Things To Keep In Mind Prior To Selling On Marketplaces

By Author: Shane Emerson
Total Articles: 36
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Marketplaces like Amazon, eBay etc., attract millions of visitors on a daily basis. Hence displaying your product listings on these marketplaces can certainly help you to fetch good revenue.
Following are the things to bear in mind before selling on marketplaces:

Understand their Rules

Whether you decide to sell on Amazon or eBay, every marketplace has its own set of rules and policies. You are expected to strictly follow the rules when using these marketplaces for business purpose. If you fail to comply with the rules, you will be immediately disqualified from selling on marketplaces.

There are quite a few product restrictions on these marketplaces. So get a complete idea about their restricted categories before you decide to sell online.

For instance, if you want to Sell office supplies online, check whether you can resell branded products on these marketplaces. Certains brands have objections on third-party resellers reselling their products.
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... On the whole, be well-aware of their user agreements and policies before starting your business on these marketplaces.

Be well-aware of the Expenses

Before you lower your product prices in an attempt to increases sales, have a clear idea about the expenses that you have to bear to do business at these places. For instance, if you want to sell IT Equipment Online, decide how you will acquire, store and ship the products.

Keep in mind that you are not only selling products but are also responsible for fulfilling orders. Order fulfilment comes at a cost, which you have to consider while deciding the prices of the products.
Also, you will have to fork out seller fees for selling on these marketplaces. The cost is usually limited to per-item selling fees, which varies from one category to another.
Ensure that you get a decent profit margin after paying all the expenses associated with order fulfillment.

Have Patience

It is a known fact that these marketplaces draw millions of visitors every year but that does not mean you will earn a million overnight. From earning the trust of customers to building customer relationship, it takes a lot to get revenue.
Although you have ready-access to customer base, you are a new seller, hence customers are cautious before making a purchase. If you decide to Sell ink cartridges online, it doesn't mean your products will sell like hot cakes from day 1 itself.

Have a Professional Approach to Customer Feedback

There are times when customers are lashing out in frustation because they haven't gotten what they want. In such circumstances, you have to handle the situation in the most professional manner.
You simply cannot do the foolishness of threatening the customers as it will tarnish your brand image. It is important to be polite, understand their issue and resolve it professionally.
Remember, you are in business, so never take customer feedback personally. Addressing the issue at the earliest is the key to earn customer satisfaction.

Marketplaces will always take customers' side, leaving you isolated and embarassed. They are heavily in favor of consumers, as some marketplaces even have 6 month return policy.

Investigate your Branding Options

To be honest, when you are selling on marketplaces, you have very limited branding options. One cannot forget that customers are visiting the marketplace to buy your products.
In many instances, your branding is limited to displaying a range of product images and changing text description.
When shopping on marketplaces, customers are least interested in knowing the name of the reseller. Hence, one can definitely say that as a reseller on a marketplace, you have very options to build and strengthen your brand.

Research your Competition

Analyzing your competition is an integral aspect of any business activity. Keep in mind that there will be resellers who will be selling the same kind of products that you have decided to sell.
Investigate your competitive landscape, gather information abour your business rivals and then accordingly decide what prices to fix and how to position your products.

It is important that your price your product competitively so that you don't face any issues in earning a good revenue.

Focus on Automation

If you want to grow your business, you simply cannot afford to handle repetitive tasks manually. So automate wherever you can so that you can focus on what matter most - sales.

Shane is an American writer for various digital news publications. After being in the ecommerce industry for more than 15 years, Shane has a good understanding of what it takes to make an ecommerce business successful. His articles give insights on the latest trends in the B2C and B2B ecommerce industry. His ecommerce coverage is robust and provides everything from best ecommerce platform to improving your website site. He also likes to cover newsworthy events related to business management software, customer relationship management (CRM) and Quoting software.