How to start an online store in Australia

According to NAB online retail sales index December 2021 report, Australians spent $52.93 billion on online shopping, representing 14.4% of total retail trade (November 2021, Series 8501, Australian Bureau of Statistics) and a 19.9% increase over the previous 12 months. Start your own ecommerce store might be an opportunity to generate big money in the Australia’s booming $52.93 billion ecommerce market.

Are you considering start an online store in Australia? We understand that starting an online store can be time consuming, especially if you are not tech savvy. We have been helping hundreds of small businesses start their online store, we are now presenting the most comprehensive guide and will walk you through all the seven essential steps you need to get your online store up and running.

1-Decide what you want to sell online.

One of the most challenges for business owner is finding profitable products that will sell in the Australia market, whether it’s a single product or having an entire product range that fills a market niche. Consider what products you want to sell, growing strategy you will use, and the market you want to target. The NAB Online Retail Sales Index Jun 2021 report is a valuable source to start work on the market research. For more information about https://business.nab.com.au/nab-online-retail-sales-index-june-2021-47896/

Source: NAB Online Retail Sales Index Jun 2021

If you want to start an online store selling consumer goods, there are the top three categories fashion, homeware, and grocery, refer to the “Online Retail Sales Index Jun 2021” table below.

Source: NAB Online Retail Sales Index December 2021

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2- Define your target market.

With the current economy, it is more crucial than ever to have a well-defined your target market. By focusing on a specific market, with a clearly defined target market it will help you to determine where and how to market your products efficiently.

Before opening an online store, it is recommend that to look at who you want to sell your products to. When decide what to sell, don’t forget to look at key factors such as age group, income and region that define your target market.

The NAB Online Retail Sales Index measures online retail spending across sectors, demographics, regions, and the breakdown of goods purchased from local and international online retailers. The report is an excellent place to begin your market research. To learn more about the report visit https://business.nab.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/NORSI-JUN-2017.pdf

Source: NAB Online Retail Sales Index

3-Register your Australian Business Name

If you do business in Australia, you’ll need to register a business name! A business name is the name under which your company operates. Customers will recognise your business by your business name, and it will help you stand out from the competition. Customers will recognise your business by its name, which will help you stand out among competitors. People can create an emotional link with your brand and business name.

It’s not easy to come up with a catchy business name that also represents your company’s mission. Many businesses have failed in the past as a result of the name that did not represent well for them, so it’s critical to get it properly the first time.

Before select a business name, you should have a clear vision of what type of business structure you are going to have. It is very important as business name registration will be depending on your business structure.

Learn more about the different in business structure and how to select the right one for your business:

https://business.gov.au/planning/business-structures-and-types/business-structures

If you operate your business in Australia as a partnership or a sole trader and you want to trade under your own name. For example, your name is John Smith, and you want to operate your business name as a “John Smith”.  In this case, you do not need to register a business name. However, if you are a sole trader or partnership trading under a different name, you need to register a business name. To register a business name visit: https://business.gov.au/registrations/register-your-business-name

If you do business in Australia, you’ll need to register a business name. If you operate your business as a company, and you want to trade under your company name, then you need to register the business name at the time of registering your company. To register your company, visit: https://business.gov.au/registrations/register-a-company

The cost of your business name registration for

The costs to register your business name with ASIC for 1 year is $37 and $88 for 3 years. For business name fee, visit  https://asic.gov.au

4-Register domain name.

Once you have selected and registered your business name, it is time to choose and register your domain name. Your domain name should ideally match to your business name. For example, if your business name is “UNIQUE EMBROIDERY”, you should choose the domain name “uniqueembroidery”

You’ll also need to think about what domain extension you want to use; if you’re running an online store for the Australian market, the.au extension is the best option. Choose the.com extension if you wish to go global or plan to do so in the near future.

If the domain name uniqueembroidery is intended for the Australian market, the domain extension should be uniqueembroidery.com.au. Your domain’s price will be determined by its availability and domain extension.

