Why using Marketplace sites is good rather than going direct to a Business’ site
Over the last few years, we have seen the rise of marketplace websites. Marketplace websites, for those who don’t know, are essentially a collection of companies or brands, that come together on one website. Such websites include Tarocash, Rebel, MenuLog, Booking.com, My Chemist, Graysonline, Archfashion, Surfstitch and many others, countless in fact. When you use a marketplace website, there are so many advantages that you just don’t get when you go directly to an individual company’s website. You may not know what those advantages are, so we’ve created a list to let you know why you’re better off using these sites than going directly to one retailer.
Most people are time poor these days and don’t have the time to go to every single store that exists on the internet. They may even struggle to go to one store because of all that’s involved. You have to think about parking, go through the crowds, and then find the product that you want. Depending on where you live, that can add up to several hours of time, and even after all of that you may find that you do not get what you were looking for, so you’ve actually wasted the time.
Well, with marketplace sites that’s not an issue. You simply run a search online for the products you’re interested in buying and go to the marketplace site. Do another search on the site for the product you want, and you’ll come up with a list of options in less than 5 seconds (depending of course on how fast your internet connection is). When you’re there, you’ll be able to compare the prices of several brands, against the features. This enables you to make a better-informed decision rather than being limited to one brand in a location.
We’ve previously mentioned in blogs that when you buy online you have access to brands that you wouldn’t otherwise have access to due to geographical limitations. When you use a marketplace site you’ll get access to brands that aren’t in your geographical area and brands you wouldn’t have otherwise thought of. That will broaden your horizons and broaden your choices.
When you buy online, you don’t always know that the product you’re getting is quality or is going to be fit for purpose. It’s not always easy to get a refund or your money back after you’ve bought a product online. In some cases, the retailer you’ve bought from is overseas so they’re not governed or bound by Australian law. When you buy on a marketplace site, they tend to have a set of rules they expect the stores who use their platforms to abide by. If those stores do not abide by those marketplace rules then they have kicked off the platform and effectively stopped from trading. That actually gives you more rights than you would have if you dealt with them directly. It also protects the retailers because the marketplace site acts like a third party. If you like, you could almost consider them to be a governing authority.
When you go directly to a retailer you can’t compare prices. You may see a price and think it’s the best price for a particular item, but in reality, it may not be. You could find yourself paying 2 or 3 times more than you should. Take, for example, the recent Adele concert ticket sales. Many people bought tickets at the full rate, rather than doing their research. If they had done some research they would have seen that there were Adele tickets available in other cities for a lower price and they wouldn’t have to pay the premium. For household items or technology, like an iPhone, then buying through a marketplace site allows you to find the best price on the market, not just the price at the most popular store. That means you can keep more money in your pocket and won’t be overcharged for the same item. It gives you more rights and freedom as a consumer.
These are just a few of the reason why you should use a marketplace side rather than going directly to a retailer. There are of course so many other reasons, which we’re sure you’ll find out when you buy from them. If there’s some that you think we should know then send us an email and let us know.
Benefits of Shopping Online
Christmas can be a very extensive time of the year, with people spending around $1079 on gifts according to moneysmart. That doesn’t include the cost of travel or any Christmas meals. That’s just gifts alone. For many people, that’s a week’s wages, which can take its toll on people’s bank balances. Many people find themselves getting into credit card debt and then later being slugged with the interest during the year, so they actually spend more than just the cost of gifts.
There are of course ways that you can save money on your Christmas gifts. You can purchase them online, which will give you a range of benefits that you just won’t get in a store.
When you shop online you’re opening yourself up to a whole world of options that you wouldn’t have if you were walking down the main street of your local city. Instead of just having 5 – 10 suitable stores to choose from you could potentially have hundreds, if not thousands of suitable stores to choose from. The great thing about that is that with choice comes competition and supply. The greater the supply, the lower the price. That means that if you are on a budget, you’ll find it easier to save money.
