Final Project Description: New E-commerce Site

 


You can use any method you are comfortable with to create your final project, including E-Commerce Builders (Shopify, Wix, Weebly, Squarespace, etc.) WordPress, Responsive HTML5 E-commerce Template. If you opt to use HTLM and need server space MiraCosta can provide this for you. The site will be removed soon after the class ends.

You can print out this site and use it as a checklist.

At minimum, the site needs to consist of these elements:

1. Home page

  • Your home page should include:
    • Logo/Heading
    • Navigation links to other pages
    • A short introduction/description of your business
    • Appropriate images
    • A special offer (optional)
    • Some recent news about your business (optional)

2. Product (or Services) page(s)

  • Your Product Pages should include:
    • Pictures, descriptions, order and price information for your products and/or services.
    • Navigation links to other pages, especially home, about us, order and other product pages.
    • Links to a shopping cart, if appropriate.

3. About Us page

  • Your About Us page should include:
    • Tag line or slogan: A few words or a brief sentence summarizing what the organization does. This could be a mission statement or something similar.
    • Tell your story: 1-3 paragraphs that offer a more detail about the organization's history, goals and main accomplishments.

  • These items are recommended for About Us pages, but not required for this class:
    • Fact sheet: A section following the summary that elaborates on its key points and other essential facts about the organization.
    • Detailed information: Subsidiary pages with more depth for people who want to learn more about the organization.
    • Some great suggestions from Moz

4. Web form or shopping cart

  • Your Web Form/Shopping Cart:
    • If you choose to use WooCommerce or an E-commerce Builder a shopping cart is included, but you don't need to activate it using a merchant account or credit card
    • If you create an HTML site it needs to have a Web form or a shopping cart, but it does not need to be connected to a merchant account.
      • Web forms are pages that have text fields and other clickable buttons, etc. that can be used to order products. When you submit the information, it will be sent via email or some other Common Gateway Interface (CGI) to you, the business owner/manager.
      • if you choose to have a shopping cart and are using Shopify, an easy option is Shopify Payments. You can even test without charging a card using test mode. Shopify provides easy to follow instructions to set up and test Shopify Payments.
      • PayPal.
        • Many of you are already using PayPal. Their account and shopping cart are free, until you have a transaction. It's also very easy to set up.
          PayPal Payment Button Instructions
      • A good alternative free shopping cart Mal's Ecommerce
    • Check out these other alternatives to PayPal
    • If you have a service provider, they can usually provide a shopping cart service

5. Contact Us Page

  • Your Contact Us page should include:
    • Address
    • Phone#(s)
    • Fax#
    • Contact form (preferred method) or email
    • Note: this information can be fictitious

6. Privacy Policy/Legal Page

  • Your Privacy Policy page should include:

  • Optional: Return Policy - if you sell items you will also need a return policy for legal protection

Other Requirements

  • Your Web site needs to be on the World Wide Web.
    • If you use the WordPress site provided by MiraCosta or an E-commerce builder like Shopify, your site is automatically on the Web.
    • If you use a Reponsive Web Design template MiraCosta can provide Web space or you can make arrangements with a service provider.
      • If you choose to use Web space on the MiraCosta server contact me right away so I can help you.
  • Incorporate the keywords from the SEO assignment into the written descriptions of your business and products on the Web site.

To complete your project

Write a report in your E-commerce plan that includes:

  • A description of the business in the final project.
  • Is this business real or fictitious?
  • The problems you encountered and how you overcame them.
  • What learned from this class.
    • What lessons were most and least valuable.
  • Suggestions for course improvement.

To submit your project

  • Upload the completed E-commerce plan to the E-commerce Plan link.
  • Copy and paste your report into a post in the Final Project discussion on Canvas.
  • Include a clickable link to your Final Project in the post.

After submitting your project in the discussion:
Provide useful suggestions for improvement to at least two other students.(Three sentence minimum).

Example sites

Here are some example sites created by past students: