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How to optimize the shopping cart of your ecommerce site SEO – friendly?

Posted on January 19, 2023 by hello@scuti

Your online store’s checkout process is a crucial step in boosting conversions. According to statistics, 69.99% of shoppers abandon their carts on average across all industries. You wouldn’t want it to occur in your online store’s shopping cart, if you were an ecommerce firm owner. Therefore, in this article, we will suggest different ways to optimize your shopping cart SEO-friendly of your ecommerce website.

1. Improve your ecommerce site’s loading speed

The overall consumer experience depends on loading times, but they are especially important during the checkout process.

Hubspot estimates that a 1-second delay in the site’s loading speed would cost Amazon $1.6 billion in lost sales annually. Furthermore, 40% of your visitors will abandon their shopping carts if it takes longer than three seconds for your sites to load. You should make an effort to make sure that your checkout pages load as quickly as possible.

If you want to hire an ecommerce agency to help you improve your website’s loading speed, learn more here.

2. Offer a range of shipping choices

If you give more clients more ways to buy and pay for their purchases, they will appreciate your e-commerce website more.

If you put yourself in the position of your potential clients, you will realize that some of them require the product right away, making urgent delivery a fantastic shipping choice. Some shipping choices to include on your ecommerce website’s checkout cart page should be standard local delivery, free shipping, urgent shipping, etc.

3. Offer a variety of payment options

Although the majority of consumers find online shopping simple, not everyone agrees. Despite having a well-designed website, some customers prefer a range of payment methods, and if their preferred one is not available, they can stop shopping at the ecommerce site.

Recognize that as an owner of an online store, you cannot please everyone and that the only way to get these clients to shop is by providing a variety of payment options. Some payment options you should provide in your ecommerce site are bank transfer, cash on delivery, digital wallet, etc.

Learn more about how to choose the best Shopify payment gateway in Singapore for your ecommerce business here.

4. Add comments on your product page

The typical customer reads ten internet reviews before making a decision. Consumers (88%) think online reviews are just as reliable as personal recommendations. More prospective customers will be persuaded to add a product to their shopping cart if there are more supportive remarks in the product reviews. They’ll probably post a comment as well if they have a great experience.

Star rating is also a trustworthy source for customers to buy your products. As stated by HubSpot 57% of consumers will only buy or use a business service if it has at least a 4-star rating. Therefore, don’t encourage customers to read reviews on independent websites. Customers’ comments should be included on your product pages.

5. Send a reminder email regarding an ignored shopping cart

Online purchasing allows you window shopping as well. Before completing a purchase, customers will put the item to their shopping carts and leave it there for several days. However, customers frequently forget the item they placed in their shopping cart, which leads them to abandon their unfinished purchases. Use abandoned cart emails to inform your consumers and stop that from happening.

By doing this, people will be informed and reminded to check out the products.

6. Automated account creation using social media and email

Even if creating an account on an e-commerce website is simple, not everyone has the time to fill up their account profile. Instead of spending time on each transaction by having to fill out their personal information on an ecommerce website, customers prefer speedy checkout.

According to a poll by the Baynard Institute on cart abandonment, 24% of prospective buyers leave their online shopping carts empty on websites that allow them to make purchases by creating accounts.

To solve this problem, make it possible for customers to check out as anonymous visitors by enabling automated sign-up using their Facebook or Gmail accounts. Upon authorization, this will retrieve basic customer information from the relevant service providers.

7. Add limited time on the purchase process to create urgency

If people feel they will lose out on the desired goods, they are more likely to add items to their carts and make purchases. This is also known as FOMO (fear of missing out) (FOMO). Therefore, by making your products seem special and providing limited-time offers, you subtly push the customer to act now or miss out.

8. Offer live chat support

A small feature called live chat has been found to boost conversions. Live chat is even more essential if your business is new or does not have a strong brand.

