Tag: Ecommerce

OpenCart Android App is a Hit for MumbaiShoppers

Do you have a count on the mobile apps you are using right now? Two, three, or maybe 10 at a time! The increase in the usage of mobile applications cannot be ignored. As mobile users are increasing rapidly, so is the demand for mobile apps. MumbaiShopper is a Marketplace for Mumbaikars. They have built their website on the OpenCart platform. To design their OpenCart Android App, they have used KnowBand’s OpenCart Mobile App Builder plugin.

From a fashionable home page design to a checkout page, it is personalized for sophisticated UI/UX. The CTAs, cart design, customer support, and many other features are a part of this mobile app builder plugin. This mobile app offers more exclusive facilities to customers and the admin. Let’s dive in to explore!

MumbaiShopper OpenCart Android Mobile App

As said before, the MumbaiShopper is a marketplace where you will find everything from fashion to furniture. If you want to shop baby products, fashion, electronics, or sports ranges, you will find everything at Mumbaishopper.

MumbaiShopper OpenCart Mobile App supports multiple currencies. You can see the prices in USD and INR. The categories, product listings, home page design, cart design; everything is up to the mark.

Have a look at the attractive home page!

The theme of the MumbaiShopper OpenCart Android app is similar to the website which is exceptional.

In midst of tough competition, the application needs to be user-friendly and appealing. It is quite certain to add color pallets, graphic images, banners, and logos that match your website theme.

For instance, the banner display is completely customizable. On the home page, show top categories, square banners, sliding banners, or products in the grid pattern. It is all up to you.

Have a look at the app design and its theme colors.

Isn’t it engaging!

About the Shopping Cart

Customers can add products to the cart quickly. The shopping cart of the app has two options:

  1. Shop more
  2. Proceed to checkout

It has clear navigation because the CTAs in the app are bold and aloud

Every change on the website is in Real-Time synch

The changes and updates that are made on MumbaiShopper Website are reflected directly on the Mobile App. It has real-time synchronization.

Finding the right product is easy

Find out the product you want by sorting and using the filter. Decide first and then apply filters. Sort it as relevancy, price, or bestseller.

It gives a satisfactory customer experience to OpenCart Android App users. It helps them in finding a product of their choice.

Voice search makes it easier.

Whatsapp and Zopim for live chat support

The customers can get quick support from the MumbaiShopper team using WhatsApp chat and Zopim chat support options. WhatsApp live Chat is available because Customer service is the topmost priority of every brand.

Quick Login and Sign up saves time and efforts

While most of the world population is connected via social media, why shouldn’t we take advantage? The OpenCart Mobile app has Google login and Facebook sign-up options for netizens.

Along with this, customers can register using their mobile number. This allows them to log in using OTP.

Additionally, a fingerprint login option is also available for the customers.

Multiple Payment and Shipping Support for every customer

As the user completes the registration process, they will have to make the payments first, then choose the shipping method for their product delivery on MumbaiShopper Store.

More conversion with One Page Checkout

The MumbaiShopper OpenCart Android App has a single-page checkout screen, as a result, it makes product purchase easier for front-end users. One Page Checkout provides quick checkout that refects in the reduction of abandoned carts. This also improves the app’s usability for order placement.

It is possible to run promotions on the OpenCart mobile App

Yes, you can run promotions on your OpenCart store if you have KnowBand’s OpenCart mobile app builder. The MumbaiShopper product range is wide and to entice customers, they run deals and discounts.

Deals of the Day, Deal of the Week, and Discounts for you are some listed categories in the MumbaiShopper OpenCart Mobile App.

The app allows the store owner to run promotions and coupons that are applicable on the website.

You can add Spin to Win promotional gamified element to your mobile app only if the same is available on your website.

Bring new customers to store

Wondering how? The MumbaiShopper store has a social sharing option for products.

The OpenCart Mobile App allows customers to share products on their social media profiles. This also attracts more attention from their friends and family. Hence brings you, new potential visitors.

Feature to track the traffic

With Google Analytics integration, OpenCart Android App allows tracking app performance standards, in short, you can set new goals. On the mobile app, the store administrator can monitor traffic and plan marketing campaigns accordingly.

To sum up, like the MumbaiShopper store, you can also make your mobile app using the Opencart Mobile App builder plugin. The application has almost everything that you need for a mobile app. Check out the live demo or get the free OpenCart mobile app to have a preview of your store.

We believe in customer satisfaction. If you want any custom feature that is not included in the Mobile App Builder, let us know in the comment below.

Read more Mobile App Sucess Stories  

An Incredible Success Story of eCommerce Handloom and Handicraft Marketplace ‘Cottage Emporium’

The success story of e-commerce has its way of encouraging people to turn their business more towards the internet. More than 50 percent of shopping takes place online, current figures say. Therefore, more people are tilting towards creating their own marketplace with the latest trend of online shopping. The Cottageemporium is one such online store that has chosen OpenCart Marketplace to become a full-fledged marketplace.

The world-famous Central Cottage Industries Emporium firm has all the handcrafted and handloom products that reflect the culture and traditions of India. Velocity builds Cottage Industries’ online presence by creating a marketplace on the OpenCart platform using KnowBand’s OpenCart Marketplace Extension where various sellers can sell their quality products with aesthetic designs.

About Cottage Emporium

The Central Cottage Industries Emporium (A Government of India undertaking Ministry of Textiles) was established in 1952. Seeing the adverse effects of industrialization on the Indian economy and social culture, post-colonialism felt a need to give Indian crafts their rightful position and excite millions of craftsmen across the country’s parched creative spirits and help them gain a decent livelihood.

The Central Cottage Industries Emporium has been a favorite among clients in India and around the world as a showcase of the creations of Indian craftsmen, weavers, and folk artists. It has taken special care to make sure that through its goods, décor, exhibits, and everything else that goes with it, you get a sense of what the real India is all about.

The Cottage Emporium stands high, allowing India and the world to access the finest crafts with an assurance of authenticity, elegance, and value, setting aesthetic and design standards. Anyone can register as a seller on the Cottage Emporium Marketplace.

Services offered by Cottage Emporium:

Under one roof, the emporium displays the finest crafts from all over India, ranging from exquisite sculptures, paintings, objects, metalware, woodcraft, pottery, stoneware & marble craft, Bankura silver branded, carpets, furniture, furniture, home linen, sarees, ready-to-wear, shoes, jewelry, craft pieces, herbal products and much more. Every product is distinctive, representing India’s traditional myths, legends, religious beliefs, cultural ethos, and rich heritage.
On multiple fronts, the emporium promoted handicraft and handloom, embracing market analysis, handpicked choice, design growth, impeccable quality, varieties, fixed prices, creative promotions, a basket of auxiliary services such as personalized corporate gifting items, interior design services, packing/shipping facilities, specialist gift wrapping, ATM, foreign exchange counters, etc.

Click here to Visit Central Cottage Industries Emporium Marketplace.

How does Cottage Emporium Marketplace work?

