Of course, starting an online social media business is easy. But when it comes to real business, confusion arises. This is why starting an online business on social media is a bad idea.
A quick look at popular social media platforms like Instagram reveals many aspiring solo entrepreneurs working hard. Home bakers, clothing line dropshippers, hair product makers, boutique owners, and the list goes on. Of course, without social media, many of us would never have met these people. After all, that’s what it’s really for. is not it?
I’ve met many owners who put all their money into this basket alone because social media helps us grow our business. Is this good for business? Or will it backfire at some point?
So why not find out on this blog?
Contents
- Social Media is Always a Smooth Start
- Hitting a Social Media Plateau
- When It’s Down To Business, It gets Messy!
- So, what are the Alternatives?
- How Sellker can help
Social Media is Always a Smooth Start
Getting started on social media is pretty easy, right? Sign up and add what you want the world to see about your business. When you share your new venture with friends and family, you’ll get some initial traction, and they’ll do the same for you.
a splash of your product; if you’re a home baker, this last batch of macarons you made, or a buttercream frosting hack to get it right. Now, I need a cupcake, sigh!
Anyway, it’s been smooth sailing. at first.
According to a recent study by Sprout Social, the primary goal of marketers on social media is to increase brand awareness. Most of the reason marketers use social media is to advertise, not to sell.
Hitting a Social Media Plateau
Soon, this first wave tends to wane. It reduces visibility and can lead to confusion. Google is inundated with articles and videos about breaking out of this social media stagnation and reviving mojo.
don’t believe me?
When I ran a search volume test using Google’s keyword research tool, the number of people searching for “how to get followers on Instagram fast” ranged from 10,000 to 100,000, which is a staggering number.
The quest to gain followers (read battles) is nothing new. Initial success is tempting, but the days that follow often fail to meet the expectations of most business owners.
Since social media platforms are used by millions across the globe, it’s natural for business owners to assume that it is easy to reach out to them through these channels.
However, what many people don’t realize is that building a presence through this channel requires time and patience. A flood of DMs, comments asking for prices, orders pouring in, all of it takes due time.
Additionally, social platforms thrive on advertising. Business accounts get far less reach before serving paid ads than individual accounts. Basically, if you’re willing to invest generously, you can expect the results you want.
Use social media to power your business operations. You don’t have to use it to run your business. Let’s see why.
When It’s Down To Business, It gets Messy!
Below are some of the things we’ve discovered from clients who use social media exclusively to run their online stores and businesses. Especially after achieving the social presence they wanted.
Difficulty In Managing Orders From Multiple Sources
There are multiple ways your customers can contact you. It could be a direct message on Instagram or a chat on WhatsApp. Over time, it becomes difficult to track orders from multiple sources, especially as they grow in size.
Amid this chaos, you end up with duplicate orders being processed and orders lost. The result is a poor customer experience. It’s hard to get back lost customers.
Lack of a Unified System to Run Business
A social media platform is simply a support system that supports your business. Their main goal is to promote and popularize your brand/account.
As a result, it becomes very difficult to process orders, track shipments, confirm and reconcile orders, prevent duplication, and process secure payments. Even if you end up doing everything on social media, you still need the support of other platforms to complete the rest of the ordering cycle.
Competition could steal your brand name/profile
Every other day, I see pages where a large number of followers post stories calling out fake accounts created in their name. These accounts feature the same products and logos as thriving businesses. , can even save on orders or defraud customers.
Remember Nestle’s foosball knockoffs?
Source: Reddit
Tracking down fake profiles that pose a major threat to your reputation may not be easy.
Wastage of Resources
I’m busy, so I feel tight. Running a business becomes difficult and you can’t be in multiple locations at the same time, including packaging, processing, and payments. You may need to hire additional resources that can add overhead. It’s important to note that there are e-commerce platforms that allow you to run your show without the hassle.
If you already have resources, this back-and-forth will most likely lead to underutilization of your resources, even though you could use them for something of value.
Exclusive Ownership Issues
You’re not in charge here, TLDR.
We have a review process for controversies and issues that arise on social media platforms. In some cases, accounts may be banned or even banned. Even a copyright infringement scenario where another account has stolen your identity isn’t strong enough to prevent the company from doing so.
On the contrary, competitors could report your profile, possibly for no reason, and all your efforts could be lost overnight. Additionally, if you run your business on these platforms, the white label isn’t exactly on your card.
/platform/your-shop/.This exclusivity is missing! Why is it important to ask questions? Recall two words brand.
Business Data Hacking
It’s no secret that our data is not completely secure on many major platforms. This can pose a challenge, especially for business data security. Your sensitive data can be accessed and even leaked by other users. You own the platform and have little to no control over what happens.
So, what are the Alternatives?
If it’s not social media, you might need to set up your business website, right?
To do the same, you’ll have to hire a graphic designer or developer to do the work. Combine that with website domain hosting fees, payment gateway fees, shipping, and logistics, and the odds are low.
Or you could move to an e-commerce platform that does all of this. You have to hand over cash in both cases. Good bits for that.
It’s not like the free signups you see on social media.
There may also be obstacles such as B. The technical knowledge necessary to perform the task or set up the platform the way you want it.
For those who aren’t tech-savvy or don’t want that kind of sophistication, this could easily be a deal-breaker.
How Sellker can help
We understand.
It’s hard when dreams come with a price. Now let’s change that.
What if I asked you to forget all the big numbers and issues we just talked about? Before you raise your eyebrows, let me tell you why.
With a platform like SellKer, you can get the best of both worlds.
SellKer has been conceived with one thing in mind- simplicity.
You can download the app or use the web browse version to signup. Fill in the details of your business, you know, the name, category, and the like. Add products, set a price for each, offer discounts, and go live instantly.
And, don’t worry about payments.
Add your account details and proceed for secure checkouts each time. No data leaks or security concerns. Your customers will be alerted via WhatsApp, right from order confirmation to delivery.
Get all your marketing, payments, invoices, and discounts sorted in one place. Add additional plugins to enhance the experience.
Do you still have second thoughts? Let me draw a side-by-side comparison of how things would change from your current WhatsApp business model to SellKer.
Remember when we said to get rid of the big investment? With SellKer you can get started for free!
Should you put all your energy into multiple channels when a single platform can simplify the whole process? Combine the power of an ecommerce platform with social media.
Strengthen your brand from the ground up! If you have any questions, we are happy to help.
Cheers!