Project Overview
Aquaist.com was a long-term personal project born out of my interest in aquascaping. Originally launched as a blog, it later evolved into a functional e-commerce website during the pandemic. Without external funding or a commercial growth plan, I built and managed the entire platform independently while maintaining a full-time job.
My Role
- Share educational content on aquascaping
- Experiment with small-scale e-commerce and logistics workflows
- Manage SEO, marketplace integration, and data analytics
- Test product discovery, conversion rates, and content-based sales funnels
Project Stack
Photoshop
I've used Photoshop to edit product images and other design assets.
WordPress
I've chosen WordPress as the CMS core, together with the necessary plugins needed.
WooCommerce
I've chosen WooCommerce plugin to create an online store on WordPress.
MailChimp
I've chosen MailChimp to manage e-newsletters to promote new products and blog posts.
Shopier
I've integated Shopier as the payment gateway for the online store
Cloudflare
I use Cloudflare to strengthen the security on domain level, and optimize the speed
Design Proces
- Designed and maintained the website using WordPress and a premium theme
- Integrated WooCommerce for e-commerce operations
- Connected Shopier as a local payment solution
- Managed customer experience, including shipping and shipment tracking
- Created custom email flows for each step of the order process
- Wrote SEO-optimized product descriptions and blog content
- Linked products contextually within high-traffic blog posts to drive conversions
- Set up and managed Mailchimp newsletter campaigns
- Connected the store to Google Merchant Center and monitored performance via Google Search Console
- Tracked visitor behavior and conversions using Google Analytics
- Tested multi-channel integrations via IKAS for marketplaces like Trendyol, HepsiBurada, N11 etc.
- Handled over 150 SKUs and sustained 5–6 daily orders at average
The Outcome
This project helped me gain firsthand experience in running an independent digital business, managing content and e-commerce in parallel. Despite its growth, I chose not to scale the operation further due to market conditions and limited time. Eventually, I decided to close the business, but the project remains one of the most educational and hands-on digital ventures in my career.
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