The Velocity Software Solutions have created the Central Cottage Emporium’s digital Marketplace on the OpenCarteCommerce platform using KnowBand’s OpenCart Marketplace Extension. The website is attracting users from all across the world and there are 56308 visitors so far. The marketplace is rich in features and functionalities. By converting their online store into a Marketplace the store admin can allow multiple sellers to register on the marketplace so that they can list their products on the marketplace to reach out to the new audience. The Marketplace admin can charge a commission to the sellers that will be paid on each sale of the seller products. Marketplace admin can also offer a variety of products at a competitive price to the customers, which will increase the customer experience and they can explore a huge variety on a single platform.

The marketplace features can be further customized based on the business needs and as per the requirement of the Cottage Emporium Marketplace, all the required changes have been done by Velocity.

It has a curated admin panel and seller dashboard. The seller registration can be done from the customer registration field.

Front End at a Glance:

Cottage Emporium for Indian Handicrafts and Handlooms is actually one of the most trusted shopping marketplaces. The marketplace consists of a variety of common categories, all of which include the latest set of famous Indian culture and traditions. Here is a summary below of the full marketplace.

The Landing Page:

Discover the beauty of Indian culture from the comfort of your home. The home page is simple and it has a clean and clear design that is smooth and user-friendly. The products can be found with ease by selecting the category.

Shopping Cart:

With just a few taps, choose your favorite & all the new items and add them to the cart. The marketplace is considered to be the most relevant and accessible marketplace for everyone. Customers can add one or more products to the cart.

Product Page:

For the product page, there are various categories and the crafts are available as state-wise and certified products collection as well. There are some special categories:

New Products: New products are constantly updated, so explore the Cottage Emporium website to stay updated and become a trendsetter with all the trendy & stylish products.

Best Seller: In the ‘Best In’ tab, get all the best-selling products and enjoy shopping to your fullest potential with the highest product quality provided on Cottage Emporium’s Online Website.

Special: In the ‘Special’ tab, the number of unique items is compiled together to make your shopping friendly and fun-filled. The sellers can run discounts and promotions on the store.

Customer Account Registration:

The customer account registration is easy and can be completed in few simple steps.

Register as Seller:

Any customer can register as a seller by selecting the ‘Register as Seller’ option in the registration form.

Return Policy:

Easy return policy for the customers with 30 days money-back guarantee. They offer 24/7 online support and they offer assured shipping on all orders.

Multiple Language and Currency Support:

The website supports Euro, Indian Rupee, and US Dollar. Along with that, customers from all over the world can access the website in their native language.

Social Media Links:

Multiple social media handles are linked to the marketplace where customers can follow Cottage Industries Emporium’s social media pages and stay updated.

Testimonials:

The Testimonials are the most important element of a marketplace as they help new visitors to trust the website sellers and product quality. There are various testimonials displayed on the website that can influence the shopping decision of the user.

Message from the Central Cottage Industries Emporium:

After exploring various eCommerce platforms and speaking with several developers, we (‘Central Cottage Industries Emporium’) settled on the ready-made marketplace solution for our handloom and handicraft website- The OpenCart Multi-vendor Marketplace.

Velocity Software Solution team transformed our website into a fully-functional Marketplace using KnowBand’s OpenCart Marketplace Extension.

The extension made our tedious work simple!

This is a no-coding solution and it has all the functionalities that help us in seller management, product quality assurance, and inventory management.

We can easily set commissions for the sellers and all the payouts are managed by us with ease.
Moreover, I am thankful to team Velocity who is always available to help us with any issues coming on the way.

About OpenCart Marketplace (Multi-vendor):

The OpenCart Marketplace extension by Knowband will easily transform your single-vendor website into a fully functioning marketplace. The admin can create a marketplace like Amazon, eBay, Etsy by using the Multi-vendor Marketplace module so that many vendors can sell their goods on the market.

The OpenCart marketplace module’s admin interface makes the management of sellers simple. The extension of the OpenCart Multi seller marketplace makes commission management simple for the store administrator. For all updates, personalized email templates are available. With just a click of a mouse, product and category management can be done and

The Opencart mobile app builder plugin is also compatible with this module. Knowband also offers the Mobile App for the marketplace so it will be easy for the marketplace owner to offer the best mobile experience to the customers using the mobile app.

You can explore the OpenCart Marketplace Extension on the KnowBand’s or Click here to see the demo. Our team is always available to provide custom website development services. To discuss, write us at support@knowband.com

Add These Trending eCommerce Services in Your Online Store to Kick-start 2021

Every year, thousands of new businesses pin their hopes on becoming the next big success story. Most will not reach the towering heights of, say, Amazon or Facebook, (not generalizing) but a few will undoubtedly blossom into industry leaders. They are the businesses that will help shape the future with creative products, efficient ideas, and strong leadership skills.

Different new trends have begun to emerge that will mature and reach their true potential by 2021. You can make great strides and start 2021 in style by exploring these trends and eCommerce services. As the pandemic situation is clear to everyone if any new business is setting up then it should go digital. For new companies nowadays it is compulsory. So, if you go for mobile application development, or adopt AI and AR, it is worth it.

Here are the top 9 eCommerce services and trends on the radar for 2021.

1.     ReCommerce will see a New Dawn

The ReCommerce can rule the world of retail and eCommerce that’s why I have kept it on the top of my list. Nowadays the re-commerce industry no longer has the garage sales picture of the past. The second hand is not only a good alternative to price but also has become an environmentally friendly way of life.

ReCommerce and trade in used goods have immense potential. This is not only reflected in the high demand electronic sector but consumers are looking forward to ReCommerce in every industry. The current growth we see in rebuying reflects the great potential in ReCommerce and consumer electronics in particular.

2.     eCommerce Logistics

The home delivery apps and marketplaces offering on-demand services are the most popular business trend to follow post-COVID-19. Everyone is counting on 2021 hence it can be a new boost for delivery companies.

Online food delivery businesses, fresh goods delivery, medicine delivery, and many other doorstep delivery services can see a rise this year. Folks are searching for improvement and on-time home delivery is the one they are looking forward to.

3.     Booking and Rental Services

COVID-19 has changed how people, whether domestic or foreign, will determine their travel plans. Though travelers are ready to adjust to the new standard,’ the conditions for decision-making on the various aspects of travel and accommodation are expected to undergo unprecedented change.

You can provide rental and booking services with a hygiene maintenance facility and this will surely a good service to provide post-COVID. This will make you stand out from the competition and is necessary for the new normal. With 2021 getting closer, travelers are expected to change the way they fly and grow.

One striking aspect is obviously expected to continue: versatility and value for travelers will remain a top priority and will demonstrate the way forward in the coming year. So offering pre-book facility and rental services for hotels, restaurants, cab bookings, etc. will give a kick start to the hospitality services.

4.     Hyperlocal businesses on boom

The market size for hyperlocal services was measured at $1,324.2 billion in 2019, and by 2027 it is expected to hit $3,634.3 billion, with a CAGR of 17.9% from 2021 to 2027.

Hyperlocal services are those services delivered within a small geographical region in which vendors are able to deliver products or services within a minimum amount of time. Hyperlocal services include the distribution of products and services; for instance, food and grocery delivery business, medicines, furniture, electronic items, and other fast consuming products.

