Nowadays, we can't imagine our lives without digital services: just three clicks and you have acquired the goods/services you were interested in. Thanks to digital merchants, the comfortability and flexibility of modern life have increased significantly.
Etsy, Amazon, AliExpress… What unites these brands is their masterful customer engagement and impressive numbers of revenue. Obviously, there is a secret to worldwide popularity and incredible profitability. Since it has been estimated that the segment of online shopping almost reached $3bn, it can't help staying unnoticed. As a well-known proverb says, if you're planning to become rich, start selling. The showcase of helpful tips on how to create a marketplace gathered by the Purrweb experts in the field will help you to see the path leading to the goal. If you're searching for a guide on the issue, keep their helping hand.
Why does the idea to create a marketplace seem promising?
1. Flourishing market
Every entrepreneur knows it's half of the battle to enter the market when it's booming.
Online sales is definitely a mushrooming sphere today, and there are a plethora of free rooms for original enterprises. It's only the first impression all the prospective niches are occupied, in practice there are a myriad of opportunities to create a marketplace adored by customers.
Try to define what your platform will represent:
● goods,
● services,
● goods & services.
Describe your type of interaction between sellers and buyers.
1. Customers will sell their goods/services to customers like in Etsy or YouDo.
2. Companies will address their goods/services to the customers. (Amazon, Booking)
3. Companies will interact with companies in order to supply them with appropriate services or goods.
EBay generates more than $10 bn of revenue: this business model demonstrated its feasibility.
2. A lot of spare niches
Research the market and discover where there is an unsatisfied demand. Can people buy food and medicines for their exotic pets? Or where the masters can acquire raw materials for their handmade activities? Give freedom to your imagination and find out where there is a blue ocean for your experiments. To create a marketplace noticed by customers, focus on the specific niches that are free: such an approach will allow you competition with mammoths of the market.
How can an MVP accelerate your opportunities to create a marketplace?
Sufficient funding and defined timeline are the first conditions to reach a finish line when you create a marketplace. The obstacle that the majority of newbie entrepreneurs face is often connected with the lack of investment. Multiply this factor by the hesitation if the business can actually take off, and you'll see the picture where desire to risk and experiment is under the pressure of circumstances. The way to break through the limits is simple: to start the project from its core. To create a marketplace within a short time frame and affordable budget, weed out all the expensive or inessential features in order to concentrate effort on the significant ones. Such an approach equips you with flexibility as you can create a marketplace in its essence, and if it works as expected, attract investors or reinvest profits in order to expand the functionality of the product. For example, ranking filters based on reviews aren't necessary at the very beginning when you're planning to create a marketplace, and otherwise, absence of various payment methods can prevent your business from public recognition. Think over all these details when targeting to achieve results that were on the plan.
To jump over traps: beware to avoid these mistakes
1. Non-scalability
Giving way to temptation to cut costs when the team create a marketplace, it's easy to make a foundation for trouble in the future. No-code or low code platforms or outdated technologies often entail impossibility to scale the business. Think at the start if there is flexibility to manage more visitors when the product will become very popular, or is it easy to add new features and make integrations when it's time to contribute to required conveniences.
For example, the Purrweb team builds e-commerce products with React Native which lets platforms be available on any devices and cope with high loads.
2. Weak UI/UX design
Underestimating the significance of the visual image of the app and its clearance for navigation can play a bad joke for founders. Pampered by stylish and effortless solutions, a visitor isn't ready to sacrifice his time and energy in order to entangle the logic of your product. It's offensive to see that potential buyers lose their carts halfway just because they got puzzled with the unclear functionality of the app.
3. Insufficient data protection
To create a marketplace means to be responsible for all the data your users entrust you: personal, financial, marketing etc. Make sure that scams can't steal any paroles or other information you gather in the app. Face ID, fingerprints, secure technologies: all the things you can use targeting better app protection. The Purrweb guys use two-factor authentication as an obligatory part of personal data security policy.
Magnet for customers: how to attract first buyers
No doubt, the delivery of the app to the market is just the starting point of your business: a bunch of work should be done to promote the platform. Let's enumerate the most popular opportunities for attracting new customers.
1. Social media marketing helps you to get real feedback and keep communication with the potential buyers even on the preliminary stage. Since you decided to create a marketplace, you can ask for advice or people's opinion in advance to prevent implementation of excessive functions or unpleasant designs.
2. Guest blog posts enable you to transfer your idea to the customers who really care. Popular bloggers can compete with mass media, but you can count on better loyalty of the audience thanks to the authority of recommenders.
3. GoogleAdSense, Facebook and other sources of paid traffic can save the situation at the very beginning. If you find professionals in the domain, you'll get a lot of visitors for an adequate price.
4. Traditional mass media contribute to the reputation of your solution: participate in various discussions and comment situations where it's relevant to your business interests.
5. Your own partner program and other advanced tools to attract users to be your brand advocates. Don't underestimate the powerful tools of modern marketing: they can turn out to be game-changing in your case.
For example, you can try trending strategies and dive into cross-marketing: establish connections with complementary businesses and mutually promote platforms.
The core idea of the article
A new enterprise is always risky, and it's hard to start a business with minimal guarantees. However, an MVP and well thought marketing strategy can save the undertaking. If you dream to create a marketplace, learn as much as you can about the issue, define the core functionality of the app, select a qualified contractor, and be brave to try your luck. What if your idea brings true value to customers' experience?
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