As online selling evolves, businesses face a pivotal decision: build their own platform (direct commerce) or leverage established marketplaces like Amazon, Talabat or Uber Eats. As businesses navigate the world of online selling, one critical decision stands out: whether to sell directly to customers via their own platform (direct commerce) or use an established marketplace. While marketplaces provide convenience and exposure, direct commerce offers unique opportunities for growth, profitability, and customer loyalty. Let’s break it down:
🌟 Why Consider Direct Commerce?
1️⃣ Full Control Over Branding
With direct commerce, your platform becomes an extension of your identity. You dictate the customer experience, from the visual aesthetics to personalized interactions—something marketplaces can’t offer. Direct commerce strengthens your brand identity, ensuring your customers remember you, not the platform and give you full creative control over your website, app, and customer interactions.
2️⃣ Higher Profit Margins
Avoid high marketplace fees and commissions and gain full control over pricing strategies without being forced to discount excessively. Direct commerce lets you keep more of what you earn, allowing for reinvestment into your business and provide greater flexibility to allocate resources toward growth and innovation while on marketplaces:
- High commission fees (often 10-30%) on every sale can eat into your profits.
- Additional charges for promotions, featured listings, or advertisements on marketplaces.
3️⃣ Customer Ownership
- Limited access to customer data: Marketplaces control the data, which means you can’t personalize experiences or target your audience effectively.
- Lack of insights into customer behavior: Without understanding your customers’ preferences, it’s harder to optimize your offerings and build lasting relationships.
- Keep customer data private and use it to improve retention strategies.
Directly collect customer data (emails, preferences, purchase history) to improve marketing strategies. Establish direct relationships and loyalty programs to retain customers. Direct access to customer data empowers you to:
- Personalize experiences.
- Launch loyalty programs.
- Run data-driven campaigns.
- Build deeper relationships through direct communication and tailored experiences.
4️⃣ Flexibility and Innovation
Adapt your platform to meet evolving market needs. Experiment with features, promotional strategies, or subscription models without marketplace restrictions. Add unique features to your website or app, such as loyalty points, app-exclusive discounts, or custom checkout flows and adapt to market demands faster without waiting for marketplace updates.
- Set your own pricing strategies, offer custom promotions, and run exclusive campaigns tailored to your audience without external interference.
- Run exclusive campaigns, discounts, and bundles to attract and retain customers.
5️⃣ Freedom in Marketing and Promotions
- Run personalized campaigns like discounts, bundles, and referral programs without restrictions.
- Leverage email, SMS, and social media marketing for targeted outreach.
- Track and analyze marketing efforts without limitations imposed by third-party platforms.
6️⃣ Better Customer Experience
Offer personalized experiences with custom interfaces and exclusive offers. Have control over the entire customer journey, from product discovery to post-purchase support.
- Create a tailored customer journey from browsing to delivery and beyond.
- Offer personalized touches like branded packaging, faster delivery, and direct customer support.
7️⃣ Reduced Dependency
Avoid marketplace policy changes, commission hikes, or bans that can impact your revenue.
Stay in control of your business’s future without relying on external platforms.
8️⃣ Direct Customer Feedback
Direct customer feedback is an invaluable resource that provides businesses with insights into customer satisfaction, pain points, and areas for improvement. This feedback helps you make informed decisions, improve your offerings, and build a stronger relationship with your audience. Avoid filtered or manipulated reviews common in marketplaces.
9️⃣ Data-Driven Decision Making
Marketplace:
- Limited visibility into sales data, customer demographics, or shopping behavior.
- Reliance on marketplace analytics that may not offer granular insights.
Direct Commerce:
- Access real-time data on customer behavior, sales trends, and marketing performance.
- Use insights to make data-driven decisions, optimize operations, and grow your business.
🤔 But What About Marketplaces?
While marketplaces provide traffic, they come with limitations:
- High competition with other sellers.
- Limited control over branding and pricing.
- Fees that can cut into profits.
- Limited visibility into sales data, customer demographics, or shopping behavior.
- Retargeting and personalization become challenging without access to customer insights.
- No direct dialogue with customers and their feedbacks.
They’re great for initial exposure, but relying solely on them can limit your growth.
💡 The Best Strategy? Combine Both!
Use marketplaces to attract new customers, then transition them to your direct platform. Offer exclusive deals, loyalty rewards, or a superior experience to retain them.
The Bottom Line
While marketplaces provide exposure and ease of entry, direct commerce gives you the control, profitability, and scalability needed for sustainable growth. For quick commerce and e-commerce businesses looking to stand out, build loyalty, and maximize margins, investing in your own direct sales platform is the smarter choice.
If you’re ready to scale smarter and reduce dependence on marketplaces, now’s the time to act.
Let’s connect to explore how your business can leverage direct commerce and eventually grow to the level of marketplaces.