It’s been two years since the pandemic, and COVID-19 continues to play a role in changing and redefining the ways we live, shop, survive and progress. Even as the new covid-boosted consumer trickles back to pre-covid physical shopping experiences, the quick and wide adoption of online shopping continues to persist and grow.
Growing internet penetration has been a key driver in enhancing digital adoption, not only for Indian consumers to shop, but also for Indian sellers to reach a wider market than before. As a young business in this ever-evolving shopping ecosystem, it is only wise to find a balance between your offline and online business. There are substantial and long-term benefits to both. But, whether you are a brick-and-mortar grocery store or a small business owner, the benefits of setting up an online shop to complement and support your offline business are compelling.
However, it’s advisable to run a few checks before you get into the big decision of transforming your business.
Let’s dive right in.
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Why take your business online?
If you are unconvinced about taking your business online, here are a few reasons that will give you the confidence this is the right move.
Expand your customer base
Online stores eliminate operational limitations and timings. Your store could be based in Pune and a customer can place an order from Indore. An online store multiplies your customer base and caters to countless interested customers that you might not be aware of. In no time, you can grow your local business into a global one. So dream big!
Anytime and anywhere business operations
An online store reduces or eliminates the need for a physical presence at every business transaction. Help your potential customers learn about your products and place orders anytime — day or night, whether it's regular business hours or holidays. An online store for an offline business helps generate leads and inquiries even when closed. So you can follow up with your potential customers once you are open. It is equivalent to keeping your business 4x longer.
Improves business image
Most customers today check for the online presence of any business. Even if it’s simply the address location of your physical store. But that’s not all they look for. They look to make judgements of your product or service based on your website, user reviews, and more. In fact, the lack of an online presence impacts the trustworthiness of your business.
Therefore, having an online presence would simply make sense, even if it is just to ease your customers' confidence in you. So why not use that credibility to influence purchase decisions and conversions?
Scale up cost-effectively
When you take your business online, you are, at the very least, adding a lucrative sales channel at a minimal cost. Further, this opens up a world of opportunities in business automation, targeted marketing, automated accounting, efficient inventory management, and much more. Moreover, all your online business data gets captured in one place, enabling you to gather great insights into your business as you grow. All of these advantages put together allows your business to scale keeping your marginal costs disproportionately low.
Ready to take the plunge?