Consumers want to know that they are doing business with a trustworthy company because they are very aware of internet fraud. Live chat conversations with your customers might help them feel more at ease while making purchases on your website.

Additionally, if clients have to look around for too long to find your contact information, they can lose interest or think you’re unreliable. The only way chat boxes are useful is if you can monitor them and respond to questions immediately.

Conclusion

Making your shopping cart SEO-friendly is a crucial step to encourage customers to purchase your products.Without obstacles, shopping ought to be a pleasant experience where consumers can focus on their purchases. If you need help from ecommerce agency to optimize your shopping cart, we are here to help.

Established in 2015, Scuti with 7+ years has developed into a dynamic, flexible, and quick-moving business that specializes in delivering web development for the ecommerce industry. We’ve created a global presence and work with clients in many different industry sectors. We place a strong emphasis on scope discovery to accurately identify client goals and objectives. We assist our clients in reducing operational complexity and putting innovative ecommerce solutions for businesses of all sizes, from startups, SMEs to large enterprises. Our main areas of specialty include Shopify, Adobe Commerce (also known as Magento), and ecommerce tools.

How to create customer referral programs for your Shopify store with amazing examples

Posted on January 18, 2023 by hello@scuti

Referral marketing or ‘refer-a-friend’ marketing is a cost-effective marketing strategy that rewards current customers for referring your goods to their friends and relatives. This tactic is used by many big brands around the world. Unsure whether you need your own referral programs? In this article, we will discuss the benefits of it and guide you to create successful referral programs for your Shopify store with some real-world examples.

Referral marketing and referral program

Referral marketing is a tactic that rewards current clients for introducing you to their personal networks. This can be mentioned as word-of-mouth marketing.

Meanwhile, if you already have a group of content customers who are recommending your goods to their contacts, a referral program fuels the machine that generates recommendations for you by persuading more people to do so (and to do it more often.)

With a referral scheme, you can gain new clients without spending money on advertising and then gaining their trust with valuable content. The fact that the suggestion comes from someone who already owns that increases the credibility of your goods.

The way that referral programs work

A referral program works by asking your current clients to represent your business. When they sign up for your referral marketing scheme, they receive a special code or link to distribute to their network.

Your referral program software monitors how a customer’s code or link is being used. A reward will be given to the referrer if a sale is made utilizing it.

Various kinds of referral programs

Direct referral

Direct referrals take place when individuals looking for a product similar to yours actively refer you to them. It’s the oldest and most natural method of recommendation. The person making the referral is simply genuinely pleased with the product and prepared to recommend it to their friends; there isn’t necessarily any financial benefit for them to do so.

Reputation referral

This kind of reputation occurs when your brand is so well-known that customers feel comfortable recommending you to others who are looking for the things you sell, even if they haven’t personally used your services.

This comes about as an indirect effect of having excellent items and a robust brand recognition.

Incentivized referral

This is the most common kind of referral. This business strategy gives someone a benefit for recommending your goods to their contacts, such as a cash reward or a discount on their subsequent purchase. Some referral programs offer two different incentives. Retailers have the option of rewarding both the referrer and the new customer for participating in the program.

Benefits of having successful referral programs

Bring loyal customers to your brand

Encouraging repeated purchase after first purchase and establishing a long term relationship with referred customers are easier than attracting new ones. This is because they already trust your brand before buying your products. According to research from the Wharton School of Business, referred customers are worth 16 to 25% in lifetime value. Additionally, referred customers are 37% more likely to remain loyal to your brand, as stated by Deloitte.

Promote your brand

If customers have good experience with your brand, it’s common that they will become brand ambassadors and recommend it to their friends and family. Nielsen study indicated that 92% of consumers trust recommendations from people they know rather than other types of advertising. Meanwhile, about 18% of Gen X discover brands by referral marketing (Statista). You can see that this type of word of mouth marketing gives your brand more credibility and wins potential customers’ trust.

