to choose your business’s legal structure. The business entity type you choose will have important legal and financial implications for your ecommerce operation. Generally, you’ll choose to create a sole proprietorship, general partnership, LLC, or corporation. There are benefits and drawbacks to each of these entity types, so you may decide to consult an attorney or another legal professional for advice on the best option for your business. 

This being said, if you choose to start a sole proprietorship or general partnership, you won’t actually have to register in the state where you’re operating. Instead, your business will be associated legally under your individual name, meaning if you want to operate under the name you’ve chosen, you’ll need to need to file a DBA or “doing business as” application with your local government. 

Step 3: Apply for an EIN. 

Next, you’ll want to apply for an EIN, or employer identification number, for your ecommerce business. Although not all business entity types are required to have an EIN, this nine-digit number can be useful to help you separate your personal and business finances. Plus, you can apply for an EIN from the IRS, for free—either online, by mail, fax, or phone. Since you’re learning how to start an ecommerce business, you’ll very likely want to apply for this business tax ID online, and once you do, you’ll receive your number instantly. 

Step 4: Obtain business permits and licenses. 

After you’ve applied for your EIN, you’ll now want to obtain any business licenses or permits you need to operate legally within your city and state. As we mentioned above, if you’ve established your ecommerce business as a sole proprietorship or general partnership, you don’t actually need to register your business with the state—unless you’re filing a DBA to legally operate under a specific business name. For the other business entity types, however, you will need to register your business with your state and receive a general operating license. Depending on where your business is located, you may also need to acquire a local operating license as well. 

Generally, because most ecommerce businesses are home-based, they do not require as many business licenses and permits as brick-and-mortar stores. This being said, however, you’ll want to determine what the specific requirements are in your area—you can usually find this information online via your state or local government website. For example, most locations require that home-based business owners receive a home occupation permit to legally operate. This type of permit simply shows that by operating your business out of your home, you aren’t adding traffic, noise, or problematic conditions to your location. 

Some other types of business licenses and permits that you may need include: 

• Professional and trade licenses for certain industries 
• Sales tax permits 

• Health, safety, and environmental permits 
• Signage permits 
• Building and construction permits 

Step 5: Choose your ecommerce platform and create your website. 

At this point, you’ve completed the paperwork required to register and legally start your ecommerce business. In this way, the majority of our steps thus far have mirrored the process of starting a brick-and-mortar business. Now, however, instead of searching for a location and preparing to set up up your physical store, you’ll start creating your website and online store. 

Like a physical storefront, this website will be the face of your business—it’s what your customers will see first and what they’ll use to browse and purchases your products or services. With this in mind, creating your website will be one of the most important parts of starting your ecommerce business. Therefore, you’ll want to consider a few different points as you develop your online storefront: 

First, you’ll want to think about your domain name, as we mentioned above. You’ll want your domain name to (at least closely) match your business name. Along these lines, and perhaps your most significant decision will be choosing an ecommerce platform. Whether an all-in-one software, like Shopify, or an open-source platform, like Magento, your ecommerce platform will be the base you use to build and develop your online store. 

This being said, most ecommerce platforms not only allow you to create and launch your online store, but also customize your design, add your domain (or purchase one), manage inventory, take and ship orders, receive payment, and more. 

Benefits of e-commerce market Store: 

1. A Larger Market 

eCommerce Market allows you to reach customers all over the country and around the world. Your customers can make a purchase anywhere and anytime, especially more people are getting used to shopping on their mobile devices. 

2. Customer Insights Through Tracking And Analytics 

Whether you’re sending visitors to your eCommerce website through SEO, PPC ads or a good old postcard, there is a way to track your traffic and customers’ entire user journey to get insights into keywords, user experience, marketing message, pricing strategy, and more. 

3. Fast Response To Consumer Trends And Market Demand 

The streamlined logistics, especially for merchants who do “drop ship,” allow businesses to respond to market and eCommerce trends and consumer demands in a nimble manner. Merchants can also create promotions and deals on the fly to attract customers and generate more sales. 

4. Lower Cost 

With the advance in eCommerce platform technologies, it has become very easy and affordable to set up and maintain an eCommerce store with a low overhead. Merchants no longer have to spend a large budget on TV ads or billboard, nor worry about the expense for personnel and real estate. 

5. More Opportunities To “Sell” 

Merchants can only provide a limited amount of information on a product in a physical store. On the other hand, eCommerce websites allow the space to include more information such as demo videos, reviews, and customer testimonials to help increase conversion. 

