How to Move Your Brick-and-Mortar Business to an Online Store
In these uncertain times, customers are increasingly moving online and businesses are doing the same. How can you benefit from it and how to do it easily and smoothly for your business? Let us try to find out.
Is it worth trying?
There are many benefits of moving your brick-and-mortar business online. The most obvious of them is that it allows you to generate sales during some emergency conditions like the current COVID-19 crisis. When customers aren’t able to go shopping as often as usual buying online is a good alternative. Also, e-commerce is a good way to expand the geography of your customers. With an online store, the sky is the limit. Furthermore, e-commerce tools enable you to learn more about your clients and customize your selling. For instance, if you see that your website is a hit with users from Germany or another country from Eurozone, you can add an option to view prices in euros. Besides, e-commerce helps you to build closer relationships with your customers. Buying online, they give at least minimal information about themselves, such as name and contact details, so it is possible to keep in touch with them after the purchase. You can inform them about new goods and services, offer some discounts and so on.
So, as you can see, online business is worth trying. Now let us take a look at what you need to start.
Step 1. Choose a platform
You can sell your goods and services through different channels — from a full-fledged e-commerce website to an online marketplace to social network solutions. All these options have their pros and cons. You can use one of them or all at the same time. It all depends on your budget.
A full-fledged e-commerce website is the best option. You can create it either from scratch or on some ready-made platforms like Magento or Ecwid. If you already have a website, this process will be even easier.
The pros of selling through e-commerce websites are quite significant. Firstly, you can build it as you wish. Numerous design tools such as themes or CSS editors allow you to make your online store on-brand and unique. Secondly, you can collect customer information, that is their name and contact details. This enables you to communicate with them after the purchase, advertising your products. It contrasts with some online marketplace like Amazon where you have no access to customer information. Finally, your customers will have a richer shopping experience thanks to many bells and whistles such as loyalty programs, coupons, gift cards, etc.
However, you should remember about the cons as well. Running your own website requires much more effort than selling through social networks or online marketplace. You have to deal with everything from site design and maintenance to customer service. Besides, marketing and advertising may cost you a sizeable budget, especially if your e-commerce website isn’t established yet. So, think about these questions before moving your business online.
Step 2. Products and information
Now it is time to think about content for your website. Start with most essential pages: Home page, Shipping FAQ, Return and exchange policy, and Contact Us. Then move to product pages. Make your product descriptions clear and compelling. Visitors won’t read a wall of text, so it should be concise and well-structured. It is no need to say that the images of your products will be very important. People can’t touch your goods so they need to see them from different angles and in good quality. Experiment with different styles and backgrounds to see what works best for you.
Step 3. Shipping and fulfillment
Think about delivering your products to customers. You can do it yourself or use a third-party service, some company that would do shipping and fulfillment on your behalf. It is possible to simplify this process by integrating such providers directly into your e-commerce platform and a host of shipping options will be available with just a few clicks. Your clients also could use a “buy online, pick up in-store” option. It allows them to make purchases on your website and then pick them up in your brick-and-mortar store thus saving money and time.
These are the main steps you need to move your brick-and-mortar business online. It takes time and effort but it is worth it. You will definitely benefit from keeping up with the pace of technologies.
Read more about E-commerce:
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