6 Reasons Why eCommerce Brands Should Also Go Direct Selling to Customers
We know how brands have traditionally been selling. We know they don’t reach directly to consumers. Rather, they leverage distributors to reach shops. They sell to big retailers directly. This model has been flourishing for ages, or at least for decades.
Is this model still viable? Not really, at least not in the same manner as it used to be. The reason is – the arrival of the internet or digital has changed the landscape completely. With the online world rising in penetration and impact, having direct-to-consumer channels (DTC) is a must these days.
Brand with DTC channels are faring well and in fact, raking in more than those lacking it. With online stores, brands are reaching out to new customers and selling their wares to them easily.
Your brand is surely at a loss in leveraging what others are doing with relish. In a sense, you should know direct sales tips to make an inroad into a lucrative segment.
Let’s look at reasons why brands should go direct selling to customers:
#1 To leverage the demand on own, not the retailer
First and foremost, you must be spending a good amount on creating the demand for your product/service. It’s thus logical to reap the benefit by own rather than letting the retailer reap the harvest.
If your product enjoys a fair share of searches on the internet, this mean you should follow the DTC route. In case your product enjoys top ranking results in search engines, you should then go for the kill by selling directly to consumers.
#2 To get pushed more since retailers will push only what sells
This is a harsh reality you should understand sooner rather than later. Retailers will push only what sells. For them, your product in no way special than others, unless you’re their top-selling brand.
For retailers, there is not much incentive in sticking with only your product and this is why you should choose the DTC route. This way, you can connect to customers and peddle your wares to them.
#3 To focus more on shopping experience rather than increasing the sales
Retailers are there in the mix only to make money. For them, caring for shopping experience or pushing a brand does not matter as much as it will be to you. This is something you should know. Having a direct-to-customer channel will help you not only reach to the target audience but also deliver them a rewarding experience.
# 4 To minimize your dependence on any single revenue stream
You simply can’t depend too much on any single revenue stream as this might prove risky in the long run. You need to develop varied distribution channels to curtail reliance on some retailers or any single one of them.
Similarly, you need to up the efforts in making brand building recognition as only this can motivate more retailers to take your products forward to the end users.
#5 To make your store a viable option for shoppers
You need a DTC channel to reach to new customers. You need to set up an online store so that shoppers can reach you directly and make purchase rather than meeting retailers and land in the basket of your competitors. You need to be judicious with product pricing and shipping costs to be a great alternative to retailers.
# 6 To communicate with customers more effectively
E-commerce brands will get to communicate with customers if they go direct selling. They will educate, inform and enlighten about products, something retailers have least interest in. They can get a lot of genuine feedback and not to forget, can market their brand better.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, the decision for brands to go direct selling to customers is one full of benefits. So, they should implement it at the earliest and be with the tide of the changing times, rather than against it.
After all, knowing direct sales tips will surely help no matter in which segment you operate in.