6. Personalized Messaging 

eCommerce platforms give merchants the opportunity to serve up personalized content and product recommendations to registered customers. These targeted communications can help increase conversion by showing the most relevant content to each visitor. 

7. Increased Sales With Instant Gratification 

For businesses that sell digital goods, eCommerce allows the delivery of products within seconds of making a purchase. This satisfies consumers’ need for instant gratification and helps increase sales, especially for low-cost items that are often “impulse buys.” 

8. Ability to Scale Up (Or Down) Quickly And Unlimited “Shelf Space” 

The growth of an online business is not limited by the availability of physical space. Even though logistics can become an issue as one grows, it’s less of a challenge compared to those for running a brick-and-mortar store. eCommerce merchants can scale up or down their operation quickly, and take advantage of the unlimited “shelf space,” as a response to market trend and consumer demands. 

Disadvantages of eCommerce Market Store Online: 

1. Lack Of Personal Touch 

Some consumers value the personal touch they get from visiting a physical store and interacting with sales associates. Such personal touch is particularly important for businesses selling high-end products as customers not only want to buy the merchandise but also have a great experience during the process. 

2. Lack Of Tactile Experience 

No matter how well a video is made, consumers still can’t touch and feel a product. Not to mention, it’s not an easy feat to deliver a brand experience, which could often include the sense of touch, smell, taste, and sound, through the two-dimensionality of a screen. 

3. Price And Product Comparison 

With online shopping, consumers can compare many products and find the lowest price. This forces many merchants to compete on price and reduce their profit margin. 

4. Need For Internet Access 

This is pretty obvious, but don’t forget that your customers do need Internet access before they can purchase from you! Since many eCommerce platforms have features and functionalities that require high-speed Internet access for an optimal customer experience, there’s a chance you’re excluding visitors who have slow connections. 

5.  Credit Card Fraud 

Credit card fraud is a real and growing problem for online businesses. It can lead to chargebacks that result in the loss of revenue, penalties, and bad reputation.  

6. IT Security Issues 

More and more businesses and organizations have fallen prey to malicious hackers who have stolen customer information from their database. Not only could this have legal and financial implications but also lessen the trust customers have in the company. 

7. All the Eggs In One Basket 

eCommerce businesses rely heavily (or solely) on their websites. Even just a few minutes of downtime or technology hiccups can cause a substantial loss of revenue and customer dissatisfaction. 

8. Complexity In Taxation, Regulations, and Compliance 

If an online business sells to customers in different territories, they’ll have to adhere to regulations not only in their own states/countries but also in their customers’ place of residence. This could create a lot of complexities in accounting, compliance, and taxation. 

-Online E-Commerce Market Store is a beautiful, modern and professional-grade portal that’s ideal for eCommerce sites.

The amazing layouts will help you to start making more sales immediately while the advanced features like wishlist and quick view options will give you even more ways to package your products and satisfy your customers. It is especially designed as an eCommerce solution for any online shop and suitable for any kind of store. It has a fully responsive width adjusts automatically to any screen size or resolution. Also helps your website load data faster with lots of built in functionality which includes powerful admin panel that will help you manage your site better!

Cognosys provides hardened and ready to run images of Online e-commerce Market store on all public cloud ( AWS marketplace and Azure).
Deploy your Online e-commerce Market store securely on cloud i.e. AWS marketplace and Azure with Reliable Services offered by Cognosys at one-click with easy written and video tutorials.

Key Features: 

1. A mobile website option :

Online shoppers need to be offered convenience and instant ease-of-access to your online store, no matter what device they’re using. Your online store should be built on a responsive design template and its features need to be available to all users, at any time, and from anywhere. Older design templates were not structured to be flexible enough for the various screen sizes that are available nowadays so responsive design has taken over and is becoming standard with mobile websites of any merit. This is important – your website and its content need to be supported on all devices that access the internet. All features and functions should work flawlessly, giving your browsers a fluid mobile experience that compliments their overall opinion of your brand. Online shoppers are demanding and instant access to all of your features should be found on their mobile device, just as easily as on their PC. 

2. Free or competitive shipping options :

Last year, UPS did a major customer experience study called the Pulse of the Online Shopper. According to this extensive study, 81% of online shoppers agree that FREE SHIPPING is the most important aspect of checking out online. Other shipping options also scored very high, including providing an estimated shipping total early in the shopping experience. Many shopping carts are abandoned because of an unexpected high total after adding shipping. You may be surprised at how flexible online shoppers can be, however. The same study reports that 58% are willing to add more things to their cart to qualify for free shipping. 