You can also save yourself having some awkward conversations in stores. How many times have you been in a retail environment and you’ve found yourself being followed by a sales assistant? It can be annoying and when an assistant is on your tail you may find that you spend money that you don’t want to spend and that you blow the budget. That isn’t an option if you shop online because you are shopping from the comfort of your own home. You can shop without interruption and that means that you can get through your shopping much faster than if you were shopping in a physical store. You also won’t have to deal with crowds or out of stock items because if one website doesn’t have an item you want, you can simply quickly type in another domain and you’ll be able to get it elsewhere. This is excellent for people who are time poor and can’t get away from the office during the day to go Christmas shopping. That will save you from disappointment as well.
Online retail shopping is generally cheaper than shopping in physical stores. Online stores tend to offer greater discounts around Christmas time and you’ll find yourself saving substantial money. According to The Guardian, you’ll be able to save up to 50% off the already discounted price. Online retailers can offer lower prices because they have lower overheads and don’t need to pay as many wages as those running physical stores. As it gets closer and closer to Christmas time you may also be able to get free gift wrapping and delivery, saving you up to $20 – $30 depending on the item that you’re buying and where it’s being shipped. Another cost you won’t need to fork out for is that of parking. Parking can be up to $10 per hour in a major city like Sydney or Melbourne, so when you shop online, you avoid those parking charges and that can really help the bank balance if you’ve already spent a lot on your gifts, or it could leave you with more money to spend on gifts.
People tend to be price conscious, and as briefly mentioned, you can find yourself saving money if you shop online. This is because of the lower overheads but it’s also because rather than just going to one or two stores, you can compare with many more so you can get the best price on the market and that could save you money. Some stores even offer to price match if you find a cheaper price elsewhere. You can often do this while still getting the same quality as you would in a traditional retail environment.
If you’re one of those people that leaves their Christmas shopping to the last minute that’s not a problem. You can shop online on Christmas Day which means you can take advantage of Boxing Day sales. It’s a well-known tradition that these sales tend to start on Christmas Day. Physical stores are closed on Christmas Day because of legislation, however that legislation does not apply to online stores, so if you find yourself in the mood for shopping on Christmas Day, you can. This is great for those of you who received cash or vouchers for Christmas Day and want to spend them.
Preparing for Christmas
Everyone knows that the Christmas period is often one of the busiest periods of the year for businesses and that means you will need to plan in advance so that you deliver the best quality service to your customers. If however, you’re a customer then it’s really important that you plan your Christmas purchases in advance so that you avoid disappointment at Christmas time.
We mentioned in a previous blog that you need to ensure you have products in stock and that if you don’t, your customers will not be happy. If you advertise a product as being in stock, but it’s not then although it’s reasonable for your customers to wait a few days for the product, if it’s going to be longer than that you need to let your customers know BEFORE they place the order, or at the very worst, right after the order has been placed. Don’t wait until a couple of weeks after they’ve placed the order to let them know you can’t provide it.
It was said in last week’s blog that it would be bad customer service and leave people with the wrong impression of your company. That holds true. Failure to keep your customers informed of product delivery will just annoy them and potentially lead to even the most loyal of your customers walking away.
When a customer walks away once, and goes to another retailer, online or otherwise, that shift away from you once, could potentially stop buying from you all together and that could also cost you, other customers, and no business, online or otherwise wants that so ensure you only sell products you have in stock, and keep your customers informed.
Christmas is a busier time for all types of retailers, including online. That means you are going to have increased needs and require increased staff numbers to ensure you meet your customers’ needs. Although you may not think it’s necessary for an online retail environment because you aren’t dealing with customers face to face, it is still worth hiring extra staff to cope with the increased demand. You do not need to hire them on a permanent full-time basis if you only have a short-term need. You can instead plan for this period by hiring the right number of staff. Even when you’re running an online store it’s important to have enough staff to cater for customer requirements. Those staff will be in the warehouse and they’ll be in your distribution centre because even as an online retailer those requirements are the same as retail outlets.
