Starting and running an online store is a dream for many new as well as established online business. However for many this might look like a very complicated and very expensive. The good news is that this today is neither difficult nor a very expensive thing to do. If you are dreaming how to open your online store you can start today.

The process of setting up your online store is not as complicated as you might think. It is pretty straight forward and even individuals without technical skills can do it. If you have a clear vision in your head about what you want to do then you can be up and running in a short time. Here are some necessary steps you should take to launch your online dropshipping business.

Choose the products you want to sell online

Before you even launch your online store you need to have a clear idea about what products you are going to sell online.

If you don’t have products to sell online then you have no reason to open an online store. To select the products you can sell online you should first as yourself the following questions:

• What niche are you interested in?
• What products is your target audience interested in?
• What are the problems and needs of your potential customers?
• What is the competition in your area of operation?
• What products are trending in other areas and is there any need for them in your area?
• Are there any products that are new and not yet available in your area?

Know your target customer

The most important thing to consider when launching your online dropshipping business is your target customer. Once you have a clear definition of who is your target customer you can select suitable products to list on your online store. You can possibly list thousands of products but if your customers are not interested in them you will not make a single sale.

You should know your target customer and his age, gender, occupation, marital status, education, ethnic and religious background, lifestyle, interests, values, personality, buying habits. Once you know your target customer you can find the right products to sell online based o the number of people that fit the demographic of your target customer that resides in your area of operation.

Find suppliers you can source products from

Once you have a clear definition of your target customer and the products you will sell next step is finding suppliers that will source the products for you. Here are some tips:

• Have a good understanding of the dropshipping business model. If you are familiar with the whole process and how it works you will know what questions to ask your potential suppliers.
• Have a good knowledge of the products you will sell online. Different products have different supply chains. Some products will require a lot of maintenance, training, and customer support after they are sold while others do not. Make sure you are able to deliver before you get a lot of frustrated customers on your hands.
• Contact the manufacturer of the product first. The most logical thing is that the lowest price for a certain product can be offered by the manufacturer. Once you establish contact with the manufacturer see if they offer to dropship and even more important if they are able to give exclusivity to sell their product in your area. If they do you will be well ahead of your competition.

Setup your web store

To finally set up your webstore and have your online business up and running you will need several things already prepared:

• A registered domain name,
• A web hosting company
• A design or template for your store
• A payment gateway.

Creating a web store today is not a difficult task even for people who have no experience with programming and web design. There are many websites where you can hire someone to do that for you. You can even hire designers to make a new website design for you from scratch, a logo for your web store, and anything else you might need.

Once your website is up and running you can start listing your products and start promoting to get potential customers to your website.