You’ve decided to open a store for your client – how exciting! Store building and launching a Company Store or Simple Store can be incredibly rewarding for you and your clients. But first, there are a few key questions and considerations to contemplate before diving in. And our brand new Discovery Document can help steer you in the right direction! Read on to learn more about the important questions to consider when building your Clients Online Store.
Company Stores or Simple Stores?
The best place to start is figuring out exactly what your Client plans on using their Online Store for. Let’s go over some of the key differences between Simple Stores and Company Stores!
Company Stores are our most robust and feature rich system. Often they are full eCommerce sites, complete with easy to navigate filters, Category and Product Pages, and a streamlined Checkout Page. This Store type is best if your Client has a lot of products and needs a Store with more personal branding. Some of the common uses for Company Stores are Corporate Employee Stores, Uniform Stores, Points Stores, and Branded Apparel Stores.
Simple Stores are just that – Simple! However, that does not mean they’re boring. Simple Stores are perfect for Clients who have minimal products and are looking for a solution with a Single Page Storefront. They are also an unbeatable option for your budget conscious customers who want a quick setup and launch. And if your Client wants just a little something extra, BrightStores offers Advanced Design and Cart Add-Ons! A few of the most common uses for Simple Stores include Seasonal and Holiday Stores, Gifting and Rewards Programs, Fundraising Initiatives, and New Hire Packages.
Who, What, Why?
Gathering information on what the demographic is that will be shopping in the Store is very helpful! For example, is your client looking to collect jersey sizes for an adult sports league? Uniforms for middle school? Branded corporate Company gear? Whomever you’re looking to please, we have the solution! Next, we’ll focus on the purpose of a client’s store. This may vary depending on what they are using it for. Hypothetically, if the store is seasonal, it will most likely be a temporary or pop up store used for a limited time. When clients only wish to use a store during a specific period of time for something such as meeting a fundraising goal, or distributing products for an upcoming event, our Simple Store Solutions will work perfectly. On the other hand, if your client is more interested in something such as an Ongoing Corporate Employee Store for branded apparel and uniforms then they may benefit from a more powerful Company Store!
Timeframe and Budget
It’s crucial to understand your Clients timeframe! BrightStores works efficiently to assist you with any Store building needs, but understanding deadlines your Client may have is a substantial key to the success of the Store itself. Determining who will be fronting the cost of your client’s store is a major consideration you must acknowledge. Think about how much your client will realistically be spending per year on promotional products. This may help determine whether or not it is worth it for you to take the cost or if you will bill your clients instead. If you do decide to bill your client, it is important to consider your own time. Keep in mind all of your critical efforts in regards to store building, updating products, and maintaining the store. Very often, offering a store is just part of doing business.
Look and Feel
Identifying your client’s purpose for the store was the first step to determine what kind of set up they need! Both Simple Stores and Company Stores are efficient options that will give the shopper a great experience, but one may work better depending on their intentions for the store. Simple Stores are just that – simple! These stores are clean and super easy to use. Simple Stores also have the option of a Design and Cart add on for a more personalized look and feel. Company Stores are a more complex and dynamic platform for clients with more demanding needs. They can hold more products, have more intensive integrations, and more template options for a completely customizable Store.
User Experience
Determining the experience your Shopper will have is a critical step. With a single page storefront, Simple Stores provide users with a straightforward shopping experience as well as checkout. When considering Company Stores, you will receive Full Promo eCommerce Sites. A Home Page, Category Pages, and Product Pages are included with this platform. Company Stores are ideal for larger programs where more permissions, add ons, and integrations are necessary.
Payment, Shipping, and Taxes
On to all things payment related! If you will be holding inventory for the store, you also must also consider who will be choosing, packing up, and shipping the inventory. To stay organized and in the know, you can show storefront inventory counts and also create low inventory alerts so that you’re always one step ahead of the game! You also must establish if your store will contain solely inventory or if custom orders will be offered. Hybrid Stores are a perfect option for those who wish to do both! The store would have inventory on hand as well as the capacity to produce custom orders. This is very common for both Company Stores and Simple Stores. BrightStores also offers countless Shipping and Tax Integrations such as Avalara, Paypal, ShipStation, and so many more.
Integrations
Our Simple and Company Stores may be two very different and unique platforms, but what they have in common is incredibly powerful integrations. Whether you’re looking for a smoother payment and checkout option or you just want to automate your store with your favorite applications, we can guarantee we have what you need! And if we don’t, you can leave us a suggestion in our Help Center. Let’s talk about some of our most popular integrations that can help boost progress in all of your stores!
Products
The first step to offering the best products is figuring out what the categories will be used. This will help shoppers find their preferred products quickly and easily. You also should talk to your Client about logos, artwork, and personalization, in case they require specific logo locations, artwork, and personalization options for each product in an order. Another question to ask is, do you need to track inventory of the product? You can track inventory within the store with the vendor directly with Live Supplier Inventory. The inventory counts can display on the storefront so the shopper does not order a product that is not in stock.
While we hope to have given you some valuable insight in this blog, there is SO much more to examine in our revamped Discovery Document. Setting a foundation is the first step and also one of the most important aspects of building any Online Store, so if you’re interested in downloading it, click here.
If you’re ready to get started on your own Store, contact us today!