Hey everyone! After putting it on the back burner for much too long (thanks to staying busy with Etsy!) I'm now working seriously on trying to get a website up soon. I'm hosted with canvasdreams.com (HIGHLY recommend them) and using Wordpress with the Cart66 Pro plugin to build my own. I don't mind the initial effort & cost involved if it means avoiding the ongoing fees as much as possible, so I'm finding this to be a good fit for my needs.
One issue I've come across is that my cart software doesn't (yet) offer much support for a customer login page where they can view order history, etc. Even if it did, having that feature would create a need for me to set up SSL, which is just a lot more expense. As it stands now, the order process happens entirely on PayPal's end so I don't have to deal with any security stuff myself. This'll keep my monthly costs super low, and customer checkout will be really quick & easy, but I'm wondering if people would find it strange to not be able to create their own account on my site. A good portion of my Etsy customers place a large 2nd order after sampling my products, and occasionally a 3rd, but my shop is not the type where people keep returning over & over.
What do you think? Is a customer login page crucial to your online shopping experience? What other kinds of features do you look for? Any input is greatly appreciated! : )
