4 Steps To Become A Virtual Merchant – An Ulitmate Guide

Starting a business has become easier when considering business hassles in the olden days. Online businesses have allowed everyone to start selling while sitting in their home. However, many people still need to know what it takes to be a virtual merchant. 

Step 1: Check On Your Investment

Every business, be it physical or online, demands an investment. However, the amount of investment varies from business to business. Thus before starting your business, you need to analyze how much you can invest. Some businesses require an investment of only a few hundred dollars, and some require millions. It all depends on personal capacity. However, if you’re new to the business, you must invest low amounts initially.

Besides this, the investment may vary from business model to business model. Suppose you want to sell on your website. Then you manage inventory, stocks and shipping on your own and bear all the expenses. Or if you want to sell on a marketplace. Then you need to arrange the product in bulk to stock at the warehouse of the marketplace. In both models, you seek different amounts of investment. 

Step 2: Choosing A Winning Product

Once you are sorted with investment, choosing your product or products is next. There are millions of products that one can sell. However, the real hustle is choosing a winning product that would bring sales and revenue. 

There are some prerequisites before choosing a product. The first is choosing a product that can be easily sourced; its supply is smooth. And the vendor must be okay with your payment solutions. The second is to choose a product whose quality or quantity remains the same over time. I.e. products with an extensive shelf life. The next but most important prerequisite is choosing a product with a high-profit margin. I.e. the product that gives a profit margin of more than 50%. 

Step 3: Opting for A Platform To Sell 

The Internet is a vast place with billions of users worldwide. Therefore the sellers try to sell on marketplaces that have a reach to the maximum number of customers. Most sellers prefer to sell on eCommerce websites. Because e-commerce websites already have a greater audience, sellers can advertise their products without advertising them.

Ecommerce website

However, the sellers are bound to the website’s policies when selling on eCommerce websites, i.e. Amazon, eBay, Rakuten, etc. Sellers must follow the website’s community guidelines and pay a commission on every order. In return, the eCommerce website manages your inventory, processes your orders, and promotes your brand. For the sellers, it’s a virtual terminal, and the website takes care of everything against a fixed commission. Lastly, your payouts pass through a specific account payment process. I.e. Paypal, Payoneer or Stripe. 

Step 4: Adding A Payment Gateway

The next step in setting up a website is integrating a payment gateway. A payment gateway enables customers to clear their payments online. It depends on the sellers which payment gateway they want to add to their websites. They can add debit and credit card terminals, mobile-authorized payments or even QR code payment methods. 

This blog was originally published at https://pos.mbeforyou.com/ca/4-steps-to-become-a-virtual-merchant-an-ulitmate-guide/ on January 20,2023.