About 69% of Americans say they have made an online purchase. Moreover, 25% of Americans shop online at least once a month. Buying and selling services and products using the Internet is a regular occurrence for all consumers and businesses.
As an online retailer, you probably have your own website up and running. By having your own website, you achieve complete business autonomy, personalized and direct communication with your customer, and you keep 100% of your sales revenue. But your work isn’t done once your site is up and running.
Collective retail platforms like eBay, Amazon, Alibaba, Etsy, Bing, Google Shopping, and plenty more make it easy to list your products and services while making the process completely hassle-free. In 2020, Amazon alone accounted for 51.2% of total digital retail sales. Amazon seemingly has a hand in everything, from gadgets to books to groceries, so it’s definitely something you need to take into account, no matter what products you sell.
In this article, we will discuss the benefits of listing your products elsewhere on the web.
1. Build Trust and Loyalty Among Customers
People like shopping at a store they’ve already been to if they had a pleasant experience in the past. About 61% of small and medium-sized businesses say that more than 50% of their profit comes from repeat customers, rather than new ones. Repeat customers know that their orders are likely to arrive in a timely manner and that the transactions are quick and easy.
The most complex part of an online purchase is the exchange of finances. A customer might feel uneasy when it comes to spending money on your site if they’ve never purchased from you before, especially if there isn’t some evidence that you will hold your end of the bargain.
If your store isn’t a well-known and widespread brand, this can be a tough challenge to overcome. Moreover, if a customer is making a one-off purchase, they will probably avoid buying from stores they don’t know.
When you take all of these things into consideration, it shouldn’t be a surprise that big marketplaces are appealing to repeat customers. People like to return to these platforms because the transactions are simple and the brand is popular.
2. Boost Sales and Traffic
By using retail platforms, you will be able to benefit from the audiences they have already invested money and time building. You can implement different social media, SEO, email marketing, and content marketing strategies on your website that will boost your traffic and sales, but these things will take some time. However, you will be able to put your products and services in front of customers right now by listing your products outside your site.
3. Customer Acquisition
Your business and products will gain exposure when you list them on someone else’s site. Customers who weren’t previously acquainted with your brand will now be aware that your products exist. Gradually, customers will begin to trust you and will come straight to your site instead of the retailer platform.
4. Product Comparison
On your site, customers will only have access to your products. On a retail platform, they can look up lots of products. Customers like to browse several products, compare them, and try to find the one that best suits their needs.
This means that sometimes a customer will pick another product over yours. However, a customer might not even consider your product if it’s hidden on your site and can’t be found anywhere else.
5. Extend to New Markets
Many businesses located in the United States face challenges when it comes to selling outside the country. However, thanks to the group shipping rates that some marketplaces offer, you can easily ship your products to customers across oceans.
In addition, websites like eBay, Amazon, and Google offer solutions for customers that don’t speak the same language as you do. The language translation is taken care of by these platforms. Some of them even take care of currency conversions and multi-language customer support.
Final Thoughts
The lack of a physical shop is no longer an obstacle to retail victory thanks to the internet. Nowadays, retailers can take advantage of several marketplaces besides their own websites to sell their products. By doing this, you will be able to grow your business strategically, and successfully.
