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Am I going in the right direction??

steeltowndubbersteeltowndubber subscriber Posts: 1
edited February 2007 in Website Critique
Hello,
Fist off, thank you for taking the time to read my post.  I just joined SUN yesterday and have been addicted to this site.  There are a lot of useful tips provided by everyone.
So on to my website.  I`m planning on opening up a site that sells aquarium products to salt water aquarium hobbiests.  I myself have been in this hobby for close to 20 years and have worked in the business for 10 years as an employee of a pet shop managing the fish room.  The site is very early in its development and it uses www.shopify.com</A> for it`s template.  I`ve never designed a website before so this is my first time.  I would like to know if I am heading in the right direction or if i`m totally off base.  Being that the site is still very early in its development, with your feedback, I`ll be able to get it focused on where it needs to be sooner than later.
Here is the site I`m building www.thesaltedreef.com</A>.
There really isn`t any content of value at the moment and I`m far away from opening up shop. 
Thanks again for looking.
Rich

Comments

  • vwebworldvwebworld subscriber Posts: 40
    Hi Rich,
    Using a proprietary program like shopfly has some pros and cons. The start up may be shorter but in the long run, there are limitations to the site and especially if you want or need to move the site at some point.
    The cost of shopfly  - a % of your sales - is, I think expensive... compared to the cost of hosting a site. But that is a business decision.
    At this point it`s hard to review your site because of its` preliminary status.
    The real work of getting an ecommerce site going is not in the creating but in the promotion of the site when it is operational.
    ~Roland
  • steeltowndubbersteeltowndubber subscriber Posts: 1
    Hi,
    This is the reason why I signed up for SUN.  Thanks for your feedback everyone.  The more I begin to work with the site on Shopify the more I`m seeing its limitations.
    I agree with Craig, if there was a forum dedicated to devoted to experiences with turnkey online store-building sites it would greatly help newbies like myself in the start up phase.
    Thanks all.
    Rich
  • vwebworldvwebworld subscriber Posts: 40
    Most ecommerce solutions (like shopify, osCommerce, Zen Cart, Xcart...etc) have their own forum where users and non-users can ask questions and research issues with using the respective program.
    If asked, I would recommend using an open source (non-proprietary) program/script (like oscommerce, Zen Cart, Xcart, etc. - not Yahoo stores, Shopify... and the like).
    Using a proprietary program (sometimes tied to the hosting) may hinder your ability to move the site if and when you want/need to do so in the future. You may have to start all over and lose customer data.
    `Roland
     
  • steeltowndubbersteeltowndubber subscriber Posts: 1
    As an update.  I`ve closed my store on Shopify.com.  I`ll post again once I have any further updates.
     
    just wanted to thank everyone for their feedback.  There is no sense in rushing things if I want the business to be successful.
    Rich
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