The best way to lose clients, stay irrelevant and become extinct is to refuse to take your business online.
It may sound like a cliché, but that’s the simple truth.
I was speaking with a woman the other day who sells crayfish and fish on how she can reach more clients with her foodstuff.
She laughed, “when others are selling phones, computers and clothes, I should start selling common crayfish online? Hahahaha”
I asked to try it and see the result before concluding.
After 3 days she messaged me telling me that 3 people placed an order when she posted it on her facebook wall.
She couldn’t believe it.
Initially, she has only been selling from door to door and through word of mouth.
She was so excited about the opportunity that she wanted to start an Instagram page for it.
One of the questions people ask when you talk to them about taking their business online or starting an online business is, “does it work?”
It’s a good question to ask but unfortunately a lot of business owners stop at that and never ask, “how does it work”.
If you’re still wondering why you should take your traditional business online, here are few reasons:
1. Low startup cost.
Starting an online business could be as cheap as buying a domain and web hosting and an email marketing service.
Facebook, instagram and twitter are free to use.
And then running facebook ad for just $5 to let MORE people (apart from family and friends) know about your business.
Of course, you know that starting a brick and mortar business will require more capital.
A good website can be designed without breaking the bank.
2. Better customer support.
With the internet, responding to the complaints from your customers is easier.
With an email, tweet, facebook post or DM you can address an issue.
It is easier, faster and more convenient for your business and the customer.
3. Work from anywhere.
You already know this.
You can run your online business from anywhere in the world with your PC or smartphone and an internet connection.
So, you can have your “office” in Nigeria, your warehouse in China and your clients in US.
4. 24 Hour availability.
As long as you’ve paid for your domain name and hosting, your business runs 24 hours.
The good thing is you can run your business on autopilot with a few clicks of keypads.
You run facebook ads to your squeeze page, from your squeeze page, they receive your free gift, join your email list, then you redirect them to your sales page.
They make payment, then receive the products via email (for digital products)
Physical products are shipped to the customers via a courier company.
5. Reduce operation cost
Running an online business will drastically reduce operation cost.
There are tools and software (free and paid) for virtually every business operation.
And you can even outsource most tasks to freelancers without having a physical or a permanent staff.
6. Reach more clients
This is the crux of the whole matter.
Every business owner needs more customers.
And the fastest and the most cost effective way to get more clients is via the internet.
You know how expensive it is to go on the radio, television or magazine to advertise your business.
But with advertising platforms like Facebook ad, Google adword, Instagram ad and other types of online advertising, you can reach the global market at an affordable rate.
7. It improves your business image.
It will be ridiculous or embarrassing for a potential customer not to find you online.
They will begin to question your authenticity and seriousness.
Today businesses of all size are taking their businesses online.
It doesn’t matter what you sell.
A hairdresser, a barber, a carpenter, a lawyer, doctor, etc can take their businesses online.
Don’t say, “I’m not a tech person or an IT guy” because whether you like it or not, you use tech every day.
If you can learn to use your smartphone, PC, ATM or any “techy” thing, you can learn anything.
The world is moving fast and you can’t afford to become extinct because you refuse to embrace the new reality.