MERAK is an online business platform for cottage industry in Pakistan. Through this platform we provide cottage industry vendors to show their products and sell them easily to the customers. The complete details of this business is mentioned in other blog. You can read it and support this venture.
OUR BUSINESS PROGRESS
All startups need time to establish themselves and as same happened with Merak. In the beginning it seemed very difficult as there was no response on our social media handles for about one and a half months. Then we worked together on our marketing strategy and targeted the organic market like we sold products in our circles i.e. family, relatives and friends. Then we started getting orders after two months. Until now we have taken fifteen successful orders nine of them are already delivered and the remaining are confirmed and will be delivered very soon.
As this was the new experience for us, we made many mistakes but we learnt a lot from it. In the beginning there were misunderstandings in orders from both ends for example one of our customers ordered a belt and we delivered a wallet as the product code was almost similar so the cost for the refund and exchange was beared by us. Also there were misunderstandings in sizing. But now we have improved it a lot. We have a proper managing channel through which we have made mistakes very minimal through our end.
This data is obtained after almost two months as in early days there were no orders received. And we are hoping to increase the pace of the orders.
CHALLENGES AND SOLUTION
As we are working on our project for about two and a half months, we have faced a lot of challenges but as we all know that challenges are the part of our life that give you experiences and make you learn. And we believe that we only grow when we face challenges. So below mentioned are the major challenges that we faced during our whole experience and to overcome them we have come up with their solutions.
Fake customers:
We think that it is the most major and common challenge faced by every online business. These customers place orders and then at the time of delivery they just disappear and the company has to bear the transportation or delivery cost as most of the orders are cash on delivery. So now we are practicing a process in which we reconfirm the order by calling them and after reconfirming it the parcel is shipped to the customer.
Shipping methods and time:
In the online market for most of the buyers the fast and timely delivery matters a lot. Regardless of the shipping method used, the buyers would expect very fast and quick delivery. So we tried to use carriers that can provide tracking service and notifications when the parcel is shipped, when it’s on the way, arrived near the destination, and when it will be delivered. It absolutely cannot minimize the time of delivery but by providing time tracking information overcomes customer’s expectations of fast and quick delivery.
Also a negative shipping experience can have a huge impact on your business. For example as we have a range of fragile products that are made of glass or such type of material that are easily broken. Once our product reached the customer and it was damaged so we had to bear the cost and replace it immediately but as first impression is the last impression so it impacted our image a lot. Now we have a proper packaging for fragile products.
In starting we tried different courier services in which we faced loss of parcel as there was no track of product. So now we are using a reliable courier service and also there is a product tracking id that helps a lot if a parcel is misplaced.
CHANGE IN APPROACH
We change our marketing strategy or approach from time to time according to the situations and definitely it is a good practice.
Promotion and Marketing:
As it was a very new startup the difficulty in the early period we faced was very low reach at social media handles so we decided to change our approach by organic marketing and promotions. So we targeted the audience by directly contacting them and showing our products to them directly or through different WhatsApp groups and this approach helped us in increasing the reach of our customers.
Ambassadorship:
A brand ambassador is a person who is hired by an organization or company to represent a brand in a positive light, and by doing so, help to increase brand awareness and sales. In order to do this we acquired a number of students from our universities and made them our brand ambassadors. The goal of brand ambassadors is to help the company with marketing programs on campus to target the college demographic. This can be achieved by marketing organically and utilizing social media to promote the brand or company. This ambassadorship is based on commission basis like if an ambassador achieves at least fifteen confirmed orders per month he or she will be granted a ten percent commission on total sales.
BUSINESS SUSTAINABILTY :
Operational efficiency: One way in which you can grow your business is to maximize your operational efficiency and we did the same. In the beginning we were very slow but now we are working on our operational efficiency and have increased it up to an extent and trying to make it even better.
Customer reviews:
It will take lots of effort to get your clients to trust you however one error and you’ll lose them all prior to even being able to explain. Your high quality customer service needs to be permanent. We observed that customer reviews are very important and have a great impact on business. By using this information, you will be able to improve customer service by quickly and efficiently resolving the issues faced by the consumers. Also reviews appear to be the most prominent ranking factor in local search. It helps businesses rank well even if they have low quality link profiles. So yes we take customer reviews seriously and enhance our services accordingly.
We are still working on the betterment and improvements in our project and hoping it to continue for a long period of time making it a successful business idea. You can support us by visiting our Facebook and Instagram pages and help us by providing your feedback.
