How to Create a Successful E-Commerce Website (2025 Update)

Are you considering launching an e-commerce store? Now could be the perfect time.

In 2024, 2.71 billion people shopped online—a figure only set to grow in 2025.

The e-commerce trend clearly isn’t going away anytime soon. And that’s why creating an e-commerce website is a great option.

In this post, I’ll explain the different types of e-commerce stores, show you how to get started on Shopify, and explore the trends shaping e-commerce.

Key Takeaways

• Optimize for mobile—most e-commerce traffic comes from smartphones.
• Leverage AI for personalized shopping, automated inventory, and SEO content.
• Sell across multiple channels—social commerce, marketplaces, and physical stores.
• Choose the right platform (Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce) based on scalability.
• Drive traffic with SEO, paid ads, and social media marketing.
• Use automation and data insights to boost conversions and long-term growth.

Table of Contents

• Key Takeaways
• What Is an E-Commerce Store?
• Benefits of Having an E-Commerce Store
• Types of E-Commerce Stores
  • 1. Individual Brand E-Commerce Stores
  • 2. Online Retailers
  • 3. Marketplaces
  • 4. Social Commerce Platforms
• Top E-Commerce Store Platforms in 2025
  • 1. Hosted E-Commerce
  • 2. Self-Hosted E-Commerce
  • 3. Hybrid E-Commerce
  • Which platform should you choose?
• Trends Shaping E-Commerce in 2025
• How to Set Up a Shopify E-Commerce Store: Your 5-Minute Cheat Sheet
• Detailed Steps to Set Up a Shopify Store
  • 1. Create Your Shopify Account
  • Step 2: Set Up Your Shopify Online Store
  • Step 3: Choose a Theme or Layout for Your Store
    • #1: Check Out Reviews and Case Studies
    • #2: Preview Themes with Customization Options
    • #3: Select and Install Your Shopify Theme
  • Step 4: Choose and Purchase a Domain Name
  • Step 5: Customize Your Store Settings
  • Step 6: Add Products to Your E-Commerce Website
    • Use Product Templates with AI Suggestions
    • Manual and Automated Collections
  • Step 7: Manage Tax Settings and Compliance
  • Step 8: Prep to Launch Your Shopify Store
  • Step 9: Start Selling and Optimize for Growth
• Tips for Scaling Your E-Commerce Store in 2025
• FAQs
• Conclusion

What Is an E-Commerce Store?

An e-commerce store is a business that sells products and services on the internet. 

These stores can sell anything from physical goods to digital downloads, like e-books, courses, and artwork.

There are lots of platforms you can use to create an e-commerce website, and we’ll look at some of them later in this article.

As the online world has grown, more brands are creating e-commerce stores alongside their brick-and-mortar stores to broaden their customer base and increase their profits. 

Brands that take this hybrid approach should prioritize offering a seamless, consistent omnichannel experience to keep customers happy.

As e-commerce has evolved, the available technologies make it easier for businesses to manage their e-commerce stores and market to customers. 

For example, many platforms now offer AI services to edit photos and write SEO-optimized product descriptions.

There are also tools to help manage product bundling, product subscriptions, and loyalty programs.

Benefits of Having an E-Commerce Store

In the second quarter of 2024 alone, U.S. consumers spent $291 billion online. 

There’s no doubt about it: If you want to get in front of vast numbers of customers, you need to create an e-commerce website.

E-commerce stores offer many other benefits, including:

• 24/7/365 availability: Customers can look at goods outside of store opening hours, making online shopping convenient.
• No geographical limitations: Customers can shop from anywhere in the world, opening the door to new markets.
• Data-driven insights: E-commerce makes it easy to see what your customers are buying, how much money they’re spending, and which marketing channels provide the best return on investment (ROI).
• A bigger variety of products: A brick-and-mortar store’s limited space means you can only stock so many products. E-commerce stores enable you to sell a wider range of items. 
• Customized shopping experiences: E-commerce makes it easy to offer personalized shopping experiences to customers by recommending products that suit their needs. 
• Reduced operational costs: With an e-commerce store, you don’t need retail space or staff. And if you use dropshipping, you don’t even need a warehouse. This means it’s cheaper and easier to get started.
• Faster response to market demands: Since e-commerce storefronts are digital, you can respond much more quickly to changing customer needs. It’s also easy to scale as your business grows.

Types of E-Commerce Stores

Ready to make the leap into e-commerce? Let’s look at the common types of e-commerce stores to help you decide on your business model.

1. Individual Brand E-Commerce Stores

An individual brand e-commerce store sells its own products on its website. It may sometimes be referred to as a direct-to-consumer (DTC) store.

According to Retailinsights, there are 1.8 million brand retailers in the U.S. and 6.1 million worldwide.

