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You are here: Home > SMEs in Wales > Latest eCommerce News & Discussions > Finding eCommerce Suppliers in Wales
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Finding eCommerce Suppliers in Wales
 The Opportunity Wales programme can give advice on what to look for and what questions to ask when selecting eCommerce
suppliers. This might be at the level of finding a professional Web site developer,
selecting an Internet Service Provider (ISP) to gain access to the Internet or host a Web site.
More advanced users might want advice on the types of products which will allow them to
sell on-line via an eCatalogue, and are not sure what the options are, or where such products are available and what
questions to ask.
Opportunity Wales does not hold a database of "approved" suppliers and it is not
within its remit to do so. Other articles on the portal, such as selecting a Web page developer and selecting an ISP, will provide you with useful background on what to look for and what questions to ask,
and, more importantly, how to interpret responses.
For all these needs your local approved Opportunity Wales service provider may well have
lists of suppliers who are known to offer services in your area. None are formally
approved and, at present, there is no national or international accreditation for Web page
developers, which is a relatively new industry and in which a wide range of individuals
with differing skills and expertise have set up as "experts".
Make use of your business contacts. The reputation of local suppliers soon gets around and
a recommendation from a friend or business associate can often be worth following up,
although the basic selection criteria and questions still need to be followed.
You can look in the local press but do be wary of adverts which promise to transform your
business into an eCommerce success for a mere £500. You don't get anything for
nothing! Likewise, simply having a Web site is not a guarantee of success.
Whilst using a local Web site developer can be convenient, selecting a local ISP is not
always as important, although, on occasions, it can have advantages. Many local companies
offer Web development services and also act as ISPs. Similarly, some developers
have arrangements with selected ISPs to recommend their services to any new clients. You
may be interested in reading some of the eCommerce magazines, in order to research potential suppliers. Many frequently carry out reviews of ISP
services, especially relating to quality and availability of service. Such reviews might
help an SME identify a suitable supplier. It should be remembered that many ISPs offer
services especially suited to SMEs, not only including Internet access and hosting
services, but also basic Web page templates and, in some cases, even on-line catalogues
and payment facilities.
Those SMEs who already have Internet access may wish to use the technology to find
potential suppliers. You might already have realised that the search engines can find many
matches to your search enquiry. But, how many of them in respect of, say, a Web page
developer, are based in your area?
There are UK-specific search engines such as Altavista and Google, but even they still
bring in non-UK sites, and finding a Web developer in Aberdeen may not be what an SME from
Conway had in mind.
Local Internet directories are increasingly being set up, such as Matren's Gwynedd directory lists local companies with a Web presence and within the directories
are eCommerce suppliers.
There are also Welsh search engines. Some simply include sites where relevant words such
as Wales and Welsh are included, and it is possible that you could find a Web site
developer in New South Wales as well as one in Carmarthenshire.
Other search engines such as North Wales Index, are much more focused on Welsh sites. Whilst the overall number of web sites registered
in their lists might be smaller, they are more focused. The Wales Index splits itself into
a search engine for individual areas of Wales, as well as a search for the entire country.
A search for a Web designer in North Wales, for example, resulted in 103 company details
being found.
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