Turnkey online store development for board games

How a buyer chooses board games and what holds them back

The buyer searches for a situation: board game for a group of adults, cooperative board game, board game for two, game for a 7-year-old. Hobby gamers compare mechanics, play time and publisher, while someone buying a gift looks at the age and clear rules.

Uncertainty holds them back: it is unclear whether the game is in Ukrainian, how many people it needs and how long a game lasts. Photos of the box contents and videos that explain the game in a few minutes are often missing.

What a board game online store includes

• a catalog by genre, number of players and publisher with indexed filter pages;
• a product card template: players, age, play time, language, box size, components;
• a block with a rules video and a link to the rules file;
• related products: expansions, card sleeves and playmats next to the base game;
• availability statuses for releases and expansions that are still on the way;
• cart, Nova Poshta, online payment, SEO basics, training on working with the admin panel.

Boxes are large and dent easily, so the delivery terms describe the packaging and inspection of the parcel on receipt. We put the return rules for opened games and used copies on a separate page and as a short note in the cart.

SEO and feeds for a board game store

Queries fall into three groups: game titles (board game in Ukrainian), genres with an audience (strategy games for two) and gifts (board game as a gift for a friend). For titles we prepare product cards with a clear heading, for genres – indexed filter pages, for gifts – separate collections. The Google Shopping feed receives the brand, barcode and availability, and we connect Prom.ua, Rozetka and Hotline when needed.

Price and launch timeline

A turnkey board game store costs from $500 on Horoshop or WordPress, and we write the amount into the contract before work starts. Hosting, the domain and the platform plan are paid separately. The number of games in the catalog, the availability of photos from the publisher and the need for pre-orders affect the timeline, which we give after a free consultation. A template-based launch with ready materials takes from three to five working days. The stages are described on the online store development and launch page, and catalog promotion in the SEO for online stores section.

Questions and answers

How do you show how many players and what age a game is for?

We turn the number of players, age and play time into separate attributes and into labels on the cards in the product list. The same fields work as filters.

Can games in Ukrainian be shown separately?

Yes, we add the edition language as an attribute with a filter. The buyer selects games with Ukrainian localization with a single choice in the list.

How do you sell new releases that are not in stock yet?

For new editions we set an on-order status with an estimated date on the product card. In this case we describe the prepayment and return terms in a separate block.

Is the store suitable for game clubs and cafes?

Yes, for clubs we set up a customer group with wholesale prices. The scope of B2B features depends on the Horoshop plan, so we determine it at the consultation.