Nowadays, with the role and influence that the Internet has in our lives, having an online store or e-Commerce can be a growth opportunity for our business. Today, most purchases are made through the Internet. And this leads us to ask ourselves: would it be a good idea to set up an online store?
Before getting into the matter, it is necessary to define what an online store is in case there is still any doubt. An online store is not a web page. It is much more than that, and it is a page created to sell products. Its web design and architecture features focus on a single objective: to achieve more sales and streamline the purchase process.
What is E-commerce
E-commerce is a system for buying and selling products and services that use the Internet as the main means of exchange. In other words, it is a business that manages collections and payments through electronic means. Basically, you put your products and services on a website and add a shopping cart. It is good to note that due to the pandemic, online stores have grown by 40%
Depending on how the exchange between buyer and seller is, we can find different modalities, namely:
- Online store with its own products: in the same way as a physical store, but in an online version.
- Dropshipping: in principle, everything seems the same as a normal store. However, the seller does not send the product, but a third party does.
- Affiliate e-commerce: in this case, the store not only does not send the product, but the closing of the sale is not done on its platform either. It refers (transfer) the customer to another store, which pays them a Commission upon confirmation of sale.
- Membership: You are looking for recurring purchases through a periodic subscription. Here there are business models such as membership clubs (record club, book club, craft beer club, etc.), where the customer receives a different product every month for the fee he is paying.
- Marketplace: it is a store of stores on a website where several vendors offer their different products or services. A typical case is Amazon.
Technological advances and changes in public consumption habits mean that more and more e-commerce proposals and models are emerging on the Internet.
How does an online store work
There is a catalog of products in an online store with their characteristics and prices. The purchase process is straightforward: just a few clicks are enough for your order to be registered in a database. A manager will be the one to start the process of sending the purchase to the indicated postal address. And the product will be at your home in a few hours.
Some businesses do not need to have an online store. But if you are really interested in electronic commerce or e-commerce and show the world your products and sell them, you definitely need an online store. Get an impressive e-commerce logo for your store and market your online store to the world.
Why is it good to have your own online store
The online store is going to be a tool for managing your products, your orders and your promotions. It will fundamentally help you to eliminate the uncertainties of your client. What is the product looks like? How much is it? Do you have shipping? The store will be there to respond without you having to be behind it. The online store helps guide the customer through the payment process in a friendly way.
8 Advantages of online stores
How often have you picked up your mobile from your sofa in search of a product you needed? Having an e-Commerce is something that is the order of the day. If you know a physical store where you have already made a purchase or if you need to purchase a product, whatever it may be, the first thing you are going to do is look for it online to find out if you can buy it quickly or even to find out about it.
This is why having an online store is a great option if you already have your own business or are about to embark on it. Let’s see in more detail some of the advantages that are having an online store will provide you?
1. Open to the public 24 hours
Unlike any physical store, an online store does not adhere to any opening hours, facilitating the purchase for those who cannot go to the stores due to incompatibility of business hours. It is quite an advantage to buy when you want without looking at the clock.
2. No geographical limitations
Through the Internet, you can also buy wherever you want. Customers will no longer be limited to the local area, but if there is good online marketing, the product can be sold anywhere in the world, increasing sales.
3. It will increase customers
You will no longer depend on selling products only to those who enter your store. As there are no geographical limitations, the market niche expands exponentially. It is the advantage of having the product you want with just one click, wherever you are. Multiply your sales and, with them, your profits!
4. Simple and fast management
As I mentioned before, the purchase is very simple. Specially designed to make shopping as intuitive as possible in terms of usability. It also allows us to see a wide variety of products of the same type, which will help us choose the most appropriate one.
5. Reduce expenses
Creating a physical business involves local expenses, personnel, assembly, etc. In the case of having an online store, all this may not exist. (I say “may not exist” because you can have an online store without having a physical store). This is really advantageous for those starting a business idea. With this, the product amount is reduced, an advantage for the client and the competitors.
6. Allows you to study your customers
With the data you obtain through your online store and the analytical tools, you can study customers’ behavior, tastes, and preferences. And you will ask yourself, why do I want this? Very easy. We will use these results to guide our campaigns and offers to be more effective and increase sales.
7. Increase the visibility of your business
Having an online store will give you greater visibility if you have a physical store. Not only because of the number of people who will find you on the Internet looking for a product that you sell but also because of informational articles about that type of product before buying it. if you have a blog.
8. Create community
It is essential to have an active community that participates in your own online store, either through social networks or opinions written on your site. These opinions will give more confidence to your future customers since they will be able to see the experience of others when purchasing your products.
Closing
As you can see, having an online store has a lot of advantages (and these are just some of them). So this could be an excellent opportunity for you and your business, even the opportunity you were waiting for.
If you have a physical store and also want to make it an online store to start multiplying your profits; you are an entrepreneur and want to start a business idea; you were in doubt, and in the end, you have convinced yourself to create one. Whatever your situation, tell us about it! We will be happy to help you and share this path with you.
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