E-commerce has been growing nonstop in size and quality for over 20 years and today, more than ever, more and more people, entrepreneurs like you, are trying to figure out how to sell things over the internet.
When I mention "things," I mean everything from toys and gifts to cars and robots , including products in the categories of fashion, electronics, home appliances, and much more.
If you are one of those people who are looking for a guide on the subject, then stop looking. You just found it. In this article I will show you how to assemble a product mix, make a plan, open a company and develop your virtual store. A virtual store where you can sell anything you want. Check out!
HOW TO SELL THINGS ON THE INTERNET: START BY CREATING A PRODUCT MIX
What do you want to sell? Defining what your product mix will be is the initial step to start building your online business. Therefore, your first lesson will be to define a product category and a niche to act.
How about a niche? Well, think of the market as a room. This room has lockers, which are the segments. These cabinets have drawers, which are the niches. Thus, in the market we can find the “closet” or Fashion segment/category and within it we have several “drawers” or niches such as Beach Fashion, Evangelical Fashion, Fitness Fashion, Geek Fashion, etc.
Each category has its niches. And some niches have niches within them. For example, within Moda Praia we have the Moda Surf niche. Be that as it may, take a good look at the category in which you intend to work and find your niche, which is the one you have the most knowledge and availability to work and develop.
Once you've chosen the niche, define your product mix. Think about what products you can sell to your chosen niche audience. Your mix could be, for example:
Extensive:
Multiple product families, each with many products.
Shortened:
Several families, each with few products.
Deep:
A family with many products.
Satin:
A family with few products.
Shallow and on trend:
Group with few products that are in fashion.
Deep and seasonal:
Group with many products for a time of year.
Shortened with frequent purchase:
Families of products bought a lot.
There are e-commerce websites that sell only one product. Others, however, work with thousands; these are called " long tail " companies. There are also those that operate in the middle ground, that is, with neither too many nor too few products. Define what is best for you.
- As soon as you can, also click on “product mix” and read a companion post.
HOW TO SELL THINGS ON THE INTERNET: INTERFACES FOR ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Once you've defined your product mix, start researching what might be the best ecommerce interface for your project. There are several sales interfaces on the internet, for example:
Virtual store:
An e-commerce website with a homepage , category pages, sales pages with a "buy" button. An online store also has a virtual shopping cart, a "my account" panel, a checkout system , and various payment and delivery methods.
- Read too: "How to sell watches online"
Mobile First:
This is an online store designed for the small screens of mobile technologies. Today, most online stores are responsive, meaning they adapt to different screen sizes. However, the main focus of a Mobile First store is the smartphone and tablet.
Marketplaces:
Online shopping where multiple companies sell products and services to consumers through a technology called " payment splitting ." It's possible to be a seller within a third-party marketplace or to own the marketplace.
Multi store:
A multi-store is composed of several virtual storefronts, each with a different brand and name, but owned by the same person and with centralized management. If you intend to sell products from different categories and niches, this could be a solution.
Landing page:
A single-page website built with highly persuasive sales arguments. The idea is to sell a high-value product at the highest possible price. The arguments generally follow the principles of persuasion by Cialdini and Neuromarketing.
Squeeze page:
Just like a landing page, a squeeze page has persuasive arguments. However, the idea here is not to immediately sell a product. The key point is to capture the consumer's electronic address and try to sell something to him later via Email Marketing.
Website:
Hotsite is an e-commerce site that serves to market only one product or service. It usually has a home page, another one for presenting the item for sale, another one for cases, among others, in addition to the contact page.
- Read too: "How to set up an online carpentry shop"
So, if you're thinking about how to sell things online, consider using one of these interfaces. To do so, you'll need to hire an e-commerce platform. With it, you can create and manage your online business. The best e-commerce platform is certainly the one that allows you to work with all these interfaces simultaneously.
HOW TO SELL THINGS ON THE INTERNET: SKETCHING WITH BUSINESS MODEL CANVAS
Great, if you already know what to sell and on which online channel, then it's time to visually outline it. I suggest using the Business Model Canvas (see image) theorized in the book " Innovation in Business Models " by Alexander Osterwalder.
The Canvas is a framework in which you set the guidelines for the following elements:
01 - Value propositions:
These are the products, services and solutions you intend to offer to consumers.
02 – Customer segments:
It's your target audience, which consumes products from that niche you've chosen to work with.
03 - Relationship with the consumer:
It is the way (approach) with which you will bring value propositions to consumers.
04 - Distribution channels:
They are the means with which you will communicate and take your value propositions to consumers.
05 - Key Activities:
It's the set of essential actions, without which your business doesn't work.
06 - Key Resources:
They are the elements with which you develop your key activities.
