Want to start an online shop? Here's how to get your fledgling online retail business off the ground. In a series of Lukango blog posts, we'll cover everything from integrating secure payments to marketing your shop - so you can focus on making money while you sleep.

Why become an online retail extraordinaire anyway?

Shopping for everything you can possibly think of has never been easier (as if shopping isn't fun enough). Now potential customers really can find just what they need and buy it at the click of a button.

Starting a business online has many similarities to starting one off-line. You have to consider your product, your audience, your competitors and whether to do it all by yourself or use an agency or freelancer to build your website and online shop. After all is said and done, you have to apply the same principles as you would for opening a brick and mortar shop.

In this Lukango mini-series, we show you how to get started as an online business retailer. From creating a killer brand to selling your products, discover what it takes to get your store up and running.

Starting an online store can be daunting

But never fear because in reality things have improved so much that becoming an online retailer has never been easier. Shop build and design tools, thousands of creative plugins, endless choice of hosting providers, cheap domains – all you need to start your online retailer empire.

An online retail business is a great way to earn money, but it's also a lot of work. You have to choose a niche and then carefully craft your store around that niche. You'll need to find a payment processor and an ecommerce platform and learn how to use them.

Here are the basics you’ll need to think about to launch an online retail business:

1. Choose a niche.
2. Find products to sell.
   
3. Research your competition and develop a strategy for beating them at their own game.
   
4. Build your website from scratch or hire someone else to do it for you?

Running an online retail business needs a lot of up front attention. It requires hard work and dedication to get off the ground. However, it also has its perks and it can be very rewarding once you get the hang of it. Keep reading for hints and tips.

Next up we’ll talk about choosing the product or service that you feel passionate about.

A bit about insurance before you go

Lukango is the place where you can access the right business insurance policy for your needs. We are here to make the complex simple and we have a huge range of policies to suit all businesses. So as much as we hate to admit it, and you hope that it doesn't, accidents can happen. Don't worry, you can have Lukango public liability insurance - the full stop to worrying about your small business risks if an accident happens.