There are web designers out there can charge a very good rate to design an e-commerce site. If you can't afford $2500 for the design of your store front and e-commerce, then you should find ways to gain some more start up capital. There are very reputable companies out there, us being one, that you can get a very nice e-commerce site customed designed for around $2500.

When doing your research, look at the sites they have designed. Try placing an order and see how easy the checkout process is. (Stop before you have to pay if you don't want the item!) Make sure the site design is easy to navigate. If you design a site that makes it difficult or confusing to shoppers to get around...they will leave. There are too many other companies out there they can buy from, so they won't waste their time trying to figure your site out.

Most importantly, the way your site is designed will make a big difference on where it ranks on the search engines. Ask the web designer about where the keywords will be placed in your description. Make sure they will be uploading a sitemap.xtml as well. If the spiders that search engines send out can't read your pages correctly...you won't be turning up anywhere (talking in the 1,000's to 10,000's here) near the top of the list. There are a ton of other factors that determine your search engine rank as well (won't go into them here). Yes, you can do some serious research and learn html code to the T to do this yourself. But you will have to become somewhat of an expert in order to do it right. There are companies out there that specialize in Search engine optimization now...that is how important it is.

We get a ton of people who come to us with a website which they hate. They all said, I should have just done it right in the first place. Either hiring a poor designer because it was cheap(remember...do your research!) or did it themselves, they weren't happy.

So make sure you will be proud of your website and want to give the address to everyone you meet...without having to add a disclaimer which states..."here is my web site address, yah, I don't really like how such and such looks on it, but take a look anywhere." You need to be able to say "Here is my website address, take it a look, the site is awesome!" If you know you will be able to say the last statement after you design your site on your own...then go for. If you are hesitant about the quality of work you will be able to do...then do some shopping around and see what professional can do for you! Good Luck!! :)