Overview
BV Commerce 5 is a powerful shopping cart engine that can be used to build successful online stores. The software comes with a pre-built web store which must be installed on a web server and a database server in order to operate. A web server is a computer that is connected to the internet 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and has web server software installed. BV Commerce uses Microsoft technology so it requires a web server that is running Microsoft’s Internet Information Server (IIS) software. IIS is included in almost all Microsoft operating systems for free.
What else do I need?
BV Commerce provides the shopping cart engine. The engine is a set of web pages that let you display products for sale in categories, search products, add products to a shopping cart and process orders. BV Commerce also includes an administration web site that makes it easy for you to configure your store, add and edit products and fulfill orders. You’ll need some other pieces to build a successful store:
- A web hosting company or web server
- A database of products
- A graphical design, template or theme
- Credit card or payment processing account
- Shipping accounts
Web Hosting Company
A web hosting company will maintain and monitor a computer connected to the internet where your store will "live." Choosing a web host is a very important task because if your web server stops working your whole store disappears from the internet. We’ve got a great list of hosting partners for you to choose from. If you’re a developer you can also choose to host your store yourself.
Database of Products
You’ll need to load products into your store after it’s configured. If you only have a few products you can use our administration web site to enter the products by hand. If you have a few hundred or more products you’ll want to use our free import tools to help automate the process. If you don’t already have unique stock keeping numbers (SKU) for your products you’ll want to create them when you load products.
Design, Theme, Template
Designs, template, themes are all interchangeable names for how your store looks. BV Commerce comes with some built-in designs but most store owners want their sites to stand out. If you’re not a professional designer you should considering hiring one. Our partner directory is a good place to start. Professional designers will more than pay for themselves by giving your store credibility and ease of use that results in higher sales.
Credit Cards and other Payment Processors
BV Commerce accepts many different types of payments, including credit cards. To accept credit cards you can choose from a credit card gateway or alternative payment processors. Credit card gateways allow your company to take credit card payments which are deposited directly into your bank account. BV Commerce supports more than 20 popular payment gateways. Signing up for an account with a payment gateway can take several weeks and you’ll want to compare rates and prices before selecting one.
Alternatives to credit card gateways include Google Checkout and PayPal. Google checkout is a replacement for our checkout process and all payments are handled by Google who then deposits money your bank account. PayPal accepts credit cards and deposits money into a virtual bank account where you can withdraw funds as you need them. Both are popular alternatives to credit card gateways and are supported in BV Commerce. In fact, you can choose to use a credit card gateway, Google checkout and PayPal all at the same time!
Shipping Accounts
BV Commerce includes a variety of shipping options including weight tables, per-item and per-order charges. With the right settings these shipping options can deliver consistent profitable results. However, some store owners need more flexibility so BV Commerce includes the ability to get real time shipping estimated from UPS, FedEx and the US Postal service. If shipping charges aren’t profitable for your store you’ll want to register for a free account with a shipping company. You can register for an account right inside the BV Commerce administration web site when you’re ready.