07 - Key partners:
It refers to the people and organizations that will help you carry out your key activities.
08 - Sources of revenue:
They are the main means of invoicing your business.
09 - Cost structure:
These are your costs of production, delivery, maintenance, etc.
By turning your business into a visual outline, it will be much easier for you to create your official plan. This official planning, in turn, must be done through a document called the Business Plan, subject of the next topic. Read on!
HOW TO SELL THINGS ON THE INTERNET: PLANNING WITH A BUSINESS PLAN
According to SEBRAE, the act of planning provides more longevity to companies. Those who plan ends up knowing more about the market, the niche in which they are operating, thus being able to get rid of troubles more easily and achieve sustainable growth.
Therefore, if you're trying to learn how to sell things online, you should create an official plan. Do this through a Business Plan , a document that allows you to describe, predict, and organize items such as:
01 - Executive summary:
Make a summary of your business. Describe, for example, the name, logo and your Organizational Culture (Mission, Vision and Values). Present your sectors of activities, your legal form, your share capital, tax framework and so on.
02 - Market analysis:
Create a study about your customers. Develop buyer personas. Also do some research on your competitors. Know their strengths and weaknesses. Create a list of potential suppliers and review them one by one.
03 - Marketing Plan:
Define what your main products and services will be, as well as their prices. Clarify what your promotional strategies will look like. Introduce your marketing structure. Inform what types of Marketing you will use to promote your business on the internet.
04 - Operational Plan:
Make it clear what the layout of your physical headquarters will look like and also the layout of your online store or other e-commerce site you prefer. Explain how your production, your trade, your service provision will be. Introduce your operational processes.
05 - Financial Plan:
Make an estimate of investment, revenue and costs. Use viability indicators such as break-even, profitability, profitability, and payback. Finally, define your working capital.
When you complete your Business Plan, take the opportunity to build scenarios and thus carry out simulations. Try to understand how your company will deal with economic crises and pessimistic results, for example.
Finally, carry out a strategic assessment. Use the SWOT Matrix, which allows you to recognize your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Well, with that much preparation, you're certainly on the best of paths.
HOW TO SELL THINGS ON THE INTERNET: OPENING AN E-COMMERCE COMPANY
It's not enough to plan; you have to execute. To start selling things online, you need to open a company . Only then will you be able to obtain a CNPJ (Brazilian tax ID). A CNPJ allows you to issue invoices, collect from delinquent customers, and buy from the best suppliers.
If you already have a registered business, then contact your accountant so they can adjust your CNAE (National Classification of Economic Activities) code to reflect e-commerce . It's crucial that your activities are correctly classified, as this will prevent the unfortunate "misuse of business purpose."
There are several types of companies that you can open. In each of them there is an average investment to be made to launch an e-commerce site as a virtual store. Take, for example, this estimate:
- MEI e-commerce: requires an investment of BRL 1 to BRL 5 to create a virtual store;
- Micro enterprise: investment from R$ 5 thousand to R$ 50 thousand;
- Small and Medium Enterprises: investment from R$ 50 thousand to R$ 500 thousand;
- Large-sized company: investment above R$ 500 thousand.
Now then, it's up to you. How big is the business you are trying to build? Is he a MEI, micro enterprise, small/medium enterprise or large enterprise? It is worth remembering, this is something that needs to be defined when you are in the Business Plan stage.
HOW TO SELL THINGS ON THE INTERNET: DEVELOPING YOUR TRADE INTERFACE
Once the bureaucratic issues of planning and starting a business have been defined, the time has come to develop your e-commerce site. Be it a virtual store, multi store, marketplace or other, you will need an e-commerce platform.
- Also read our article “deco.cx for e-commerce” and discover an online store builder for merchants who don’t like to waste time!
An e-commerce platform is a system with which it is possible to create and manage e-commerce websites. There are basically three types: "proprietary" (paid code), "open source" (free code), and SaaS (rented).
The advantage of SaaS is that it is periodically updated by a company that maintains it, which does not happen in other cases (or occurs precariously).
This update is performed in the cloud. This means you won't need an IT team, allowing you to focus solely on e-commerce. VTEX and Loja Integrada, for example, offer rented SaaS-type platforms.
Hiring e-commerce agency
After choosing a platform, you'll need to hire an e-commerce agency to produce the layout and design of your online store. Here's what I call an original and unique design; it will set you apart from the competition and give your business more visibility.
Finally, I take this opportunity to comment on the e-commerce agency e-Plus, whose team has already developed more than 300 online stores for national and international clients. Their portfolio includes stores such as Utilplast , Sapataria Nova , and Sociedade da Mesa , among others. To partner with us, click the button below and send us the message “Hello, e-Plus” via WhatsApp:
