Is it the time to open an e-commerce?
Businesses, traditional or online, need a marketing plan which supports their activities.
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#DigitalTalk with Gianluca Diegoli
The theme of e-commerce is actually more than ever. After the 5 reasons to don’t open e-commerce, I thought to deepen the topic with Gianluca Diegoli, who already wrote two books about this
Gabriele: “E-commerce: for many companies may be the safety, for many other a conviction, especially for small/micro companies, that often hope to find a solution for all their problems in the opening of a shop online. Starting from the assumption that the platform has a cost, to make someone find the e-commerce, it’s necessary to notify it. I think that it is established. Now, you can do SMM, Web Adv, Social Adv etc. but all this have a price. After a fast count, i can say that this cost isnt’t sustainable by those with slim margins. Exactly like for a shop “offline”, it takes more or less two years of investments to win the market. What do you think about it?”
Gianluca: “Two or three years of investment returns are okay, online and offline: then happens that the product or the store are very “viral”, but it is the exception, not the normality. Unfortunately, in the real world, it isn’t so sure that for selling online there is the need to promote yourself, and that the shop is only a necessary condition (but not even) but not enough to sell. I think that there isn’t just one formula: actually, there is a business that can find an audience through social media and newsletter, in a consistent way, but without investing a lot of funds, giving time and constant ideas. In other cases, if you have goals of higher profits, you must go through Google and advertising, as always, and if you want a good investment you should rely on a pro, and this implies a cost. So supervise well who invest your money, let them explain in simple terms. My formula is to invest as much as possible into variable costs at the beginning, that I can turn on and off quickly. Store on Shopify, Bigcartel and similar or in a marketplace, advertising at small
Gabriele: “Unfortunately there are so much webmasters or web agencies who have the only goal of selling the e-commerce, and not to bring the customer on the web. Rely to a pro isn’t always easy for the business who haven’t skills to asses it. But here we are foward, we already decided to open an e-commerce. When a friend of mine, someone who I know, or a potential costumer, tells me that he decided to open an e-commere, I ask “Why?”. The 99% of times weren’t made considerations that may change his mind. Very often, merely, not are evaluated targets and placement, and the pratical aspects are being forgotten: management of the warehouse, orders, shipments and costumer support. Have you noticed too those difficulties in italian business?Do you have any advice?”
Gianluca: “This is the main problem. There is never a marketing and selling plan in those improvised e-commerce. Even in the small trade offline there is hardly, until the economy was going well and competition was limited, it was sold the same. In the e-commerce the competition is always high. Agencies vey often sell their merchandise, the construction of the store. They are building constructions, they can’t do a marketing plan. On the other hand, the consultants can’t work on it for budget reasons. If you find a solution, tell me.”
Gabriele: “I think we are perfectly in line, the businesses, traditional or online, need a marketing plan which supports their activities. To end, can we give 3 useful ideas for the agencies who want an e-commerce?”
Gianluca: “1. Do a mini test with possible costumes, simulating the website also with paper and mockup: they would buy? doubts? expectations? 2. Copy from the best, changing something to be different. 3. Don’t spend on the site and in the warehouse until you have verified the business plan.”
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