“How Do I Sell Through Multiple ECommerce Platforms?” and Other Pressing Questions In Today’s Competitive Online Selling World
According to Statista, eCommerce sales are projected to increase 500% from $1.3 trillion in 2014 to $6.4 trillion in 2024. In this highly competitive environment, it is only natural to ask yourself, “How do I sell through multiple eCommerce platforms?” It may seem like it is no longer enough to sell in Amazon or Shopify;.
In order to attract more consumers, maintain brand integrity, and boost sales, many sellers look to diversify across multiple channels. For them, it is imperative to amplify their revenue sources to ensure they don't become dependent on a single market and reach a wider audience. If this is your case, this post will help you discover the main ideas you must consider before making a final choice.
“Will My Workload Increase If I Sell Through Multiple eCommerce Platforms?”
It definitely takes more work and investment to get your brand out there on multiple channels. You need a consistent customer experience in every store, no matter how many you sell through. You'll lose out on money and time by trying to do this manually.
Some tasks may need to be automated to save you time, such as product descriptions, requirements, image uploads, filters, and inventory updates. Therefore, automation software may be one of the initial investments you may need to make. But, although technology can do some of the tasks for you, you will still need to carve hours of your time or even increase human resources to create a seamless experience.
“Which Platforms Should I Use?”
Before learning how to sell through multiple eCommerce platforms, there may be a difficult choice of where to sell. Here’s what an expert had to say in an article by the US Chamber of Commerce: “Jacqueline Snyder and Minna Khounlo-Sithep, co-founders of The Product Boss small business coaching platform and hosts of the marketing podcast of the same name, always advise their students to explore multiple online retail spaces for their products. That doesn't mean being everywhere, said Khounlo-Sithep, but it does mean establishing a strong retail presence in more than one place.
“‘Even if most of your eggs are in one basket, if that gets tipped over, you still have revenue ,” she explained. “You have to be on more than one platform to ensure your business has a safety net, but also, your ability to grow right now — two times, four times, 10 times. It can get you to a whole different level.’”
There’s no right or wrong answer to this question. It's tough to make the most of your online selling experience when you have so many options to choose from. Picking social media as one of your platforms, for example, requires reducing your choices and selecting only the channels carefully based on what you offer, your industry, your audience, and your scope.
You need to be sure that you have the financial resources available to make a platform increase, whether it’s selling in one or a few more channels.
Related: The Best ECommerce Marketing Tips for 2022
Five Steps on How to Sell Through Multiple eCommerce Platforms
Assuming you have already decided to increase the number of platforms you sell on by one or more, here are five considerations that will help you take the first steps and answer how to sell through multiple eCommerce platforms.
1) Revisit Your Pricing Strategy
If you choose to sell on multiple online marketplaces, you may incur an aggregate fee composed of different prices. These include, among others, an annual fee, shipping, listing, payment processing, etc. Since commissions vary according to categories, the commission you pay should also be worth it. Sell on multiple platforms only if the overall costs associated with your online store can actually result in profits.
2) Think of Automating from the Get-Go: Pricing, Shipping, and Inventory
It might seem painful if you are accustomed to handling shipping and sales processes manually. But, if you want to learn how to sell on multiple eCommerce platforms, you must realize that the fewer manual tasks involved in those processes, the better. It is critical in online marketplaces to produce precise, timely results, and going automatic will increase your chances of getting those impacts.
What can you automate? Start by thinking about pricing, shipping, and inventory processes across the platforms you choose to sell through. You can also consider Amazon FBA.
It is common for online retailers to adjust product prices daily, determine the most cost-effective value, and make decisions based on information about the customer's purchasing behavior. At a minimum, you should regularly update your prices to reflect current market conditions, your competitors, supply, and demand. You should also adjust your pricing depending on how well a product or service performs.
Most consumers expect fast shipping options these days. The most competitive price may not be enough to convince a customer to buy from you and, instead, switch to your closest competitor if they require their product more quickly than you can deliver it. You can ensure that you ship products most affordably and conveniently by investing in tools such as smart order routing.
Last, suppose you are already selling across multiple platforms. You will need to be especially careful that the product information and its availability are updated in real-time on all sites. You need to do all of this automatically.
3) Check Out What Your Competitors Are Doing
In order to be a successful online seller, you must be knowledgeable of your competition. An accurate and frequent benchmark exercise will let you price your products and design marketing strategies effectively. You need to closely analyze the level and power of your rivals in all areas.
A competitor analysis can also assist eCommerce entrepreneurs with the timely formulation of promotional strategies to remain in the running with other sellers and the market. Taking a look at market trends can also be very helpful. With this practice, it is possible to identify the gaps in the market.
When trends continue to shift, you can add products and services accordingly.
4) Take a Gradual Approach
Make sure that you don’t get carried away with expanding your business to too many other channels at the same time when learning how to sell on multiple eCommerce platforms.
If these are your first diversification steps, it is nearly impossible to manage sales and inventory when you operate multiple storefronts, even with automation solutions. To accomplish this transition, you need to identify your own realistic capacity and take gradual steps to expand.
Related: Alternative ECommerce Startup Loans
5) Make Sure You Have the Financial Resources You Need
If you already know how many more platforms you can reasonably handle, you need to consider if the additional work and technology will exhaust your financial resources or even make you go into debt.
Expanding to multiple platforms implies you have to make wise choices and be focused on the details. You'll have to manage various tasks and hire support services and people, along with multichannel selling initiatives.
Are you sure your numbers and your current cash flow status help? If the answer is no, there’s an innovative financial solution available, created with eCommerce entrepreneurs in mind. It can become an ideal cash injection to your business and the push you need to make a successful transition to sell in more than one platform. Continue reading to learn more.
Leverage ECommerce-Specific Financing to Sell in More Platforms
When you first launched your online shop or another eCommerce business, you likely built it according to what your budget permitted. To achieve a wider reach and revenue potential, you now want to expand to more storefronts. There has never been a better time to think about funding your eCommerce business, whether because of cash flow issues or simply because you need the capital to grow in more platforms.
Whenever you begin your search for capital, you have a lot of choices to consider, and they can all form a crucial part of your stack. The funding options you may come across during your investigation are likely to be traditional bank loans, lines of credit for small businesses, or business credit cards.
They all have disadvantages since they were not explicitly designed to stabilize eCommerce cash flow and let you invest in growth. Fortunately, online retailers can also take advantage of eCommerce-specific financing alternatives. Leveraging industry-specific financing opportunities will allow you to receive the cash you need to sell in more than one place.
Way More than a Bank Loan
Using these options, your eCommerce business account will receive funds directly from your financial partner, and the financing limit will depend on the sales volume. Through your chosen financial institution’s plug-and-play systems, your storefronts can directly integrate with them. The inventory and sales systems are automatically connected to generate seamless calculations so that your inventory and sales are always up to date.
The payment for these eCommerce financing options is made right after the purchase is completed, so you won't have to make monthly payments or pay late fees. Having their expertise can help you deal with growth or other financial challenges while devising a plan to help your business succeed.
Find a financing partner who has proven experience in working with eCommerce merchants. Whether you are a first-time entrepreneur or an experienced business owner looking to expand, you will receive assistance. It is possible to link multiple online selling platform accounts directly to your financial solution, which will ensure you get the cash you need when you need it. You can also get cash on demand, interest-free, in real-time. Partner with a reputable finance solution that can minimize your expenses and help you optimize your business's performance.
