What is BigCartel? A Starter's Guide
In the bustling digital marketplace, where the dream of entrepreneurship often collides with the daunting realities of technical intricacies, BigCartel emerges as a beacon of simplicity. Imagine a platform that strips away the complexities of eCommerce, leaving you, the aspiring entrepreneur, to the pure, unadulterated essence of your business. This is the promise of BigCartel - a streamlined, user-friendly haven where the labyrinthine tasks of website construction, payment processing, and digital marketing are distilled into something manageable, even effortless.
In this exploration, we delve into the heart of what BigCartel is. With this guide, you'll find yourself not just equipped but inspired to launch your online store, stepping confidently into a world where sales and success are within reach.
What Is BigCartel?
BigCartel is a simple platform, specifically tailored for the artisans, the dreamers, and the independent spirits. It's a platform where small-scale businesses, from local crafters to upcoming brands, can effortlessly carve out their digital storefronts.
BigCartel stands out with its straightforward approach. Here, you can weave the fabric of your store, adding products, tailoring the design to mirror your unique brand, and stepping into the world of online selling without the need for any technical wizardry. It's a place where simplicity meets functionality.
The platform is not just about setting up shop; it's about affordability. With plans starting at a modest $9.99/month, BigCartel breaks the myth that starting an online business needs to be an expensive affair. And the best part? It's transparent with no hidden costs nibbling away at your profits.
Diving into the features, BigCartel offers a suite of tools designed to resonate with your brand's voice:
- Customizable templates that echo your brand's personality.
- The freedom to showcase an unlimited array of products, complete with captivating images, detailed descriptions, and set prices.
- Integrated shipping solutions, partnering with giants like USPS, UPS, and FedEx.
- Diverse payment options including PayPal, Stripe, and Square.
- Tools for promotions, like coupon and discount codes.
- An inventory management system to keep a vigilant eye on your stock.
- A mobile-responsive design ensuring your store is a visual delight on any device.
- Features to foster customer relationships, like account creation, mailing list sign-ups, and strategies to re-engage those elusive abandoned carts.
Key Features and Benefits of BigCartel
So we have talked about how BigCartel is most loved by the creative professionals, about simplicity of the platform. Now I am gonna talk more in detail about the features that make BigCarte intuitive, less complex and more manageable.
Key Features
- Customizable Templates: Dive into a pool of free templates, each waiting to be transformed into a reflection of your unique brand. With easy customization, infuse them with your personal touch using your images, colors, and content.
- Effortless Product Management: Adding products is a breeze. Showcase each item with photos, detailed descriptions, and options like sizes and colors. BigCartel - takes care of creating individual product pages, making your life easier.
- Inventory Management: Stay ahead of the game with an inventory system that alerts you when stocks are low, ensuring you're always ready to meet customer demand without the risk of overselling.
- Shipping and Tax Tools: Navigate the complexities of shipping and taxes with tools that calculate real-time rates, print labels, and handle sales tax. Integration with major carriers streamlines the entire process.
- Mobile-Friendly Design: In a world where mobile shopping is king, rest assured that your store will both look and function beautifully on any device.
- Blogging for Engagement: Boost your store's SEO and connect with your audience through a blog. Share stories about new products, updates, or anything that resonates with your brand.
- Customer Accounts: Enhance customer experience with personal accounts. Let shoppers save their favorites, view order history, and enjoy faster checkouts, fostering loyalty and encouraging repeat visits.
- Additional Perks: BigCartel doesn't stop there. Delight your customers with coupon codes, gift cards, and the convenience of shopping directly from Facebook. Plus, with 24/7 support, any queries you have are just a message away.
Pros and Cons of Using BigCartel
Once you understand the pros and cons of a platform, you will be better able to chalk out a comprehensive plan - to launch a store, to advise your client or to identify what else you are gonna need in your toolkit to rework the cons. So, let’s take a look -
Pros of BigCartel:
- Simple and easy to use. BigCartel is very intuitive and easy to set up. You don’t need any technical skills to get started.
- Affordable. BigCartel’s plans start at $9.99/month. This affordable pricing is ideal for small businesses on a budget.