You can start your home delivery business by using the delivery boy app or launch your marketplace with ready-made hyperlocal marketplace modules and manage it with minimal effort.

5.     Sell on-demand personalized products

In having your e-commerce company noticed, personalizing your website plays a major role. Online, a wide variety of goods are available and each product needs to be presented to the right consumer in the right way.

If you fail to do so, your products will remain stagnant in your inventory without reaching the customers who require them.

The personalization of e-commerce lies in knowing each client’s preference and needs and giving them a special tailor-made experience. This article is a complete guide on how to give a personalized customer experience.

6.     Digital Health Care Apps

Online health and fitness apps have gained next-level popularity in the last few years and the pandemic has added a lot to health care apps success.

You can do something if you are physically powerful. That’s why for the market it is an important app. So many new things can be provided.

Your health nowadays must be tracked by some application. You may provide them with certain facilities, such as calculating their BP, sugar, etc., which is mandatory for regular testing.

These types of facilities would definitely give rise to the demand for your application. You can now create your Mobile App with the ready-made module.

7.     App for Educational Content

If we are talking about the future, then education is the most important element. The pillar of the country’s growth is education. It provides a person with their identity, their thought, etc.

If you suggest that only higher education should be educated, then you might think about providing small children with basic material. For a start-up, this is a brilliant idea.

You should provide the students with outstanding content so that they can stay connected to your application. Launching a service marketplace can be a platform start for educational content creators and other freelancers.

Read: Create a Hyperlocal Service Marketplace like Fiverr and UrbanCompany

8.     Buy online and collect from store services

People have often preferred to purchase items offline after doing thorough online research. And others may be doing the opposite of offline research and buying them online. They are opting for BOPIS services because it has several benefits discussed here in my previous article.

Nearly 88% of consumers browse the web before purchasing anything. Even if this is not recent, the number of people following this strategy will rise in 2021.

9.     AI and AR will set the stage

It was perfect for Alexa and Google Home to turn the lights on, tell you the weather, and play your favorite radio stations. But they took over the e-commerce market quietly, too.

Artificial intelligence (AI) serves as your online in-store partner by supplying your clients with customized advice and feedback. AI uses the previous buying history and browsing habits of shoppers to show them items that they are more likely to buy.

Online shoppers do not try on or physically test the product they want to purchase, unlike in physical stores. Augmented Reality (AR) helps to eliminate this barrier by allowing consumers to see how they will look at a particular product right before buying the product.

You would definitely see a rise in conversions and a decrease in the return rate by introducing AI and AR in your e-commerce shop.

Conclusion:

In the e-commerce market, the B2B model has always been dominant. In order to survive and succeed, not just consumers, but also every organization needs products and services.

Getting a clear understanding of their desires and shopping experiences is the only job. In 2021, this pattern is going to shoot up. Let’s wait and observe the huge development in the eCommerce industry.

Was this article helpful? Do write a comment below and let us know if you have something more to add.

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How to Increase Your Revenue in the Year 2021

The eCommerce businesses have seen a lot of wax and wane post-COVID-19. It is no longer the case that salespeople can expect to follow and still hit the same numbers in their normal sales processes. With companies cutting budgets or holding off on projects until the pandemic is over, purchasing behavior has changed tremendously. To increase sales and boost revenue, you need to optimize your eCommerce store before we enter 2021.

A robust plan blended with innovation and technology can increase your eCommerce revenue and overall sale. Increasing sales and revenues are linked but separate priorities, and each has its own strategy. Although the strategies can be different for each one, they should complement each other. Understanding how sales and income are connected and how to improve both lets you market and maximize the profits efficiently.

Here are some ideas to plan out your revenue strategy for 2021 that can add some sizzle to your business.

1.     Make a plan with experts

It is obvious that every business needs a plan to overcome the pandemic losses. Without a strong sales strategy, sales don’t happen. Luckily, they aren’t as complicated as they may sound.

Take the time to recognize the toughest obstacles and to solve issues to resolve them. Your sales plan is basically the document that organizes the ideas until that’s completed.

Discuss your strategies with your team and other members who can contribute to your success plan. Incorporate marketing strategies, content optimization, and dig into the demands and make a better supply plan.

The business analyst can guide you throughout and digital marketing experts will add more to it.

2.     Market Segmentation

The process of dividing a target market into smaller, more defined categories is market segmentation.

Using various forms of market segmentation helps you to target consumers based on specific features, create marketing strategies that are more successful, and identify opportunities in your market.

Clients and audiences are segmented into groups that share common features such as demographics, preferences, needs, or location. This way you can focus well on your audience and hopefully get a good outcome.

3.     Targeting the right businesses

Focus on developing long-term business partnerships and alliances first, don’t pitch. Approach businesses or people who are a good match for your company.

Someone who is already trying hard to survive after a pandemic won’t be the right choice to make. A sensitive approach is what a business requires while reaching out to people via email or calls.

If companies were to contact me to look at how best to work together to create a win-win outcome, I would be more likely to continue the discussion and create relationships.

If any opportunities to work together are found, fantastic! If not, they have at least provided a new connection to stay in contact with and add value down the road.

Look forward to building long term relationship and collaborations to thrive in the year 2021.

4.     Build a relationship with complementary service providers

To go parallel with the business tycoons and the big eCommerce brands, it’s pivotal to run hand in hand.

Businesses also partner with other brands to collaborate on different ventures that can strengthen brand affinity, expand their scope, and deliver better offerings, either within their sector or targeting the same customer segments.

There are a variety of reasons that businesses chose to participate in complementary collaborations, also known as co-branding.

The key advantage of collaborating with complementary service providers is that you can leverage their trained personnel and expertise.

Also, it increases your customer base and Complementary collaborations will make it easier for participating brands to manufacture goods and services faster and at more cost-effective prices, with improved quality management standards.

5.     Marketing Strategies to Follow this 2021

Digital marketing refers to all types of marketing, including computers, smartphones, and other digital devices, that take place across a variety of digital channels. Online marketing strategies such as social media marketing, SEO, email marketing, content marketing, PPC, and blogging are most frequently referred to in the term.

In 2021, it is expected that you would potentially miss out on lots of potential customers if you don’t have a website or a good online presence.

That is why you need a holistic strategy for digital marketing that utilizes a variety of channels and works to give a competitive edge to your company.

Content Marketing

Business to Business (B2B) and Business to Consumer (B2C) businesses may use content marketing to extend their email lists, promote social media, raise downloads, and generate more leads or sales.

The benefit of content marketing is that with content marketing analytics, you can get as creative as you want and easily monitor progress.

Use the popular Social Media platforms

A successful marketing plan for social media platform enables you to attract more potential clients, engage loyal followers, and drive traffic to your website.

Your content marketing and paid social media advertising strategies can also be a great compliment. You can use social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter that have a humongous user base.

Follow your leads with email marketing campaigns

You need a holistic strategy for digital marketing that utilizes a variety of channels and works to give a competitive edge to your company. One of the most common and efficient digital marketing strategies for companies has long been in email marketing.

