How to Create an eCommerce Store to Sell your Private Label Skin Care Products

Creating a suitable eCommerce store when selling health or beauty products as a private label is essential. But, it can be quite a challenge if you don't have access to a professional website designer or someone who is well equipped with IT knowledge. 

Thankfully, in the last ten years, online service advances have made it much easier to create an online store. As a result, there is now an abundance of providers and companies you can use to make your own eCommerce store that are accessible and easy to use. 

In this guide, we will take you through the different options you could choose for your eCommerce store skincare brand, how you can go about setting your own site up and the essential elements of operating as an online retailer. 

How Do I Set Up an eCommerce Store? 

Almost all successful beauty brands will have a great online store attached to their name, so you can see the importance of getting your initial set up right. Below, we will take you through the things you should consider before setting up your skincare website.

Competitor Research 

Your first step in this process is to thoroughly research your competitors' online assets and see how their stores work. Doing this research will help you to understand what works well in the beauty industry and the kind of route you should consider going down when creating your eCommerce platform. 

Strategy 

Next, start to plan your strategy. What is your hero product? What are your colour scheme and brand message? Will your store integrate social media? There are many points to consider, and the most important thing is that you think through these decisions to create a cohesive plan that embodies your brand message and helps you stand out from other beauty websites. 

You may also notice which store options are popular amongst other beauty retailers during your research. Keep a note of these so that you can look into each option and find the most suitable for your own brand. 

Create an Interesting Name and Logo 

Likely, you will already have thought about these elements, but now is the time to ensure you are happy with your brand name. A unique name and logo will help customers recognize your brand and quickly set a tone in the consumers' heads for what to expect.

After all, the first thing anyone visiting your website will see will be your name and logo, so this is a critical step you will need to get right. 

Educate Yourself On The Ecommerce World and SEO 

Setting up a website and creating a store is only a small part of a cosmetics brands success. To fully develop your online presence and make an impact, you will need to understand SEO practices. This understanding will help you market your products more effectively, choosing trending phrases to gain traffic.

For example, if you make custom scented body products, this is very specific and better to use as a category heading instead of saying just body products. You could even go a step further and include the name of different scents, such as essential oils and other targeted ingredients. 

Keep Branding Consistent

When you think of your packaging, social media content and brand message, they should all correspond with each other in a clear and organised way. This is no different when designing a website; you want it to come across in the most authentic way possible.

Say you are a clean beauty brand specialising in organic skincare; it could be wise to have a clean and modern layout that clearly shows who you are whilst keeping all assets consistent. It would help if you did this while keeping your customer in mind, considering ways to make your site interactive and engaging.

Examples of beauty brands that have done this are Gold medical supplies with an interactive nail polish product and a few notable customizations included in their website, designed with Bigcommerce. So, think about what you want your most interesting website feature to be and apply it to a simple and efficient approach. 

See If Your Manufacturer Can Help 

As a private label, you will have worked with a manufacturer to create your skincare products. Sometimes, contract manufacturing companies provide other services that can help you with the eCommerce world, from professional photography to other tips. Use these services if you can, as you will likely get them much cheaper than looking elsewhere!

Always Consider The Customer

The online shopping experience should be tailored to how the customer will get the best out of your website. For example, if your website isn't clearly set out with organized sections, many customers will struggle and choose to shop elsewhere.

So, instead, look for an eCommerce provider that allows you to concentrate on the customer experience, with handy tools such as product spotlights and search bars that help customers find the products they are looking for more quickly. 

How to Choose an Online Store Platform

Companies that sell health and beauty products will often spend a long time finding the best website provider possible, but to help you do this most efficiently, we have detailed the most popular options and why they are so loved; 

Shopify

Shopify prides itself on being a quick and easy way to set up an online shop, with its slogan claiming that this can be done in a matter of minutes! They have over 70 professional themes you can customise to fit in with your branding, suitable to be viewed on any device. Having these themes at your fingertips ensures that you don't need any design experience or knowledge to work Shopify, so it is extremely straightforward and beginner friendly. 

Another point retailers love about Shopify is that the platform allows you to view analytics regarding your sales and how the website is performing, helping you make business decisions more effectively. In addition, the site comes with three different payment options, with the 'Basic Membership' being promoted for new eCommerce businesses costing $19. 

WordPress

43% of the web is built on WordPress, automatically ensuring that this is a trustworthy website designer loved by many. In addition, there are thousands of website themes to choose from, with endless possibilities to grow your site with add-ons and the innovative website builder tool that gives you the power to add reviews, professional photos and much more to your site.

WordPress also has built-in SEO and marketing tools to help you see how your products and site are performing, with analytics from Google analytics and many more. Their eCommerce membership is $36 a month, and with it you gain a whole host of incredible benefits that will help you create a professional website. 

Etsy

If setting up a website isn't your thing, you could sell your beauty products online by stocking them on an eCommerce site already set up. Etsy is an eCommerce platform that stores handmade and vintage goods, allowing smaller brands to sell their crafted products without making their own website. 

As the seller, you are responsible for all elements of your product, so you must ensure it is safe to sell through their site. There is a $0.20 listing fee, and Etsy takes a small commission fee when an item is sold, but there are no additional monthly costs. 

Many sellers who don't want to spend time creating a website prefer using Etsy as they can spend more time developing their handmade products, but there is less creativity involved in marketing campaigns when you choose to do this. 

Bigcommerce 

Unlike the other options listed above, Bigcommerce centres itself around eCommerce stores and helps them to get the best out of their site. And that isn't the only noticeable difference regarding Bigcommerce, as they don't have a monthly membership fee like others. Instead, you get in touch with Bigcommerce's support team, who will devise the best plan for you and your goals, setting you up with a fee. 

Final Thoughts

There are multiple viable options regarding which eCommerce service you will choose to create your website, whether you want to make your own site from scratch or stock handmade products on a site such as Etsy.

We recommend that you create your own website, as this gives you more creative control over branding and will help you expand and grow your business. You will also be able to apply the strategies we laid out above to create a beauty eCommerce site that customers love, resulting in brand loyalty. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you produce the product as a private label?

When you operate as a private label, you will work with a manufacturer who will make your products in the exact way you want. So, you will create a product idea and let the manufacturer know precisely how you want it to be made. They will offer guidance throughout the process to ensure you make products of high quality. 

What is a private label cosmetics company?

A private label cosmetics company is a business that hires a manufacturer to create its products. The company is responsible for every other product element, from packaging to marketing, allowing them full creative control.