How To Take Your Charity Sales Online - Building a business case for selling online for charity shop managers and area managers - Shopiago
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How To Take Your
Charity Sales Online
Building a business case for selling online for charity shop
managers and area managers
www.shopiago.com
Why should you make the case to
sell online?
The time to be online is now.
Shopping habits have changed and consumers are becoming
increasingly internet savvy. As the number of people relying on brick
and mortar stores declines, the pressure is on for charities to find new
ways to engage customers. And making a shift to selling online is a
great place to start in order to reach this new demographic of shopper.
55% of UK consumers claimed they shopped online
more in 2018 than they did in 2017.
eCommerce News
It sounds obvious doesn’t it? Getting your charity or not-for-profit
organisation to sell online makes sense – so how do you make it
happen?
Getting support from senior management The key to getting your charity shop online is to win support from senior managers. You need the backing of the decision makers in your organisation. They can help you implement change – with the tools, the time and authority you’ll need to set-up your online sales processes and train other staff. But many of these decision makers may still view online shops as more effort than reward. It’s up to you to present them with a strong business case, to demonstrate why selling online should be the next step for your charity. You need to show them the benefits of online selling. You need to explain why your charity can’t afford to not embrace eCommerce sales. You need to pitch your solution. And that’s why you need a strong business case. In this guide, we’ll explore the benefits of listing your products online and the eCommerce challenges you’ll need to overcome, to help you build a great business case so your charity can start reaping the rewards.
Planning your business case
To give yourself the best chances of receiving the backing of decision But within this case, you must leave no stone unturned so to speak.
makers, you need to put together a strong, defined business case for You have to consider the risks, the costs, the technical requirements,
why your charity should be selling online. timescale of implementation and your capability as a business to
follow through and deliver.
A business case is crucial, whenever you’re trying to obtain or justify
expenditure from the business. They outline how your initiative Preempt the questions that will be asked and ensure your business
aligns to the overall strategic goal of your charity, which is often a case covers all of these areas.
top priority for the bosses at the top. They also help to highlight key
opportunities for growth and development.
What does a great business case look like?
There are four key elements to a great business case:
Definition - Define the problem and/or opportunity for
1 your charity, including the current challenges you’re facing.
2 Benefits - Outline all the potential benefits that selling
online could provide
3 Solutions - Discuss the best solutions available to help you
sell online, and how they’ll help you overcome any potential
obstacles.
4 Action - Articulate how this should be implemented.
The challenges facing traditional
charity shops
You’ll know better than anyone the challenges that you face on a
day to day basis, to continue to attract donations, maintain sales and
maximise profits.
Some of the biggest problems that you need to
overcome include:
Declining footfall Changing buyer expectations
There’s no denying that footfall on the high street and in town centres Because buyer habits have changed, so too have their expectations.
is continuing to decline. Brick and mortar stores in every consumer They don’t expect to have to visit a physical store anymore. They
category have an uphill battle to maintain a strong presence on the expect to be able to find your brand, and what they need, online.
high street and get customers through their doors.
Savvy opportunists taking your profits
Changing buying habits As internet use is so prolific and it’s easy to sell online, many charities
We all shop online now for just about everything. Whether it’s the have fallen victim to budding entrepreneurs, who’ll scour traditional
behemoth Amazon that has almost anything you could imagine or charity shops looking for valuable items that they can post online and
independent boutique webstores that stock handcrafted items. We make a profit for themselves.
even buy our groceries online.
Established charity chains standing out online
The big charity institutions are all aware of the importance of online
selling. Their brands are prominent in the digital space, and customers
can easily search for and buy from them. Your charity should be there
too.
The benefits of online selling
The primary way to overcome the challenges facing charity shops is to
get online. To build your brand online and to sell your donated items
online.
And once you get started with eCommerce sales, you’ll see there are
many benefits:
Benefit #1 – Reach your current
customers
Buying habits are changing. In fact, in 2018 over half (51%) of
UK consumers admitted they prefer shopping online to in store.
(eCommerce News)
There’s less footfall on the high street, meaning less traffic to your
charity shop, and less opportunity to reach potential customers
offline. Instead, buyers are now heading to the internet to shop.
Selling online means you can showcase If your customers are using the internet to educate their purchase
all of your amazing products and prices decisions, then it’s pretty important you’re on there. Having your
to customers in one place. You can target products online means you can reach customers how they want to be
and engage with new demographics, reached, whilst allowing them to digest product information from the
whilst keeping up with the latest trends in comfort of their device.
shopping.Benefit #2 – Expand your
audience with online
marketplaces
Building your business and attracting a larger audience is a lot easier Let’s take eBay for example – the 9th largest internet company with
when you make your products available online. While brick and mortar almost £10bn in revenue each year. Selling on eBay gives you access to
stores bind you to a handful of locations, the internet doesn’t have buyers in over 190 different markets around the world, an estimated
such limitations. 170 million of them.
Let’s face it, there are only so many eyes that are going to fall upon
your charity store. However, digital stores mean you can target all
corners of the web, across the world, and potentially reach millions
more customers.
When you sell in multiple places, you’re giving your
business a greater chance of reaching the right people,
Sell in multiple places in the right place, at the right time. Shopiago can help
you sell in several places at once.
Multichannel selling through online marketplaces like Amazon, eBay,
Etsy and Shopify, gives you direct access to an existing and active
audience that is interested in what you have to offer. It also means
they can buy from a channel they know and trust.
