Thursday, August 28, 2008

The Best Small Business Shopping Carts

By Kirt Christensen


What's the best shopping cart for my small business? Many small business owners have difficulty deciding what the best choice is for their online shopping cart. There are so many different options available that the decision can be overwhelming. Here are some factors to consider if you find yourself wondering: What's the best shopping cart for my small business?

Cost is one factor that is very important to small businesses that may just be starting to produce income. Thankfully, many of the shopping carts that are popular today are also free. These shopping carts are typically developed in a one size fits all fashion. So, if you are wanting a cart that is customized to fit your needs, expect to pay some money for this customization.

Usability is another important point. Ease of use is very important to customers and your customer's experience is the most important part of your business. So, be sure that their experience is improved by using your web site's shopping cart.

One shopping cart option that is quite popular with small business owners is the use of open source carts. Various websites offer online shopping cart software that is free to use and easy to install. These carts offer many features and are typically low maintenance as well. These great qualities make open source carts one of the best ecommerce software solutions on the web.

Another popular option for small business owners is to use a third party site to process their transactions. The actual shopping cart features are free, but most third party sites do charge a transaction fee. Also, using a third party site will require your customers to pay through these sites which often require the customer to set up a new account.

Many web hosting sites include shopping carts in their packages. Some of these carts are free, while others are available at an additional charge. Your web hosting site may offer a shopping cart, but be sure to thoroughly review the cart to make sure it fits your needs.

The last option is to have a cart custom built for you. These carts can be very expensive but will include every option you could possibly want. Just be certain of the cost before you choose to use a custom cart!

Still unsure what cart to use? Just remember the needs of both you and your customer. Keep these tips in mind and your small business will soon be working with one of the many shopping cart options around today! Best of luck!

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