- Customizable. While BigCartel is simple, it’s also customizable. You can choose from a variety of themes to match your brand and add your own custom HTML and CSS.
- Integrations. BigCartel integrates with many useful third-party services like MailChimp, Google Analytics, and Quickbooks.
Cons of BigCartel:
- Limited features. BigCartel is designed for small stores, so it lacks some advanced features of larger eCommerce platforms. It may not suit your needs as your business grows.
- No built-in blog or content management. BigCartel is purely an eCommerce platform. If you want to add a blog, FAQ page or other content, you'll need to build it yourself.
- No app store. BigCartel doesn't have an official app store or marketplace. The integrations and extras available are limited to what BigCartel chooses to offer.
- Customer support could improve. BigCartel's customer support options are limited to email and Twitter. Phone support is not available, and some users report slower response times.
If you have a small operation and don’t need advanced features, BigCartel could be a great, budget-friendly option to get started with eCommerce. In my opinion, if your ideas are for larger stores, its limited capabilities may prove frustrating quite quickly.
What Types of Businesses Is BigCartel Best For?
Identifying the right platform for your business is crucial, and understanding who it's best suited for can be a game-changer. BigCartel, with its distinct appeal to small-scale entrepreneurs, offers a unique set of advantages. Let's dive into the types of businesses that find BigCartel to be their ideal e-commerce partner.
- Handmade and Vintage Goods
BigCartel’s minimalistic design philosophy ensures that the spotlight remains firmly on your creations. Uploading photos, detailing your crafts, and setting prices becomes an extension of your creative process, seamlessly transitioning from creation to sale.
- Clothing and Accessories
BigCartel offers a storefront that mirrors your brand's aesthetic. Its intuitive nature simplifies categorization - by size, color, or style - turning the browsing experience into a journey through your fashion narrative.
- Art and Photography
Artists and photographers will find in BigCartel a gallery where their work is not just displayed but celebrated. The platform's clean layout acts as a frame, enhancing the visibility of each piece, whether it's art prints, phone cases, or t-shirts adorned with your designs. It's a space where your art doesn't just hang; it converses with the audience.
- Small Batch or Locally Made Goods
For the creators of small-batch cosmetics, candles, or local delicacies, BigCartel understands the essence of the homemade and artisanal. Its minimalist design speaks volumes of authenticity, resonating with customers who seek the unique and the locally crafted. It's where your small-scale production doesn't get lost in the crowd but stands out as a beacon of individuality and quality.
How to Create and Customize Your Online Store With BigCartel
Once you’ve signed up for BigCartel, it’s time to build your online store. BigCartel makes it easy to create a stylish store and add products to sell.
- Choose a Theme
BigCartel offers free mobile-responsive themes to choose from. Select a theme that fits your brand and products. You can preview themes to see what your store will look like, then customize colors and fonts to match your style.
- Add Products
Add photos and details for each product you want to sell. Include titles, descriptions, prices, sizes, colors, and anything else customers need to know. You can organize products into categories to make browsing easy.
- Set Shipping Rates
Configure shipping rates for each product based on weight and destination. Offer free shipping promotions or flat rate shipping to provide the best experience for your customers.
- Activate Your Store
Once your products are added and ready to sell, activate your store to make it live. Your store URL will be yourstorename.bigcartel.com. You can then start promoting your store on social media and elsewhere to drive customers and sales.
- Make Changes
BigCartel makes it simple to change themes, add or remove products, run sales, offer discounts, and make other updates to your store. You have full control to customize your store as needed to keep improving the customer experience.
BigCartel handles the technical details so you can focus on creating and selling your products. Their easy to use platform is ideal for small businesses, makers, artists, and other independent creators looking to build an online presence and start selling their goods. In just a few steps, you can be on your way to running a stylish store and growing your business.
Conclusion
You now have a solid understanding of what BigCartel is and how it can benefit your business. It's an easy to use ecommerce platform that lets you create a stylish online store to sell your goods without any technical expertise. You'll be able to quickly get set up to start selling, market your products, and build your business. BigCartel keeps things simple so you can focus on your craft and connect with customers.