HOW TO TAKE YOU POP-UP FURTHER WITH AN ONLINE STORE
Guest Article by Kayleigh Alexandra, Content Marketer & Startup Specialist at microstartups.org
Running a pop-up shop is one of the best ways to get a feel for commerce. Without the need for expensive rental agreements or a permanent time commitment, you can sell products, get to know your audience, and understand what works for you and what doesn’t. So, just for you: how to take your pop-up further with an online store?
A pop-up shop is a perfect springboard for e-commerce. You already know that there’s a market for your products, and what’s more, you’ve got existing customers who can spread the word. Perhaps they wished they could visit your store more often – well, now is their chance!
An online store is open 24/7, requires no staff and can be largely automated to mean that relatively little time and input is needed from you, once it’s all up and running. All you need to do is make sure there are products available and that people know about you – as a pop-up store owner, you are probably familiar with the ins and outs of marketing yourself already.
Here’s how to go about setting up a concurrent e-commerce store to sell your pop-up products online, or if you want to understand how to launch an Online Pop-Up, visit this page.
//Build your online store
Creating an online store is a piece of cake. With so many user-friendly e-commerce platforms that allow you to build an e-commerce website in minutes without coming across a single line of code, even a total novice can do it. Choose from a range of professional design templates that will be responsive to mobile and tablet, and then customise using your own logo, colour scheme and imagery to bring it in line with your existing brand. This popular e-commerce platform has a free online store trial that lets you try before you buy.
//List your products
Once you have an e-commerce platform set up, you can start to add your products. It’s a good idea to separate them into clear categories and include a search bar, so visitors can quickly and easily find what they’re looking for. Because customers cannot touch and handle your products as they would if they were visiting your pop-up, imagery and written descriptions are very important.
Take the time to write descriptions that lovingly demonstrate the features and benefits of your products, and ensure that there are no typos or mistakes. If writing isn’t your forte, consider hiring a freelance writer to help you with this.
Use a good quality camera or hire a photographer for a couple of hours to take appealing product images that will show off your products in their best possible light. The images are what will hook your visitors in, so it’s important that they look professional. Why not add some photos of yourself at the pop-up shop too, to give visitors a feel for who you are? People appreciate authenticity.
//Find a dropshipping supplier
As a busy shop owner, you’ve probably got a lot on your plate – particularly if you are an artist or craftsperson who makes the products yourself. In which case, you might want to consider automating the order fulfilment side of your e-commerce venture, to save you doing all of the packaging and postage yourself.
Try approaching a dropshipping supplier who can handle all of that for you. Find a dropshipping supplier you feel comfortable with, who is reliable and reasonably priced, and who will be happy to apply your unique branding to the products before they are shipped. This way, when a customer buys something from your website, the whole process is taken care of and you can focus on your efforts elsewhere.
//Stay up-to-date
Don’t forget to customize and make adjustments as you go. If a product is out of stock, be sure to update that on the site so your customers aren’t disappointed. Follow trends, see what sells online, what seems to be working and what doesn’t. Always aim to make the customer’s online journey as pleasant and easy as possible, so they will want to come back and buy from you again.
- Make sure you fix any 404s that creep into your online store and redirect customers back to your home page or product category page.
- Merge your pop-up’s branding with your online store to make customers feel welcomed and to create a consistent look and feel.
Hopefully, this article will help you on how to take your pop-up further with an online store and sell more of your products – online as well as in person. Perhaps you’ve already made the leap? Why not share what you learned?
About Kayleigh Alexandra
Passionate about writing for the startup and entrepreneurial audience, I have recently been part of setting up an exciting project at MicroStartups.org. We donate all our website profits to charities that help people reach their full potential. Find out more on Twitter.
Thanks Kayleigh!
Get in touch:
