Build your brand in offline space

Today the buzz is ONLINE!! If you are not #online, you are nowhere. There is so much of thrust on the online business that many have ignored the importance of offline. This article talks about why focus on OFFLINE is equally important.

Sharp Consulting and Implementing Company is one of the few companies that focuses on the brick-and-mortar business. According to Statista, published on 31st July 2023, the total number of traditional grocery store in India is about 12 million. In comparison to this, the count of #modernretail store is over 22,000 in 2022. Even though this format has grown consistently since 2013, it is a small portion compared to the number of traditional grocery retailers. Now that is a big number to be left un attended.

At this point, I would also like to make a statement, “Brands are only made in the offline space.” This perhaps the biggest truth that will remain unchanged for years to come. Therefore, the importance of offline business will never go down, ever.

I would also like to break myth here. There is usually a feeling amongst many #entrepreneurs that the #online business is not expensive. They think that by making their product available they can get sales. Well, the truth is quite the opposite. Let’s look at the a few of the points –

1. Listing of products in some of the sites cumbersome.
2. Listing the product and leaving it unattended will never give sales.
3. There are many platforms that charge what is called platform fee / listing fee.
4. It is important create discounts to get sales
5. There is a per piece fee that most of the online seller’s charge. Sometime these fees are so high that combo packs have to be created to make it viable.
6. Digital marketing is very expensive. Many a times, you get lost into the view and wonder why people who are viewing are not buying. More and more investment is needed.
7. To attain sales there is an expense and maintain sales there is another expense.

The audience juggles between products. The catch in the online sales is diversion. The most obvious behavior that is seen in online business is that the cookies that are accepted give many options for the same category. Suppose you have decided to buy a particular food item and you have clicked on it. The moment you get into the details, many suggestions will pop-up. The result – you may end up buying something else. Now to avoid this diversion you have to invest and keep in investing to get to the numbers. Although online present a big opportunity it has massive competition. The consumer has the leisure time of looking at finer details and with each brand having their own USP’s getting #Customerloyalty is a big challenge.

It is also true that the options that are not available elsewhere is mostly available online. The online business makes accessibility and availability easier. Therefore, if you have a business set-up in Chennai and a customer from Kashmir needs your product then there is every possibility that he will buy online. This is one of the key reasons why being present online is a must even if, the customer has to bear the additional cost of freight, he will do it because he wants the product.

In adversity lies the biggest opportunity, therefore no matter in what business we are it is always advisable to have a mix of various channels. Just a while ago, when the pandemic had hit the products that were online got their biggest opportunity of their life. There were continuous orders as people could not go out. But what about the offline store that was right at the corner of your home? Did it shut down or made humongous cash? There is one small time retailer, I interacted with, he said that during pandemic the sales of his store was 10 times more than usual. That was about a store? What about the distributors? There was one constant answer – “We are need more stock”

The offline business is an ever-green business. They present the only avenue where you can touch and feel the product before you buy it. The impact of this is that there is negligible or no customer return. The sale is sure. There is a huge possibility of getting customer loyalty through this channel. The desire to be offline is always there but the know how to get into the offline channel poses a great challenge for them.

Today every fifth person that you meet talks about online. But when we talk about offline the options are very less. Sharp Consulting and Implementing Company is one such option. We provide you with the whole lot of opportunity in the retail business by brining your brand close to the customer. The movement into the offline business like any other business has its own risk and returns, but when entry to market is done wisely, the chance of success increases multi-fold. We provide end-to-end offline solutions and are one point contact for all your needs.

The brand being present in the retail space increase the “reason to believe” element of brand key. The online space has a sublime feeling of less trust. But in offline it is not the case. That is why building customer bases is very much permanent and these permanent customer play a vital role in building the Brand.