Marketplace, a complementary sales channel to your online store

Surely you have heard of the Marketplace , right? We refer to the business model that has become a very useful resource for shops and companies that want to take advantage of the rise of sales through the Internet.

Now it is essential to know what a marketplace is and what hides behind him. With Gowtech we will clear your doubts and encourage you to make the necessary jump to these new platforms, so that you manage to get the most out of this resource by applying it to your company.

It is clear that the use of ecommerces is increasingly generalized, although purchase habits remain very different depending on the age of users. The proliferation of online stores also carries with it the increase in platforms that collect this type of shops and that offer great advantages to both buyers and vendors.

At the same time that the number of users who make exclusive use of the online channel increases, buyers decrease that make it offline or traditional trade. Why does this happen? Variety of products, speed, comfort, availability, competitive prices ... are some of the reasons why opt for this type of online trade.

To have the concept a little clearer, we will see what is Marketplace and what does it mean to be in it?

What is a Marketplace?

Marketplace is a great digital showcase where you can find any product, at any time and from anywhere.

It is a platform that works as a shopping center online , where ecommerces offer their products and services, in the same way that physical stores do in offline shopping centers. It is a broader concept of online sales. Through this platform, different stores can announce their products, offering the customer a wide range of options and opportunities.

A Marketplace is a large store store, it is a distribution platform where ecommerces offer their products and services, just as offline shopping centers with physical stores. The function of the Marketplace creator, is simply to agglutinate these stores and put buyers and vendors in touch.

What is your difference with an ecommerce ?

If in an ecommerce , you enter the website of an X store and choose a product, it is sold and sent by the store itself.

In the case of a marketplace, you can enter the website of the X store and choose a product that is being sold and sent by a store and different.

What are your biggest advantages?

The practice of buying in the marketplaces has been increasing progressively in recent years, but with the pandemic and mobility restrictions we are living, the habit of buying online has grown much more without having to leave home. This behavior is increasing because it offers advantages for merchants and users.

For merchants it means collaboration and visibility . Their companies, whether they are more or less large, manage to increase their sales since they reach more people. The Marketplace acts as Shopping Center , relating your products with similar ones and suggesting the customer to increase its purchase. It is what we could say a "virtual showcase" in a large online shopping center.

Marketplace brings confidence to your product. The consumer knows that the products offered on the site, have a certain reputation linked to the demands of the platform for being on their website, this makes some objections to buy the users disappear at first. Companies that manage a marketplace are very strict with compliance with the standards, after all, their reputation is at stake.

Practicality for users , offering the possibility of comparing prices easy and quickly between offers from several vendors in the same portal. It is a saving of costs and shipping costs when making a single payment and being able to buy products in several different stores.

How does a marketplace work?

To get the most out of your business with the help of a Marketplace, the first steps to follow are very simple, you must basically register your company and your products on the online platform. From here, your products begin to be disseminated, to achieve visibility in the network, they appear in surveys and are suggested to users, according to their search and purchase history .

In general, this model is structured in three pillars:

Platform , which acts as a neutral third, makes transactions connector and has two access levels: one for merchants and one for customers. The Marketplace operator is responsible for managing access, transactions and strategic actions to promote flow and boost sales on their website.
Sellers , who register their ecommerce , are as associates that offer their services on the platform, where they organize their products, packages and offers. They are responsible for the information regarding products and stores and maintaining sales flow efficiency.
Customers, who enter the platform to compare and buy at the best quality/price ratio.

For a Marketplace to succeed, it must have easy navigability and usability, being intuitive for both vendors and buyers and must have easy methods to choose and pay products.

The promotion of business through digital marketing in dissemination channels is basic to attract and loyalty greater number of consumers. Investing in videos, blogs, email marketing, etc., is essential in any type of shops.

Taking care of the quality of the services and products offered is a priority if you want to maintain the good reputation of the Marketplace, providing credibility to the business to make it a reference in the face of competition.

Choose the marketplace to which you are going to associate your company. You must take into account the profile of the user to offer your products, both in relation to their interests and demographic factors. It is important that the marketplace you choose is aimed at users of your clients' profile.

Types of marketplaces

We can find 3 types of marketplace on the Internet:

Marketplace of products, where you can sell and buy any type of material.
Marketplace of services, where services are offered, such as hotels or ticket purchase, among others.
Marketplace labor, where the platform serves to connect companies with professionals or vice versa.

And within these 3 types, we find two categories:

Generalist marketplaces, in which you can find diversity of products and services of any category.
Vertical or niche market marketplaces, where to find specialized products in a given sector.

Advantages of buying in a marketplace

The advantages for users of this type of platforms are very significant, they manage to optimize and lighten the purchase process, in addition to saving money on the product.

Great variety of products; Different brands, all offered from the same website, with the possibility of comparing opinions, prices and characteristics easily and quickly.
Greater transparency in real time; Accounts with information about the availability and stock of products, which allows you to make more successful purchase decisions.
Very competitive prices; You find offers and promotions that lower the price of the products, even more than in the online store of a specific brand.
Efficiency and speed in shipments; These platforms agree very competitive prices with parcel companies, due to the large volume of sales that move, which lowers the cost of shipping or even becoming free in many cases.
24 -hour disposition; We have the possibility of buying at any time of the day, without time limitation or problems in the hourly difference of international trade.

