Selling online is probably the quickest way to get a business going. Everyone and their parents are buying online now and the need for social distance is only accelerating this trend. Despite this, selling more online can be an uphill task especially when you are getting started. The first step to starting to sell online is choosing your online. You generally have three options when you start selling online. You can use an existing marketplace, use your own social media pages, or build a website. Here is an in-depth look at each option.
You can take a deeper look at what it takes to succeed in e-commerce by checking out this ebook on how to sell more online.
A market place is a website or app that brings together lots of sellers and buyers. Good examples include Skygarden, Jumia and Masoko. Rather than selling their own products, these platforms get merchants on board to sell and then look for customers for these merchants.
Using an online marketplace has the following advantages:
The problem with using online marketplaces includes:
Selling on social media is great because:
Selling on social media has the following drawbacks:
The good thing with selling on your own website is:
However, when selling from your website:
Creating your website does not need to be expensive though, you can set up a free .wordpress.com domain and use any of the numerous free website templates to build your site. Shopify is also a great option for e-commerce businesses. They provide a lot of website templates that are easy to use and are specifically tailored for e-commerce. This includes integrated carts, payment option and even discount codes. You also get 24/7 support for your site. It is not completely free but it’s inexpensive.
All in all, the platform you choose will affect how much flexibility you have in when growing your online business. Choose carefully.
Photo by MockupEditor.com from Pexels
Pricing your products can be tough yet it’s among the cornerstone decisions to make as a business owner. It has an impact on every aspect of your business. From your cash flow to profit margins, product positioning or expenses you want to cover. Setting it too high, you might miss on sales. Setting it too low, you miss out on revenue.
If there is something to keep in mind about the 2022 consumer, it is this: they want the right order to arrive at the right time, in the right place. If you can check this box, you have a loyal customer. Customer experience begins the moment your client interacts with your brand on social or on a search pop up and it goes all the way until they have your product on their hand.
You can use an existing marketplace, use your own social media pages, or build a website.