Increase your revenue

According to Nielsen, when recommended by a friend, people are four times more likely to make a purchase. Moreover, your revenue can rise by 16% thanks to referrals. In addition, the American Marketing Association stated that providing reward makes referrals more likely, but the size of the prize is unimportant. This implies that you can save more money in word of mouth marketing strategy, while earning more profit.

Steps to create a referral program

1. Bring the best quality of products or services to your customer

If you want to gain a reputation for your brand and establish a long term relationship with your customers, the first step is to make sure that your products or services are great. Only when you can convince your existing customers that you create the best products and services, will they be likely to recommend your brand to others.

Learn more about how to encourage impulse buy in your Shopify store here.

2. Decide referral reward

A great strategy to increase program usage is to reward customers who recommend other people. Decide on the type of incentive you’ll offer those who recommend their family and friends. Remember that you establish a win-win relationship with your customers. New customers are encouraged to purchase through a referral link. When they do, the person who referred them gets rewarded.

3. Pick a referral marketing device

The following step is to select a referral marketing platform that manages invites for referrals, creates special codes or links, and keeps track of the activity generated through them.

Thankfully, Shopify offers a number of powerful referral program tools on Shopify apps to help you motivate customers to promote your company:

- Referral Candy

- Referrals & Abandoned Cart

- Talkable Referrals

4. Invite existing customer to participate in your program

The best referral sources are existing customers. Through email marketing, invite them to join your referral program.

Send a broadcast first to introduce your new initiative and the rewards you’re providing (if any). The majority of referral marketing platforms have an email option that automatically inserts a customer’s specific referral code or link without them needing to join up.

Examples of successful referral programs

Rothy’s

Rothy’s makes essentials such as vintage shoes and bags. The progress the neighborhood is making serves as a source of inspiration. When your friends place their first order, they will receive a $20 reward as part of their refer-a-friend program. Also, referral receives $20 off for the next purchase.

Quad Lock

For cyclists, motorists, motorcyclists, and runners, Quad Lock provides phone mounts and cases. It has sold over 1 million items in more than ten nations. It offers 5% in cash if customers refer their brand to friends, and 10% off in the first purchase for referred customers.

Decathlon

Decathlon is a sports supply store that sells everything from electric scooters and kayaks to running socks and bikinis. Its marketing strategy is ‘Give $10, Get $10’, which offer $10 off in points when you refer the brand to friends, and $10 off in the first purchase for the referred customers.

Rae Wellness

Rae Wellness provides dietary supplements to support your overall health and wellbeing. ‘Help your friends feel their best’ is a line in their marketing campaign that plays on the positive emotions you’ll have when helping others and after using Rae supplements. They offer 5% of the next order and 5% of first order for existing customers and their friends, respectively.

The last word

To sum up, creating your own referral program would be beneficial for your ecommerce business in the long run. Therefore, creating trust with customers, choosing rewards to give them for participating in referral programs can be one of your top strategies to build long term relationships with customers and attract new ones. If you are considering building a Shopify store, learn more here.

Top ecommerce marketing trends of 2023 for better conversions in Singapore

Posted on January 18, 2023 by hello@scuti

As more people choose to buy their goods online, online shopping is obviously a common occurrence in Singapore. Therefore, more companies are establishing more online presence. To differentiate yourself from your competitors, you must develop an outstanding ecommerce marketing strategy. Setting up your marketing plan from ecommerce marketing trends is one technique to make your company stand out from the competition. In this article, we will discuss top ecommerce marketing trends of 2023 in Singapore that you may use to expand your online business.

1. Search engine optimization (SEO) – top ecommerce marketing trend 2023 in Singapore

Obviously, the increase in internet consumers presents an opportunity for you to increase your customers. Using SEO tactics is the best strategy to raise your search engine ranks and increase your website’s natural visibility to your potential customers. Along with making your product pages SEO-friendly, you should also focus on developing SEO content that speaks to the other phases of the sales process.

