In the competition between sellers, the one who bets on content marketing wins.
Why go to marketplaces?
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the benefits of e-commerce. Going online has become a necessity for many sellers.
But e-commerce was in demand even before the coronavirus crisis. Back in 2019, 42% of Russians, according to Yandex.Market, preferred to buy goods on the Internet. The monthly audience of marketplaces averages 12 million people - and continues to grow.
In the midst of the pandemic, orders for Ozon rose 60% in one month.
You can enter the marketplace quickly enough and without significant investments. You do not need to create a website, set up online payments, and often even organize the delivery and storage of goods. At the same time, the seller gets direct access to a huge audience of potential buyers.
How the marketplace works
A marketplace is a large marketplace that hosts various vendors and sellers. In fact, the site provides a ready-made technological infrastructure for organizing sales, and often it itself is engaged in promoting goods and attracting visitors.
How the marketplace works
People tend to buy on large online resources: there is a huge selection, a lot of real reviews, in general, there is more information about products.
Marketplace is the most popular e-commerce business model.
By providing infrastructure, marketplaces charge sellers a commission - from 5 to 70% from each transaction. And to get to individual sites, you need to go through a rigorous selection.
Choosing a marketplace
All trading platforms focus on specific categories of goods: clothing, footwear, electronics, household appliances, gadgets, tools, food. Obviously, when choosing a marketplace, you should consider its main focus.
Marketplaces sell well gadgets, toys, accessories, clothing, cosmetics and household appliances. Promising product categories: medicines, textiles, furniture, household goods, food.
What to look for when choosing a marketplace:
- potential audience;
- the size of the commission;
- the ability to customize your own showcase;
- availability of additional promotion tools;
- are there any restrictions on placement on other sites.
It is advisable to start with a site that has minimum requirements.
Popular Russian marketplaces:
| Monthly audience, people (2019) | Commission | Subject | |
| Wildberries | 28.5 million | 19% | Clothes and footwear +50 categories |
| Ozon.ru | 23.2 million | 5-40% | 50+ categories |
| Beru.ru | 12.1 million | 5-13% | 50+ categories |
| Goods.ru | 3.7 million | 21.5% | Household goods, household appliances |
| Lamoda.ru | 7 million | 30-70% | Clothes and footwear |
Marketing strategy
To successfully enter the marketplace, it is desirable to have experience in online trading. Selling on sites in the face of growing competition is becoming increasingly difficult. Therefore, you cannot do without a well-thought-out marketing strategy.
What the marketing strategy is based on:
- The choice of a commodity group (if not yet decided) - taking into account demand, costs and profits, the availability of suppliers, manufacturers.
- Analysis of the competitive environment and sales of goods of the selected category - on the Internet in general and on the marketplaces of interest in particular.
- Content marketing - already at the strategy stage, you should think about how the work with content will be organized (sales and, in general, the success of the business model depend on this).
- Planning of work with suppliers and buyers (applications, storage, shipment, delivery, return, payments).
The strategy should be based on research, analytics and planning.
Better to start with one product category and a limited range. The goal should be to get into the leaders of the niche (including due to low prices). When the goal is achieved, the range expands, prices rise.
Working with content
When entering the marketplace, you cannot engage in only one operating activity. Content marketing is of great importance. In conditions of competition and roughly equal opportunities, for sellers, this very tool determines the success of sales.
Among the goods of different sellers, the buyer will choose the one with a high-quality photo, a detailed description and a video review. Even if its price is higher.
Why is content so important? When choosing a product on an online platform, the buyer cannot “touch” it. He judges a product only on the information you provide. If information is scarce, the buyer will pass by. Whether your product is bought or not depends on the quality of the presentation.
Card Product
Product cards
Marketplace products should have perfect cards. Creating them is a laborious task. It is necessary to present the maximum amount of information in a form that is convenient and attractive for users.
For a marketplace user to make a decision to buy your product, he must fall in love with it.
It is not enough to copy the name into the card and drive in the characteristics. There must be a high-quality photo, from which you “can't take your eyes off”. Text and video should reinforce and reinforce the first impression. And the reviews and feedback from the seller are the final push to buy.
