The global pandemic COVID has shut down the high street and
businesses across the UK & Ireland. With a return to work being slowly
phased and uncertainty ahead, the online garment decoration industry is not
going to be the same again.
Footfall in retail premises will decrease rapidly to the
point of being non-existent, customers are looking to be safe and secure in
their shopping. Taking your business online gives customers the comfort blank
of being able to order their workwear, printed & embroidered from the
comfort of their home and so on.
The problem is intensified
for those who provide school uniforms, customers will not be able to just pop
in-store, try on items and takeaway their uniforms the same day. An ecommerce
website is especially pivotal for those who rely on the school uniform rush to
build up cashflow.
The demand for creating a website
that can take online orders recently has taken off with solutions (such as the
one we offer!) providing a popular choice among garment decorators.
There are
pros and cons when it comes to using a solution. Bear in mind they are built
for the industry and will cover most bases but maybe not tick 100% of the boxes
you want, there is a bit of compromise to be had. But the time, money and
resources that can be saved using an ecommerce solution is invaluable.
To get your business thriving online in the post-COVID era
we have put together some advice to help you achieve success with an ecommerce
website.
Ensure
the website layout is mobile & tablet friendly: An almost essential for
a website which is still overlooked by many. Your website needs to look great
on both a desktop PC/laptop and a mobile & tablet. Customers shopping from
home are looking for a crisp, easy user experience to buy their goods online.
Mirror
how you work in-store online: Make sure users know all about your knowledge
& expertise. Customers previously would have potentially visited your store
to find out about your products, service, and branding methods. With this being
limited ensure this can be found online to put their minds at ease and help
with any queries.
Communicate
with your customers through the website: A simple point inexplicably
overlooked, provide clear call to actions (CTAs) for customers. Make it easy
for them to reach out to you, this can also be through the use of chat bots and
live chat facilities.
Set
up designated areas for your customers: There will be exiting customers –
schools, clubs, businesses who will want to re-order. Provide them their very
own shop facility to make their repeat orders simple.
Keep
products & prices up to date: This is a mammoth task, but one that
needs to be considered. Products are continuously dis-continued and added from
suppliers with prices often changing. There are website solutions from
wholesalers that manage this aspect but are extremely limited and tie you in to
using their products offering no choices or flexibility. Create a website
selling the products you want at the prices you want.
Keep
your website safe & secure: Customer information needs to be safe &
secure and since the introduction of GDPR this is under more scrutiny than ever
before. Your website needs an SSL certificate to appear safe in your customers
browsers. If it does not have one it will display an error and give your
customers a poor user experience or cast doubt in their mind.
Taking
payments online: Something not many consider when looking for an ecommerce
website, you need a secure payment processor and checkout plus in most cases a
merchant account. There is often a monthly cost to these services from banks
& payment providers.
Lastly, consider the costs of building an ecommerce website.
The garment decoration industry is unique and to build a solution from scratch with
products and branding options is complex and expensive. An ecommerce solution may not tick every
box a bespoke website does, but it will save you £1000s in development and
increase your businesses sales post COVID.
For more information or to book an online demo to see how we could help your print & embroidery business with its website email info@etraderwebsites.co.uk or call 029 2074 1663
