Establishing a Separate Outlet eCommerce Store for Your Brand: Key Advantages
Creating a distinct outlet eCommerce store for your brand, in addition to your primary website, can offer numerous benefits.
1. Enhanced Control over Outlet Customer Experience
When selling discounted or clearance items through third-party marketplaces like Amazon or eBay, you face limitations in branding and messaging. A separate outlet eCommerce store enables you to create a unique and consistent brand experience for your outlet offerings, fostering customer loyalty and trust.
2. Access to Valuable Outlet Customer Data
Third-party marketplaces restrict your ability to collect data on your customers, such as their purchase history and preferences for outlet items. An independent outlet eCommerce store allows you to gather this information and use it to personalise your marketing efforts and enhance the customer experience for your outlet offerings.
3. Better Pricing Control for Outlet Products
Strict pricing guidelines are often imposed by third-party marketplaces, making it challenging to offer promotions or discounts on your outlet items. An independent outlet eCommerce store lets you set your own prices, helping you become more competitive and boost sales of clearance or discounted products.
4. Greater Inventory Management for Outlet Stock
Relying on a third-party marketplace to manage your inventory and fulfil orders can be limiting, especially for outlet items. An independent outlet eCommerce store grants you more control over inventory and the fulfilment process for your discounted products, improving efficiency and reducing costs.
5. Minimising Cannibalisation and Optimising Customer Expectations
Establishing a simple, fast website dedicated to outlet sales offers several advantages, including preventing cannibalisation of full-price sales on the main website. By keeping lower-priced items separate from your higher-priced offerings, customers can easily distinguish between regular and outlet products.
Outlet eCommerce stores also set different expectations for customers regarding the quality of products. Shoppers are more likely to accept factory seconds or items with minor faults when purchasing from an outlet store, as they understand they are acquiring discounted items. In contrast, they might be less satisfied if they purchased such products from the main website.
Another advantage of a separate outlet store is the ability to target potential customers who have shown interest in your brand but have not yet made a purchase. By directing these prospects to your outlet store, you can offer more affordable options to entice them into making their first purchase.
6. Adaptable Returns Policies and Terms and Conditions
A separate outlet eCommerce store allows you to create different returns policies and terms and conditions that cater specifically to outlet stock. For instance, you could implement a shorter return window for outlet items or specify that customers are responsible for return shipping costs. This flexibility enables you to manage returns and exchanges more effectively, while ensuring customers are aware of the distinct policies for outlet purchases.
In Conclusion
Creating a separate outlet eCommerce store for your brand, alongside your main website, brings several benefits, such as enhanced brand identity, valuable customer data, pricing control, and better inventory management. Furthermore, it helps prevent cannibalisation of full-price sales, sets appropriate customer expectations, and allows for tailored returns policies and terms and conditions. These advantages contribute to increased sales and overall business success.
