Selling on-line, or e-commerce, can be a cost effective way in reaching a larger audience, while maintaining or reducing overheads.
On-line sales can enhance your existing sales locations as another distribution point, or the nature of the product/service itself might lend itself to be sold in an on-line environment (ie distance learning education). It can also increase demand for your product/service through other locations as consumers or end-users ask for delivery of the product in a different way (ie retail environment).
On-line sales can be made through the development of your own website, or you can sell products through on-line sales channels such as eBay (www.ebay.com.au), Trading Post Online (www.tradingpost.com.au), or Alibaba (www.Alibaba.com). All these sites use different forms of payment and delivery methods, so you need to be aware of what is involved and any risks before transacting business.
If you are developing your own on-line sales capability, you should:
- sell the value and benefits of the product/service, not the features
- make the sales process easy – too many clicks and you will lose the customer
- make sure the customer can find you through website optimisation strategiesÂ
- use effective graphics that realistically represent the product. If you can provide a demonstration of the product/service on line even better
- offer telephone support in case there is a question or problem
- make the payment system as trustworthy and as easy as possible. Your bank can help you arrange this, or you can use common on-line payment systems like Paymate (www.paymate.com) and Paypal (www.paypal.com.au)
- ensure that any transportation costs or taxes that need to be paid are transparent. Difficulties can be encountered for an overseas buyer.
There are many legal implications for selling on-line. See the e-businessguide for more information.
You need to also be aware of the SPAM ACT 2003 when marketing your on-line site through e-mail channels.