Have you thought about launching your own website, in order to inform your customers of all the amazing products and services you have to offer them? Sure you have. Now it’s time to apply that creative energy in the right direction, and build a sleek and appealing Buyer/Seller site that gets the sales you deserve! Building a website doesn’t have to be a pain in the ASP, and it doesn’t even require you to call upon a roomful of pasty-skinned computer nerds… it just requires a solid plan, and a basic time investment. If you’re ready to take the plunge, then take a few deep breaths, and follow our very handy little Top10 guide of ways to get people talking about what you have, not what you don’t have!

Set up and develop an easy navigation system for your site that allows your customers to effectively find products, get contact information, make online purchases, access other product specials, access their accounts, and so on. Everything should have a place on your web site and be easily accessible in order to keep customers shopping on your sites! The whole purpose of launching a B2B site is to either give customers a way to effortlessly place orders, or to provide a fast and easy way to get them in touch with you. Your site should provide this solution in 3 clicks or less.

Source some ideas for designs, and take a moment to investigate and research sites like
Good Web Design Practices and Good And Bad Web Design Features to get into the groove. This is an often-overlooked factor in web design, no matter how many times we seem to hear about it… but by designing a page that is logical and user-friendly, you will increase the likelihood of shoppers on your site being compelled to browse it, rather than being driven away from it.

Find the right template design and learn a little about composition. Following these links could put you on the right path:

• Template Monster,

• Homestead

• InstantEcom

• Easy-Site-Build and

• HighPowerSites

for some how-to info regarding styles, colors, and general look-and-feel. Again, this part sounds like it should be a walk in the park, but it’s amazing (and dismaying) to see so many dismally poor design elements thrown together and posted on the Internet.

When all of that is done, you can let your creative side get an additional workout from sites like
SXC and iStockPhoto.com for some great stock photography that will tell your customers that you are serious about Wholesale. After all, there’s only so much you can say about the virtues of assorted plastic disposable cutlery, but a well-composed picture of your product can leave a lasting impression on your customer’s mind.

Take a look around at other Wholesaler/Retailer sites, and get yourself acquainted with the good sites before committing a lot of time and effort towards designing your own (especially if you aren’t very design-savvy) because there are a ton of examples you can peruse to help make your choices. If you want to know what the other big players are doing, don’t be shy about looking for the similarities –- and the differences –- between proven sites like:

• Dollar Item

• KoleImports

• Boulevard Apparel Group

• Esco Imports

• Cool Jewels

• Internet Retailer and

• SPClothing

for a bit of final inspiration.

After looking at all the information we’ve provided telling you what to do, it never hurts to check out some fine examples of what NOT to do. Maybe a quick visit to www.webpagesthatsuck.com will be an eye-opener. If you’re pressed for time, here’s a helpful overview of some common pitfalls to avoid that are really just common sense:

- Too many useless graphics make pages cluttered, slow, obnoxious… and they tend to compete for attention. All eyes should be on what you offer, not your awesome company logo, or the panoramic shot of the back of your spacious warehouse.
- Your website may look really sweet on your new 40-inch monitor, but it will look like a bad joke on your customer’s 12-inch netbook. That’s nothing to laugh about, so keep the 640×480 rule in mind.
- Floating pop-ups and secondary windows with ‘real-time customer support’ are a cool idea, but I have yet to see any that don’t make me want to smash my PC into bits. Avoid using them.
- If you’re going to integrate video onto your site, make sure it’s not coming across to visitors as a never-ending progress bar. While you’re at it, make sure the audio doesn’t sound like you used an empty bucket over your head to enhance the bass.

In conclusion… if all of this seems needlessly daunting, just remember: there’s really no wrong way to build your site, but there’s definitely a lot you can afford to do right. By creating and maintaining your own Buyer/Seller site, you will have the kind of control and prompt feedback you need to keep your finger on the pulse of whichever market you are in. What’s that kind of power worth to you? Your competitors might already know the answer to that one. Besides, once your site is up and running you’ll be able to spend more time responding to informed customer queries… instead of trying to simply draw the occasional stranger in on a lukewarm lead.