When you are deciding which E-Commerce hosting provider you go with, you need to think about much more than just the price and your budget. People who pick their provider based only on price often find that they have problems later on down the line. Before you choose a provider, you need to create a list of the things that you are looking for when you want to set up your website. The following are some ideas to consider putting on your list.
Security features
This is especially true if you are offering goods or services for sale, but it is important for any website. You will be dealing with the private and financial data of your customers, so you need to reassure them that all their information is safe in your hands. Look for an E-Commerce provider that provides military grade encryption, credit/debit checking solutions, secured databases and SSL certificates to verify and transfer important and personal information to facilitate transactions.
E-commerce software
There are many different types of software you may want to consider for your online business. A good start is an online shopping cart, preferably one that allows you to upload great pictures of your products, detailed descriptions, live updating on whether an item is in stock or not, automatic regional taxes addition, shipping and handling calculator and any other features you might need, such as wish lists. You may also want to provide a place for customers to rate your products and you will need to partner up with a payment gateway solution that lets you take credit, debit and other payment methods such as Paypal.
Analytics software
Just as important as security and buying/selling is the ability to analyze the traffic you are receiving on your website. Software that allows you to do this will tell you what the most effective keywords are that bring people in to your site, where people are coming from, how long they stay, which sites they are visiting and so on. Analyzing this information will allow you to optimize every part of your website for the best user experience possible.
Scalability
You should also pick an E-Commerce provider that allows you to continue to scale your needs as you discover them organically while your site grows. You may even find that you would like to hire a professional web designer, IT specialist or even Internet writers to make your site more appealing and user friendly.