The basic definition of “turnkey” itself is rooted in visual imagery; Just imagine getting a car key, inserting the key and having it start without a problem. If a person uses the term “turnkey”, what they are probably referring to is something that is made for instant use (this term is mainly used for sale or when offering to supply services and/or goods) . Common examples include a “turnkey” home that is fully built and move-in-ready (has everything from construction to carpeting and cabinets finished), or another that is a “turnkey” business where they use contracted third parties to set up certain places or necessary equipment (i.e. the railway lines or a train) and get them running, after which they hand it over to whoever hired them.
Using that line of reasoning, the definition of a turnkey eCommerce site would be when a contracted entity creates a completely new eCommerce site that then delivers the finished website to the owner. For a website to claim to be a true turnkey eCommerce site, it must have, from the time it is handed over to the owner, a usable backend (the admin site) that allows major changes and updates (i.e., products, images, text, categories, subcategories, etc.) so that they appear on the front-end (the site a customer sees). In essence, the owner must have full control of the site from the start to be defined as a turnkey eCommerce site.
So, for example, let’s say you have the idea of creating an eCommerce site that mimics a more famous eCommerce website like Amazon.com (without naturally stealing the design or formatting of the site!). In this case, you can locate a turnkey eCommerce company, tell them what your needs are (with some helpful examples), have them set up the site to your specifications, pay them, and receive the proverbial keys to your ecommerce set up. site that can sell its own niche products. You can even ask them to help you set up a URL and domain hosting service for a small fee (when it’s not included) if you need it.
Since the eCommerce field is wildly competitive, it’s probably not smart if you go for an open or closed source eCommerce website design, even if it claims to be easy to set up. Finding and hiring a capable turnkey site builder is the easiest and fastest way for those interested in getting into eCommerce.