As a customer, most stores anticipate and plan the Christmas rush. There will be increased demand and pressure on retailers and postal services. Ultimately that means you need to order your products earlier than you normally would so that they will arrive on time for Christmas Day. A good rule of thumb is to order a few weeks before Christmas. That will allow for any shipping delays if the retailer needs to order the goods in, and it will allow for potential delivery to the gift recipient, although, to cut down on transportation time, you could get the item delivered to them directly rather than getting it delivered to you first. That will save you considerable time.
There are always crowds at Christmas time because people leave their shopping until the last minute. They don’t tend to plan in advance so that can also lead to disappointment three days before Christmas when people do all their shopping. It doesn’t have to be that way though. You can buy throughout the year, and that way you will not only get all the products you want, you will also avoid significant disappointment and will not be left wondering what you’re going to get people for Christmas. There’s nothing worse than receiving a gift a few months late, so if there is someone you’re buying make sure you buy in advance, especially if it’s a popular product like an iPhone or something else that is likely to sell out by the time Christmas rolls around.
If, of course, you do leave your Christmas shopping until the last minute then you should set a spending limit and stick to it. If you don’t, it would be very easy to get caught up in the Christmas madness and spend way more than you intended to, or worse yet, buying what you don’t need. That said, if you see an item on sale, why not save it for next year if it’s an item that is likely to remain on trend for a considerable time period.
These tips should help you as a retailer deal with the Christmas rush, and should also help you as a customer so that you don’t need to worry about missing out on the ideal product for your friends or family members.
Online shopping is constantly evolving and growing after several decades of operation
E-commerce is constantly evolving and growing after several decades of operation. Today we don’t think of it as a big deal, but what was it like when it first came about? It may seem like online shopping has only been around for the last ten or so years, but were you aware that it actually came about in the late 1970s.
Originally e-commerce, which includes online shopping commonly known was set up for communication between customers and businesses. It evolved considerably since then.
If you’re Generation Y or older, you’ll probably remember the impact Napster had on the music world in the late 90s. Napster was a company which owned a music file-sharing website, where people could transfer music saving them the need to go to a physical store and buy a CD, or in that time, a cassette as well. Napster revolutionised the way people interacted with their music and paved the way for other businesses to enter the e-commerce market. Napster had broken down the barrier between the idea of online shopping and people actually being willing to do so and seeing the benefit in doing so. The immediate benefit in Napster’s case was that people could buy individual songs instead of full albums, which enabled them the opportunity to only buy the music they wanted, without buying what are commonly known as album fillers.
Over time, people’s willingness to conduct business online changed, and in the 1990s, online banking was introduced into Australia. It looked very different to what it does today. People would take a floppy disk and install software on their computer which gave them the option of checking their balances and making transactions. Unlike today, where internet banking is free, there was a considerable cost involved.
Below Commonwealth Bank’s first website, courtesy of research company, Canstar.
Source: http://www.canstar.com.au/online-banking/history-of-internet-banking/
Today their website looks dramatically different.
Source: www.commbank.com.au
The site has significantly advanced features and more than half of people have used internet banking in the last year. People’s willingness to embrace e-commerce goes further than that. They’re also willing to conduct their internet banking on their mobile phones when they’re on the go.
Of course, e-commerce isn’t just about banking. It’s also about online shopping. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics 56% of Australian internet users had used the internet to make a purchase. This was in 2009. That number today would be much greater.
That provides a huge opportunity for businesses to capitalise on a completely new market that they previously didn’t have access to. Online shopping allows people to make purchases at a time that is convenient for them. They are not limited by traditional opening hours. If they’re unable to leave their home or live in a rural area, they’re not limited by geography either. They can purchase from stores in other locations, which gives them more choice. Online shopping has enabled people access to international retailers. The impact of that has been dramatic. Retailers such as Sephora, Zara and H & M have entered cities in Australasia as a direct result of that online shopping behaviour. Those retailers can then save on freight charges, and consumers benefit from having their favourite stores in their own backyard.