You can grow, engage, and sell to your subscriber list with email marketing, raising your chances of converting passive users into paying customers.

6.     Time to focus on customer experience

Customer experience is the impression of your clients of how they are handled by your company. Such values influence their behavior and create memories and emotions to drive their loyalty.

For corporations, customer service has rapidly become a top priority and 2021 will be no different. It wasn’t too long ago when every organization believed that the quality of the product or service they offer was the secret to attracting customers.

Customers do not focus their loyalty on price or product anymore. Instead, because of the experience they get, they remain loyal to businesses. Your clients will abandon you if you do not keep up with their increasing demands.

  • You can offer home delivery services to your customer and free shipping whenever possible.
  • Buy online and in-store pickup (BOPIS) is another trend that is going to continue in the year 2021 and this increases your in-store customer engagement.
  • Give a personalized user experience to your customer and let them feel that they are unique. From their purchase history, you can always reach out to them by email with the products matching their vibes.
  • Offer multiple shipping and payment options in your eCommerce store and see what new you can add to it.
  • For the new normal, maintain hygiene and take all the safety measures while delivering products on their doorstep and also, in your retail store.

Wrapping Up:

For various organizations, the term “sales” has multiple definitions and refers to the wide variety of planning and personal customer-contact practices that you use to produce transactions of your product or service.

Just to be sure with your sales, prepared and ready for your company to make 2021 a defining year and see if the 2020 chaos forced you to diversify or to evolve.

You can use the above-mentioned tactics for business growth and add a personalized customer experience to every interaction you make with your customers. These days’ consumers have more control and options than ever. Thus you are responsible for considering their desires and recognizing them.

You will drive brand loyalty if you make sure their engagement with your business is smooth, fun, and constantly improving.

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Acquire New Customers with Referral and Affiliate Marketing Tool for PrestaShop Store

Big brands like Amazon offers an affiliate marketing program and people are earning thousands of dollars with referral and affiliate marketing. It is proven to be a good source of passive income these days.

You might have heard terms like ‘refer and earn’ and came across the links on YouTube videos or blogs dominating a specific category promoting a product. People are making money by influencing others through good content and captivating tactics.

What is Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing is an opportunity to make passive income. It can work well and do magic if you know how exactly it works. Affiliate marketing is a type of revenue sharing technique. There are many tools available for affiliate marketing. One of the affiliate marketing tools is the ‘Affiliate and Referral Program‘ for your PrestaShop Store.

A person registers himself with an existing product selling website and gets a link for promoting the product. If that link works well and the product gets sold with that particular link, the person who promoted it will get a cookie. Yes, he will get some amount of money on behalf of that purchase. Yay! This is how it works.

Knowband developed a perfect solution for PrestaShop eCommerce store owners, an affiliate marketing tool named PrestaShop Affiliate and Referral Program. What is PrestaShop Affiliate and Referral Program? How you can grow brand awareness and acquire new customers with this affiliate marketing tool? What are the main features of the PrestaShop Affiliate and Referral Program?

We’ll answer all those questions in this blog. If you are interested in affiliate marketing for your store then you must know what ‘Affiliate and Referral Program’ is offering.

Features of ‘Affiliate and Referral Program’- an affiliate marketing tool

1.     Several types of referral

The affiliate marketing tool ‘Affiliate and Referral Program’ module allows the affiliate partners to invite new users through various means into your store. The affiliate partners can bring in new customers by sharing a referral code or a referral link with them.

Affiliate marketing and referral programs also allow the affiliate to generate voucher code. Besides that, affiliate partners can share the reference link on various social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, right from their affiliate account.

2.     Defined referral rate for the affiliates

a global referral rate can be set by PrestaShop store admin for the affiliate partners for the user registration and the order placement.

3.     Custom commission for each affiliate

Although the Affiliate marketing tool for PrestaShop the ‘Affiliate and Referral Program’ allows the store administrator to set a fixed global reference rate for the affiliate partners, they can customize this for every different affiliate.

4.     A voucher for affiliates on registration

PrestaShop Affiliate Marketing Module allows traders to assign a coupon on the successful user registration of the affiliates. The store administrator can set the value of the voucher and offer it in the form of a fixed discount or a percentage basis. There’s also the option to define the total quantity of vouchers and the limit of vouchers per user.

5.     Set validity for your referral program

The Affiliate marketing and Referral Marketing addon provide the option to run the specific referral program for a given time interval. If you define a time period, after the specified period, the reference code will get expire.

6.     Keep an eye on registered affiliates

With the Affiliate and Referral Marketing module, you can insight into registered affiliates and look into the details under the ‘Affiliate Customer’ section.

7. Obtain details of the clients referred

“Referral Listing” displays details of the customers who have done the registration via the affiliate link.

8. Check the incentives the affiliates earn

In the “Commission History” tab, the PrestaShop Referral tool allows the store admin to view the incentives earned by the affiliate partners.

9. Check for payout requests from affiliates

The affiliate marketing and referral marketing module allow the affiliate partner to obtain their payout/commission in the form of a voucher or cash.

The affiliate customer must raise a request to withdraw the commission earned from his/her account, which will then be reflected in “Payout Requests.”

Benefits of Referral and Affiliate Marketing Tool

  • Affiliate marketing increases brand awareness

Increase your brand’s popularity by arranging a multi-level affiliate program in the eCommerce website store.

  • The program gives refer and earn opportunity

Offer your customers a unique earning opportunity by displaying on the website an option to register an affiliate.

  • Gather email subscribers

With more registration, you can get more email subscribers. The data can be further used for email marketing strategies. The Affiliate and Referral Program is a boon to the cost of advertising.

  • Improved conversion

When the referent makes a purchase using the voucher code you can drive more conversions and hence more sales. Giving the affiliates exciting incentives can encourage them to bring more customers to you.

Final Words: People are looking for sources to build up the capital and earn more. This is a chance for eCommerce store owners to bring new customers to their store with the ‘Refer and Earn’ program. Affiliate marketing and a referral program can help you grow your PrestaShop business to the next level. Knowband presents the ‘PrestaShop Affiliate and Referral Program’ addon which helps PrestaShop store owners build brand awareness and effectively increase their user base.

Check out the admin demo and the front demo of the PrestaShop Affiliate and Referral Program module. If you have any concerns regarding this addon, you can mail us at support@knowband.com and our team will resolve your query by the earliest.

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Top 10 Features to Consider While Creating a Marketplace on OpenCart Platform

The rapid growth of the sharing economy is triggered by the increasing number of new online marketplaces. If your idea was to create an online marketplace to allow the exchange of products or services quickly and easily-congratulations! You can name yourself, an entrepreneur!

With the idea of an online marketplace, you might have explored how to create one? And what features you should consider before developing software or purchasing a pre-built module? How will you attract sellers and customers to your marketplace?

Sometimes we feel like we own too much stuff and this can happen with your marketplace too. To make it look attractive and clean, you need to have the functional UI with all the functionalities placed adequately. Clear navigation for both the seller and the customer is a must. This article is for the business entrepreneurs who are looking forward to developing their marketplace and will help you decide what features marketplace users need the most.

