Online selling is 100 times harder than offline
Posted on 28. Sep, 2009 by admin in Know How
Actually the title of this article is an understatement.
What is the basic function of a store? It is basically a local showroom and distribution center where merchandise is stored close to the purchaser to allow him to have a wide range of products without having to travel long distances.
This is why smart merchants will consider location one of the most important characteristics of a store. As a store owner you have to have good service, nice decor, etc, but you are competing with the stores that are in the 50km radius of your store. As long that you are better or close to them in price, service and product selection, you will get a portion of the business.
Once we combine the internet and UPS the whole game changes. With similar effort a resident of New York can buy goods from any store in the whole US.
As an online store operator you are competing with every single online store in your category, in other words instead of stores within 50km radius you are competing for stores in the whole country.
This translates to over 12000 times more space in the case of the US or Canada.
The basic idea is that an online store is competing on a different plane that a traditional store and has to think of the value it provides its shoppers.
In the online world the objective is not to be better than the average competitor but to have at least one area where you are better than ALL your competitors.
You have to think very hard about what sets you apart from your competitors and how you can be truely N1 because all your competitors are just one google search away.