The e-commerce industry continues to grow. By examining the Fiverr marketplace, we can make some pretty strong statements about what kind of services you’ll need to succeed, as well as how you can utilize the various platforms to make your business successful.
Getting started with an online store
In order to decide whether to start an e-commerce business, small businesses should first recognize that there are several major players in the e-commerce space. It appears that most Fiverr users end up in one of two places-either selling services on the Amazon marketplace or building their own online store using a platform like Shopify or some other similar platform.
It is interesting to note that members of the Fiverr community rarely do both. The reason for that has a whole lot to do with resource allocation, as starting even one business is hard enough on its own, let alone two. When it comes to small businesses, every new sales channel means more marketing dollars and more staff to manage, so many choose to experiment with just one rather than experiment with both at the same time.
Online Store Comparison: Shopify vs Amazon?
Due to the fact that the two platforms cater to different types of e-commerce needs, the services that you’ll need to get started will be drastically different between the two. The advantages and disadvantages of Shopify and Amazon’s ecommerce platforms are very different. There is no doubt that Amazon’s Individual plan is more suitable for small-scale sellers, however Shopify provides a much better overall value for money than Amazon.
Amazon Ecommerce Store Creation
Amazon merchants are able to tap into Amazon’s massive traffic and get selling quickly. However, you’re not the only one doing this. There are probably tons of similar products with limited recognition of your brand out there.
Small businesses can create a successful website with just eye-catching images and snappy copy thanks to Amazon’s “plug and play” marketplace. As a result, 17 percent of Amazon orders made on Fiverr required Photoshop editing, and 16 percent demanded business copywriting services.
The Shopify Ecommerce Platform
In addition to expressing a brand and its business in a more complete way, a Shopify-built site offers a platform and outlet without dealing with payment infrastructure. Although that upside is appealing to many budding businesses, there is a catch; you need to work hard to get traffic, traction, and popularity for your Shopify site.
If you want your business to be successful on Shopify, you will need a much more comprehensive suite of services including website development, social media marketing services, business copywriting, and search engine optimization. It is estimated that 60 percent of Shopify orders on Fiverr are associated with the Programming and Tech category in order to solve this major development challenge. Additionally, Shopify service purchases include SEO and digital marketing, as small businesses must build a storefront before generating interest.
Which Platform Is Right for You?
I’m not sure which platform is right for me, so how do I choose one? It is true that Amazon and Shopify both present great opportunities for launching and growing e-commerce businesses, but their approaches and services differ significantly.
It may be best for you to join Amazon if:
- Fulfillment shouldn’t take up your time.
- It is important to have access to the largest number of buyers in one place.
- It’s fine for you to compete with other sellers of similar products.
- Getting your business off the ground on someone else’s platform is comfortable to you. Just be aware that you have to follow their rules.
- Your product is simple enough for people to understand without much consultation.
- You want a clear understanding of advertising attribution, with ads tied directly to in-store experiences.
If you are interested in Shopify, then it might be a good fit:
- In order to succeed, you consider branding to be an important aspect.
- You want to make sure that your margins are protected.
- A greater level of personalized delivery beyond a cardboard box is required, as well as the ability to handle fulfillment on your own.
- You do not want to enable side-by-side comparisons and value shopping which can result in confusion.
- Providing a more advanced shopping experience is important to you.
- You want to drive traffic to your products and pages with some creative marketing concepts (such as landing pages, social media campaigns, etc.).
You can find a Fiverr Pro ready to help you build whatever e-commerce platform suits your business model.
Conclusion
Shopify is an eCommerce platform, while Amazon is something of a marketplace. This is the key difference between the two platforms. In other words, Shopify enables you to create your own online store, while Amazon allows you to sell on its marketplace alongside other sellers on the platform. You may think that being the most versatile employee of your e-commerce business is an empowering role, but it can also overwhelm you at times. Therefore, in order to let you focus on your strengths within your small business, you might want to think about delegating work to an ecommerce expert.
The Fiverr marketplace is an online community of skilled and experienced freelancers who specialize in helping businesses like yours get the help they need. Find a business development expert that can assist you in every aspect of e-commerce business development today rather than wasting your time.