1.     Look for a lucrative monetization model

“Before looking for the answer to” How to create a marketplace? “Answer the question” How am I going to make money from my product? To attract investors and become globally competitive, all ventures have to produce revenue. No exception in the marketplace. There are many forms for your online marketplace to be monetized:

Commission– For any good purchase on the website, the marketplace charges a percentage or fixed fee.

Subscription: To use the marketplace, consumers pay a monthly/annual charge

Product Listing: To list the products, the sellers have to pay some amount.

OpenCart Marketplace Module supports the commission revenue model. The marketplace admin will generate income from the sellers on every order. You can refer to this article for a better understanding of the commission management for the OpenCart Marketplace extension developed by Knowband.

2.     Admin Panel features to consider:

The admin interface of a marketplace extension should allow you to monitor and make the necessary adjustments to support your customers.

If, for example, the terms of service are breached, an administrative interface should be able to monitor behavior on the network and issue warnings. We have designed interfaces for our clients so that it is easy to discover and censor offensive acts such as negative language easily.

It is also possible to use the administrative interface to authorize vendors and products, build customer outreach materials, run promotions, and adjust marketplace settings. It should allow you to keep the track of the seller’s earning, customer feedback, like which suppliers are doing well and which could use some assistance.

The OpenCart Marketplace module has all the above-mentioned functionalities and the admin can keep eye on every move of the seller. The admin can see the order status that will be determined for commission and earning.

3.     It should have a functional seller dashboard:

Rapid onboarding for vendors

You’re going to have to make the seller dashboard and customer handling simpler for sellers, not harder. Keep the sign-up and product listing process as simple as possible for your vendors.

The less time it takes to get started on your website, the more likely individuals are to sign up with you to sell.

Sellers can easily register and enlist their products on your OpenCart Marketplace. Sooner you approve the seller profile earlier he will be able to sell on the marketplace.

4.     Easy Inventory management

Fortunately, by establishing a strong inventory plan from day one, many of the blockades and challenges ravaging eCommerce marketplace inventory management can be easily resolved. Inventory Management is the lifeline for retail sellers, as the success of the business relies on delivering the right order to the right customer at the right time.

The stock management is effortless with the OpenCart marketplace module. It sends the stock notification to sellers and removes out of stock products automatically. To add new products for maintaining the inventory, the seller can bulk upload the product list in .CSV format.

5.     Order handling

Control of marketplace order saves you time on manual tasks and eliminate mistakes in order processing. Speaking of efficiency, from the time a customer clicks “order” to the moment the product leaves your warehouse, consider how much time it actually takes you to process a transaction.

The order handling is uncomplicated when you have a module like OpenCart Multi-vendor Marketplace. It allows the store admin and sellers to change the order status. The seller can handle every minute of action through the seller dashboard.

6.     Payments and payouts

Marketplaces make it tougher than their standard online shops when it comes to payment processing. Customers need an effortless payment system, whether credit cards, debit cards, digital wallets, PayPal, or COD. Some do intimidate while sharing the credit or debit card details hence, you can provide them COD. These are primary online shopping choices whose icons may alternatively be clearly shown in the top corners or near landing page banners or in the menu section.

From their Dashboard, the sellers get to see the order earnings, the pending amount, and the commission paid. The seller can raise payout requests to the owner and the store owner can make the payments manually through OpenCart Marketplace Plugin.

7.     Notify sellers with email

To maintain transparency on your platform you need to notify your sellers and customers about every move. The OpenCart Marketplace module has several pre-crafted email templates that can be used by the admin to send an email notification to the seller after the order is received, payment processes, review approved or removed, and much more.

This maintains transparency, fulfills realistic expectations, and enhances the user experience.

8.     Do not forget about the customer expectations

How can customer support be sustained in a multi-seller marketplace rapidly introducing a new range of products and services? Obviously, ensuring that the current service standards of the retailer are met in the marketplace is critical. In a marketplace, the consumer experience should not get distressed.

What does OpenCart Module offer for customer support?

  • Customer Seller helpdesk:  In order to get help for pre-sale inquiries or post-sale inquiries, the customer may contact the vendors.
  • Manage returns:  The returns for the goods can easily be initiated by the clients. The administrator will be able to view and process return requests from the vendor dashboard.

9.     Compatible and gadget responsive

A mobile-friendly eCommerce shop provides you with an opportunity to stay ahead of your rivals. You’d have more chances of ranking well in search engines, more visitors, and you’d be able to win their loyalty through content interaction and responsive design.

The robust Opencart Marketplace module is compatible with the mobile app. It is compatible with all the themes and models of OpenCart and it supports all currency types. You can sell any type of product digital or physical in the marketplace.

10. Let seller decide the shipping method

To improve the delivery experience, cutting down the shipping cost you need to provide multiple shipping options. In the early stages of operation, using a single shipping service makes sense because order sizes are typically not large enough to warrant using more than one carrier. However, as the company grows and online sales increase, failing to diversify your shipping strategy to meet your increasing needs puts you at risk of inefficient fulfillment of orders and increasing shipping costs.

The OpenCart Multi seller Marketplace admin can enable the seller to create multiple shipping templates. The shipping methods that vendors build will be listed in the Marketplace. And, the marketplace manager can also add or delete the shipping methods created by the seller.

Some Other helpful features of OpenCart Marketplace Module:

  • Admin can approve the product and seller reviews from his end
  • The invoice generated can have either admin’s details or seller’s details or both.
  • By providing coupon code discounts to buyers, the sellers can give the customers a special discount and run promotions
  • Admin can add multiple custom fields on the seller registration page
  • Admin can assign categories and products to the seller
  • All the products can be reviewed before publishing them on the marketplace.

Wrap-up:

These are the favorable features and functionalities you need to look at before launching a marketplace. The OpenCart marketplace module can help you with all these most required features. Remember, a marketplace is a platform for buyers to buy and seller’s toes ell. So, you need to keep your foot in their shoe and find the best you can give.

If you have a brilliant idea that you want to bring to life – drop us an email at support@knowband.com or you can drop a line in the comment section. The Knowband team helped many eCommerce entrepreneurs build a better platform by helping our clients measure the right things. The marketplace module is also available for PrestaShop and Magento 2.

Recommended Read:

20 E-commerce Marketing Strategies for Beginners

Are you planning a start-up business or a recently established one? Then, you must be looking for some magical marketing tips that can help you expand it, uplift sales, enhance conversions, and bring new customers to your online store.

Entrepreneurs don’t have a lot of spare time to get the word out about their products and services. Also, it isn’t easy to market your products and brand but with some expert guidance and marketing strategies, you can become a marketing ninja.

It’s certainly reasonable if your company now lacks a marketing budget. Start-ups have thousand other things to put money on. These 20 simple and budget-friendly eCommerce marketing strategies for newbies have been developed to fill that void.

1.     Know your Product/Services before Marketing

The most important strategy for a marketer is to have deep knowledge about the product features and their benefits. An important sales ability is product awareness. Understanding the attributes of your goods helps you to reliably and persuasively present their benefits.

