Hey CC gurus! Ok, so, I am reading "Building a Website For Dummies" by David A Crowder. In this book he recommends CC. So that is why I am here. I have a website that I had a high school kid create for me about 6 years ago, and it has been unchanged in all of that time...I know..what the hell have I been waiting for...Searching through all of these forums is a pretty daunting task, so I will start fresh.
What I need to know is, in order to build my site here, what is the very beginning step? Meaning, what software on CC is required? I am a coffee roaster, and I sell my coffee and related stuff on my website.
I am confused between what is a webpage and what is a shopping cart. Do I use just shopping cart creator to build my site, or do I use webpage builder and link the products to the cart? I am very messed up in the head here, and I need to understand the proper sequence.
I am excitedly waiting for some input! I have gone to most of the other web building companies out there, and I feel more comfortable here...well especially since I sell coffee and this place is called Coffee Cup...what could be cooler? I'm such a dork...Ok, let the help begin! Thanks, Brian

Welcome to the forums, Java!
First off, do you write your own HTML/CSS (use the CC HTML Editor) or would you rather "Drag & Drop" (use Visual Site Designer).

You could also do your entire site with the Shopping Cart Creator Pro (along with SC Designer Pro). It has a home page, categories and cart/check-out already, and you can add additional pages to it.

If you have a lot of content not related to the actual store (blog, roasting/coffee info, company history...), you could do a separate site and link it to your store. Coffee Cup has themes for all of the above to help you keep a consistent look/feel to your site.

Download the free trials of anything you're interested in and see what works best for you – there's plenty of help around here to get you going with whatever CC products you choose.

Hey Paint! Thanks for the welcome! ... I am in the process of learning to write html and css. It's alot to learn, so I think initially a drag and drop would work. One thing explained in the book is that I can use wysiwyg on CC and then tweek that code to what I really want. The thing about these template websites that I do not like is the look seems very generic and blocky.
So, I really want to focus on my products first. I want to keep the about us info pretty simple for now.
My biggest problem is my lack of understanding the process to get it all cohesive. My web host (precision web) offers a site builder. I tried it out, and I really screwed up my site. Things are not linked right and such. When I add products to my site, nothing gets added to the shopping cart. I don't get it. And when I ask for help through the customer service, I get one line answers in tech jargon that just confuses me more. That is why I am jumping ship. So I think the best way to do this is to switch to CC and rebuild from the ground up. I really just need to understand the difference between a shopping cart and a website. You state that I can build my whole site with the Shopping Cart Creator Pro, and then enhance the look with SC Designer Pro,. I have about 250 products, and I just want to be sure before I start the build, that I fully understand what my options are, and what options are best.
Once I understand what the best way to build my site is, this will get easier for me! (and you!) I am that annoying wacko that asks alot of questions until I get it. It drives my wife crazy..lol however, for me, it is important. Please bear with me and hopefully someday I can be a contributor here on the forums! Thank you for your help. I truely appreciate this forum and your input! Brian

Making it as simple as possible, what you NEED is SCCP & SCDP (dont save a few bucks on basic, if you want lots of dropdown options)

Pick a template that has a nice feel, in your case possibly start with template BLANK (it does what it says on the tin)

Put a design together you like to get you started, add all your products, and up to 5 details pages.

Go live, and afterwards you can play to your hearts content re designing it with SCDP because at any time you like you can select the new updated template and with a click of your mouse change the whole look in one go.

ALSO :: make as many copies of your shop as you like, with all the products in place, so when you want to do a promotion, you just select your promotion template and add it to copy 2 of your website, and edit prices etc in that copy, leaving the original untouched.

Theres a beginners technique i used, draw your design on paper, like a brochure, and crop it into three sections, header, main body, footer, in SCDP you can physically put these in as backgrounds to make your page. although what i actually did was to make the design with VSD and cropped into three, so the cart matched my VSD homepages (see delorean in my signature)

Good luck, need help, just ask

No way! Just ask Viv – I got you beat there
Anyway, as Viv says – sounds like SCCP (along with Designer Pro) will give you just what you need.

Viv, that's a great tip (making copies for promotions). If I ever build another shop I will try that out

[quote=paintbrush]
Buy 1 get 3 free

I do the same thing for a test shop.

Viv – think your pretty flippin funny, do you?

This is super cool! I'm feeling pretty confident you guys! Ok, I'm going with the SCCP and SCDP...I'm going to finish my book and I'm going to get started. I am very grateful that I have my homies here at CC to back me up. Thank you .....to be continued!.........

Can't wait to see what you come up with! Have fun with it