Best online marketplace to sell on?
With a prediction of B2C e-commerce to reach ￡4 trillion of worldwide sales by 2021, powerful online marketplaces such as Ebay and Amazon are seen as the MUST-HAVE platform for sellers in 2020.
There are many reasons to use established online marketplaces such as Etsy and Amazon. For example, the platforms are simple to set up, they already have a large existing audience and they require a significantly low investment to start with! These marketplaces already have their own customer service department and company policies too, so you can cut costs on these e-commerce necessities. However, it is important that you take into consideration the fees you have to pay for using these online marketplaces, as well as the lack of personalisation when it comes to your listings.
Amazon
Amazon has a huge audience and has experienced progressive growth year on year. With 310 million active users, 90 million Prime members and 2.6 billion page views a month you are almost guaranteed to gain sales through this platform!
Pros
- ￡25 monthly fee allows you to sell in all of Amazon’s marketplaces in Europe.
- Start selling quickly without creating a website.
- Cancel anytime, no commitment
- Additional services such as fulfilment, storage, advertising, etc.
Cons
- Amazon owns the customer relationship
- Amazon can shut your selling account down if you infringe on their policies – slightly unstable for your business.
Ebay
Since 1995, eBay has evolved into one of the most popular online marketplaces and holds the title of being one of the best platforms to sell your products on. eBay connects sellers to buyers worldwide, with 22 million active users in the UK alone! 80% of products sold on the platform are new, and 86% are sold at a fixed price rather than auction.
Ebay’s business model is set up for eBay to take a Final Value fee of 10-12% when you sell an item through an auction or fixed price.
Pros
- Inbuilt marketing and merchandising to help you drive traffic and sales.
- Seller support is open 24hrs a day, 7 days a week.
- 1.2 Billion Monthly page views mean’s the platform has a large audience already.
- Sell anything you like
Cons
- Logistics support is fulfilled by your business
- Very crowded = COMPETITION
Etsy
Seen as the unique and creative global online marketplaces for artsy or vintage products, Etsy focuses on providing a cheap marketplace for artists and craftsmen, for example, to sell their products online. Some of the most popular product categories on Etsy include photography, toys and games, jewellery and art.
Etsy is constantly changing, and your business must work with those changes to continue seeing sales on the platform.
Pros
- You can get an Etsy shop set up in no time!
- Great place to start your business and test the market before investing into a website
Cons
- So many crafters on this platform so it’s easy for them to find your product and copy it
Gumtree
Did you know Gumtree is actually owned by the mighty online platform eBay?! That’s right, eBay saw Gumtree as a threat back in 2005 so they bought the business.
With a monthly traffic of over 66 million, the site is committed to educating those who use the platform to keep the site as safe as possible, gaining trust for your buyers.
Gumtree is a great site to sell pretty much anything quickly. Yet, Gumtree may be a better platform for those who want to sell preloved items as oppose-to new stock.
Pros
- Free to advertise
- Ability to organise local pick-ups for your convenience
- Easy to use app
Cons
Your potential business is much more limited as you can only sell locally