Customers flock to enthusiastic sales workers who are enthusiastic about their products and willing to share the advantages with them.

2.     Focus on What you Want them to Do

The most effective way to reach your target audience is by knowing them. The next step is to find out what is needed to drive them toward a sale once you’ve decided whom you need to meet.

This is easy for certain businesses: encouraging consumers to grab a product and purchase it at the shop. But, before reaching that stage, there may be acts that you push them towards (such as getting on a mailing list or being a follower on social media).

Content Marketing:

Content creation is the simplest and impactful way to reach out to your target audience. Words has more value when spoken at the right time and on the right platform. Make complete use of blogs, social media and try creating your brand identity.

3.     Create E-commerce Content

It is one of the best simple marketing techniques to develop yourself as an expert in your field. You are positioned as an expert by writing a series of articles for a trade publication and these can be serialized for maximum impact as blog posts.

4.     Improve Efficiency of Content

Clients are drawn by keywords. In the content on your website, they need to be placed in strategic places. Make sure to focus on the subjects that your clients are looking for.

Read: Why is content marketing effective for your marketplace website?

5.     Write Blog Posts

On a blog, you can post specials and activities scheduled. These are a perfect way to advertise in a voice of your own.

6.     Publish a Book

You are positioned as an expert in the field by writing a book and self-publishing it. These are also marketed by many business people on their websites.

Social Media Marketing:

7.     Start Facebook Page Shop

To connect with a larger customer base for E-commerce marketing, social media is the best platform and Facebook stands top in the row. You can create a Facebook page for your brand and enlist your products on Facebook Page Shop.

8.     Use Instagram Reels

Instagram has a different crowd than Facebook but some of its features can help you with marketing. Instagram reels are short videos that can be used to display products. All the possible Instagram Reel’s business marketing strategies are discussed in this article.

9.     Use hashtags on Insta and Twitter

Here is the list of best hashtags you can use this holiday season for attracting more customers and visitors to your Instagram Page.

10.   Start to tweet

Social networking is complimentary. It’s one of the best available simple marketing tactics. You can connect with your target group by posting on Twitter.

11.   Run Ads on Facebook

Social advertisements allow you to get out in front of a large crowd. For optimal effect, you can target these to a particular market. Social media advertisement is the best E-commerce marketing method in 2021.

Read: 6 Easy Ways to Boost your Social Media Marketing through Facebook

12.      Invest in Personalized Real-Time Marketing

Personalized marketing is the implementation of a strategy in which businesses, use collected data, analysis, and automation technologies to offer individualized content to recipients.

13.    Online Video Marketing

Did you know that every minute of over 400 hours of video gets uploaded to YouTube? It’s unbelievable. The fact is that it’s the second-largest search engine in the world.

It’s not the only video platform for marketers out there to know about, either. Plus, Facebook and Twitter social videos are becoming increasingly relevant as well.

Read: 7 Benefits of Video Marketing for your E-commerce Business

14.    Offer Newsletter Subscription

Newsletters are a fast and easy way to keep new products and services up to date on a mailing list. One of the more common templates is MailChimp.

Read: What’s new with Mailchimp AI integration: An Insight

15.     Establish an Email Campaign

In front of your target audience, putting together an email marketing plan gets you out. Your email address will be seen by everyone on your list from inside their inbox.

Read: A Definitive Guide to Effective Email Marketing in 2020

16.     Run Give-Aways

In E-commerce, a value-added way of converting guests into consumers is by giving free access to a newsletter or blog. Whether you’re online or in a brick-and-mortar shop, consumers are always drawn to free items.

17.     Pay-Per-Click and Ads

Did you ever see such commercials at the top of the search results? Those are pay-per-click advertisements.

These ads provide excellent opportunities for advertisers to sell products directly to seekers. It’s also great because it helps you to see precisely how much you invest vs. how much money your promotional activities produce.

18.     Influencer Marketing

Why talk about your goods yourself when you can promote them through trusted people? That’s the crux of influencer marketing, which includes working to bring the goods in front of their audiences of famous people within a given niche or industry.

19.   Nailing the Execution

It’s time to put it into motion once the plan is in place.

It requires:

Having the skills: You need to know how to do it once you know what to do.

Getting the best people: The secret to success is putting the right people in the right place.

Having the right instruments: To tackle a given task or problem, a professional always uses the best possible solution.

20.    Use Data to Monitor your Progress

If the effect of your E-commerce marketing efforts cannot be determined, then you might not be doing anything at all.

To achieve a particular objective, any move should always be related to specific metrics.

Wrapping up:

In this article, there are a lot of strategies to process. But, now that you’ve covered much of what you need to know as a marketing professional (both at the surface level and with links to deeper reads on loads of sub-topics), you’re more informed than ever to continue your marketing skills and increase your career level.

If you want to add something to it, let us know below.

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10 best Magento 2 Extensions to uplift eCommerce Sales

Creating an eCommerce store on Magento 2 is easy, simple, and affordable. Optimize store with some of its best and popular Magento 2 extensions to make it user friendly. A fully developed website that can provide customer satisfaction that increases conversion and reduce cart abandonment rate is all that an eCommerce merchant need.

Optimizing your web store pages related to product and checkout will help you boost conversion. Ensure that the visitor land to correct search results on your website. You will only get conversions if you deliver what you have promised. Consider the design, navigation, and product page, the main factors for website optimization which will lead to the result that is ‘purchase’.

I am going to tell you about some most popular Magento 2 extensions you should have for uplifting the sales.

1. Go smart with Magento 2 Mobile App builder

With the evolving technology, it is quite essential to keep up with the trend. There are 5.2billion mobile users in the world and the graph is predicted to go up by 7.22billion till 2023. Make your eCommerce Magento 2 store completely mobile responsive with the Mobile App builder plugin. The module turns the store into a customizable app and the new version has a lot to offer.

This Magento 2 extension allows the admin to edit the home page design and update the layout. This ensures greater customization and improved user experience for the users of the application. Hence these variables increase customer engagement.

2. Magento 2 One Page Checkout Extension to Boost Conversion

The rushed billing counter in a brick and mortar store drive away from the potential customers. This can happen on an online store if your checkout page is not optimized. Replace the long, boring checkout page with a Magento 2 extension, One Page Checkout. It gives you all the required functionality and super-smooth checkout experience to users.

Reduce checkout friction with Magento 2 One Page Checkout. It offers guest checkout and social login for the buyers who do not like to spend extra time in the registration process. A lot of alluring features like multiple payment and shipping choices and customizable layout are the features that make it the best extension for Magento 2 store.

3. Magento 2 Abandoned Cart Extension to Reduce Cart Abandonment

We have got a solution to all your problems and cart abandonment is the one every seller deals with. Abandoned Cart – Magento 2 Extension, helps the seller to keep the track of all the carts which are abandoned by the customer, and its statistics settings allow the admin to analyze the reasons for the same.

