Europe had more than 192,000 active merchant sites in 2019 with a turnover of 103.4 billion euros. A vast market that has enough to attract established professionals or those who want to get started! The web has become more of a commercial platform than a simple showcase. If you plan to create an online store to boost your sales, here are the different steps you need to follow.
The preparation of the creation of the online store upstream
Thousands of online stores are being created every day, but that doesn’t mean you should minimize the preparatory phase. Take the necessary time to study the question. Consider all the likely possibilities and take stock of each alternative. Make a forward-looking assessment of the costs, margins and profitability of your potential online business.
Unlike a real store, a virtual store does not require the acquisition of a premises. However, they have the same objective. Study your type of market to better target your customers. Make a sharp analysis on the different points that could interest your future buyers.
The creation of the online store
For the implementation of an e-commerce sales space, you have the choice between two possibilities. Either you call upon an experienced developer, or you set up the site yourself. As an entrepreneur, it is preferable to use the first solution. Professionals will allow you to create your virtual store in a short time and according to your desires. You will easily gain notoriety and visibility in search engines this way.
Less expensive than calling on specialists, the creation of an online store by its own means can be n nevertheless advantageous. Simple and effective, this option allows you to amortize your expenses. All you have to do is buy online store creation software from sites such as shopfactory.fr, powerboutique.com or their competitors.
Order processing
The site manager is entirely responsible for the execution of the contract concluded remotely (including delivery), except if the poor execution is attributable to the buyer, a third party, or a case of force majeure.
As in a physical store, it is necessary to know how to build customer loyalty on the Internet. Offer them various payment options. In order to reassure them, it is moreover essential to offer them a secure payment method: encrypted payment, by credit card (CB), by electronic wallet, by SMS, by the Internet Service Provider (ISP), etc. For payment by CB, the merchant must sign a distance selling contract with his bank.
Make a contract with your bank to obtain a VAD (distance selling) contract, which offers the possibility of paying for purchases by bank transfer and check. Payment can be made at the time of order or C.O.D. delivery (in this case additional charges may apply).
The seller can propose different types of payment
Like the method of payment, the delivery must also be secure. Solicit service providers such as Colissimo, TNT, Fedex, DHL for each parcel delivery. Make available on your website a package tracking system, so that your buyers can know where their purchases are.
The obligations of the creation of the online store
For the creation of an online store, there are legal procedures to follow. You must make a request to the InterNIC or the European Association for Internet Naming in Cooperation (Afnic). In order to verify that the name you have chosen for your store is not already in use, you must check it at the INPI. As the online store is for personal use, you must also declare it to the CNIL. “At the very least, it is recommended to register the domain name chosen in the national extension of the country in question (a domain name in .fr for Europe) and in .com (generic extension),” advises Afnic.
The creation of an online store is beneficial for your company. The online sale is a perfectly exploitable project that will easily open the doors of the international market.
Commercial sites selling goods or services on the Internet are subject to the same regulations as distance selling or mail order (mail order), including reporting obligations (consumer protection, VAT), mandatory information, specific rules for prospecting, etc.
Any website is identified by a domain name, equivalent to your postal address but on the Internet.
Make sure that you are the contact associated with your domain name, especially if it has been purchased for you by a service provider. “Otherwise, the domain name would not belong to you,” warns the DGCCRF. “Worse still, the service provider could ask you for money to resell you your own domain name. »
An unavoidable obligation: the protection of personal data
A commercial site that collects nominative information (name, e-mail) and builds up files of clients and prospects must make a simplified declaration to the CNIL.
E-commerce sites must generally make a declaration to the National Commission for Information Technology and Liberties (CNIL), because of the processing of personal data related to the customer file. The CNIL speaks of “simplified standard n°48”, concerning “client-prospect files and online sales”.
Likewise, if your site deposits or reads “cookies” (“tracers” deposited and / or read during the consultation of a site) on the computer of Internet users, you have the obligation to inform them of the purpose of the cookies, to obtain their consent and to provide them with a means to refuse them. This consent is valid for a maximum of 13 months.
The online store must:
- obtain the agreement of the customers.
- inform customers of their right to access, modify and delete information collected.
- ensure the security of information systems and the confidentiality of data.
- indicate a data retention period.
The online merchant is not allowed to send a commercial e-mail without the recipient’s agreement, given at the time of collection of the e-mail, unless:
– the person is already a customer and the prospecting concerns products identical to those already provided.
– the canvassing is not of a commercial nature (charitable, for example).
In these two cases, the person must, at the time of collection of his address, be informed of its use for canvassing, and be able to oppose it.
What information must appear on your site?
The legal notices to appear on your site are:
- The company name, the legal form, the address of the establishment or the registered office and the amount of the share capital for a company or your name, first name and address if you are an individual entrepreneur
- An email address and phone number
- The name of the person responsible for the publication
- The registration number at the trade and companies register (rcs) and the intra-community vat number
- The contact details of the web host of the site
- The general terms and conditions of sale (gtc): prices in euros including all taxes, costs and delivery times, payment terms, right of withdrawal, etc.
- The simplified declaration number obtained from the cnil (European data protection authority)
- Any specific elements according to your status (registration number in the trade directory for a craft activity, professional rules for regulated professions, etc.).
Would you like to get more information about ecommerce development? Contact us our experienced team today. We will provide the best fit solution for your business.
