A Guide to Netcash Instant Site, by Netcash Shop
Instant Site is a free website with built-in eCommerce. The Instant Site is free and comes standard with all Netcash Shop plans, including the free plan. Instant Site includes a website builder which is fully customisable and easy to use. No design or development skills necessary.
Why use Instant Site
Forever free
Instant Site is free with any Netcash Shop plan. You can have a free website with free hosting, free SSL and free automated maintenance and backups all managed by Netcash Shop.
Mobile friendly
Instant Site is responsive on any device, so your website adapts to any screen size on desktop, mobile, tablets and widescreens.
Search engine friendly
Instant Site is naturally indexed by Google and there are many additional features to help you optimise your Instant Site for SEO.
Customizable
Instant Site is fully customisable so you can design your Instant website to align with your brand style design.
Here is a preview of an Instant Site:
You can access your Instant Site builder from the Netcash Shop admin panel under Sales Channels > Website > Overview:
Click on ‘Edit Site’ and the free Instant Website builder will open in a new browser window:
If you are on the first generation Instant Site and want to upgrade to the New Generation Instant Site, reach out to shopsupport@netcash.co.za.
Instant Site website design
Designing and editing your Instant Site is simple and you don’t need to be a web designer or developer. That’s right, no coding skills required. Simply open the intuitive editor in your browser to get started. You will find multiple themes and design options available to make the site your own.
You can choose from the available themes to get started. When you have decided on your theme, you can add sections, change layouts, fonts, colours and more, to personalise your site and align with your brand identity.
Although you do not need to know how to code to use the site builder and set up your Instant Site, you also have the option to further tweak your site and store design by adding CSS codes.
Add your brand story
You can add, edit and remove blocks or sections to your Instant Site. By adding blocks and creating a layout with a good flow you can present your company and tell customers who you are, what you do and how you do it better. You can add, remove and duplicate any of the available blocks below:
- Header (navigation or menu)
- Cover (the first thing your customers see)
- Featured Products (any products you want to highlight)
- Customer Testimonial
- About Us
- Contact Us
- Footer (add legal or compliance policies for customers to see)
You can also add customisable blocks for Seasonal Campaigns, New Collections, Special Offers, Delivery & Payment, Company Information and more depending on your needs.
You can choose which blocks to show and how to arrange them in the Instant Site editor to better tell your business story.
Integrated eCommerce by Netcash Shop
Your Netcash Shop product catalogue is integrated into the New Generation Instant Site and has a dedicated environment for your customers to shop. Use the Netcash Shop admin panel to add your products, configure your shop settings, activate the integrated Netcash eCommerce payment gateway and add your shipping methods.
Now you have your very own free Instant website with integrated eCommerce, free hosting, and a seamless shopping experience for your customers.
Find out how to get started here >
Connect your own domain
When you create a Netcash Shop account you will automatically be allocated a free subdomain like https://1234.shop.netcash.co.za. The numbers in the subdomain will be your store unique store ID eg 1234. Your free subdomain can easily be edited, or if you have your own domain you can connect your own domain to Instant Site.
You can customise your subdomain or use your own domain on any of the Netcash Shop paid plans > and in both cases you will get a free SSL certificate for your site address.
Find out how to customise your Instant Site free subdomain or connect your own domain here >
Multiple uses for Instant Site
You can use Instant Site in many ways, here are some ideas:
- Use Instant Site as a website with an online store. Instant Site is one of the features included in your Netcash Shop plan, so your product catalogue is pre-added to Instant Site and you can use it as your primary selling channel.
- You can use it as a website without eCommerce. If you are running a seasonal business or for some reason do not want to display products, you can hide or temporarily remove the shop section with one click. This allows you to have an online brand presence and your site will still be indexed by Google. When you are ready to start selling again, it is just as easy to add the block with your store.
- If you sell fewer products and need a streamlined converting site design you could use the Instant Site as a landing page for your business.
- Or you can use the Instant Site as an online catalogue to display your products without offering them for purchase by disabling checkout.
Top Instant website design tips
Here are some points to consider when creating your website and adding brand content:
Split your content
Create a flow on your website and split large amounts of information into smaller chunks.
Keep it short and catchy
The headline and description on your Instant Site cover block is not only the first information your customers see when landing on your site, it is also used as your sites meta data and will be the first thing they see in Google search results. seen in the Google. We recommend using keywords that are relevant for your business to attract the right audience. Instant Site has integrated SEO tools to help you improve your SEO and rank higher in searches.
High-quality product images
Use high quality images for your products. Your customers can’t view the physical products and rely on your product images to view the product and make a buying decision. Poor quality images can also make your brand look less professional.
NOTE: When using images from free online sources, it’s essential to adhere to proper usage and crediting guidelines to respect the creators’ rights. Firstly, ensure that the images you choose are indeed labeled for free use, either under a Creative Commons license or public domain. Next, accurately attribute the image by including the creator’s name or username, the title of the image (if applicable), a link to the source, and any specific license information provided by the creator. This information should be prominently displayed on the image or in the page footer. Additionally, if modifications are made to the image, clearly indicate this in the credits. Please note that this does not apply to the free Instant Site images, they do not require crediting.
Five star reviews
Build relationships with your customers and ask for their feedback. Use negative feedback to explore ideas for improvement and use positive reviews to post testimonials to your Instant Site.
In the case that you need a content heavy site (like a blog) and you choose to use another site platform like WordPress, you can use one of the existing Netcash Shop plugins and add your existing online catalog to your new site in just a few easy clicks. If you decide to use a custom site builder, you can also use the Netcash Shop code generator to copy unique code to add your online shop to your website.
Start setting up your Instant Site with built in eCommerce now >