Of course, on the flipside, while it’s great for international retailers who want to expand, it’s not so good for local retailers who don’t have the capacity to expand. They face increased competition and that has hurt their bottom line, and in some cases led to store closures. A recent example of a retailer which floundered was Dick Smith Electronics. They had been in the market since 1968, and after 48 years of operations closed their doors earlier this year because they couldn’t compete with online prices and competition. Changing technologies had rendered many of their products redundant and they’d failed to establish themselves in a new niche.
To a lesser degree, department stores like Myer, David Jones and banks have also closed stores and branches because more and more business is being conducted online. Although this is generally a good thing for consumers, the downfall is that people are losing the human element of shopping and they are not seeing items prior to purchase.
Another impact of the emergence of e-commerce is that everyone thinks they can set up a store and be successful. They’re under this illusion that they’ll have access to a huge market. The reality is somewhat different though. There is only so much money in the economy, so with more and more players in the market competing for the dollar, it is harder to get a share of the pie.
Of course, online shopping and e-commerce opens a raft of possibilities for consumers and innovative businesses, and they can take the opportunity, but they need to be aware that they need to market their products and services more wisely and that competition is much greater than it was when there were only bricks and mortar stores to compete with.
What to know when Shopping Online
Online shopping can be a wonderful experience but there are things that you need to know before you shop online. Although the majority of websites are genuine and you will have a great experience shopping online, there is the odd website that is dodgy. We will also share with you some tips to help you get the best possible deal on your purchase.
There are some things you should look out to see that a store is secure.
If the store is secure then it will have a padlock. That padlock indicates that all details received through the site will be encrypted, which means that they are not available to any third party sites or possible hackers. It means that your information will be treated with absolute security and cannot be stolen or used for purchases you do not give consent to.
Another way to identify if a site is genuine is to establish if the website has a physical address or phone number listed. If it’s genuine it will, and you will easily be able to get hold of the site administrators, or at least search for information on the website that proves their credibility.
To ensure your security, the website should have a login area where you can see previous purchases. In addition, they should also send you an automated email following your purchase so you can easily track it and keep a record for future reference.
Be careful about the information you give when you are creating an account. Even if the site is genuine that doesn’t mean the information cannot be stolen. Don’t just give the website any information. Only give them what you need to, otherwise it could be easy to defraud you of money.
That also means you shouldn’t use public terminals to make financial transactions. That includes internet cafes, or public WIFI. Anything sent over the network could be stolen, and once it’s stolen there’s no way to control what is done with the data.
This one could be a bit outdated because more and more sites are using pop ups, even legitimate sites, but a genuine site should not have any pop ups, or if it does they should be for certain products and services. Any website that has pop ups for gambling or weight loss pills is likely to be an insincere site and you should not purchase from it.
When you’re shopping online, the last thing you think about is returning the product, but on the off chance you do need to return the item you’ll want to know what the store’s return policy is. A genuine site will always have a Terms and Conditions and Return Policy section to the website. This will ensure that consumers retain rights in accordance with the Fair Trading Act.
When you’re shopping online you should also read the fine print. There have been cases where people have purchased items and then little have they known, they’ve been signed up to subscriptions or auto purchases. You should always read the terms and conditions to avoid this happening to you.
If you’re buying designer clothing or brands online, the website should always offer a certificate of authenticity. If it doesn’t then you shouldn’t make the purchase. People are frequently fooled by knockoffs online so if in doubt the simple thing is to just not make the purchase. That will avoid disappointed or being scammed in the future.
If you follow these security tips then you are sure to have a great shopping experience. Of course, there are other non security related ways to have a great experience, but they are a topic for another blog.