Your domain’s cost will be determined by its availability and domain extension, the .com extensions are usually more expensive. However, a domain name .au extension can be registered for as little as $14.95/1 year at https://www.webcentral.au/

5-Choose the right ecommerce platform.

One of the most important decisions you’ll make as a business owner wanting to expand your business online is selecting an ecommerce platform that allows for scalable, long-term expansion. WooCommerce is an open-source ecommerce, fully customizable eCommerce platform for businesses all around the world, powers more than 34% of the internet. WooCommerce go beyond the limitations of typical eCommerce solutions with reasonable levels of flexibility and several vital features such as inventory and tax management, secure payments, and shipping integration.

WooCommerce is an eCommerce platform that come with sophisticated ecommerce features with the ability to integrate with popular business tools, allowing businesses to centralise their operations and operate their businesses their way.

Are you considering opening an online store? We can assist you in getting your online store up and running in as little as one week. With our special offer eCommerce Website Package $799 one-time setup fee, you may save time and money by having us develop from design to launch your online store so you can focus on operating your business. You’ll start selling in 1 week time! Visit eCommerce website design package and offers for full details.

6-Choose the right payments gateway.

Afterpay, ZipPay, Paypal are the most popular payment gateways that can assist online businesses in increasing sales, with the introduction of “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) solutions in Australia, many businesses are now adjusting to integrate these payment options with their Online Store in order to boost their sales revenue.

The market is already brimming with a variety of Payment Gateway providers that you can integrate with your ecommerce store for a low service fee or fixed monthly fees, depending on the volume of transactions of your business. We’ve compiled a list of the top payment gateways in no particular order that you can utilise depending on your business needs and to reduce cart abandonment and maximise customer conversion by offering your customers’ more preferred payment methods.

eWay Payment Gateway:

ZipPay Merchant Fees:

eWay is a 2021 winner of Best Payments Gateway at the National Online Retailers Association (NORA) Awards and offering to online retailer Visa and Mastercard merchant transaction at 1.5% + 25cents same rate for both domestic and international cards. For more information about eWay visit: https://www.eway.com.au/

Paypal Payment Gateway

Offering standard paypal plus “Pay in 4 with no interest and no late fees”.

Visit https://www.paypal.com/au/business/buy-now-pay-later

Standard rate for receiving domestic transactions Australia 

Transaction Type	Rate
Commercial Transactions	2.60% + 0.30 fixed fee
QR Code Transactions – 10.01 AUD and above	0.90% + fixed fee
QR code Transactions – 10.00 AUD and below	1.40% + fixed fee

Afterpay Payment Gateway:  

Offering “Afterpay Buy Now And Pay Later “payment option.

Afterpay Merchant Fees:

For each Afterpay transaction, online retailers pay a flat cost of 30 cents plus commission fee. Depending on the volume of transactions, commissions range from 4% to 6%. The higher the volume, the lower transaction fee will be. More about on how Afterpay visit https://www.afterpay.com/en-AU/business

Zippay Payment Gateway:

Offering “buy now, pay later Zippay solution for your customers”.

Visit https://zip.co/au/business/payments/ for more detail.

https://zip.co/au/business/payments/

ZipPay Merchant Fees:

Zippay merchant fee is depending on the interest free period online retailer choose to offer their customers. Online retailers pay only a maximum of 30c per sale (excluding GST) + transaction fee. The more customers that pay with Zip, the cheaper the transaction fee. For more information about Zippay

https://zip.co/au/business/payments/

7-Choose the right shipping courier for your business.

Shipping services have been a part of the eCommerce sector, but they have grown in popularity and importance during the covid pandemic. An increase in the number of eCommerce sites available appears to have resulted in an increase in the number of daily purchases done across multiple sites from various locations. We’ve compiled a list of the top shipping services in Australia in no particular order that you can utilise depending on your business needs and to get the best shipping cost for your business, visit the link below:

Sendle

Australia Post 

StarTrack

Courier Please

Aramex ( Formerly Fastway Couriers)