So what does this information mean to you, as an online business owner? Free or competitive shipping options, when done well, can drive your success. The right formula will have your clients increasing their cart total in order to get free shipping! And of course, there are other shipping options that appeal to online shoppers… you just have to understand your niche market well enough to make the most of them. 

3. Advanced navigation and search functions :

s your online store user-friendly? Are you sure? Ask a few of your friends (honest friends) to take a spin around your website and give you feedback on it. This simple, effective technique is often overlooked, but is vitally important. Your online store should be set-up in such a way that makes it easier to shop than going to a brick’and’mortar shop would be. The eCommerce software you chose to build your online storefront with should be able to help and guide you a lot with this ‘ease-of-navigation’ process. If your platform isn’t giving you the tools you need, it’s time to consider an upgrade. Your eCommerce solution should offer a clear cut, intuitive flow for online shoppers to follow. They need to find the things that they want, browse things they may be interested in, and check out. 

Navigation and search options are important in online retail. Something as simple as the ‘search bar’ placement should be well thought out and based on the design of your site. The ‘search function’ also has to cater for your customers that do not know the actual names of the products they want to get. Search functionality needs to give online shoppers suggestions on the possible things they are looking for. 

4. Superior photos and image options :

There’s a reason people are always quoting “a picture is worth a thousand words”… because it is. In the case of internet retail however, it may be worth more. Your product images will influence online shoppers in ways that have them running away or drive them to purchase. In an internet store, product photos and options are crucial because online shoppers cannot physically see, touch or try the product they’re interested in. The product images should be crystal clear and taken with cameras that have a high resolution. The photos should also be taken from different points of view to give you a clearer idea of the product. Image options should include viewing angles, zoom, multiple images, and more. This, however, does not mean that the pictures should be overly enhanced or exaggerated. Doing so may mislead online shoppers into buying something that does not serve them well. 

5. A detailed product description :

Online retail is often about selling a story, an idea that fits the needs or current whim of your audience. Obviously, online stores do not have a live store attendant (though some may offer live chat), so the sale items need to have a product description that takes the place of your best sales person. They should be described with vivid and appealing content that stimulates your browsers need to buy. While creative and clever descriptions are often a strong selling point, don’t forget to include the important details, as well. Facts such as the expiration date, size dimensions, weight, manufacturers date, and practical uses must be included in a good product description. The availability of a warranty, where applicable, also has to be referred to in the description. If you’re selling food products, consider listing the ingredients, as they make purchasing easier for those with special dietary needs or restrictions. 

6. Customer reviews of the product :

Last year, BrightLocal conducted its 4th annual study on consumer usage and attitudes on customer reviews. It concluded that 88% of consumers say they trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations, a statistic that was up 9% from the previous year. As an SMB in the competitive world of online retail, it is crucial to provide your online shoppers with customer reviews of your products. Your audience wants to read about the experiences of other people who have used the product. Customer reviews now take the place of your friendly, neighborly recommendation and are an effective selling tactic for online businesses. Such reviews are vital when it comes to virtual shopping. If possible, include video reviews in the customer reviews, with detailed personal experiences and how-to-use tutorials. These ideas will add more of a personal touch to their overall shopping experience. 

7. A fast guest check-out option :

One of the final but most important considerations in online shopping comes during the actual check-out process. In an actual brick-and-mortar store, shoppers normally have to wait in line at the cashiers. During peak hours, the queue is long, and they end up spending a longer amount of time there. This is one of the main reasons that online shoppers are avoiding real shops and going online to fulfill their needs. They don’t want to come to your website and have the equivalent of a long check-out line so, please, DO NOT require registration before purchase. An online store should offer an efficient, fast check-out time. There are other ways to gather contact information so avoid any check-out tactics that delay the actual purchase. 

Online shoppers are demanding and make almost instantaneous decisions on whether to shop or drop your online store. Help them sail through your eCommerce experience and find no fault in your check-out or shopping flow. These seven tips will help you keep shoppers happy and increase your overall success! 

-Major Features of Online E-Commerce Market Store :

• Fully Responsive
• Clean and modern design
• Default homepage layouts and m-ultiskin colors
• Slider layer
• Megamenu
• Featured/Latest/Best seller products
• Blog
• Gallery
• Add to cart
• Quick view feature
• Grid view and list view for product listing
• Cross browser compatibility

• Installation Instructions For Windows

Installation Instructions  for Windows :

Step 1) RDP Connection: To connect to the operating system, connect to virtual machine using following RDP credentials-

Hostname: PublicDNS / IP of machine
Default Port : 3389
Username: To connect to the operating system, use RDP and the username is Administrator.
Password : Please Click here  to know how to  get password .