An individual brand e-commerce store is a great option if you want to create a unique shopping experience for your customers. 

You can also control the look, feel, and functionality of your shop, which gives you more flexibility to create the exact customer experience you want.

You also have complete ownership of all the data collected on your site, including customer information, which can give you a competitive advantage over larger e-commerce stores.

However, you need to invest time in your store to make it a success. For example, you need to ensure your brand storytelling is on point to stand out from your competitors.

2. Online Retailers

Online retailers are e-commerce stores that sell other companies’ products on their websites, often handling customer service, shipping, and returns. 

For example, Dick’s Sporting Goods sells products from many brands, including Nike, Adidas, Converse, and more.

This type of e-commerce platform is good for businesses that want to start selling products quickly and easily without having to set up a store.

However, you often need to negotiate wholesale pricing and commit to the ongoing production of your products.

3. Marketplaces

If you want to start selling products but don’t want to set up a store, a third-party marketplace may be a fantastic option.

These platforms allow you to sell products without worrying about setting up and maintaining your shop. You pay a fee to feature on the store—this can be a flat rate or a commission on each product you sell.

Marketplaces and online retailers may seem similar at first glance. The key difference is that an online retailer handles the entire shopping experience, while marketplaces provide a platform for buyers and sellers to connect.

Amazon is an example of both a marketplace and an online retailer, as it sells products from its own inventory and offers a marketplace for other businesses to directly sell products.

The great thing about marketplaces is that there are many to choose from. 

As well as the big players like Amazon, eBay, Alibaba, and Etsy, there are smaller, more niche options, too. For example, Poshmark is a go-to for selling fashion and home goods.

The downside of online marketplaces is that you don’t have a direct relationship with your customers, which means you won’t be able to fully control the customer experience.

Additionally, the marketplace owns any customer data. This can lead to lost opportunities for building repeat business or using data to drive advertising campaigns.

A good compromise is to use marketplaces as a supplement to an existing e-commerce store. For example, you can sell your product through your website but also offer it on Amazon or eBay to expand your reach.

4. Social Commerce Platforms

Social commerce is when brands sell directly on social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This method of selling is on the rise, with 35 percent of Instagram users between 18 and 34 years old used the platform to make purchases in 2024.

The benefit of social commerce is that it’s easy to find new customers. Users are already engaging with brands and products on these platforms, making it easier to connect with potential buyers. You can even use influencer marketing to further amplify your reach.

However, you have to work hard to create engaging content that stops the scroll and use social SEO to stand out in the search results.

A proven strategy is to sell your products through your own e-commerce website and use social commerce to build brand awareness.

Top E-Commerce Store Platforms in 2025

The next step in e-commerce website creation is choosing a platform. There are three different types of platforms to consider. Note that if you opt solely for a marketplace approach (Amazon, Etsy, etc.), you’ll need to operate within the marketplace’s established platform.

1. Hosted E-Commerce

Hosted platforms are managed by a third-party company. For a monthly or annual fee, you get access to all the software and tools you need to manage, run, and customize your store.

Popular hosted platforms include Shopify, Squarespace, and BigCommerce.

These stores are easy to get started on, and there’s less you need to manage—many platforms organize hosting and security updates for you.

The downside is that you’re limited to the features offered by the platform, and you can’t customize your store as much as you’d like. 

2. Self-Hosted E-Commerce

Self-hosted platforms are open-source platforms you host on your own server. 

Popular self-hosted platforms include WooCommerce (for WordPress) and Magento Open Source.

These platforms give you more flexibility to customize your store but can be more complicated to set up and require more technical knowledge. 

3. Hybrid E-Commerce

Hybrid platforms are a mix of hosted and self-hosted. They give you some of the flexibility of self-hosted platforms but with the ease of use of hosted platforms. 

Another big benefit of hybrid e-commerce platforms is that they offer headless commerce. This is when you separate the back end of your website from the front end so they run and can be managed independently.

Popular hybrid platforms include Shopify Plus and Adobe Commerce.

The downside of hybrid platforms is that they are typically designed for enterprise businesses, making them an expensive option for smaller companies.

Which platform should you choose?

The answer depends on your needs and technical knowledge.

If you want a lot of flexibility to customize your store, a self-hosted platform is a good choice.

If you don’t have much technical knowledge or don’t want to deal with the hassle of setting up and maintaining a store, a hosted platform is ideal.

Trends Shaping E-Commerce in 2025

While e-commerce is a powerful tool for increasing sales, it’s essential to stay up to date with the latest trends and initiatives. 

Here’s what to consider if you plan to create an e-commerce store website in 2025. 

