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E-commerce

E-commerce websites for small & medium sized businesses are a speciality of Autus. Small and medium sized businesses do not have enormous funding available for the development and promotion of an e-commerce website. We can develop your e-com website on a very reasonable budget.

Autus E-Commerce Websites - Typical Features

PayPal Payment Provider

We typically use the PayPal payment provider system. PayPal is well known as a safe, secure and respected payment provider within the web community due to its longstanding association with E-Bay.

Unlike most banks, PayPal do not charge £400 - £500 for the privilege of incorporating their software into your website. Their ongoing charges are also very reasonable by comparison.

YOUR Shopping Cart

We do not use off the shelf shopping carts. These tend to contain lots of elements that you do not need and they complicate your system unnecessarily. We have specialist software and database development expertise in house and we develop the shopping cart that best meets your precise needs.

Is E-Com for Me?

Each month thousands of new e-commerce websites hit the web. We see and hear about the many great successes... but what about the far greater number that fail to germinate out there in web space?

We are not seeking to deter you from developing your business using every effective means possible. But, with our business consultant's hat on, we feel it is incumbent on us to help you to identify the risks so that you can evaluate them and come to a properly considered decision.

E-Commerce Considerations

Here are some basic issues to consider when deciding whether or not to go down the e-commerce route:-

1. E-Com Pricing
   You will usually find that the prices you offer on the web will need to be much lower than those you apply through your normal sales channels. Many factors influence this critical consideration and we would be pleased to discuss with you those specific to your industry.
2. Non Specialist Operators
   In many industries we see the price of an item that would normally be sold for £1,200, offered at £799 or even less. This is usually a result of the activities of what we have termed 'box shifters'. These operators can work from their living room with a phone and a PC. They offer a limited product range, no specialist advice, no consultation to establish which product is best for the clients' needs. They simply offer a product at a low price, which is despatched from the manufacturer when the e-transaction is completed.
   
   If you find yourself faced with such a situation, please call David Clough on 0161 278 2534, or visit Contact to discuss how you should proceed.
3. Essential E-Commerce Website Marketing
   The biggest difference between an e-commerce website and a normal website will often be the cost of promoting the website - in all its facets. In many product fields a standard website will be promoting a product within a geographic region, for example 'mobility scooters, Manchester'. We would then optimise the website for this criteria, amongst others. However, when promoting e-commerce sales, the searcher no longer includes Manchester in the search, the search will be for 'mobility scooters'. Consequently the number of pages offered to the viewer will be approximately ten times those for the local (Manchester) search. Thus selling mobility scooters on the web requires a far stronger search engine position.
   
   In essence - successful e-commerce does not come cheap.
   
   To discuss the specifics of your case please call David Clough on 0161 278 2534, or visit Contact.