Step 2) Once the Virtual Machine starts, follow the given intructions on Welcome Wizard.

Step 3)

A) Application URL : Access the application via a browser at http://PublicDNS/wp-admin

B) Steps to access the  Admin Panel:

• To login to Online e-commerce Market store Administrative Panel, you need to open your browser and navigate to http://PublicDNS/wp-admin
• Enter username and password in the given fields and click on the “Login”button to access the Admin Panel.
• After successful login to the Admin Panel, you will get access to the Online e-commerce Market store.

Step 4) Click on ‘Deployment’ button to run the installer file.

Step 5) Once you run the installer file, fill all the required details to create database and press ‘Test Connection’ button to check if the script can connect to the database.

Step 6) You’ll get a pop up box confirming you that the server is detected and the script has successfully managed to connect to the database.

Note:- If you get a ‘Fail’ remark then it implies that new database is created. If you get a ‘Success’ remark then it implies that previous database alreday exists and proceeding further shall overwrite the database. For further instructions, follow the advice under ‘Common connection issues’ or contact your ‘Hosting Provider’.

Step 7) Before proceeding, you need to check the box to confirm thay you have read all the warnings and notices and then further click ‘Run Deployment’. You’ll get a warning reminding you that any data existing in the database will be overwritten (so cross-check again if you have entered the name of your new database and not an existing one!) which you can click OK to.

Step 8) Once above step is done you will then see the system starting to deploy the files. If you get an error, try re-uploading your archive file in case it became corrupt during the file transfer.

Step 9)  After installation, click on “Save Permalinks” button and then login by given credentials. Then just click on “Save changes” button to proceed further.

Step 10) Close Permalinks window and click on Test Site Button to browse your site.

Step 11) After all above is done, you’ll be presented with a page showing you the old and new Path and URL settings for your site. You have the opportunity to change your page title here and create a new admin user if you wish to.

AWS Step by Step Screenshots

• Installation Instructions For Windows

Installation Instructions  for Windows :

Note: How to find PublicDNS in Azure

Step 1) RDP Connection: To connect to the operating system, connect to virtual machine using following RDP credentials-

Hostname: PublicDNS / IP of machine
Default Port : 3389
Username: Your chosen Username when you created the machine ( For example: Azureuser)
Password: Your Chosen Password when you created the machine ( How to reset the password if you do not remember it)

Step 2) Once the Virtual Machine starts, follow the given intructions on Welcome Wizard.

Step 3)

A) Application URL : Access the application via a browser at http://PublicDNS/wp-admin

B) Steps to access the  Admin Panel:

• To login toOnline e-commerce Market store Administrative Panel, you need to open your browser and navigate to http://PublicDNS/wp-admin
• Enter username and password in the given fields and click on the “Login”button to access the Admin Panel.
• After successful login to the Admin Panel, you will get access to the Online e-commerce Market Store.

Step 4) Click on ‘Deployment’ button to run the installer file.

Step 5) Once you run the installer file, fill all the required details to create database and press ‘Test Connection’ button to check if the script can connect to the database.

Step 6) You’ll get a pop up box confirming you that the server is detected and the script has successfully managed to connect to the database.

Note:- If you get a ‘Fail’ remark then it implies that new database is created. If you get a ‘Success’ remark then it implies that previous database alreday exists and proceeding further shall overwrite the database. For further instructions, follow the advice under ‘Common connection issues’ or contact your ‘Hosting Provider’.

Step 7) Before proceeding, you need to check the box to confirm thay you have read all the warnings and notices and then further click ‘Run Deployment’. You’ll get a warning reminding you that any data existing in the database will be overwritten (so cross-check again if you have entered the name of your new database and not an existing one!) which you can click OK to.

Step 8) Once above step is done you will then see the system starting to deploy the files. If you get an error, try re-uploading your archive file in case it became corrupt during the file transfer.

Step 9) After installation, click on “Save Permalinks” button and then login by given credentials. Then just click on “Save changes” button to proceed further.

Step 10) Close Permalinks window and click on Test Site Button to browse your site.

Step 11) After all above is done, you’ll be presented with a page showing you the old and new Path and URL settings for your site. You have the opportunity to change your page title here and create a new admin user if you wish to.