The four keys to achieving success in an online business

Sell ​​online, increase in billing

Pablo Pastega, from Spotcap, offers the keys to achieving success with these businesses

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En Spain exist, according to a study by Xopie and the BBVA, 85.000 e-commerce businesses/stores. According to different studies, this number is going to grow considerably. Many of these new online shops They will be created by freelancers and SMEs that already sell in the “offline” world.

 

According to INE en Spain there are more than 3 million Self-employed y SMEs. Pablo Pastega, CEO Spotcap and expert in online commerce, explains 4 differentiating aspects that any business manager who is considering starting to sell online must consider to achieve success.

 

1. Are you willing to take the leap?

 

Selling online will allow you to increase your sales (and why not, your profit margins). However, you'll have to learn how to navigate the online world: time availability, computer tools to optimize this channel…

 

2. Marketplace vs own store or both?

 

There are 2 ways to sell online. The simplest is to do it through one/several Marketplace, like those who have Amazon, eBay or Rakuten… The advantage of operating through these marketplaces is that, in exchange for a commission, they take care of the logistics and also promote you on their websites, which have significant traffic.

 

The other way to sell online is by building your “own” store and therefore managing all areas of your online business yourself. This is currently not as complicated as it seems. Companies like Prestashop They provide free and easy tools to set up, manage and promote an online store.

 

 

Other major sections that must be adapted to the online world are logistics management, shipments/returns and customer service.

 

 

3. Online store set up… now how do I increase sales?

 

Depending on the product (type, margin) that you are going to sell, the means you have and whether or not your store is in a Marketplace, you must consider a marketing plan that contains several channels, such as: Social Media y “Free” PR: have a channel on Facebook / Twitter…and contact online media and bloggers specialized are always good ways to start promoting yourself.

 

Optimization of your positioning without purchasing advertising (SEO) in search engines like Google, so when someone searches for your product you will appear better positioned and you will not have to pay the search engine for each click (CPC)

 

Affiliate Marketing: There are platforms like Tradedoubler or Zanox what do you

They allow you to advertise your product on informative websites (publishers) related to it. The commission they take is generally per sale (CPA/CPO).

 

Search engine advertising (SEM) which in the case of Google is done through the

“buying” keywords (Keyword) that Internet users look for in said

seeker. Every time someone clicks on your ad there is a commission that the search engine receives (CPC).

 

4. How to finance yourself and not die trying?

 

For different reasons, traditional banks are not adapted to the problems of Self-employed and SMEs. According to a study by American Express, 74% of Spanish companies acknowledge that they continue to have problems accessing credit and for 94% optimizing working capital is the number 1 priority.

 

For this reason, it has been launched in Spain Spotcap which is the first 100% online credit platform aimed exclusively at Self-Employed and SMEs that allows you to request and obtain a line of credit in minutes (not weeks).