Hey Brick & Mortar Business Owners, It’s Time

With the pandemic behind us now, there are many lessons that we can take away from it but one of the biggest ones is the importance of e-commerce for SMEs. As COVID-19 forced many businesses to close their doors, many were unable to maintain overhead fees, even with financial support from the government. Having an online platform and digital store could potentially save businesses like these, so it is hard not to scratch your head and wonder why businesses aren’t making the jump from brick and mortar to online.

Without a doubt, change of any kind can be daunting and when it comes to having an online store it can be difficult to know where to start. Here are some major reasons why small to medium businesses should go online to motivate you to make that jump.

Money

It gives you the freedom to shut down the store front and work from home. This of course saves money that would normally go towards the space and might be the right move if you find that you aren’t seeing a lot of new customers but do have many loyal returning customers. You can always engage with your customers and ask them if they would continue to buy from you if you were to switch to online - your customers will value having an open conversation with them and for even listening to their feedback. You may find that you have a customer base that drives pretty far from a few towns over just to come to your store so the switch to online could really benefit them.

Distance

This leads to our second reason. Going from a physical store to a physical store and an online store means that you are going from being exclusively local to potentially global, if you so choose. You can decide what makes the most sense for you in terms of shipping products across the country, the continent or the world depending on the demand for your merchandise. By making the switch to online, you are giving a whole new audience access to your business.

Time

With a website, customers are not only able to access your business from anywhere but also at any time. Brick and mortar stores limit you to a set time frame of business hours so you are potentially missing out on a whole percentage of people who work the same hours that you do. The beauty of an online business is that people can order from you whenever they want, around the clock and it is no inconvenience to you. 

Competition

The final point is that having a website is what will keep you competitive with other businesses. If your competition hasn’t gone online already then this is your chance to get ahead and have a huge advantage. If they have made the transition then now is your time to not only catch up but also learn from their mistakes - what are they doing and how can you improve it? Either way, giving your business a digital edge is going to help you greatly with competing SMEs. 

So to conclude, making the leap from exclusively brick and mortar to e-commerce means financial relief for you, more access to your store for your new and returning customers and an extra edge over your competitors. Hopefully, this post has convinced you how crucial this step is in this era of technology. If it has, stay tuned to our blog for advice on how to get started on the transition. If you are a customer reading this and you have a favorite local business (that you think would benefit from going online) - share this blog post with them! 

If you are a small to medium business owner who is intimidated by making the change, comment below. What is the biggest hurdle that is stopping you from going online?