I have finished the freeCodeCamp course and am now finding a lot of clients that want an online store. What is the best way to create one? Any help would be appreciated.
That’s a big question because there are many options which starts from CMS websites to custom stores with front-end and backend tools you have learned.
I can tell you about Custom Online store that you should use React-js for frontend and Node.js for Backend. You will need to build restFull api service on top of node. And I would recommend using MongoDB as database. There is a lot of things for online store beside this basic things, ping me if you like any help with setup. because it all depends on requirments of client.
1 Like
Are these highly custom websites for clients or something you can set up with a WordPress /Wix/Squarespace etc?
1 Like
I have never used any sort of website builder like Wordpress or Wix. I’m used to coding up everything from scratch.
There are many solution if you like to go with CMS. I would recommend you to use Shopify.
2 Likes
Thanks for your quick reply. That’s good that it can be done with React, Node, and MongoDB. Those are all technologies that I am used to using. How does the payment aspect work? Is there some template I can use to get started quick? Are there monthly fees that need to be paid in order to process payments etc?
1 Like
Are you making for a new client or adding to an existing?
These examples I give are like click/drag. Easy, but powerful. You can do a weeks worth of work in a couple hours. They are generic, but depends on what your client wants.
In these click/drag framewoks can the code still be edited if need be?
New clients. How customizable are the frameworks?
Yes. but just kind of depends on the sites you need. There are examples. or Search you for fast website with any of the options above to get an idea.
for the payment thing. I believe the most common is Stripe (at least USA) [https://stripe.com/docs/api] but as with all personal information be super secure
You can use Google Cloud services for free but upto some storage and bandwidth limits. There after you will get charged for the resources you will use.
For payment aspect, almost all the payment gateway providers like paypal, stripe have their API key,
With Stripe and Paypal are there no monthly fees? The reason I ask is because I would then theoretically be able to code up my own online store framework to with modifications for all my clients and charge only a once off fee. Or would it be better to charge a monthly fee?
There is no monthly fees with paypal, I don’t know about stripe.
I am not sure. I’ve personally never set up a payment system.
I would use paypal/stripe or anything to process the transactions. AND then offer a monthly ‘security fee’ to reset API keys month. I would assume/hope the keys/tokens expire by then.
Wow! That’s like building your own mini shopify. I wanna join you man.
You can check about paypal fees here
They don’t charge monthly fix fees.
I am a WordPress developer by interest so telling you my preference in case you want to go with a pre-built framework. I would suggest to check for WooCommerce powered store on top of WordPress. It has evolved a lot and can handle any type of eCommerce shop; be it digital goods selling store or for selling goods.
As far as customization is concerned, you can definitely customize it as much as you like. You will only require a good hand over php coding language. Ping me if you would like to know in more detail. I will be happy to help.
Could you elaborate a case where building an e-commerce using word press and woo would not suit, please.
It’s based on transaction fees, they make money from that. Stripe is generally lower than PayPal and has a [much, much] better API (ymmv), whereas PayPal tends to be more convenient. You would just ideally provide integration with one or the other or both, you shouldn’t be concerned with cost as it shouldn’t be you paying it, you aren’t buying or selling from the store.
If you are wanting to provide a generic service that provides storefronts, note that it’s unlikely to be your decision to make anyway. A client is likely to have their own choice of provider which may not rely on either.
Bear in mind that going down this road is an enormous job. It is your choice, but if you actually want to make money here, I’d strongly advise building on top of an existing platform (Shopify seems current best choice for small businesses). The sheer number of features needed (and edge cases to cover) when trying to build a complex app like this for a single client is staggeringly large. Building a generic service of your own that can handle any client (each with their own quite specific, subtly different business rules), multiplies that number exponentially. For example, say you have a client that wants to track abandoned baskets, with reporting analytics, and sends out emails after a given period of time encouraging customers to pick them back up. This isn’t an uncommon need, but it’s a huge thing to build on your own; you get it out of the box with a platform like Shopify.
This is a time/money issue. To build a generic platform that works well could take years of iterations. Building on an existing platform allows income, which can then support you gradually building your own platform. Building your own generic platform from the get-go is likely to necessitate a large amount of spare cash to sustain you for the very long period where you will not be making any money.
Yes, from your perspective, this is always going to be a better option because it means monthly income.
With a preprogrammed CDN like WordPress, those tools are already there; WooCommerce being the default one to use there.
After that, you can code to your hearts desire. I hear my mentor saying, “Work smarter not harder” in the background.
I look forward to seeing your first result.
1 Like