• AI: Many e-commerce platforms now offer AI tools to help save time on manual tasks and personalize the shopping experience. You can also use AI tools to analyze your data and make recommendations to improve your store.
• Augmented reality (AR): AR tools combine the virtual and real-world environment, helping customers visualize your products. For example, you can show them how a sofa will look in their lounge or how a lipstick color will complement their complexion.  
• Subscription models: Subscription models are a great way to earn additional income and encourage customer loyalty. 
• Alternative payment methods. Some people are opting to pay for products using cryptocurrency—you need to determine if this is a currency you want to accept. “Buy Now Pay Later” platforms like Klarna and Clearpay are also gaining in popularity.
• Social commerce: People will continue to buy products from social media platforms and value recommendations from influencers, content creators, and fellow shoppers.
• Sustainability and eco-friendliness: More than three-quarters (78 percent) of U.S. consumers say a sustainable lifestyle is important to them. Using a sustainable supply chain, packaging, and shipping solutions can give you an advantage in the marketplace.

How to Set Up a Shopify E-Commerce Store: Your 5-Minute Cheat Sheet

Now, I’m going to show you how to create a store website with Shopify.

Why Shopify? It’s easy to use, scales with your business, and has all the functionality you need to get started.

Plus, it offers a free three-day trial so you can see if it’s right for you.

Here’s how you can create a brand-new store in a couple of hours:

1. Start by creating your Shopify account.
2. Customize your store and set up your payment gateway. 
3. Choose from a wide range of high-quality free and premium themes. 
4. Tweak your new theme, changing the color, fonts, and elements so it’s on brand for your business.
5. Add your products to your store, uploading HD-quality images and creating SEO-optimized product descriptions.
6. Set your tax settings and shipping rules.
7. Prep and test your store to make sure it works flawlessly.
8. Choose and purchase your domain name.
9. Launch and start selling!

Detailed Steps to Set Up a Shopify Store

Looking for more details? Here’s how to create a store website in Shopify.

1. Create Your Shopify Account

Head to Shopify.com and use the sign-up form to create your account. 

Answer all the questions in the onboarding process. This will help Shopify recommend the right tools and pricing plan for your needs and set up your dashboard to focus on what’s important to you.

Step 2: Set Up Your Shopify Online Store

Once you’ve created your account, you’ll be automatically directed to your store dashboard. 

I recommend starting by clicking on store settings. Here, you can:

• Name your store (don’t worry if you haven’t chosen an official store name yet; you can change this later.)
• Review your privacy settings.
• Set up a payment gateway (Shopify Payments is the default, but you can choose alternative payment providers.)
• Determine your shipping rates.

Step 3: Choose a Theme or Layout for Your Store

Shopify gives you direct access to a plethora of themes thanks to its official theme store.

All themes are professionally designed, mobile-responsive, and built for e-commerce.

There is a selection of free themes, but you can also choose from paid themes if you want something more distinctive. You can also upload your own bespoke theme if you prefer.

Here are a few quick tips to help you find the right Shopify theme:

#1: Check Out Reviews and Case Studies

If you see a theme you like, click on it. You’ll find more information, including the features it supports and the type of sites it’s best for. You can also access a live demo.

I also recommend checking out the customer reviews to see what fellow Shopify users think.

#2: Preview Themes with Customization Options

Most themes come in various colorways and styles, which makes it easy to choose a design that’s right for your brand.

Click View demo store and click the dropdown menu at the top of the page to try the different customization options.

#3: Select and Install Your Shopify Theme

If you like the demo version of a specific theme, all that’s left to do is click the Try theme button to get it.

This will add the theme to your dashboard—go to Online Store and Themes and click Publish to use it.

If you choose a paid-for theme, you won’t be charged until you publish it, meaning you can see if it’s right for your store first.

Step 4: Choose and Purchase a Domain Name

While Shopify handles the hosting for you, you’ll need a domain name (like www.neilpatel.com) to make your site live.

You can buy a domain name from Shopify. This is ideal if you’re short on time and don’t want to handle the admin. The costs will vary depending on the extension—for example, if you choose a .com or a .net extension.

Alternatively, you can buy your own domain name using the platform of your choice and connect it to your Shopify site. Just click Connect existing domain, add your details, and verify your connection.

If you need more help, Shopify has a guide on its website.

Remember that your domain name is one of the first things people see when they visit your website. 

Keep it short, make it memorable, and think about the future—you want something that stays relevant as your business grows.

Step 5: Customize Your Store Settings

Now that your theme is in place, it’s time to make it your own. 

Before you start, I recommend clicking the three dots and duplicating your theme. This means you have a backup if you make a change you don’t like.

Next, click Customize. This will direct you to a page that controls all the basic functionality of your store. 

This is where you can make big changes and test all the features to understand what your website is capable of.

Here, you can upload images and logos, change your font, and change your call-to-action buttons.

