Reaching customers means putting your products or services wherever they are, whether that means sticking to the brick-and-mortar or going digital.
Offline Business Off-Putting? 6 Tips for Moving Your Business Online
An offline business is the classic choice, but is it today’s choice? Today, many consumers prefer to take their money digital.
Moving your business online increases your customer base from local to global and introduces your products to new markets, no rent is required.
And because consumers can place an online order at any time, you’ve just become a 24/7 business without the need to hire extra staff.
As an entrepreneur, you may have questions. How do you get started? What are the costs?
How will customers find your website? If moving your offline business online seems daunting, don’t worry. Here are six tips to help you move your products and services online.
Brainstorm How to Move Your Products or Services Online
Going from shelves and aisles to circuits and wires might seem like a daunting shift for your inventory, but it doesn’t have to be.
If you provide a physical product, putting your business online can be as simple as uploading to an e-commerce platform or building your own website.
From there, consumers click “add to cart,” you ship their product, and just like that, your online business is in the black.
Taking services online can be a bit trickier, but it’s by no means impossible.
If you’re moving a service-based enterprise to the web, it might be wise to consult an expert in your field.
For example, money lenders can talk with the professionals at LoanPro to move their loan services online and automate the payment process.
Even if you aren’t in the lending business, there’s sure to be a figure in your industry who’s taken the digital leap before.
Together, you and your new mentor can discuss questions and solutions that will bring your commerce into the twenty-first century.
Build Your Website
Your website is the digital front door of your business. If you don’t have a website, building one is your first step toward moving your business online.
If you have a website, but it looks like it’s fresh out of the 1990s, you’ll need to give it a modern-day makeover.
Hiring a freelance web designer to build or redesign your website is the best way to a sleek, inviting page, but if you’re on a budget, sites such as GoDaddy and Wix make for excellent DIY solutions.
Keep in mind that your website will need to perform on smartphones and computers, so you should include smaller devices in your testing stage.
You’ll also need to choose a web-hosting service, keeping performance and security in mind.
The better your web host, the better experience your customers will have when they visit your website and order online.
The last thing you want is a weak hosting service that crashes your site every time you have a big launch.
That means you should ensure the web hosting service you choose is scalable, having the bandwidth for increasing traffic to your business’ online operations.
Now that you’ve got your website and a place for it to live, it’s time to get into the nitty-gritty of earning money on the Internet.
Choose a Payment Platform
The next step toward moving your business online is providing customers a way to order and pay for products online.
Services such as Shopify Payments will allow you to accept all major credit cards on your website.
Third-party choices such as Square and Paymentcloud integrate into your business’ website for payments.”
Shop from different providers until you find the payment solution that matches your company’s size and output needs.
Move Accounting Functions Online
If your business accepts payments online, moving other accounting functions such as invoicing online is the next logical step.
A benefit to doing your business’ accounting through a cloud-based platform is employees can access data from anywhere, making your business essentially portable.
Vendor options like Square can consolidate accounting and secure payments online, making it easier for you and your customers to cut deals.
Devise a Distribution Plan
If it’s your first time selling outside of a brick-and-mortar establishment, you’ll need to figure out a plan for getting your product into your customer’s hands.
For example, are you going to use USPS, FedEx, or UPS? How will you keep track of shipping labels and make sure that orders go out on time?
These are a few of the considerations you should make before launching your first online product.
If your company offers a service or a SaaS model, disseminating your product might be more manageable.
Software consumers can simply download their purchase, while you can conduct some services virtually with the help of a third-party platform.
If you’re unsure, look to what others in your industry are doing on the web.
Find Ways to Interact with Customers Online
With about seven in 10 U.S. adults using Facebook daily, your business should have social media accounts, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
If your business markets to other companies, make sure you have LinkedIn accounts for yourself and your company.
Add a blog to your company website to generate interest. Discuss sales, new products, or any company news you’d like to share.
Consumers who subscribe to your blog should get an email every time you write a new post, keeping them engaged.
You can also share blog posts on your company’s social media accounts, where customers and potential customers can like, share and comment on them.
Since your customers are online, you’ll also want to consider digital advertising through Facebook ads and Google AdWords.
Social media algorithms will put your business’ ads in front of those most likely to be your customers or become your customers.
Next, you can take your promotions directly to your leads’ inboxes. Keep in touch with your customers by emailing them.
MailChimp, Aweber, and Constant Contact are a few email marketing platforms available to boost your sales by keeping your business in customers’ minds.
A mix of emails – some announcing new products, others announcing sales or events, and even email newsletters – will keep your company’s email marketing campaigns interesting.
You can also include SMS to your campaigns by using a bulk SMS platform.
Emails should drive your customers back to your website and prompt them to do business with your company again and again.
Ideally, an email from your company announcing a sale or offering a discount can bring customers straight to your website to shop with just a click.
Advantages of Doing Business Online
With growing numbers of consumers shopping and doing business, such as taking out loans online, your business’s future is on the Internet.
It may seem like a challenge to move your offline business online.
Still, the good news is that it has never been easier to grow your business and reach new customers by moving critical business functions to the Internet.
In less than twenty years, the majority of shopping and business transactions will happen in cyberspace. Why wait?
Customers are already spending hours a day online and carrying their smartphones with them everywhere.
Moving your business online is table stakes if you want to increase your sales today and prepare your business for exponential growth.
Conclusion
The sooner you start moving your business online, the sooner you reach new heights for your bottom line.
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