What happens when an orders placed

[purplemonkey]

Hi guys

Very new to E-Commerce, i'll explain my current situation:

I have a business idea which will shortly be transforming itself into an online store once I've decided whether I will be using a webdesigner or DIY software.

I want to make sure that when the site is launched and orders are placed that the whole process is as automated as possible and information such as stock levels, buyer habits, accounting data etc. is easily accessible and readily available.

What options are there in terms of software that are available and would suit my requirements? (I would rather purchase stand alone software than use some of the online monitoring options)

Many thanks guys look forward to your replies¬!

[quikshop]

Hi purplemonkey,

Take a look at Actinic (www.actinic.co.uk (http://www.actinic.co.uk)). As standalone software goes it ticks all your requirements, has an excellent support community and is really easy to use.

You may need to engage with a web design service to make your Actinic powered shop look professional, the standard templates are quite poor, but well worth a look!

[nish]

There are much better and improved shopping cart systems available now. I would look for something that work well with search engines. Once you have the common functions from an existing shopping cart system, a web programmer can modify and develop it further to suite your requirements.

If you try to find a ready-system that does everything you want to automate is a waste of time. For a start-up business I would recommend a full business solution anyway.

Well that's my opinion, hope this will help you to put your project on the right track.

Good Luck

Nish

[quikshop]

Most good eCommerce solutions automate the process of accepting an order, notifying you as the shop owner, perhaps automatically writing the order to an accounts package, capturing customer data and processing PSP callback information to update the status of your shops order.

Please take a look at our article on building your own eShop (http://www.internetretailer.biz/partner/build_your_own_eshop.aspx?qsaid=144), it briefly runs through the 3 different approaches you can take to create a good eCommerce shop - open source software, hosted eCommerce solution or a custom-created web design company approach.

If you try to find a ready-system that does everything you want to automate is a waste of time. For a start-up business I would recommend a full business solution anyway

As a new business I would recommend looking at "ready-systems" that already have everything integrated and automated. Its a far better and more cost-effective way to trial an eCommerce idea than spending a lot on a custom solution.

[imageonline]

Hello Purplemonkey, I hope you will look at all the info that www.internetretailer.biz has to offer. I had a website designed by them a few months ago and am very happy. It does all that you are asking for including seo. and works out very cheap per month. I had a lot of input into the design and the back office is easy to use with integrated accounts if you want them. Plus loads of help and marketing advice. I have a discount code for the setting up costs which are very reasonable, just email me if you need it. Take a look at my site. Good luck with what ever you decide.
saveoncosmetics.co.uk

[answermba]

I can't visit the site ImageOnline recommended. What is wrong?

[Shoptistic.com]

As others have said above, most modern e-commerce packages will automate the purchase process to a certain degree.

We use a heavily customised version of CS-Cart (www.cs-cart.com (http://www.cs-cart.com)) which is the best package we have come across (just my opinion of course!).

The question of whether to develop yourself can only be answered from your side...

How familiar are you with e-commerce development?

Do you have the necessary design skillset?

Will you know what to do if/when something goes wrong?

Do you have the time?

(etc, etc).

Whatever you decide, good luck with your venture.

[She Says]

I would like to suggest Open Mind Commerce (http://www.openmindcommerce.co.uk/) by Phil, one of the regulars here. If you want a trully automated accounting system it integrates beautifully with Kashflow (http://www.kashflow.co.uk). The total cost of the cart, Kashflow and the kashflow api you need for the integration is less than the cost of actinic, and the only accounting you need to do is enter your expenses. I've just integrated it all for a new venture and it is brilliant. I started a thread about it here (http://www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=62036)

[Brightpearl]

Hello PurpleMonkey

It's nice to see you thinking ahead and looking for a system that will do most of the work for you! There are a huge number of e-commerce packages to choose from if you want to run an online shop, and likewise a large number of accounting packages. Some packages attempt to communicate with eachother online, or via manual synchronisation methods, but many don't offer much beyond a fairly basic level of business flow management.

I would thoroughly recommend a completely integrated system - I can certainly suggest one for you! Your end-to-end business operation is dealt with using a single package; stock control, purchasing, credit control, e-commerce, accounting, tasks and calendars and so on.

Feel free to send me a PM or give me a call - we have a lot of experience in the field of total integration and I'd be happy to help you out :)

Regards

Chris Tanenr

[DarrenOP]

You really need to set out a budget and then look at the options within that budget.

Actinic is good and reliable but expensive and frankly not as well supported as some of the free open source offerings.
osCommerce is well supported, free and a little flakey (at least in my experience).
I've always liked dashCommerce (go to www dot asp dot net and look at the starter kits).

With Actinic you don't really need any programming exerience but for the other two you do (and for most other eCommerce systems).

You'll still probably want a web designer to design the look and feel of your shop or you could opt for a template to keep costs down.

If you have the budget then you could get a full bespoke solution but this will be expensive but will allow complete flexibility over the solution developed.

A compromise is to get a developer to take a kit like dashCommerce or osCommerce and create you a semi-bespoke solution. For instance, dashCommerce is .net based so for unique functionality a developer could create bespoke modules and user controls while building on the framework already there.
We specialise in .NET solutions so could either do full bespoke or semi-bespoke or you could look at other non .NET solutions.