What information should be on the online store website

Each year, online stores are becoming more popular, more and more entrepreneurs want to take the e-commerce niche. However, not all beginner businessmen are aware that they should provide all legally significant information on a website for the avoidance of penalties and sanctions due to damages reparation of their customers.

Information requirements on the company and its products may vary depending on the state where a business entity is registered, however, there are some data that is required by any state to be present on the resource.

Publish the following information on the page with your contacts:

• your full name and the entity type (individual entrepreneurship/legal entity) performing the entrepreneurial activity;
  
  
• the legal address of the company and the route map are also desirable;
  
  
• your landline phone number with the city code aside from mobile phones for contacting the vendor representatives;
  
  
• working hours of the online store;
  
  
• if your industry requires a license or the state attestation, you should specify the document number, the effective term, its issuance date, and the type of authority that issued the document.
  

The information on delivery and payment methods of the online store includes:

• an opportunity to pick up an order from the company office or warehouse and its address;
  
  
• courier delivery of the store — delivery terms and the price of this service. Free delivery is a great advantage (for example, from a certain order amount);
  
  
• third-party mailing and courier companies delivering goods and their terms of providing delivery services;
  

• all available payment methods — cash on delivery, bank transfer to the company's bank account or by a bank card.
  

An example of providing brief information about the tariffs and terms for eleven delivery methods available in an online store:

For each product in the catalog, you need to specify the following information:

• manufacturer and a country where the product was made;
  

• full name and the product range;
  
• product delivery methods, terms, and the price;
  
• information about the certificates, government standards or other documents certifying the safety and quality of the product;
  
• stock availability and the effective product price in the state currency;
  
• warranty period if it is established by the manufacturer;
  
• for food products — ingredients, nutritional values, the presence of GMO, production date, weight or volume, adverse health conditions;
  
• the product operational life;
  
• product defects.
  

Publish information that convinces the user that the online store operates in accordance with the applicable laws, in particular, complies with the articles of the law on consumer protection.

Describe the conditions of the return of goods of proper and inadequate quality, non-returnable product categories as well as options for warranty service.

If the online store provides an opportunity to purchase goods on credit, then publish information about what is needed to get a loan, what bank issues them and under what conditions. Also provide a link to the loan agreement, which specifies the rights and liabilities of the parties. Here's an example of a loan for a product with an interest rate of 0%:

Most online stores offer buyers promotional prices for a number of commodity items or gifts for performing certain actions, e.g. buying at least a certain amount, purchasing goods of specific brands. Place the "Special offers" section with a description of special offers valid in the online store, and their terms.

In this example, the site has a countdown timer for each special offer, which shows how much time remains until its end:

A public offer is a contract that defines the rights and liabilities of the vendor and buyer of the goods which are not established at the legislative level. This document sets out the terms of the offer to potential buyers who must agree with him (accept it).

Specify in the public offer contract which action of the buyer will be considered as the acceptance — placing an order or a payment for it. Also put down the conditions of placing an order and acceptance of the order by the seller, the procedure for returning and exchanging the goods in the public offer. The established conditions must not contradict the current legislation.

When placing an order and transferring personal data to the vendor, the buyer must confirm their consent to the processing of personal data by the online store. Add a notice to the order form that the data is stored in accordance with the law on the protection of personal data and make it possible to proceed with the order only after confirming the user's consent.

The following sections and data should necessarily be published on a commercial website:

• information about the online store, its legal status, and the address;
  
• licenses, certificates, accreditation documents if required by the online store sector;
  
• comprehensive and genuine information about the products;
  
• the terms of returning products and warranty service;
  
• information on the delivery and payment methods;
  
• special offers and their effective dates;
  
• purchasing on credit and its terms;
  
• the public offer contract and terms of use;
  
• personal data protection policy.