REASONS WHY YOUR RETAIL STORE NEEDS AN E-COMMERCE WEBSITE

Over the years Geeksvillage has been building websites, we’ve seen the transformation from ordinary retail stores to e-commerce websites as more businesses look to capitalise on the possibilities ecommerce offer.

When specifying where to sell products online, many vendors select between selling on a marketplace and creating their own website. Though in all options, there are advantages and disadvantages. And what works for vendor A may not work for vendor B. But we really must say that businesses that are really serious with e-commerce, should have there own website.

Of course, online market places like Jumia, Amazon, Konga, Alibaba and the likes can be a great sales marketplaces media for many vendors, but there are plenty of constraints. .

A company website is a shop window, it draws the creates awareness to prospects and it announces your brand to the world. A well-designed website brings you more customers and makes you stand out from the crowd. Making your goods available online increases your chances of selling them to a significantly higher number of people.

Having an e-commerce website give you more visibility and the more people visit your e-commerce store or hear about your brand, then buy your products or services and recommending them to others by leaving reviews or sharing their experience on social media. This way you win loyal customers across the globe whilst running a business from home.


Why you your retail store needs an e-commerce website?
There are many reason why you need an ecommerce website.


1. BOOST SALES
24*7/365 availability of goods and unlimited customer reach generate more sale. When you aren’t restricted to the local market or to physical store capacity, you automatically sell more and can adjust your stock to your customers’ needs. You can provide your services or sell goods abroad by adjusting prices to the global market. By spending less of your budget running a store and making more capital at the same time, you can save a significant amount of money and expand your business faster.


2. ESTABLISH AND STRENGTHEN YOUR BRAND
When you sell your products on a marketplace, they are listed in a generic way. From character limits or word count restrictions to logo usage, there is little to no room for customization or branding. In fact, it is the marketplace’s brand that is in the forefront – not yours. This makes it nearly impossible to build brand awareness and recognition.

Your goal should be for consumers to associates your product with your brand and think of your brand when they think of buying a product you sell. When you run your own website, you get to uphold full control, including the way it looks, what it says, and how it works. marketplace!


3. REDUCED OPERATIONAL EXPENSES
E-commerce is the most economical way to grow your retail business. It doesn’t require high levels of initial capital and it’s very cost-effective. Most of the investment is repaid by early sales profits.

From a long-term perspective buying a domain and hosting or paying for web development and good e-commerce service is less expensive than buying or renting physical business premises. Some e-commerce platforms provide sellers with drop-shipping services, which helps cut storage and delivery expenses.


4. COMPREHEND MORE ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE
Having your own e-commerce website helps you better understand your customers. This includes demographics such as their location, as well as how they found your website and heard about you. You can analyze their behavior on your website, like what they looked at and the path they took to buy from you.

If there are certain traffic sources that are bringing in great customers for your business, you can choose to focus efforts there and put more money into those channels since you know they are profitable.

Not only do you gain information about your existing customers, but you can also learn information about where those who didn’t end up making a purchase fell off. Maybe it’s a product page that doesn’t have enough customer reviews or good enough photos, or perhaps people are abandoning shopping carts due to high shipping costs.


5. RUN CREATIVE MARKETING CAMPAIGNS
The moment you have a store, you will have to work to get potential customers trooping in. The first step to acquiring customers is to drive traffic to your site through a mix of SEO strategies and a strong online presence on social media.

E-commerce businesses can customize their marketing strategy tailored to fit their audiences and their specific shopping habits.
Some common tactics include using Facebook and Google ads to reach your audience. You can also create content for your website by researching and integrating the keywords people use to search for a solution like yours. You have the ability to run promotions or flash sales to generate interest and re-target past purchasers.


6. AUTOMATION
E-commerce platforms offer full automation, including finance systems, inventory, shipping and customer service. That means everything is in one place and can easily be managed by one person at their convenience. Geeksvillage can help you out with most enquiries and artificial intelligence provides a personal touch into this communication. These simple solutions give you more time to grow your business and keep your customers happy at the same time, and all of this without hiring additional team members.


7. LOWER ADVERTISING COSTS
Customer advocacy and increased brand awareness help reduce marketing and advertising costs. As word spreads quickly on the Internet you can reach potential customers with every review of your product or opinion about your brand left on Google or other independent consumer review websites. Moreover, product listings on e-commerce platforms make your goods visible to a potential customer. Your products can be showcased using photos, videos banners or GIFs. There is an entire set of affordable tools available for you to promote your products. Not to mention that e-commerce platforms are very well positioned in Google and the algorithms ensure that whatever is listed on websites will be ranked highly in the search results.


8. FACILITATED BUYING PROCESS
The most convenient aspect of e-commerce is that the customer can purchase directly from you after searching for an item online, without leaving home or interacting with a salesperson. Consumers expect goods to be available instantly, e-stores answer that needs. Because buying online doesn’t require a visit to a retail store and products can be shipped from any place in the world, consumers aren’t limited to shops in their local vicinity and spend less time shopping. That’s what makes e-commerce an attractive alternative for them. As a retailer, you need to meet them online and give them what they’re looking for.



CONCLUSION
Diversifying where you sell online can help you reach new customers, especially as eCommerce becomes more competitive.
eCommerce website is absolutely necessary if you want your business to be around for the long-run.