There are several processes involved in producing SEO content, from creating content changes to writing drafts to posting. Consider paying for content marketing services if you’re short on time.

2. Conversion rate optimization (CRO)

The process of raising the proportion of users who perform a desired activity on a website is known as conversion rate optimization (CRO). A product purchase, selecting “add to basket,” signing up for a service, completing a form, or clicking a link are examples of desired activities.

Optimizing your conversion rates is a method of generating more income from your current traffic. This is so that CRO can evaluate different iterations of your website, such as brand-new designs, copy, or page features.

Any website analytics tool can be used to calculate the ecommerce conversion rate of a website. You can use the most popular one, Google Analytics, which concentrates on data from websites solely.

3. Omnichannel marketing – one of the best ecommerce marketing trends 2023 in Singapore

Omnichannel marketing is a strategy used by businesses to promote lead generation and user engagement by allowing customers to access their goods and services via a variety of platforms, gadgets, and channels. According to McKinsey & Company, omnichannel marketing has been a crucial component of ecommerce developments in 2022 and will continue to be important at least until 2030.

You may reach and engage your audience through a variety of techniques with omnichannel marketing. To enable your audience to engage with your brand, you may build a variety of touchpoints.

You can combine any number of digital marketing techniques, such as: email marketing, SEO, pay-per-click marketing, etc.

Learn more about omnichannel marketing & multichannel marketing here.

4. Marketplaces

A research found that 32% of Gen Z anticipate shopping online over the holidays. Businesses should benefit from this by utilizing a variety of market strategies, such as product personalization and customization requests, omnichannel strategy, and cross-border commerce. A number of online marketplaces, including Amazon, eBay, Alibaba, and Shopee, are refining their platforms to improve the user experience for both consumers and small and medium-sized enterprises who are switching to the channel.

Want to discover the top best online marketplace to sell your products? Learn more here.

5. Social media shopping – the rising marketing trend in Singapore

Popular social media sites like Facebook Marketplace and Instagram Shopping have their very own ecommerce setups. Since so many individuals use social media apps, they are the ideal venue for product promotion because vendors can easily upload their product catalogs along with price. Additionally, this type of ecommerce marketing and advertising approach encourages visitors to the e-commerce website to click on the CTA button where they locate the product to view the item. And that is how social media shopping contributes to increased traffic and consumer base.

6. Augmented reality

The number 6 spot on this list goes to augmented reality (AR), a developing ecommerce trend. Your company can make virtual products come to life wherever your clients are by using augmented reality technology. The user’s actual surroundings are enhanced with augmented reality (AR) elements.

AR has completely changed the e-commerce industry over time and has integrated itself into Singaporean business patterns. With AR, your online customers will be able to view the product they are looking at, which would help them assess their options and make the best decision. As a result, ecommerce company owners should anticipate AR rocking up the sector in the years to come.

7. QR codes

The QR code will take control once more in 2023. Anyone with a smartphone are able to read QR codes, which will increase customer interaction and traffic to ecommerce websites.

Here are the steps you need to do in order to use QR codes in digital marketing efficiently.

- 1. On the product packaging for your online store, print QR codes.

- 2. Offer discounts or coupons with QR codes for specific goods or services.

- 3. Include QR codes to direct customers to your social media or to your feedback page.

You may track your marketing metrics by using QR codes as well. The number of times the QR code was scanned, from a single scan to repeated scans, can be seen by brands thanks to software and applications. These results can also be sorted by location, date, and operating system. These statistics can help you understand how you connect with your audience.

8. Live-streaming – one of popular Singapore ecommerce marketing trends

Online shopping has evolved as a result of live streaming commerce. The salesperson can showcase their goods and services as if the customers are standing right in front of them, much like in a more formal setting.

