Selling online: what it takes

Taking money online is mostly solved. The hard parts are stock, shipping and what happens when an order goes wrong.

What does an online store need behind it?

More than a catalogue. Stock levels, shipping rules, tax, order confirmation, and a process for refunds and complaints. The website is the easy part; selling online is mostly operations.

How do card payments actually work?

A payment processor handles the card, takes a percentage and a fixed fee, then pays you on a schedule. Your site never stores the card number — that is deliberate, and it is what keeps you out of the hardest compliance requirements.

What does a platform take from each sale?

Two separate cuts, which is where people get caught out. There is the card processing fee, which is unavoidable, and on some platforms an additional cut of the transaction for using their checkout. Add them together before comparing monthly prices.

Shopify, WooCommerce or something custom?

Shopify is fastest to launch and you rent it. WooCommerce runs on your own hosting and you own it, with more to maintain. Custom makes sense when your products or workflow do not fit either. Pick on how weird your business is, not on features lists.

Do I need to charge sales tax?

Usually yes, and the rules depend on where you and the buyer are. Most platforms can calculate it, but the responsibility for registering and filing is yours. This is a question for an accountant, not a web developer — including us.

What is an abandoned cart?

Someone who added items and left. It is normal and the rate is high everywhere. The recoverable portion usually leaves because of surprise shipping costs or a checkout that demanded an account — both fixable without any clever software.

Should I sell on Amazon or Etsy instead?

They bring an audience you do not have to earn, at the cost of a large cut, no customer relationship and rules that change. Many businesses sensibly do both: the marketplace for reach, their own store for margin and repeat buyers.

How do I handle shipping?

Decide early whether you charge actual cost, a flat rate, or build it into prices and offer free shipping. Flat rate is simplest and free-over-a-threshold reliably increases order size. Work out what a real parcel costs before you promise anything.

What about digital products or bookings instead of goods?

Simpler in some ways — no stock, no shipping — and harder in others, since delivery, licensing and refunds all need thinking through. The checkout is the same; the operations behind it are completely different.