Sunday 2 June 2019

Further Notes on e-Commerce for Beginners




This post is the result of a tweet I saw, made a comment on, shared on WhatsApp with caption, replied by many, and with a very good friend asking that I write more on it, though others asked for more input too. But, SMOG was more intentional with his statement. He wanted something lengthier that could be shared on his weblog.
When I shared the tweet, I did not exactly focus on the fashion direction like the original poster. Rather, my point was building lean businesses or startups.
I’m discussing WooCommerce, Shopify, WordPress, Jumia, Jiji, Facebook, Instagram, and Paystack.
While I have never been in the e-commerce space as a seller, I have almost done that previously. I am not thinking about it at the moment, but working with over 50 personal brands has opened my eyes to lots of things about e-commerce. I am definitely not an expert in that field, but I have an extensive knowledge about it and about building businesses, starting up, and growing further.

First, my reply to a certain tweet that said fashion designers should consider patenting their works still stands. Patents destroy innovation. There’s just too much I can say about that. Imagine cars were continually patented like they were ab initio? Imagine the mobile app store was patented or even 3G? Already, patents have limit to claims, but it shouldn’t be embraced going forward. In the IT space, open-source is now the real thing.  
Back to e-Commerce and Business Building
If you are starting a business, no matter how much you are starting with, you are a startup and should acknowledge that. I believe startups should embrace the lean way of doing business. So, to e-commerce starters, my points are:
1.      Build an e-commerce store, not a website. Platforms like Shopify, Instagram, and Paystack have made it easy for you to actually sell online without necessarily building the website ground up. I think Paystack allows you to sell on Facebook and even accept payments without the buyer being directed to some other ‘proper’ website. Instagram now allows you to sell the products you display and accept payments for them as well. With Shopify, you will of course have to pay some dollars monthly. Yet, it is nothing compared to doing the work or paying someone to build a website for you, then using all the plugins like WooCommerce and maybe integrating Paystack as another layer or whatever.
2.      If you have the money to pay some developer to build a website from ground up, you may do that. However, I do not encourage spending hundreds of thousands on a business you have not even started, especially something you can start with near zero capital like e-commerce. It’s great to have your own WordPress e-commerce platform that has been integrated with a WooCommerce plugin and all the beautiful themes the world has never seen. However, you may just discard this advice and the one above and go for the third…
3.      Platforms like Jiji and Jumia are easy markets where you can sell anything. Jumia receives commissions on the products you sell, while Jiji none. If I wanted to be closer to my customers, which is something I love, I’d go with Jiji. If I wanted to just make it a side hustle, make some cash while someone does the rest, I’d choose Jumia.
In all, I’d rather go with using Facebook and Instagram plus a Paystack layer that handles the payments in conjunction with Jiji and Jumia.
One, the social media platforms give me a better understanding of my customers who are liking, commenting, and buying. Two, Jiji gives me a great connection with my customers, while Jumia does the selling and marketing part (though you should do some marketing on your own too).

Last Words
Weigh your options. Start wise.

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