Selling On Marketplaces Vs Own Web Store

eCommerce in India is booming. According to a studies conducted by many big online market researchers , the online shoppers expected to cross 100 million mark by end of year 2017. Broadband internet and explosive growth of mobile phones are fuelling this growth further. Companies like Flipkart have already crossed billion dollar valuation. If you have a product to sell, this is perhaps the best time to start selling it online. Now that if you are ready to sell online, its time for a big decision. Should you sell on online eCommerce marketplaces like Flipkart or Amazon or should you setup your own web store?Selling On Marketplaces or to setup Own Web Store, is a big decision to any one starting in industry. Lets evaluate the both option:

Sell online using eCommerce Marketplaces:

This one is the most simple option. Process of selling on these marketplaces is very simple and you can start selling within a week.

Your options – DuoPolin.in, Flipkart, Amazon, eBay, Snapdeal, Shopclues, PayTM and many more.

Process Involved – All you have to do is to visit seller-registration pages of these sites by clicking on the links above and submit your business details. You will need to keep VAT registration number, PAN number and Bank details handy. Some sites need address proof as well. You can upload scanned copies of these documents. Verification is completed normally in couple of days.

Advantages – You can save big on the marketing cost. All of these marketplaces attract millions of visitors and have a loyal user base. You also don’t need to worry about the payment gateway and shipping. Most of these portals provide packing material as well.

Disadvantages – These marketplaces charge higher commission on every sale. For some items, it could go upto 15-20%. Apart from this, you have a little control over how your product is displayed on their sites. As you can see, selling on eCommerce marketplaces is a fairly simple and straight-forward process. It takes less time and you can save on your marketing costs.

Setup your own web store or shopping cart to sell online:

This option can be further split into two parts – You can either develop your own eCommerce website and host it on your own server or create a web store using online store creators.

Popular options – You can develop your own custom web-store or can create using some opensource platform like Woocommerce, Magento, prestashop, opencart etc. However there are plenty of options are available to create a web store using online store creators like Zepo, KartRocket, Build a bazaar, MartJack and Shopify etc. if you do not want to spend much in development.

Process Involved – Just register on one of these sites and upload your product catalogue. You can link your own payment gateway or use the one provided by these sites.

Advantages – Interface is easy and no technical knowledge is required. You customise the look and feel of your store.

Disadvantages – You will have to invest in marketing your site. It will take time build trust as customers hesitate to buy from new sites. So, take your pick and start selling online.