Phase 1 - Service Selection
Posted by Dan
I have decided on FatFreeCartPro and Authorize.net for my cart and merchant services.
Why? FatFreeCartPro provides the most design flexiblilty. Since I am going to be selling art, I am focusing on a gallery look. I want a unique design and online shopping experience. Authorize.net is the primary merchant for FatFreeCart and I will be offering Google Checkout and Paypal as well.
Time was the biggest factor in eliminating the open-source solutions. High PHP server requirements eliminated Magento and an awkward install requirement botched my ZenCart ambitions. After two hours to download and upload, I ran into technical issues. This was a really good thing though, because it was a big glowing sign saying DO NOT DO THIS! The techie in me has felt obligated to install and run my own cart.
It was neck and neck between Shopify and FatFreeCart. My favorite solution of all is still Volusion, but it is out of my price range. With ten percent of overall sales being the primary revenue, merchant fees and hosting alone will threaten basic profitability without even considering compensation for time. Volusion is for actual merchants. It is awesome, but about double the price I’m willing to spend right now. Maybe for my next site….
So, now it’s on to design, which is the best part…
My attempt at a Tampa Bay based Startup
Posted by Dan
I am currently planning out a startup based on community-driven sales for artists in the Tampa Bay area. I thought that in my planning it wouldn’t be a bad idea to share the process. It will keep me focused on evaluating each aspect and will keep me posting on a regular basis.
So, my plan of attack is spread out amongst 7 phases:
- Service Selection
- Site Setup
- Artist Signing
- Launch
- Marketing
- Expansion
Of course, each phase is made up of individual decisions and processes. Phase 1 is Service Selection. There are three general approaches to this decision.
- Open-Source Software + Merchant Services
- Online Shopping Cart Service + Merchant Services
- Bolt-On Shopping Cart Service + Merchant Services
The needs that I am faced with are the ability to display items in an accessible manner and to provide the opportunity for these items to be purchased via credit cards. The important factors to consider are user experience, time investment and financial investment.
Displaying the items can be done with online shopping cart software or by general design and a link to software. Generally, the time investment and financial investment are inversely related. The more time that I am willing to spend on setup and processing, the less it will cost and vice versa.
- Open-Source Online Shopping Cart Software + Merchant Services - My top 3 choices are open-source solutions because if I am going to spend the time to set up the cart manually, then I do not also want to pay for the software. Magento, osCommerce and Zen Cart are my top 3 choices. The positives are that they require little or no financial investment and they provide great flexibility with my choice of merchant services. The negative is that they require significant time to setup and maintain.
- Online Shopping Cart Service + Merchant Services - In my research I have found some online shopping cart services that have intuitive software and hosting setup, requiring only product entry to begin. Hands down, Volusion is my number one choice. The positives are minimal time investment and good flexibility in choice of merchant services. The negative is that the services add to the financial investment and overall overhead for the startup.
- Third-Party Bolt-On Online Shopping Cart Service + Merchant Services - I have also found a bolt-on service/software. FatFreeCartPro is my number one choice for this type of solution. The positives are flexibility in design and implementation and minimal time investment. The negatives are increased financial investment and limited merchant service options.
So, there is a list of my current options that I am weighing out. Once I make a decision, I will post a follow-up and describe how I will be moving to setup.
Photo of the Day - June 3, 2008
Posted by Dan
This is actually one of mine, taken as I roamed around St. Pete this weekend. It’s probably my fav from the day…
Tower by *catch-22d on deviantART