This document provides an introduction to ecommerce using WordPress. It defines ecommerce as the electronic buying and selling of products online. Ecommerce allows both physical and digital products to be sold, as well as subscriptions, donations and courses. The benefits of ecommerce include reaching new customers, smoother cash flow, and lower costs compared to a physical store. However, ecommerce is also highly competitive and involves dealing with shipping and technical jargon. The document then discusses ecommerce options in WordPress like PayPal buttons, WooCommerce stores, and marketplaces. It concludes by considering important factors like payment methods, legal compliance, marketing, shipping, and choosing a scalable system.

1. An introduction to
ecommerce for
WordPress
Richard Carter
Peacock Carter Ltd

2. What is ecommerce?

3. "Ecommerce is the activity
of electronically buying or
selling of products on online
services or over the Internet”
Wikipedia

4. Ecommerce lets you sell
physical and digital
products…
…and subscriptions,
donations, training courses
and more.

5. Benefits of ecommerce

6. 1. Reach new audiences
Could allow you to reach new
geographical areas for customers

7. 2. Smoother cashflow (?)
If your business is seasonal, online sales
could help provide new customers all
year round

8. 3. Easy to try new product
lines
If your business is seasonal, online sales could
help provide new customers all year round

9. 4. Lower costs(?)
You may be able to lower yours costs with
ecommerce stores usually requiring less
overheads to run than a physical store

10. Disadvantages of
ecommerce

11. 1. Highly competitive
If you’re starting from scratch, it will likely be a
challenge to generate customers initially
without investment in digital marketing

12. 2. Jargon
There’s plenty of jargon to deal with.
Useful guide to ecommerce terms:
https://learndigital.withgoogle.com/assets/med
ia/pdf/22-e-commerce-glossary.pdf

13. 3. Shipping
Chose couriers carefully – this can impact
hugely on customer happiness!

14. What are your options for
ecommerce in WordPress?

15. 1. PayPal “Buy Now” buttons
and baskets
See paypal.com/bm/webapps/mpp/carts
Pros
Simplest way – copy and
paste in to your site
Cons
Not ideal for larger
product catalogues

16. 2. Integrated store with
WooCommerce
Pros
Popular and well
supported
Many integrations
Gives you control over
your store
Cons
Added site maintenance

17. 3. Marketplaces
eBay, Etsy, Not On The High Street
Pros
Needs very little
technical knowledge
Cons
Higher commission fees
Reliance on that
platform’s terms and
customer base

18. 4. Standalone shop
Use a system outside of WordPress to
handle ecommerce orders
Pros
Headache free (?)
Low set up cost
Cons
Higher fees (?)
Restrictions to functionality
May not match your
WordPress website’s look
and feel

19. Ecommerce platforms
WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento, Big
Commerce, EKM, OpenCart, Wix,
Squarespace…

20. Things to consider

21. 1. Which works best for you
now, and in the future?
Is a cheap system now going to require a
pricey rebuild later down the line?
How scalable is the system you’ve picked?

22. 2. Which payment methods
will you use?
PayPal, Stripe, iZettle, cash on delivery, invoice,
Bitcoin…
Research and compare – all have different
transaction rates, refund policies – and some take
longer to clear in to your account than others

23. 3. Legal
Updated T&Cs, returns policies
e.g., distance selling regulations
Changes in rules for sending to EU due to Brexit
See
https://www.gov.uk/online-and-distance-selling-for-
businesses
https://www.gov.uk/online-and-distance-selling-for-
businesses/online-selling

24. 4. Marketing
Promote to existing customer base
Social media advertising
Paid advertising
Search engine optimisation (long term)

25. 5. Shipping
Research couriers / Royal Mail size and weight
limits, and costs.
“Free shipping” thresholds to incentivise
customers?

26. Questions?
Richard Carter
Peacock Carter Ltd
hello@peacockcarter.com