Webshop and online growth for shops and brands
A webshop is not a website with a shopping basket added, but a sales channel with its own costs. Working out in advance how much you can spend to win an order leads to better decisions than building first and looking afterwards.
Where these customers come from
Search behaviour differs greatly per trade. This is what people type in before they end up at a business like yours, and so what we set up the site for.
- The product itself, often with a brand or size added: this is where you compete with bol.com and the manufacturer
- ‘[product] kopen’ (buy [product]) plus a town name, when someone would ideally pick it up today
- Comparing and hesitating: ‘welke [product] kiezen’ (which [product] to choose), ‘[product a] of [product b]’ ([product a] or [product b])
- By brand name, after an ad or a tip: this is your cheapest and best-converting traffic
The elements that make the difference in this trade
Not every website needs the same thing. These are the elements where we most often see gains in this industry, and that are missing from most sites.
Shipping costs and delivery time, before the basket
Unexpected shipping costs at checkout are the most frequently cited reason for abandoning an order. Put them on the product page.
Product photos that actually show something
Several angles, something next to it for scale, and for clothing or interiors a photo of it in use. This is the only thing that replaces the in-store experience.
Returns policy in plain language
Required by law and a selling point. A clear returns policy removes the last doubt for people who do not know you yet.
Stock levels that are correct
Nothing costs more goodwill than an order you have to cancel. If you also have a physical shop, a link with your point-of-sale system is not a luxury.
A reason to buy from you
You will not beat the big platforms on price. On advice, specialism, service or a range they do not carry, you can. Put that at the top instead of at the bottom.
With a webshop, the build is rarely the hardest part. The hard question is whether anything is left at the bottom line.
Start with the sums, not the design
Before you build anything, there is one number that determines everything: your margin per order. From that follows how much an order may cost you in advertising, how many orders you need to cover your fixed costs, and whether a webshop is the right channel at all.
We would rather do that sum beforehand than afterwards. If it turns out that five orders a month will never cover your costs, we will say so, and then an ordinary website with an order form, or a platform as an intermediate step, is the wiser choice.
Where you will not win
On price you lose to the big platforms, and that will not change. Usually on delivery time too. What you can do: carry the range they do not carry, give advice where they have no person for it, and keep the customer relationship they take away from you.
That does have to be on your site, though, and not only on the about us page. Most small webshops look exactly like all the others and therefore sell on price: the one fight they cannot win.
What we do for shops and brands
We build custom webshops when an off-the-shelf platform falls short: special shipping rules, tiered pricing, subscriptions or a link with your point-of-sale or stock system. When that is or is not necessary is explained in what does a webshop cost (in Dutch).
We also set up campaigns that we steer on cost per order rather than on clicks, and we always keep the advertising budget separate from our fee, so you see exactly what went to Google or Meta and what went to us.
What we are honest about
A webshop is a system that keeps needing attention. Products, prices, stock and shipping rules change, and that work does not disappear after delivery. If you have neither the time nor someone to do it, you are better off not starting: it becomes a shop with empty shelves.
Where we would start
- Custom work
- on quotation Online shop, booking system or complex client portal
As soon as visitors need to be able to check out, software comes into play that has to stay correct: stock, VAT, shipping rules and payments. If you sell a handful of products to existing customers, an ordinary site with an order form is often the wiser choice, and a lot cheaper.
See the approachThe amount is in your quote, excluding VAT, tailored to your situation. What you get per service, you can read under the services.
Questions we get most often in this trade
What does a webshop cost?
With us a webshop is always custom work: you pay for the build once, and after that the hosting and management route that fits the application continues monthly. You pay your payment provider's costs directly to that provider. How the cost is built up is explained in our article on what a webshop costs (in Dutch); what it will be for you is in the quote.
Am I better off selling on bol.com?
A platform is quicker for reach, but you pay commission, you compete on price and the customer remains theirs. Many retailers do both: a platform for volume, their own shop for margin and repeat purchases. We help you work out which balance is right.
How many orders do I need to earn this back?
That depends on your margin per order and your fixed monthly costs. The sum is simple: your fixed costs divided by your margin per order is the minimum number of orders you need, and that is before advertising costs. We do that sum in the consultation, with your figures and your quote to hand.
Is advertising necessary for a webshop?
Usually yes at the start, because organic visibility for product searches builds slowly and the competition is fierce. We steer on what an order costs relative to your margin, not on clicks.
Curious what this means for your business?
Book a no-obligation consultation. We look at your current situation together and you get concrete, honest advice, even if that advice is to do nothing for now.
You’ll hear back within one working day