This ecommerce marketing approach has been very popular in the last two years. Live streaming commerce is the ideal technique to entice customers to make a purchase as the pandemic continues and many are still reluctant to shop in person. Be sure to follow Singapore’s ecommerce trends.

9. Video marketing

The creation of video promotions is next on our list of ecommerce marketing trends.

A great approach to grab your audience’s attention and spark their interest in what you have to offer is through video promotions. According to Think with Google, when researching a purchase, 80% of individuals alternate between video and online search. Moreover, videos have a big impact on your organization; they raise conversion rates by 86% (Business 2 Community)

You can make movies on your goods, information about your sector, or an inside peek at your company. In order to keep your audience interested, your videos should be both educational and interesting. It’s a terrific approach to spread the word about your content so that more people become familiar with your company and brand.

10. Influencer endorsement

Influencer marketing will keep rising in 2023 as social media usage grows even more. As more consumers trust brands that work with influencers, this ecommerce marketing technique will gain popularity. Statistics showed that influencer marketing was rated as an effective method by 91% of respondents to an Influencer Marketing Hub poll.

A recent HubSpot study found that 30% of buyers allow influencer recommendations to influence their choice of products. Therefore, you should begin your search for the ideal influencer who aligns with the values of your business now if you intend to employ this e-commerce marketing trend for your campaign in 2023. Your influencer partnership would be much more successful if you did this.

Conclusion

Even if the ecommerce sector experiences a surge in 2022, there is still room for improvement in 2023. Make sure to prepare for 2023 with the best marketing strategy based on top ecommerce marketing trends to make your business stand out from the crowd. If you want to hire an ecommerce agency to build a Shopify store with the best conversion rate, Scuti are here to help.

Effective strategies to encourage impulse buy in your Shopify store

Posted on January 17, 2023 by hello@scuti

Despite being less appealing than online shopping these days, physical stores do succeed at one thing: promoting impulse purchases. People are more motivated to make a purchase the longer they wait in line at checkouts stocked with magazines, beverages, and snacks. Online businesses are unable to use the same triggers (seeing, touching) to promote impulse buying. However, there are still different ways to encourage impulse buy in your Shopify store. In this article, we will discover the psychology of impulse buy and discuss how to apply it to your ecommerce website to promote impulse purchases.

Definition of impulse buy

An impulse buy is an unplanned purchase. It can be something minor, like picking up a candy bar at the checkout that wasn’t on your shopping list, or something major, like going into a vehicle dealership “just to browse” and leaving with a brand-new car. Impulse purchases are made on the spur of the moment, are difficult to prevent, and are influenced by emotions like delight or rage.

Multiple factors influence impulse buy of customers

Emotions – key role in triggering impulse buy

Emotional state plays a key role in people’s shopping behavior. Study found that consumer purchasing decisions are affected by both positive and negative emotions. Impulsive purchases may result from gaining face in a social setting. For example, a woman will buy a jacket in the store if the seller gives her a compliment about how she looks good on that item. On the contrary, someone may make an impulsive purchase if they lose face or feel humiliated, worried, or rejected. This way of behavior is known as self-gifting, or retail therapy.

Past experience

The norms of a shopper also influence the psychology of impulse purchases. For instance, a consumer may think that purchasing a pair of pants will make them feel better about themselves or reduce their bad emotions.

If the product is novel and warns the customer that they’re missing out, these beliefs are more relevant. A customer is more likely to view an impulse buy favorably if they previously had a comparable purchasing experience that left them feeling pleased.

Believing of getting a deal

Impulse buy may be caused by the feeling of saving money in the long run. Because consumers are price sensitive, sales promotions frequently have a positive impact on sales. As a result, people are more likely to purchase goods that provide bigger discounts.

Bundling

Product bundling refers to a technique in which a number of products are packed and sold for a single price as a single unit. Studies have indicated that bundling offers for hedonic goods, but not for utilitarian goods, increase the likelihood of impulse purchases.

