One of the most interesting areas for an entrepreneur to get into right now -- and one of the most popular -- is ecommerce. Ecommerce enables online stores to cut out the middle men who usually take a 50 percent cut of an entrepreneur's margin, and sell directly to their end consumers.
But ecommerce is not always about success. The problem facing many would-be entrepreneurs in this space is that as each industry becomes crowded with ecommerce companies, diversifying their products becomes harder.
Diversification is crucial for any ecommerce entrepreneur, as starting a ecommerce store can be a struggle.
1. Identify your niche.
One of the most important parts of starting any ecommerce store is connecting with the right customers. To make better advertisements and have higher conversion rates, you need to understand what niche your ecommerce store is targeting. So, think about where you’re from, what your products stand for, how your products are made.
2. Test your products.
The biggest mistake ecommerce entrepreneurs make today is investing too heavily in inventory. Being an ecommerce entrepreneur is all about balancing your cash flow, especially when you have marketing, management and inventory costs. This is why ecommerce entrepreneurs have turned to drop shipping.
Instead, when a store sells a product, it purchases the item from a third party and has it shipped directly to the customer. As a result, the merchant never sees or handles the product.
3. Double down on branding.
If you’re entering an industry already crowded with ecommerce stores, you’re going to need to invest in branding. Traditionally, branding has involved several touch points across traditional advertising placements, on billboards. Nowadays, brand touchpoints stem from social media.
To increase your brand awareness, start investing in your social media presence. This means growing a large following, interacting with your followers and utilizing social media influencers who have a large following.
Courtesy of Entrepreneur
