Over the holidays I was at a holiday dinner with friends and an old friend of mine who started a retail tennis shop a few years ago was telling us that she may have to close her business in 2008 because the rent for a commercial store front was just too expensive. So I asked her, “Why do you have to sell your products at bricks and mortar store?” She had this glossed over look in her eyes (and she was only on her first martini) and finally said, “I didn’t know that the construction of the building actually effected the rent. Do you know of another location that’s made with different materials and may have a cheaper rent?” It was obvious she didn’t have a lot of experience with online shopping. Wanting to help her, I smiled and whispered, “Sue ‘bricks and mortar’ refers to businesses that exist in the real world as opposed to just the cyber world. Online shopping is growing day by day. People are spending more time on the Internet than ever before.
If your products are not exposed to the Internet, you are missing out on a great opportunity. Online store is the key to any successful business. Your business deserves the best online store and my company can help you get there. Give me a call after the holidays and we’ll talk about it. “ We enjoyed the rest of the party but it got me to thinking that as you begin to develop your 2008 marketing plan and operating budget, maybe it would be helpful if I’d share a few of the advantage of selling online over selling by conventional methods:
Making savings in set-up and operational costs. You don’t need to pay rent-high street premises, shop assistants, or other related utility expenses. - Reducing order-processing costs – customer orders can automatically come straight into your orders database from the website.
- Reaching a global audience, thereby increasing sales opportunities.
- Competing with larger businesses by being able to open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- Being able to receive payment more quickly from online transactions.
- Attracting customers who would not normally have investigated your type of high-street outlet.
- Using your online shop as a catalogue for existing customers.
- Improving your offerings using the data gathered by tracking customer purchases.
Online selling will work best for you if you have well-defined products or services that can be sold without human intervention in the sales process; fixed prices for all types of potential customers and products or services that can be delivered with a predictable lead time. Whatever form of online shop you choose, take a strategic view. If you launch a website that disappoints your customers or is overwhelmed by traffic, you risk damaging your reputation and losing sales. Give us a call or send an email for a free estimate!