Step 6: Add Products to Your E-Commerce Website

The next step in the e-commerce website creation process is to add the products you want to sell. With Shopify, you can add as many products as you want, with a limit of 100 variants per product.

Click Products on the left side menu on your dashboard and click Add product to get started.

Try to add as many details as you can to give your customers a clear idea about your products.

I can’t emphasize the power of product images enough here.

HD-quality photos of your products with a clear background are instrumental in making a sale. 

Use Product Templates with AI Suggestions

The great thing about adding products to Shopify is that you can use Shopify Magic to generate compelling product descriptions using AI. 

This saves time and ensures all your product descriptions are unique.

Just add a few features and keywords, suggest a tone of voice, and Shopify will do the rest.

Manual and Automated Collections

A collection is a group of products that makes it easier for customers to find what they need. This could be, for example, seasonal products for Easter, Halloween, or Christmas.

There are two ways of adding collections:

• Manual: You individually add and remove products to the collection.
• Smart: You set up specific selection conditions that will automatically add products that meet the criteria.

You can add collections by clicking Collections and Create collections in the Shopify dashboard.

Step 7: Manage Tax Settings and Compliance

One of the benefits of Shopify is that it works out taxes and collects duties and import tax at checkout. However, it’s important to make sure everything is set up correctly.

You can manage taxes by going to Settings and selecting Taxes and duties. Here, you can manage settings by country and integrate any relevant tax apps.

Step 8: Prep to Launch Your Shopify Store

It’s nearly time to launch, but first, it’s important to test your site to make sure it works. It’s better that you spot any issues before your customers do, after all.

I recommend placing a test order to make sure your checkout process works. If you use Shopify Payments, this has a “test mode,” so you can place an order without using a credit card. 

Don’t forget to test the user experience as well. You’ll want to ensure customers can navigate your site and find what they need.

Shopify’s setup guide in the center of your dashboard will tell you what else you need to do to get your store up and running.

Step 9: Start Selling and Optimize for Growth

Congratulations! Your new Shopify e-commerce store is up and running. 

However, the hard work isn’t over. You need to constantly optimize and refine your site to ensure a steady flow of customers.

Here are some additional tips to help you get started:

• Set up Google Analytics and Google Search Console so you can track visitors and see what search terms you’re ranking for.
• Effectively market your website to get customers to come to you. Think about how you can use email marketing, social media, and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising to target prospective shoppers.
• It’s easier to sell to existing customers than new ones. A loyalty program is a great way to encourage customers to keep coming back.
• Consider your site performance. Slow-loading pages, low-quality content, and a poor mobile site can frustrate customers.

Tips for Scaling Your E-Commerce Store in 2025

When choosing an e-commerce platform, it’s essential to think not just about what features you need now but what features you’ll need in the future. This will help you choose a platform that can scale with you as your business grows.

Here are some other things to consider to help you scale:

• Use automation to grow—for example, through abandoned cart emails and chatbot software.
• Use paid ads to introduce your brand to new customers. Retargeting ads are good for targeting customers who have visited your site but not converted.
• Use upselling and cross-selling to increase your average order value.
• Encourage customers to leave positive reviews about your products and store to boost trust.

FAQs

How do I create an e-commerce website?

The first step is to identify if you want to sell your products on your own site, work with another online retailer, sell on social media, or use a marketplace.

If you want your own website, decide if you want it to be hosted, self-hosted, or hybrid. This will help you determine which platform to get started on.

What platforms are best for an e-commerce store?

Popular options for e-commerce website creation include Shopify, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce.
When considering which platform is right for you, it’s vital to consider factors such as pricing, ease of use, customization options, and scalability.

Which CMS is best for e-commerce SEO?

In an extensive review, WooCommerce, Magento, and Shopify came out on top for SEO.
Remember that while some platforms can help enhance your SEO, you still need to know the basics.

What does a successful e-commerce store look like?

A visually appealing website with organized product categories and clear navigation helps customers find what they need quickly and effortlessly. 
Additionally, a blog page with helpful tips or educational content can help build customer relationships while positioning the company as an expert.

How do I build an e-commerce website structure?

Begin by creating a consistent design throughout the site. This means all pages should have the same look and feel so customers can easily recognize your brand identity. 

Secondly, ensure you organize all navigation menus intuitively, allowing visitors to find what they need quickly and easily.
It’s also worth adding breadcrumbs on each page to show customers where they are within your website structure and how they got there.

Conclusion

With the ease of online shopping and the variety of products available, e-commerce is great for shoppers looking for convenience and choice.

Now that you know how to create a store website, you’re well on your way to enticing shoppers and making your first sale.

Don’t forget that it’s not just enough to create an e-commerce website—you need to market it, too. That way, the people most likely to buy make their way to your store.