Advantages of selling in a marketplace

If you are starting in ecommerce , you are very interested. It is an excellent way to submit your products to a market test. If your budget is very limited and contemplates the ecommerce as a complementary sales channel and not the main one, in that case the m arketplace should be your preferred option.

Disposition of an additional sales channel: that wide your sales possibilities by having a complementary channel. At the same time you can exhaust your stock or those products that you cannot give out on your own channel.
Access to the general public: The visibility of your company in a marketplace allows you to reach a volume of customers much higher than only through your channel, unless your company is a large multinational.
You do not need to have your own ecommerce: if you want to sell on the Internet, you do not need to invest in the creation of your own online store, a Marketplace offers you the possibility of selling your products/services in exchange for a fee per month and/or a commission on sales.
Greater credibility: A Marketplace brings confidence and recognition to your brand. It will make it better known and you will have the possibility that users are looking for products in your own eCommerce .
Bank cost savings: Users make payment to the platform and subsequently pays the brand, which represents bank cost savings for brands.
International sale: By eliminating the barriers of technical and legislative preparation, language or difficulties of finding a local partner, these platforms offer you the possibility of exporting products from companies that want to sell abroad.
Organic search engine There are also no high costs (information technology), with development and lodging. The company that manages the platform takes care of that for you.
Cross sale with other brands: When a user looks for a complementary product to what you offer, the platform will make your brand appear as a related product, offering facilities for the customer to increase their purchase car with your products.
Comments and scores: Marketplaces tend to have a large volume of comments and scores, which generates more confidence among new customers when buying a product of which there are no experiences.
Easy handling and easy maintenance: as in the product registration process, so your company can focus on other more strategic activities.

Disadvantages of selling in a marketplace

Reduction of sales margins: which is more adjusted due to the commission or fee that the platform is carried for your sales.
Subcontracting expenses: which can be increased if subcontractors storage efforts, delivery deadlines and returns.
Delay in payments: although the client makes the payment of the article at the time, the Marketplace will pay you the amount as seller after weeks or even months.
Difficult to differentiate from competition: by the amount of similar products sold on these platforms.
Difficulty to do branding: what supposes that your brand will pass inadvertently with all the others, without allowing you to customize the articles of your own brand.
Little visibility at the beginning: until you get a certain number of sales since the pages are ordered depending on the number of purchases made.
Customers are not yours: it is not possible to fidelize them or create a database since control over customer is from Marketplace.
Follow the regulations of each marketplace: all the contents you publish will have to follow the requirements of the platform, without being able to design or customize your sales page.

8 Marketplace examples

Amazon: He is the undisputed leader in Spain and in much of the world, it is undoubtedly the marketplace with greater penetration in the market. It began as a book of book sales in 1995 in Seatle and in 1997 it had already become one of the ecommerces in the United States. Very competitive prices, without minimal purchases and an exceptional shipping system, sells everything and with your prime service you can receive your purchase in 24 hours.
EBAY: Founded in 1995 in California, it began being an auction method on the network, in which once the departure price was set, buyers bid for it. Later EBAY introduced the sale of online products in which everyone can include their catalog.
Aliexpress: Belonging to Alibaba Group, it was founded in 2010 in China and offers Chinese suppliers for international buyers. Orders can be both large and small, with fast and often free shipments. His interface is comfortable but not very attractive.
PRIVALIA: It was founded in 2006 in Barcelona and sold in 2016 to the French group Vente-Privee, it is a marketplace of clothing products and accessories off-season. Users can acquire large brands at a lower price, with reduced shipping costs. The interface in addition to being very intuitive has an attractive design that inspires confidence.

In addition, there are also European alternative platforms to great giants such as Amazon or eBay, these are some of them:

FNAC : The famous chain has its own marketplace, with more than 10 million electronics and entertainment products. It is present in France, Belgium, Spain and Portugal.
Allegro : It is the first marketplace in Poland and the fifth most visited at European level. I specialize in home items, kitchen, fashion, baby products and sporting articles. It has been running since 1999 and has a customer base of 14 million.
Cdiscount : created in 1998. It is not the leaders in France. It is the second most visited, behind Amazon, and sells products of more than 9,000 commercials. You are specialized in household items, furniture, sports and electronics.
Otto : one of the main marketplaces in Germany. It is the second behind Amazon, and offers more than 1.8 million products of almost 7,000 different brands. He was born in 2016, but already sells in more than 20 countries.

If you are valuing the possibility of introducing your ecommerce into a marketplace; Your marking is starting and you want to get visibility in the market; If you still don't have your own ecommerce ; You want to expand your means of sale or free you the stock that you have left over, this is the ideal time to do so . Now that platforms gain positioning and are increasingly specialized in concrete sectors.

In Gowtech we can integrate your online store with the most appropriate marketplaces. We encourage you to choose one that adjusts to your needs and we advise you in your choice to get you the most of your business.

Do not miss our article on how to attract customers to your online store .