In a dilemma of starting an online business? Ponder no longer. This is the right time. The e-commerce marketplace in Malaysia has seen enormous growth since recent years. Online business is so-called one of those business models that requires little or no cost to start with. And with the recent news about Alibaba being Lazada’s main stakeholder and DFTZ, what we can assume is that online business is here to stay in Malaysia, and sooner or later, online business is going to become the main shopping channel for Malaysians.
What it takes to start an online business is the perseverance and the effort in managing your online business. To further help you with that, we are here to teach you a thing or two on how you can kickstart your own online business easily.
Let us guide you through the process of selling online.
1) Select your product
Choosing the right product to sell is challenging. Coming up with product ideas is not easy as well as it seems that everyone has been selling everything. However, it is not the end of the world.
There are a lot of ways to decide on which product to sell. First and foremost, you can sell the products that you love. Selling things that you love gives you the extra motivation to make it happen. Best of all, it’s easier for you to sell since you are already familiar with them. It shows more credibility when you are promoting to customers as well.
If you are one of those who has no idea what to sell, why not try dropshipping then? You can choose products from their large assortments of SKUs. With dropshipping, you do not have to purchase beforehand, just list and sell. You only need to pay for the product when a customer purchase from you, and the supplier will ship the products for you.
Alternatively, you can sell what your customers love. For instance, baby clothes and toys. Parents spend a considerable amount of time browsing to find adorable clothes and cute toys for their babies. They want to give their children the best.
Sherynn Ooi, SiteGiant merchant who is selling baby products is a living testimonial herself. Always bear in mind your customers’ needs and demand. Put yourself in their shoes. Speak their language.
2) Engage e-commerce platform providers
At this initial stage, it is best you engage e-commerce platform providers like SiteGiant as we provide all the necessary solution and tools for your to sell online, further more training and guidance will be provided to ensure you will not get lost.
We advise all new online sellers to kick start their e-commerce journey in marketplaces like Lazada, 11street etc. as they already have heavy traffic. You can test drive your products over there. See if anyone purchase your products, test the water for market demand.
With SiteGiant Marketplace Sync, you can sync your products to these well-known, heavy traffic marketplaces. Once there is order, it will be synced back to your SiteGiant web store and update the inventory. This way, you will be able to better manage your products and will not worn yourself up.
3) Social Media
Do not forget about social media, especially Facebook. There is a huge pool of potential buyers on Facebook. Have a Facebook shop as well and sell on Facebook.
To make your life easier as a starter, you can utilize SiteGiant Facebook Smart Reply. It is an automated reply when someone PM you. You do not have to be on Facebook 24/7.
To bring things up a notch, use SiteGiant Messenger Store. This app helps you to showcase and promote your products even when you are not on Facebook. Buyers can browse and purchase within the messenger itself.
To know more on how you can start selling online with Facebook, feel free to check out on how to sell on Facebook effectively.
4) Branding
Now that you are more familiar with online selling, it is time for you to do some branding so that your customers will know you.
Firstly, come out with a logo for your shop. It doesn’t need to be very flashy and complicated, in fact sometimes the simplest logo is the most unforgettable ones for customers. And to be even more online-present, open up a webstore of your own. SiteGiant has an abundance of ready-made templates for you to choose from. Choose the template which you like and is mobile friendly. What about payment gateway and shipping? Do not worry. We have you covered in our webstore solution.
Sell from your webstore. Let your customers enjoy great buying experience from you so that they will return to you. You might want to print some labels with your logo and attach them in the parcel when you send them out for branding purposes.
5) Promotions
According to research, Malaysians love promotions, flash sales etc. followed by free shipping and guaranteed lowest price. Thus, keep your site / business exciting.
Seize the many festivals in Malaysia by having festive promotions example, Raya, Chinese New Year and Christmas promotions. You may also consider payday promotions. This is when your customers have plenty to spend on.
6) Keep in touch with your customers
Send e-direct mails (eDM) every other day or once a week. Keep them updated with your promotions and your business. Let them familiarize with you and be at the top of their mind whenever they wish to purchase online.
7) Customer service
If possible, have live chats or at least an email where buyers can communicate with you, channeling their queries or providing you feedbacks. Publish good reviews. This will give the confidence to other customers.
Alternatively, you can give them a call, a personal touch, and ask how are they doing with the products purchased. This give your customers a sense of caring. They might share with their friends and family the experience. Word of mouth is powerful marketing tool.
In a nutshell, starting an e-commerce business in Malaysia or anywhere else in the world is not easy. However, with the steps above, you should be able to avoid many pitfalls and be successful in your business.
