Scale An Online Business From Zero To Hero In Six Months
It’s hard to believe that it’s possible to scale any business in just six months. But with modern tools, outsourcing and an endless supply of cheap labor, we’re in a new reality. It really is possible to bring an online business from zero to hero in just six months.
That’s not to say that it won’t be a challenge. The people who try to do it will find themselves working around the clock. But today, many budding entrepreneurs work all hours in order to achieve their goals.
As an online business, how do you scale in just six months? Here’s what to do.
Stay True To Your Brand
E-commerce sites often struggle to get branding right. Sometimes it’s because it’s not particularly compelling, but usually, it’s more to do with the fact that it’s not consistent. Branding can be all over the place, which confuses customers. When it comes to your image, customers want consistency. They want your branding to convey your business’s personality and be able to recognize it, whether they’re in your store, on your site, or viewing your marketing materials somewhere else. In other words, your brand should capture the personality of your business, providing customers all the information they need to work out what it is that you stand for.
Make Outsourcing A Priority
Installing and implementing your own fulfillment process simply isn’t practical for most online retailers. Doing it in six months is impossible. You may have visions of your company becoming the new Zappos or Amazon, complete with warehouses decked out with the latest Kiva systems, but it’s an unrealistic expectation. Both those companies are still struggling to master their processes, and they’ve been at it more than two decades.
A better solution is to outsource order fulfillment. Essentially, this means passing the burden of processing all your orders onto a third party. Online retailers do this for a number of reasons. For starters, getting professionals to do the work saves time and reduces errors. But it also frees up individuals to do the things that will expand their enterprises, rather than just keep them ticking over. Outsourcing means you’ve got more time for marketing or negotiating with suppliers, rather than shipping boxes all day long.
JeongGuHyeok / Pixabay
Think Big From The Start
The people who get the biggest rewards are often those who take the greatest risks. This means constantly reevaluating your opportunities as your company grows to see whether there are any changes you could make.
It’s worth taking a leaf out of Amazon’s book on this one. As a disruptive company, they know that firms that fall behind on the technology front are quickly made obsolete. Amazon believes that it is at least partly responsible for the declining value and profitability of Walmart. Walmart simply isn’t relevant in an increasingly digital economy. Total Retail, an online retail blog, says that online businesses need to roll with the punches that technology throws at them and adopt new tech quickly. This doesn’t just mean more products on the shelves or better checkout systems, it also means changing the organizational foundations of your business. Strong management structures are essential if you want your business to scale in just a few months.
