“I learned how to run this business from the previous owner before they retired. Their process worked for them, so it should work for me.” states the pizza shop owner.
The shop, which caters to a school directly across the street, started noticing signs of an economic downturn in November 2023. When we spoke about what was happening to his small business, it made him question if he needed to cut the worker just hired in August.
Automatically, when businesses take a turn for the worst, we as business owners think, “What needs to be cut to make this continuously worthwhile?” However, the golden rule about economic downturns for smaller businesses is NEVER CUT THE MARKETING BUDGET and EXPAND YOUR MARKETING EFFORTS.
After overcoming his own denial about ‘what worked for them will work for me,’ I told him the same thing I tell all of my clients. I questioned him on what e-commerce platforms for restaurants he was on. He elaborated on using the platform Slice for local deliveries. Unfortunately, he only used that platform because it worked in California markets, but the data showed his current state and city were not large Slice users.
When looking at the data for the area, it showed that Uber Eats, DoorDash, and GrubHub were the top 3 platforms for the area. So, I told him to get on all three and test it for 30 days to the best of his ability.
After sorting through tablet setup, photos, keywords, product descriptions, store hours, and all the other technical work, his first order came 48 hours after marketplace confirmation. After 7 days, he was receiving at least four extra orders per day from the restaurant's e-commerce platforms.
While most of us reading this are micro-businesses, the same theory applies. E-commerce marketplaces are vital in your modern business marketing efforts. If you understand the concept of having to go to a vendor’s market a few times per year to increase business, then you understand the reason for a presence on e-commerce platforms.
You need to have a way for people to find you/products easier than usual. E-commerce platforms also take the initiative of promoting your business organically if you are doing well. While the fees may hurt in the beginning, it is an expense that is much cheaper than a salesman.
Every business needs a salesman that showcases what a customer is looking for. Re-wire your mind about e-commerce platforms and automated marketing if you are struggling to keep your business open.
Read "How To Position Yourself For a Lucrative Spring" Next
Comments ()