In the face of rising taxes, pay freezes and unemployment, many Britons are taking matters into their own hands to stave off the credit crunch. As the recession has bitten, online payments expert Moneybookers says it has seen a big increase in the number of people setting up their own internet businesses as a way to provide an extra source of income. The number of start ups integrating the Moneybookers payments module began to rise dramatically during the latter months of 2008 as the realities of redundancy figures and pay freezes kicked in.
Growth in registrations compared to January 2008 was 250% in September as the reverberations following the collapse of Lehman Brothers were felt across the world. Numbers continued to rise, peaking at 512% growth in December compared to January. Moneybookers is still seeing a sustained increase in start up businesses as more and more people turn to online trading to supplement - or replace - their existing income.
"A growing number of people are realising that setting up in business online could be a clever way to beat the recession," said Martin Ott, co-CEO of Moneybookers. "The flexibility of lifestyle an internet business gives you means it's ideal to fit around your current job to help supplement your income in cash-strapped times or even take over from a job you've recently lost. We've been seeing everything from tee-shirt retailers to online plumbing merchants set up shop on the internet. The online world is one area that is proving relatively resilient in the face of a global downturn."
Responding to this growing interest in setting up an online business, Moneybookers has put together its top ten tips based on its market-leading experience of working with internet companies:
1) Think about using Open Source shop software from providers such as osCommerce or Magento
These shop systems provide you with software to build your online shop for free and have a helpful community which you can fall back on in case of problems. You can also download the Moneybookers payments system from here. Once activated it offers you a comprehensive spectrum of payment methods accepted worldwide, proven to improve your conversion rates.
2) Make sure your domain name can be found easily
Many internet businesses have failed because potential customers could never find the right website address. The address is also one of the major factors for Search Engine Optimisation. Make sure yours is memorable and reflects the name of the company, and that you keep the registration renewal up-to-date. Think of some of the best known companies' names like directferries.com - you can't forget their web address.
3) Identify your USPs - and use them for Search Engine Optimisation
As for every successful business, think about what will make your online store stand out and be different - product range, price, target market, etc. You can then use this to create your keywords and website description, so Google will acknowledge it and display your site on the top search results for these USPs.
4) Don't economise on your website design
If you are using an open source shop system they will offer you certain proven layouts and designs which are often ready-optimised in terms of usability. If you are building your own shop, think about spending some money on getting your website designed professionally. Having a structured, professional website will attract people to your store and give them the confidence to shop there. A good designer will also make sure that your site is compatible with all browser types so all potential customers will be able to access it.
5) Make sure your customers can navigate around your site easily and are able to checkout quickly and securely
It's important to have as good a conversion rate as possible, right from the product search stage up until final payment. Difficulties in navigation and usability or slow systems encourage shoppers to abandon a transaction, as do insecure-looking payment mechanisms. Ensure that the "checkout" is easily visible so your customers know where to go, or implement an "eWallet" where your customers can pay easily with their user name and password without always having to enter their credit card details. As always, make sure you test this on all browser configurations.
6) Make sure your payment module matches the customer base you want to target
While credit cards seem the most obvious choice of payment to offer, they may not be the most wide-reaching, especially if you're targeting the European market where credit card penetration is low and payment methods such as ELV are much more common. Using a system like Moneybookers means you automatically have access to a global payments network of more than 60 payment options accepted in over 200 countries. By using this you will immediately offer the payment option and you'll make sure that they can pay for your products.
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