The auto-trigger email functionality is the best feature of the abandoned cart Magento 2 extension as it converts the clogged sales by recovering the carts. Reduce cart abandonment with the Abandoned cart plugin.

4. Magento 2 Return Manager Extension for flexible return management

Product return and cancellation takes place in massive number and to manage the returns, every eCommerce website owner needs a flexible management system. The Return Manager plugin also known as the RMA extension is a perfect plugin for this job. Disappointing the customers by not providing an easy return facility will discourage the customers and degrade your brand reputation.

Manage your returns comfortably on Magento 2 store with the Return manager extension.

5. Magento 2 Social Loginizer Extension allows quick sign up

5 out of 10 people do not like to fill up the registration form or like proceeding through an easy way like social login. Social Login only requires the email ID of the user and it synchronizes the information from the social media account of the user. The collected information can be used in personalized email marketing.

Magento 2 Social Loginiser extension comes with 12 social media platform options for easy login. It is compatible with One Page Checkout and helps customers to complete the sign-up process in a few clicks. Social login 12 in 1 Magento 2 extension encourages quick sign-up, captures more leads, and reduces cart abandonment.

6. Magento 2 Review Reminder and Incentives Extension enhances customer satisfaction

Now you know how to uplift sales, reduce cart abandonment, and minimize the checkout friction. There are modules that are designed to increase user experience and built customer loyalty. The Review Reminder and Incentive extension is one that increases customer satisfaction.

The seller can offer Incentives to collect Product Reviews and Rating in Magento 2 stores. Giving customers a source of passive income can be beneficial. 92% of the visitors prefer reading the product reviews given by other customers to make the purchase decision.

7. Magento 2 Spin and Win Extension increases email subscribers

Add a fun game element to your store for gathering more email subscribers for the newsletter. Spin and Win – Magento 2 extension adds a gamified interface to the front end. This is a 3 in one plugin which can be used as an entry popup, exit popup, and email subscription module.

Attract more customers to your store with this customer engaging extension. It helps you increase the conversion rate and customer retention. There are many unique features that make it a part of the top 10 Magento 2 extension list.

8. Magento 2 Store Locator Extension allows the in-store pickup

By staying in their comfort zone and saving both time and energy, shoppers are happy shopping online. Many customers, however, believe in shopping online and picking the orders physically from the store. Online retailers should try to apply the BOPIS factor, i.e. Buy Online and Pick-up In-store, on their website.

The demand for one-click shopping and in-store pickup is increasing. The Store locator and pickup extension of the Magento 2 store detect the Geo-location of the customer to show the most appropriate recommendations for in-store pickup. Add Store Locator extension to Magento 2 store to keep up with the trend.

9. Magento 2 Affiliate and Referral program Extension

Give incentives or commission to the customers for new user registration, order placement, or both. Knowband developed an extension for the Magento 2 Affiliate and Referral Program that enables the customers to have an opportunity to become an affiliate and earn a profit. With this program, the owner can increase brand awareness at a low cost.

Affiliates have an opportunity to share vouchers with their referrals. These vouchers can be used during the checkout process. Customers are always looking for discounts and sellers are always looking to get more potential customers. Offering Incentives and making them an affiliate can solve both the purposes.

10. Magento 2 Multi-vendor Marketplace Extension

With such rising competition, keeping up with the market’s speed & trend is important. Today, the multi-vendor marketplace is attracting lots of vendors. The COVID 19 triggered the situation and now every brick and mortar is willing to sell online. This is the perfect time to convert your eCommerce Magento 2 website into a Multi-Seller Marketplace with a Multi-vendor Marketplace extension.

You will get a passive source of income and sellers will have a platform for their product to sell. The multi-vendor market place is a win-win idea booming these days. The extension has separate dashboards for admin and seller. Easy seller handling, product management, and many such features are incorporated into it. There are various types of online marketplaces and you can start your own with Multi-Vendor Marketplace Extension.

Wrapping up:

These are the top 10 extensions that can be a great fit for your Magento 2 store. I would recommend you to add them to your existing store for boosting sales, improving conversions, and enhancing user experience. To know more about these extensions, you can visit the Knowband store. All the Knowband extensions are designed to increase UX and are easy to configure.

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Buy Online and Pick up In-Store: How Click and Collect can Win Customers and Grow Sales

Online shopping from eCommerce websites is now a very common way of shopping. With changing time, the online shopping and pick up in-store concept is gaining thrust. People often opt for home delivery but many are opting for in-store pickup too.

Shoppers love picking their orders from the brick and mortar store because they don’t want to wait for it to deliver which may sometimes kill the excitement if delayed. Buy online and In-store Pickup is the best option for the impatient ones.

You can start offering ‘Click and Collect’ services on your store by incorporating ‘Store Locator and Pickup Extension’ to your existing website. The module developed by Knowband is easy to install and configure. It is catered specially for the merchants who want to allow the in-store pickup to their customers.

How does buy online and pick up in-store works?

The process of Buy online and Pick up in-store (BOPIS) also known as click and collect is simple and you need to follow the steps mentioned below:

Step 1: Buy your product online

Buy your product online through the website or mobile app of the store you want to purchase from.

Step 2: Choose the preferred store location on the checkout page

After the first step, select the near-by store from which you want to collect the order.

Step 3: Select the pick-up date and time

Following that, you have to mention the date and time on which you will be collecting the order.

Step 4: You will receive a confirmation mail

After the successful checkout, you have to wait for the confirmation mail sent by the store admin.

Step 5:  Collect the order from the selected store

In the meantime, the owner will pack your desired items for you.

Yay!! Now you can go and pick-up your order on the selected date.

Sellers are in advantage with ‘Click and Collect’

Shoppers want access to products instantaneously. They always look forward to finding a product that is available for instant purchase and ‘Click and Collect’ will lend a helping hand to sellers who believe in customer satisfaction.

The store locator and pick-up module are integrated with Google locations and allow customers to pick up from the nearby store. Some of the major benefits of buy online and pick-up in-store are discussed here.

1.        Save time and money on shipping

Higher shipping costs and delayed deliveries are a reason for cart abandonment. Click and collect service saves the shipping cost and encourages more customers to buy online. The merchant even saves money which is spent on the delivery channel.

No delivery boy is required, no transportation charges and moreover you save time.

2.        No more delivery failure

Late delivery can affect customer satisfaction and it might cause you, potential customers. But, if a customer purchases the product online and collects it from the store, there won’t be any delay or delivery failure. They can buy online and pick up from the store at their convenience.

3.        Increases Overall Sales

Even if a small customer base of your online shoppers converting to click and collect will uplift your sales. In reality, click-and-collect or BOPIS retailers reported an average sales growth of 20%.

•       Balance In-Store Inventory

Leveraging BOPIS from nearby brick-and-mortar locations enables order fulfillment. Geolocation intelligence identifies the closest store with the item in stock for delivery after a customer places an order online. If the product in stock is not available in local stores, retailers can conveniently import the items from another store location that has the item available, speeding up the process.

•       Increases Average Order Value

When a new customer arrives at your store, there are chances that he will purchase more products from your brick and mortar. This increases the average order value (AOV). Buy online and pick-up in-store hence increases overall sales.

