HOW TO SELL ONLINE? | PRACTICAL GUIDE TO NOT DIE TRYING

If you want to enter the digital market, but you still don’t know how to sell online, don’t worry! With this article, you will be the most pro of online sales. The only thing you need is to follow this step-by-step guide, so you will achieve the success you want so much.

Now yes, let’s go for those millions!

Step by step to know how to sell online

You have probably heard that online sales are currently a success, and the rumors are not wrong. For the year 2018, the sales volume of e-commerce was established at $1.6 billion USD.

So, what is the secret, the abracadabra of starting an online business? The truth is that there is no magic formula that guarantees results from one moment to another. It could be said that it is a rehearsal while you find the formula that best suits your audience.

1. Define your market segment

If you still have no idea what to sell online, a good start is to define the types of audiences you want to reach. Thus, you will not only know their tastes and needs, but you will also be able to create a market strategy that has an impact.

Did you know that purchasing processes are different between women and men? In addition, depending on the country, the interests may change. For example, in Latin America women prefer fashion and recreation products ( travel and experiences), while men buy more technology products.

2. Establish the type of business you are going to have

After having clear the characteristics of the people you want to reach, the next thing to learn how to sell online is to define the type of product you are going to offer.

Services or goods? Personalized, generic?… If you have doubts, don’t worry! These are some aspects that can help you make the best decision:

• Do a Brainstorming  (brainstorming).
• Conduct a market study to find out who your competition is and what it offers.
• Define your possibilities through a SWOT matrix (SWOT, MAFO… it’s the same thing).
• Create your CANVAS model to have a better overview of your business. Remember that you can create profitable businesses with little investment.
• Set SMART goals, so you can build one of the steps that we will explain later: the marketing strategy.

3. Knowing how to sell online implies choosing the best sales channel

Although there are entrepreneurs who prefer to have a presence only on social networks, a good digital strategy combines e-commerce with social networks .

Why? While in your virtual store you maintain the entire catalog of the products you offer (whether goods or services), social networks are the best way to publicize the value of your brand and generate closeness with your audience.

Did you know that 55% of users look for a review on the networks before making a purchase process? Now, depending on the profile of your buyer, you must choose the one that best suits him.

For example, LinkedIn is ideal if you are going to have a B2B (Business to Business) business model.

But, if yours is the B2C (Business to Consumer) model, then you will have to choose between the other social networks. For example, Instagram is great for people who like fashion, food, art, travel, and photography.

4. Build a digital marketing strategy

Once all the previous steps have been carried out, what you need to do is create your digital marketing strategy. In this way, it will be easier to know how to sell online, since it gives you notions of how you should advertise, at what times, by what means, what your audience prefers, etc.

What should you keep in mind when building your digital marketing strategy?

• Define your buyer persona. This means that you are going to give a personality to your market segment. It’s like creating an avatar! What do people like? What do they do in their free time? What do you do? How old are they? etc.
• Give the strategy a purpose. It is important that you know what you want to achieve, for example, if you want more people to know your value proposition, you want to increase sales or generate loyalty.
• Set attainable goals. Do you remember SMART goals? Instead of being business-oriented, in this case, they will help you get timely results.
• Create an execution plan. Here it is important that you define what tools and methods are going to help you to obtain the results. Are you going to pay for social media advertising? Are you going to lean towards SEO? Will influencers be part of your outreach?

5. Evaluate the results and keep in touch with your community

Although it is the last step, it is the most important. It is useless for you to make an effort in the four previous steps if you do not analyze the results you obtain and take care of improving communication with your audience. In the digital age, it is very important to talk to people.

Also, when you listen to what they have to tell you and become your accomplices, you will obtain valuable information that can help you know how to sell online.

For example, you can find out what promotions they would like, with which of your products they feel most identified and which ones could be improved, etc. The buyer’s journey is important here! It is that way of searching for the user in which he can meet you and become your final customer.

On the other hand, don’t neglect customer service. Consumers love to feel important. Hasn’t it happened to you that you receive bad attention and never come back? Well, that’s what you should avoid, even if your business is digital.

Mistakes to avoid, it doesn’t matter if you don’t know how to sell online!

And since we are talking about customer service on the Internet, you need to know what those mistakes are that should be avoided when selling online. Prepared?

• To think that, because you have one of the business ideas for young people, your entrepreneurship does not require dedication. On the contrary, the digital world evolves at every moment, so it is important that you stay updated and publish constantly.
• It is not publishing for publishing. Consumers are interested in obtaining valuable information, so you should think of an inbound marketing strategy that is transversal to your virtual store and your social networks.
• Don’t over-promise. Users have the power, seriously. If any of them feel cheated, he will not hesitate to express it. And we already know that this can take on monumental proportions.
• Not managing crises. If a user leaves a bad comment on your networks or on your website, do not delete it. Nothing is perfect! Try to handle the situation as best as possible and respond in time. The one who was your deserter can become an ambassador of your brand.
• It has a secure payment gateway for you and your customers. This way you avoid fraud.
• Register your brand! The legal aspect is the one that we always tend to forget, but it is the most important. Wasn’t Instagram the one that copied the idea of ​​Snapchat stories? Your ideas can be very good, that’s why you have to protect them.

Platforms to sell online

If at the moment you don’t see it feasible to create your own e-commerce, there are several marketplaces that can be useful when selling online. Discover below the most famous:

• Amazon
• Free market
• Alibaba
• Shopify

Finally, keep in mind that undertaking and knowing how to sell online is not easy, but it is an experience that can be completely fun. And, like everything in life, it depends on the attitude you put on it.

On our side, we get advice from the best and as a result, you have today a guide that we would have liked to have before starting this new adventure.