Here’s the truth: it’s a lot of work to set up an online store. Is it even worth it? The short answer is, “yes, absolutely.”
Here are some of the top benefits of setting up an online store on your blog.
1. It’s inexpensive
The cost of setting up an online store is minimal. You have to pay for web hosting, digital product creation, and software or plugins to support your store. As you grow, you may need to hire staff to help you scale.
But do you know what you don’t have to pay for? You don’t have to pay for a building, licensing and permits for operating a brick-and-mortar store, utility bills, office employees, cleaning supplies, furniture, appliances, POS systems, and more.
The best news is you can easily plan for your blog’s eCommerce store expenses. You’ll know exactly how much web hosting and marketing will cost, making it easy to plan.
2. You make passive income
Passive income is money you make that requires little to no effort once you’ve done the initial work. In other words, it’s waking up in the morning to find out you have made sales while you were sleeping. It’s getting a ping while you’re at lunch telling you someone has purchased a new digital product from your blog. Yay!
An online store means your blog’s products are available around the clock. You’re not limited to a 9-5 purchasing window, which increases sales opportunities.
Your sales reach is also not limited to your local audience. Consumers in Virginia, India, and Australia all have the same access to your store, boosting sales opportunities.
3. You capture mobile sales
Provided you optimize your digital sales for a mobile audience (which you will), you capture even more sales.
Mobile shopping is nearly overtaking desktop shopping as it’s a convenient way to buy on the go. In fact, by 2021, forecasts show that mobile shopping will account for over half of all sales.
Not to mention, 49% of people shop only with their phones. The reason? Mobile shopping is convenient, safe, and almost effortless.
4. An online store increases your blog’s visibility
Whether your end-goal is to make more digital sales or drive more readers to your blog, one thing is certain. Setting up an online store for your blog will increase your visibility either way.
85% of people search Google to find products and make purchases. If you don’t have an eCommerce store on your site, then you 100% won’t show up in product-related searches.
The opposite is also true. Investing in an eCommerce store increases your Google reach, and will help drive traffic to your blog.
How do you decide what digital products to sell on your blog?
Before you take the steps to set up an online store, you have to know what you’re going to sell. Deciding what products you want to sell requires a bit of brainstorming and market research.
Here are some tips to help you through the process:
– Find your element
– Learn what’s trending
– Identify what’s missing
– See what’s selling
– Learn which digital products are the most popular
Start selling digital products on your blog with Eastlink today!
If you’ve been tossing around the idea of selling digital products in an online store, today is your day. Do it!
The first step is to purchase a web hosting account with Eastlinkcloud, integrate your WordPress website.
For more information on getting started with Eastlinkcloud, check out our web hosting plans today. We can’t wait to help you start selling on your blog.
