What's better for you, An Online or, Brick and Mortar business?
A great idea is brewing and you want to turn the idea into a business reality.
You want to set up shop. But what kind of shop? Is it better to head downtown and find a great store location or is it better to open an online store?
The best way to decide is to think like your customers.
Business Then and Now
In days past, starting a business required a physical location. You had to have a storefront or office space and for most businesses, you had to be visible to the public.
People came into a store and looked over items, much the way they do in retail stores today. They wanted to touch and compare. And though many people still do, times are rapidly changing.
More and more people are turning to online shopping for a variety of reasons.
The biggest reason is that they can receive an unlimited selection of product and not be limited to what a store actually has on hand.
Even hard to find items can be found using a web search on the Internet. But not all items or services suit the web at all, and others would be well-advised to have both a physical and online presence.
Weighing the Factors
When deciding whether your business is online, brick and mortar, or a combination of the two, several different factors need to be assessed. Let’s look at the most important.
Pricing: Can you price your items lower than your brick and mortar competition because of low overhead? Or will you be able to keep lower prices through bulk buying as a brick and mortar?
Selection: Will you be selling specialty or hard to find items? If so, having an international market will be helpful through an online store. If you are selling items that are not shipped easily, brick and mortar will suit you more.
Read or Touch: Online stores can offer descriptions of products that are far more detailed than what is typically found on the product box or what a brick and mortar store employee may be able to provide.
On the other hand, there are some products that you customers will want to see for themselves and this cannot be done online. Research into your product will help you determine if your customers will prefer to read all about it or touch it for themselves.
Returns: You are not likely to sell a product that won’t ever be returned. Returning an item online can be more difficult than returning one to a brick and mortar store.
Will you be willing to pay return shipping or will the cost of shipping returns be too costly?
To be a smart business entrepreneur, you have to have a successful strategy that depends on the buying public’s mindset.
Although many products and services suit themselves to both online and brick and mortar stores, some simply don’t work well in both environments.
Always do your research and create a plan that takes into account all the factors listed above and as well as others that pertain to your specific product or service.
Next Page:
The Advantages of Buying an Existing Business
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