Which eCommerce platform is best for your small business?

 

Online shopping, otherwise known as eCommerce, is becoming our preferred way to shop. Brick-and-mortar stores have noticed this transition and are starting their own eCommerce journey. Many new and upcoming businesses are operating fully online, as 90% of the UK are digital buyers.

In 2021, we spent £250 billion on online shopping. In fact, the UK spends more money online than any other country in the world.

What is eCommerce?

When we buy goods and services from a website, we are using an eCommerce platform.

There are up to 24 million online stores around the world. Some of which are also brick-and-mortar stores and others are entirely online.

For your customers online sites provide a convenient and flexible way of shopping. We can shop the market and filter through 100s of products, all from the comfort of our home.

For your business, online shopping opens up new opportunities to gain loyal customers. Our Payment Gateway allows customers to view and shop your products 24/7, from a wide range of countries.

Why set up an eCommerce store?

The growth of eCommerce was growing at a steady rate until the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, only essential shops stayed open and sold to the public. Many of us then turned to online shopping to buy goods and entertain ourselves. The pandemic accelerated eCommerce growth by 4-6 years. Despite brick-and-mortar stores resuming as normal, online shopping hasn’t slowed down. Online shopping provides us with a quick, easy and convenient way to shop.

Convenient for your customers

An eCommerce platform allows your customers to view, compare and shop products 24/7/365. This is useful for customers who have full-time jobs and won’t be able to get to your store during trading hours. Our Payment Gateway ensures that the sales process is always seamless for customers, even when your employees are tucked up in bed. Providing your customers with this level of flexibility has a huge advantage over physical stores.

Widen your customer base

Our Payment Gateway also enables your business to sell your products globally. Owning a brick-and-mortar store can limit you to one locality. For your business to grow, it is important to broaden your customer reach.

Lower costs for your business

Running an eCommerce site has a much lower cost compared to a physical store. There are no monthly fees for the storefront and no need for floor staff. The fewer overhead costs mean that your business can afford to offer products at a lower price. Selling products at a cheaper rate makes your business more appealing to customers. Marketing on social media is a cheaper alternative to advertising offline. Social media directly links customers to your site and increases brand awareness.

Why set up your eCommerce store with UTP?

Our eCommerce Payment Gateway system is compatible with most major shopping carts. Popular compatible shopping carts include WooCommerce, Magento and Prestashop. We have made the integration process simple with our free modules and development kits.

For consumers, speed and convenience are key to a positive shopping experience.

We accept 150 different payment methods, including Paypal and Google Pay. 17% of customers will abandon their shopping cart if they meet challenges when trying to pay. We cater to a variety of payment preferences to ensure your business doesn’t miss out on a sale. In 2022, payments made on mobile devices accounted for 58% of online purchases. Our Payment Gateway is mobile-friendly and is easy to integrate with any existing app.

To gain customer loyalty, it’s important that customers trust your site. We send branded email receipts to your customers when they make a purchase. We also generate QR codes and pay buttons for your business to copy into your marketing material. Together these create a cohesive business overview.

UTP Shield

UTP Shield is a free software that detects fraudulent activity. At no cost to our customers, it alerts you to any suspicious activity. UTP Shield also notifies you when a transaction has a high chargeback risk. When these potentially fraudulent transactions occur, we will put the payment on hold. It is up to your discretion whether to accept or decline.

Faster Processing

Customers who already have one of our card machines can receive Faster Processing. This is a free software that gives you the flexibility to choose how and when you receive your funds. We offer our customers three different options for how you can get paid. Other merchant service providers can take up to four working days to fund their customers.

1. Intra-day Funding

Your business will receive funds from each individual transaction.

2. Hourly Batch Funding

We fund businesses on an hourly basis. This payment consists of all card transactions taken within the hour.

3. End-of-Day Batch Funding

All card transactions taken throughout the day are sent to your business at the end of your trading day.

Other merchant service providers can take up to four working days to fund their customers.

Are you looking to open an online shop for your brick-and-mortar store? Perhaps you are looking to move your business online? Or are you even starting a brand-new business? At UTP we offer a wide range of advice and tools to help your business succeed. Get in touch with us to join the thousands of online sellers today.