The Do’s and Don’ts of Running a Successful E-Commerce Business…
It’s no surprise that the coming generation of entrepreneurs see e-commerce as the perfect model for getting them to where they want to be. Managed correctly, digital businesses carry with them a range of benefits that traditional bricks and mortar ventures simply can’t match.
What’s more, in a recent UPS study 70% of buyers said that they prefer to interact with their favourite retailers online. Gradually, but remorselessly, the internet is gobbling up High Street retailing.
It’s easy to make the mistake of thinking that selling online is a dead-cert win. It isn’t. Taking your business online is much, much trickier than you think. It takes time, patience, durability and no little skill - not to mention a healthy dose of luck - to run a successful e-commerce business.
So here are some do’s, and some don’ts that should see you on your way to joining the growing ranks of successful e-commerce entrepreneurs:
DO make sure your online presence is professional & polished
How to stand out in an ever-expanding and densely packed crowd?
In a perfect world what you do should matter more than how you look. And in the final analysis it will - BUT you first need to be more appealing than the competition before you even get a chance to pitch your wares. The design, look and feel of your website, product page or offering is an essential tool in the battle for attention.
DON’T assume that just because you are online customers will find you
The world-wide web is a vast and dizzying cornucopia of material - expecting your customer to randomly stumble upon your site is a huge no-no. The good news? Judicious and closely planned use of social media and SEO can help you pull traffic in, and often relatively cheaply. Use it - BUT also give yourself a realistic pay-per-click budget if you really want to get traction and pop your head above the throng.
DO make sure you know your market & product
Online retailing is not a short-cut to success - operating remotely from your customer does not excuse you from knowing everything there is to know about the product you’re selling, the market you’re in, what your competitors are doing and how they’re doing it, and zeroing in on who your customers are and where you can find them.
In fact, researching your business is even more critical to the success of an online retailer than to a high street seller. On the High Street most of the threats are in your eye-line - online they’re unseen and can come from anywhere! You can minimize surprises with thorough preparation.
DON’T argue with or ignore your customers
Yes, you’re online and frustrating as it is, you’re in the world of the keyboard warrior. Sometimes it’s difficult to remember that people are entitled to their opinions and free to voice them. It’s inevitable that your products and your business will garner negative comments & reviews. Suck it up. Offer refunds, replacements, remedies, solutions …BUT NEVER get into a row!
DO Collect Customer Data as If It’s Gold!
Make sure your online platform is equipped to pick up and store whatever data your customer is prepared to give you. If you’re unable to collect that data, (Amazon, for example, won’t let you) then develop ideas for driving traffic that will.
Add customer lists as a KPI when you’re measuring success - why pay to chase down new customers when you can sell for free to existing or past loyal champions of your product or brand?
DON’T ignore your numbers
It’s a cliché but nothing is truer - if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.
Track your numbers. Know your break-even points, your margins, your critical costs. Know your inventory and your re-order points; understand and evaluate your marketing spend and its impact on the most important figure of all - your profits!
DO be resilient
For all the undoubted benefits of running an online business - it can still be incredibly frustrating and sometimes downright annoying!
Selling on the internet is not an exact science, and what works today might not work tomorrow, but then might work again next week. Try new things, roll with the punches, be creative and energetic. Put simply - keep the faith!
Remember, though, the more professional you are…the better equipped you are to head off the scariest of challenges.
A word from the author:
Our software Profitizer, is an app that makes it easier for eSellers to understand their marketplace profit & loss data from the top of their business right through to individual or grouped product profitability. For Amazon, eBay, Etsy and other marketplace sellers, Profitizer is “Profit and loss, made simple”.
Find out more: https://www.profitizer.app
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