E-Commerce Website vs. Marketplace: Where Should Your Company Sell Online?

There are many benefits of selling products online.

However, “online” is very general. There seem to be infinite e-commerce options, with new sites popping up all the time. Choosing the best place for your business to sell online can be a daunting task.

Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal and many more marketplaces have paved way to shorten distances and create price and product utilities.

Some merchants look to get started on either a marketplace or by building their own website. Let’s define what we mean by each:

Marketplace: A third-party site that includes product listings from many sellers across product categories. Examples include Amazon, eBay, Walmart, and Etsy.

Own website: An independent e-commerce website that a seller runs, where buyers purchase goods directly from the website belonging to the business. Many are built using e-commerce platforms like Shopify, Magento, Bigcommerce, and WooCommerce.

Which is best for your business? Learn the general pros and cons of selling your products on a marketplace and your own website.

What are the benefits of selling on a marketplace?

It’s convenient to get started and maintain :

An online marketplace can simplify e-commerce, especially for new sellers. The infrastructure is already there, thus saving retailers time and hassle associated with building a website from scratch. The seller’s experience involves few steps to add and modify product listings.

There are tons of visitors who already make purchases there : 

Marketplaces are well-established, highly trusted websites. People are comfortable making purchases on them and accustomed to going there instead of somewhere new to find products. As many marketplaces are already household names, they have millions of shoppers who are searching for products like yours. It doesn’t require much effort to get your products in front of potential customers.

What are the downsides of selling on a marketplace?

There are multiple competing brands on the same site :

Though your product is unique, there are plenty of similar offerings out there competing for your potential customers’ attention. In a crowded marketplace, your product might not necessarily stand out. Depending on the intensity of competition in your product category, you may not get the exposure or easy sale that you’re hoping to achieve.

People who buy your products may never realize you exist :

Many people who shop on marketplaces assume they are buying from that marketplace (even though they are purchasing your products). The customer is going to remember the marketplace the next time they buy again – not your brand. In most marketplaces, the focus is not on the sellers, but rather the products. There is little, if any, customization offered to individual brands. This makes it extremely difficult to build brand awareness and recognition, and ultimately differentiate your business.

You can’t build a customer list to market to in the future :

Since marketplaces serve as a third-party, they don’t let sellers communicate with buyers outside of the site (however, the marketplace can contact your customers again in the future). This means you cannot send your customers future promotions, new product announcements, or simply remind them that your product exists to drive future sales. Without building a customer list, you are relying on new sales only; You can’t take advantage of past purchasers.

Why should you use your own website to sell online?

Establish and maintain full control over your brand :

When you run your own e-commerce website, you have total control over what it looks like, what it says, and how it works. It doesn’t have to be generic or boring. This is your chance to show the world your brand’s personality. Many e-commerce platforms offer flexibility over design, pre-built templates to choose from, and integrations with other systems.

You can retarget shoppers to become repeat buyers :

One of the greatest advantages of managing your own website is that you get direct access to your customers. You can target people who visit your site with ads, market to those who have already purchased from you, and stay connected in the future. Email list building helps you build awareness, bring in steady revenue, and run promotions to get rid of inventory.

What are the downsides of selling on your own website?

Setup can be time-consuming and technical :

Building your own website can be as simple or complicated as you want it to be. With the rise of e-commerce platforms and do-it-yourself tools, it’s never been easier to get a site up and running. However, you may still run into technical issues or at the very least, time constraints.

You have to work to get shoppers to your site :

Once you launch your website, your work is not done. You need to get people there. Visitors won’t magically flock to your site, or even find it right away for that matter. There is marketing effort that goes into setting up the right campaigns to get the word out. Once you get them to visit your site, you then have to convert them into becoming paying customers. You should optimize your website to have a great user experience, which involves a compelling message, placement of buttons, mobile experience, and more.

Are you already selling on an e-commerce marketplace or have built your own website?

OR 

Do you want to sell on an e-commerce marketplace or own Website , Feel free to write us Email on this E-mail Id : [email protected]