Time to move on - building a website

[paypalpains]

Think it is time to stop resting on my laurels and to begin taking the step to build my own website(s)

Now, I am internet savvy, and have taken steps in the past, however my goals were not realistic with the site and what i wanted from it.

However my knowledge is not great specially seo etc.

I have a better idea now of what i want, and want to take the steps to building and maintaining my own place on the web.

If there are any experienced people out there who can help advise and give some general guidance , web hosts etc. then it would be very much appreciated.

I am looking to build my shop using Presta, so anyone with experience using presta shop you advice would be invaluable.

Heres to taking steps to get out the fear of ebay and all its complications.

Wish me well

[paypalpains]

Hope the admins do not mind if i use this thread as a kind of blog, to see where I am , where I want to be, and how i get there, if i do, or I look back and think what i wanted, however never materialised for me.

As well as just brain storming, even if it is for myself , my own thoughts of what I want and need to do , things which pop up in my head that i can come back to.

My next steps :

Find a secure web host and url (website name for my site)

[paypalpains]

Thought: running two parallel sites, both the same, however the names will be different, as one will be specific to current times we are facing, one will be more general so it will apply to all times good and bad

[paypalpains]

Book to read: Outsmarting Google: SEO Secrets to Winning New Business (Que Biz-Tech) [Paperback]
Evan Bailyn (Author), Bradley Bailyn (Author)

[ensignia]

Have you any wb design experience? I've used PrestaCart before and it's quite challenging to work on. For a newbie it'd be nigh on impossible.

[paypalpains]

is £2.49 for a domain and hosting a good price? (1and1)

[paypalpains]

Originally Posted by ensignia

Have you any wb design experience? I've used PrestaCart before and it's quite challenging to work on. For a newbie it'd be nigh on impossible.

I find from past experience with Presta that the backdoor? is easy to use, changing descriptions, adding photos, changing layouts, etc...

Plus there forum is great, had plenty of help from there last time, and very quick to help too.

What i do not know, i would like to think I am intelligent enough to learn, I am educated, so learning is not something which is adverse to me. It is more about application and dedication. I am going to begin to focus more on the transition now, where as in the past I have lacked the conviction.

Thanks for showing an interest, what went wrong with your presta shop, or is it running?

Am happy to help you in anyway I can, if I can, and if you want.

Mayhaps you would like to jump on the bandwagon again.

Ultimately, one of the biggest things I want on my site, is a feedback page ( obviously i will have total control over it, but something really worth having )

[paypalpains]

Presta, also offer a service which prestabox, where everything is done for you, in terms of ready-to-go so all you need to do is get your merchandise listed and your good to sell. They take 2% for this service, which is nothing compared to the 18% i currently pay to ebay and PP , which is another option if i can not figure it out for myself

[ensignia]

I'm a web developer so I have experience with these things. I've used PrestaCart for a client in the past, and it was a bit of a learning curve I can tell you. Not as much as Magento mind you!

Have you considered ZenCart, it's a pretty versatile bit of software and is fairly easy to use.

1&1 are cheap for a reason, the shared servers are very slow and one of our clients experiences regular dropouts. It may be okay to start off with, but if you're looking at getting decent volume you'll want a more robust host.

[Ragnar]

Stay away from 1&1 internet - absolute charlatans, Read about them here;

Avoid 1&1 Internet

and then do some more googling you will find plenty of horror stories.

[rsot]

Charlatan is the word of the day.

[paypalpains]

Originally Posted by ensignia

I'm a web developer so I have experience with these things. I've used PrestaCart for a client in the past, and it was a bit of a learning curve I can tell you. Not as much as Magento mind you!

Have you considered ZenCart, it's a pretty versatile bit of software and is fairly easy to use.

1&1 are cheap for a reason, the shared servers are very slow and one of our clients experiences regular dropouts. It may be okay to start off with, but if you're looking at getting decent volume you'll want a more robust host.

Is there anyone you would recommend?

Well then I look forward to picking your brain, and I hope you will stay active on my thread. You are the very reason for starting the thread, to connect and hopefully network with like minded people. I hope you will allow me to tap into the wealth of experience you have

[paypalpains]

Originally Posted by Ragnar

Stay away from 1&1 internet - absolute charlatans, Read about them here;

Avoid 1&1 Internet

and then do some more googling you will find plenty of horror stories.

Thanks for that. It was just a suggestion as i am browsing hosts.

I think i was with them before, and lost my username and password, but stopped paying them as well,anyway.

So will need a another host.

[Alps_a somewhatlegend]

.falcoda.co.uk/

I am hosted with these guys. Cheap as chips and they are pretty mellow as to the content they let you put on.

[eBay King]

Originally Posted by rsot

Charlatan is the word of the day.

Very British sounding word!

[isitworththestress]

I would recommend zencart.

Easy to use and also has a good forum if you get stuck

Also has a lot of addons that are easy to integrate.

[ensignia]

Originally Posted by isitworththestress

I would recommend zencart.

Easy to use and also has a good forum if you get stuck

Also has a lot of addons that are easy to integrate.

That's what I've recommended if you're a beginner. Very good bit of software, although the standard template is hideous.

[isitworththestress]

Originally Posted by ensignia

That's what I've recommended if you're a beginner. Very good bit of software, although the standard template is hideous.

Have they upgraded to 2.0 yet I have not been back there for a while but that sounded like an interesting change?

[ensignia]

Currently on 1.39, with 1.5 due to come out soon.

[isitworththestress]

2.0 is the development term for the next advancement for development of websites and programs. Not sure what its full title is but most tend to just break it down to 2.0

They were talking about switching the script to 2.0 when I was last on and all those that had written scripts were moaning, as they were going to have to remake them.

[david1978]

Hi,i would recommend PrestaShop simple and easy to set up.My shop example
pandoraqueen

[paypalpains]

Have used big commerce for now, and have got someone to do the dirty work for me for $250 all in , doing everything for me.

Hopefully will be up and running soon, will not accept paypal, have a no checks account, and will use google too.