Moving online gives your store the chance to reach people who don’t
These websites are focused solely on selling products, and have
live nearby to your charity shop.
established a large number of customers who use their sites to
research and buy. This is perfect for charities who are new to selling
online, as it gives you the chance to maximise online exposure and
reach a larger audience.Benefit #3 - Save time
Making your products available online can help save time in a number
of ways – for both your charity and your staff, and for your customers.
For example:
1. Customer: Buyer Research 4. Customer: No Travel Time
We know today’s shoppers are carrying out research online before Taking away the need to travel to make a purchase and allowing people
they make the decision to buy. Having all of your information available to browse and buy from wherever they are, is an incredible perk
via a Google search removes the customer’s need to spend time for the customer. Selling online takes away one more step from the
visiting your store. buying journey, reducing friction points and enabling a much smoother
experience.
2. Charity: Advertising
Without an online presence, you would have to invest time (as well But there are also time-saving advantages to using marketplaces in
as money) into advertising to ensure people know about your store particular…
and its products. However, multichannel selling can boost your online
presence, taking away the need for time-consuming advertising • There is an existing group of people using these platforms, so
campaigns. you don’t have to focus on building an online audience
• You can categorise your products so people can filter and find
3. Charity: Sales exactly what they’re looking for
Moving customers through the buying journey to purchasing from you • With multichannel eCommerce software like Shopiago, you
can be a long process. People want to be sure that they’re making the can pull product descriptions from similar products online,
right decision, and they dedicate a lot of time to finding information to using the smart search to do research for you and find any
ensure they do so. information you need (saving a tonne of time!)
• Shopiago can also help you manage stock and orders, and
By having all of that information online, you are making it easier for update your inventory automatically
consumers to their research. You’ll help speed up the buying journey
and save time delivering sales.Benefit #4 - Boost sales
Having your store online means you’re much more accessible for
anyone, anywhere, at any time. It means finding a buyer is that little bit
easier.
Teaming up with marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, Shopify and Etsy
gives you the chance to sell your items in several places at once. And
this opens up the opportunity to increase sales.
But why are online sales so impressive?
In general, you can achieve enhanced targeting when selling online.
The people you are engaging with have actively searched for a specific
item, or indeed your company, and are more likely to buy.
Take people who visit your store for instance. They could have just
stumbled across you, might not be looking to buy, or even have the
money to do so that day. Selling online makes products accessible to
people who are ready to buy.
It’s also worth noting that the online experience is relatively
consistent. People know what they’re getting, especially from
platforms they use frequently. They know where to go, how to
efficiently search, how to buy and they have an understanding of the
steps post-purchase. Online retail sales in the UK grew by 1.5%
between 2017 (15.9%) and 2018 (17.4%).
The in-store experience isn’t always as seamless.
Office for National StatisticsBenefit #5 - Increase profits
The wider your reach the more opportunities there are for profit. But
there are other reasons why selling online can increase your profits
too. These include:
• Lower costs: eCommerce tends to carry lower costs than brick
and mortar. You need to pay for the rent, bills and licence of
your charity shop, while an online store doesn’t require any of
this.
• Advertising: digital advertising is renowned for being cheaper
than traditional advertising. By pumping less money into
advertising your charity shop, you can invest more money
elsewhere.
• Sales: as it becomes easier to reach a more targeted audience,
sales will increase.
• Stock: moving online gives you access to statistics and
information about your sales and what your customers are
buying most. This information should fuel your strategy going
forwards, and guide you as to what donations you want to be
asking for.Benefit #6 – Build your brand
An online presence is critical if you want any kind of brand awareness
these days. The majority of people are now turning to the internet
to conduct their buyer research; if you’re not online, you’ll likely be
overshadowed by competitors who are.
75% of consumers conduct online research before
making a purchase online.
Salesforce
Ensuring your charity and products are online will improve your
chances of being able to engage with a large chunk of your customer
base. And the more consistent your messaging, the more likely it is
that you’ll be found for those all important search terms.
And by making a name for your charity online by using various popular
platforms, like eBay, Shopify and Amazon, you’ll build brand awareness
with people actively researching and showing interest in your industry.Adopting a multichannel A multichannel approach to
approach to selling will selling
help open new markets,
When it comes to selling online, you are not bound by the location
drive sales and improve the limitations associated with traditional brick and mortar shops. Instead,
overall bottom line. you can make your products readily available to people anywhere,
anytime, digitally.
You can do this through either your personal webstore, or
partnerships with online marketplaces like Amazon, Shopify, eBay
and Etsy. Making your products available across different channels
will help maximise your exposure, boosting awareness of your
organisation and your products.
As e-Commerce is quickly becoming the preferred way to research
and shop, it’s up to you to lead the way and move your business online.The quickest, easiest way to
sell on multiple channels? With
software like Shopiago
eCommerce selling can look complicated, but using dedicated
software that’s been developed solely for charities and non-profits
streamlines processes, improves efficiencies and makes it simple.
It helps you list products, researches the best possible prices, pulls in
all the information you need and gets you selling online in no time at
all.
It will also help you manage all your stock and all your orders – on
every connected channel – all in one place.
Shopiago helps you overcome any obstacles that you may face with
online selling – and is an ideal solution for charities starting out in
ecommerce.
Try it yourself, for free, for 14 days.
Or Book a Demo to learn moreMaking the move online While there’s no questioning that selling online for the first time is a daunting task, the number of benefits surely outshines any fears you or your decision makers have. With customers continuing to favour digital experiences to those they get in store, failure to keep up and make the move online will only hinder your charity’s success and growth. With this guide, you should be well on your way to building a strong business case as to why your charity should be selling online.
Book your free
demo today
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organisation with an online demo.
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