Components of a quality product card:
- text description;
- a photo;
- video;
- specifications;
- reviews;
- Feedback.
Marketplaces offer different card design options. Typically, you need to fill in a certain minimum set of attributes. But you shouldn't be limited to them.
Filling out each card is a lot of work. This is another reason why, at first, it is worth betting on the minimum number of goods and paying maximum attention to each heading.
Photos
A photo is the first thing that "catches" the eye of a marketplace visitor. Bright, clear, attractive photography - 90% success. Therefore, it is best to order the creation of images for products from a professional.
Product photos
Professional "chips" for product photos:
- Pictures from different angles - a person should see the product from all sides (as if twisting in his hands).
- Close-up small details - an emphasis on unique features, original design.
- Background and related items - it is better to display the product in the conditions where it is usually used (kettle - in the kitchen, dress - on the model).
- Emotionality - photographs should evoke emotions (this is achieved through a competent combination of colors, play of light, glare).
The trading platform may have special requirements for the photo - this should be taken into account when organizing photography.
Descriptions of goods
It is also better to order high-quality descriptions from a specialist. They must be original - written specifically for a specific product placed on the corresponding online storefront. When writing texts, the copywriter will take into account the audience of the site, the competitive environment and the specifics of the seller.
Signs of good product descriptions:
- — , 500-800 .
- — 80-90%.
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Video content perfectly complements the photo and text description. It is estimated that having a video about a product increases conversion by 80%. People tend to trust more what they see with their own eyes. More on this: 15 Reasons to Use Videos to Promote Products and Services.
The video can not only show the appearance, but also demonstrate the features of the application, the operation of the product. A high-quality video convinces a person that he needs this particular product.
Instead of videos in cards, you can use 3D models of goods.
Commodity characteristics
It is important to competently approach filling out the characteristics in each product card. When the user has plenty to choose from, he carefully compares the parameters. It is imperative to indicate the individual characteristics of the product, as well as options demanded by customers.
Product characteristics
Before filling in the characteristics, you will have to analyze the market and identify the strengths of the product.
It should also be understood that search filters work by characteristics. The more accurately the key parameters are filled in, the more likely it is to attract the target buyer.
Reviews
Reviews deserve special attention on marketplaces. Typically, buyers share their own opinions on products and services. You can influence them by improving the assortment and working with clients.
Feedback
On many marketplaces, the buyer can ask questions of interest. It is necessary to respond to them in a timely manner and provide informative answers.
Fast and high-quality feedback is an indicator of a well-organized work and a demonstration of customer care. It is also an opportunity to improve the content in the product card: the requested information should be entered into the description and characteristics.
Content promotion
Content marketing is a powerful promotion tool. You can use it to expand your audience, increase awareness, and increase sales on the marketplace.
Possible means of promoting content:
- thematic articles;
- blog posts;
- news;
- promotional materials.
Content can be posted both on the marketplace itself, and on third-party sites, in social networks.
Users often share interesting and useful notes, as well as products they like on their pages, sharing your content and increasing traffic.
And in order to accurately “hit” user interests, you need to analyze search queries, audience needs, expectations and aspirations of potential customers.
Content allows you to create a leadership effect. By filling the information space, you appear in the eyes of people as the leading player in the niche.
To promote on marketplaces, you can use all available tools, including digital storefronts, links to recommendations, discounts, banners, chats with customers.
Professional content marketing
As you can see, entering the marketplace requires not so little resources. It is not enough to connect to the trading platform and unload existing goods on it. You have to do a lot of preparation first, and then carefully customize each product card and organize your promotion with content and other available marketing tools.
In this work, it is difficult to do without the help of specialists: content manager, photographer, video editor, copywriter. Moreover, you can be located on several marketplaces and develop the range over time. And the existing content needs to be updated in a timely manner.
To take full advantage of marketplaces, order content from professionals. If you are interested in professional support, leave a request for a free consultation.
Why you shouldn't neglect content marketing to promote your project