India: SMEs need to unleash the power of e-commerce

Bikky Khosla, SME Times, 24 Apr, 2012

It has often been said that fortune of a small firm can have a direct effect of e-commerce, which opens up a world of unlimited business opportunities, creating a level playing field for all and eliminating most of the real-world barriers of market entry. However, despite these potential benefits, many small business owners often complain about making little success from this platform. As a result, the distrust feeling appears.

Why this happens? I think it's because e-commerce, while removing a good deal of barriers we face in the brick-and-mortar world, does come with a new set of barriers. For example, there are seemingly unlimited customers, but they are chased by seemingly unlimited sellers; you can sell a product very quickly, but customers have to take the purchasing decision without touching or feeling your product; no sales staff is required, but there's no chance of up-selling.

So when you enter into the world of e-commerce, you may need to follow a whole new set of principles.

E-commerce is not about just putting up a website, displaying the offers and adding plans for people to buy.

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