4.        Fewer Product Returns

Product returns are the problem faced by every merchant being it small or a big brand. Allowing customers to purchase online and collect the order after trial can help you reduce the number of returns. You can promote this on your online store to grab customer attention and believe me, this will yield favorable results.

4 reasons why customers prefer Buy online and Pick up in-store

1.        No extra Shipping Charges

Customers do not have to pay charges for delivery or fast shipping. They can buy online and pick-up the order at their convenience from the nearest store without any hassle.

2.        Makes shopping easier

Many customers afraid to shop from new websites but a store with ‘buy online and pick up in-store’ which is present in their vicinity makes it easier. Let customers decide what they want, when they want it and how they get it. Offering freedom to purchase online, home delivery, or in-store pick-up is advantageous this is everything they are looking for. No late delivery and no more waiting!

3.        Gives customer more flexibility

Comfort and convenience are what every human is catering for. Online shoppers want retailers to make purchasing their products and services simpler. Consumers want websites and retailers to work together better as well. An extension like store locator and pick up allows customers to shop any time in their comfort zone and allows them to pick up the order with their convenience. This is the flexibility every customer is looking out for.

4.        Boosts customer loyalty

Customer loyalty is a result of customer satisfaction and overall customer journey while purchasing from your store. A business doesn’t work without potential buyers and the factors which can cause you customer opportunity are not an issue anymore.

Since store locator and pickup extension overcomes the major bounce rate issues like extra shipping charges and late delivery for impatient buyers, this is a highly recommended industry trend to implement in your store.

Knowband’s Store locator and Pickup Module for an eCommerce store

You can easily start ‘Buy Online and In-Store Pickup’ in your existing eCommerce store. Knowband is a specialized eCommerce platform that has developed several solutions for demands and requirements that an eCommerce store owner desires. The store locator and Pickup Module is the one designed to attain the need of launching the click and collect option in an online store.

  • It is integrated with Geolocation functionality and the store owner can easily generate Google API key for the Google maps.
  • The details like the name of the store, owner details, contact number, and store timings can be displayed using Store locator and Pickup Addon.
  • The module allows users to select the desired store location, date, and time for order pick-up.

The Store locator and Pickup Module is available for the following platforms:

Store Locator And Pickup – Prestashop Addons

Store Locator – Magento ® Extensions

Store Locator – Magento 2 ® Extensions

Store Locator – Opencart Extensions

Any online website on these platforms can incorporate the plugin and start offering click and collect to increase foot traffic in brick-and-mortar stores.

Conclusion:

If the retailer allows connectivity between its online and in-store shopping networks and provides the opportunity to provide the consumer with a real-time feed of available inventory, in-store pickup is not difficult. This immediately lets the customer know if he/she can pick up the order from the desired store right away.

You can implement BOPIS- Buy online and Pickup in-store for better customer experience, grow sales, and to keep up with the trend. Undoubtedly!

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Key Benefits of Starting an Online Marketplace

The possible benefits to be obtained by entering an online marketplace can differ between industries and firms, and between buyers and sellers. If you are looking for the advantages and the downside of the online marketplace before starting one then you have landed on the right page.

The marketplace model is booming in the business industry and the growth rate is out of the blue. Companies like Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, ETSY are operating for years and are now at the top.

There are many types of online marketplaces and websites where you can sell your goods to customers who would not otherwise find you, in addition to having your own physical and e-commerce shop. An online marketplace has various advantages for the admin, seller, and buyers.

Benefits of Online Marketplace for your businesses

An online marketplace is a platform for small businesses to bring it on the web. Sellers and merchants are benefited but the customers get the most advantage. Some of the potential advantages are summarised below:

General business benefits

Develop new partnerships:

There are greater opportunities, either within their supply chain or through supply chains, for sellers and buyers to develop new trading relationships. The radar of a marketplace is anytime greater than an individual eCommerce website because many sellers and buyers from different niches come to the same platform for their needs.

Greater Transparency:

Because the availability, rates and stock levels are all available in an open environment; e-marketplaces can provide greater transparency in the buying process.

Operate anytime:

Time restrictions and concerns with various working hours for foreign trade are avoided when round-the-clock operations are feasible. No one has to wait for the shop to open as these marketplaces can be operated anytime from anywhere. The online Marketplace is highly convenient for both sellers and buyers.

Easy Management:

Product Information Management software that automates the bulk upload to your marketplaces of product information. This way, at the same time, you can be sure that the catalog and stock details are standardized in all your networks.

Choose Revenue Stream:

There are two ways the marketplaces earn income, one is commission based and another is by charging subscription or membership fees. Some of the e-marketplaces find commission the best choice as it is easier to operate and is a sustained source of income. While the online marketplaces like OLX make money through premium subscription plans.

Benefits of the online marketplace for the buyer

Best Deals:

Buyers can secure the best deals due to updated information on the availability and price of the product. An online marketplace brings the right buyers in touch with the right sellers with much greater precision than it could ever happen in a simple web search.

Convenient to compare product and prices:

Instead of wasting time calling individual suppliers, e-marketplaces provide an easy way to compare rates and products on a single platform. One of the key benefits of an online marketplace is that it puts together all deals from different vendors or service providers. Customers are more likely to use an app with a wide variety of choices so that they can select exactly what they want without restricting a single provider to their preference.

Builds Trust:

Developed e-marketplaces provide the customer with a degree of confidence as they exclusively work with vendors who are members. This builds trust and looks convincing when a new customer visits the eCommerce marketplace. A significant number of buyers feel intimidated by sharing card details for financial transactions when they operate on a new website.

Benefits of the online marketplace for the seller

Regular orders

Sellers get daily requests from both new and existing customers for quotes and products. An e-marketplace increases business opportunities. You could meet customers with whom you’ve never crossed paths before, or pursue new demographic niches and find new prospects for sales.

Sales Channel

You provide multiple touchpoints for clients to connect with your brand when you sell through multiple platforms, online, offline, and everywhere in between. To advertise and sell products, the online marketplace creates an alternative distribution channel.

Low cost of marketing

When compared to other distribution platforms, e-marketplaces may deliver reduced marketing costs. The seller can reach a potential customer with little effort. You can sell right there where potential customers are found without investing either extra time or money. Marketplaces have the benefit that they have their resources, target groups, and customers.

Sales overseas

The global e-marketplaces will provide opportunities that you would not be aware of for overseas sales. Through online marketplaces, overseas sales are incredibly easy. In particular, foreign operators, such as Amazon or eBay, typically provide assistance and rights to retailers. In the face of high inventory levels, an enticing price will persuade foreign customers most of all. Provide multiple payment gateways according to customer demands.

Final Words:

These were the major advantages of the online marketplace but never forget the fact that there is a risk involved in every new business. Different types of online marketplaces are classified considering several parameters like their focus, niche, revenue-generating system, etc. If you want to start your marketplace or sell on an e-marketplace then you should study both advantages and disadvantages. An online marketplace might be the ticket to building a big, profitable business with a lasting impact if you can resolve the challenges.

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