Different ways to encourage impulse buy on your Shopify store

Offer free shipping

Free shipping is a persuasive promotion that has been found to be more valuable to online customers than the actual shipping charge. 93% of customers favored free delivery over other advantages like discounts and free extra products, according to a Return Customer survey. You have to spend money to offer free delivery, but as the Return Customer study points out, you may utilize more expensive items to make up the difference. Another choice is to calculate the average order amount and then set the free delivery threshold at $20 more than that.

Want to find information about dropshipping? Learn more here.

Give periodical discounts

In online stores, low-cost products are typically purchased on the spur of the moment, much like in traditional shopping. Therefore, you should provide special discounts to encourage shoppers to buy more per visit on your website. One tactic is to provide exclusive discounts on particular holidays or other occasions. Use a newsletter or social media to promote the unique deal.

Ask for upsell by using inexpensive goods

Obviously, the online checkout process is similar to standing in line at a brick and mortar store. In traditional stores, lower cost items are placed close to the checkout. These retailers have discovered that if the upsell products are cheaper, customers are likely to impulse buy.

In your case, you can do it in a similar way by adding a page of upsell to the checkout process. In addition, add a timer to encourage customers to react quickly, rather than think about the upsell. This way of doing benefits both you and your customers. They receive a little extra at a reasonable cost, and you earn a little extra money.

Make product suggestions

Placing impulse-buy items close to more expensive, in-demand goods is one strategy physical stores employ to encourage impulse purchases. This works because even if shoppers could be in a store looking for a specific item, they’re more likely to buy it if it matches their interest. Applying this way, you can suggest customers to buy a companion item they hadn’t intended to purchase by placing comparable products at the bottom of product pages. You can also offer discounts on the product combination to motivate impulse buy.

Improve design quality of your ecommerce website to encourage impulse buy

According to a study published in the journal of the Association for Information Systems, the ecommerce website’s design and impulse buying are related. In particular, a buyer is more likely to make an impulse purchase the greater the perceived quality of the design. The study’s key finding is that design can have both good and bad effects on customers. Despite the fact that some degree of individual, subjective perception is involved, it has been proven that excellent design stimulates impulse buy.

Learn more about top best free themes in Shopify here.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it’s crucial for ecommerce businesses to take advantage of impulse buy. The better experience customers have on your website, the more likely they are to make impulse purchases. Make sure you make a detailed plan to create a positive purchase experience for customers and stimulate impulse buy.

Top online selling platforms in Singapore 2023 and how to sell on

Posted on January 17, 2023 by hello@scuti

Undeniably, Singapore recently has developed into a hotspot for ecommerce business to grow. If you are just a newcomer to the ecommerce area, starting selling your products on the marketplace is an easy way to see the increasing profit. In this article, we will list the top best online selling platforms in Singapore 2023 and guide you how to sell on these.

Definition of an online selling platform

Basically, a website that connects sellers and consumers and enables online purchasing is defined as an online selling platform (or online marketplace).

Top 4 best Singapore online selling platforms 2023

- – Shopee (monthly traffic estimated: 14,986.7 million)

- – Lazada (monthly traffic estimated: 7,183.3 million)

- – Amazon (monthly traffic estimated: 4,866.7)

- – Qoo10 (monthly traffic estimated: 2,893.3)

Benefits of selling on online marketplaces

There are various pros for businesses to sell their products on the online marketplace:

- – Simple setup – this means no technical knowledge is necessary to create your own store. You just simply add products to it, and add images to forms!

- – Cost: Since you don’t need to spend money on setting up an ecommerce website or payment gateway, it is more affordable to start selling on marketplaces. Simply set up a store and begin taking orders.

- – Huge number of traffic: online selling platforms make investments to increase website traffic, so you won’t have to spend to have people visit your site.

- – Accessible to wide marketing tools: there are numerous options you can choose to promote your sale such as LIVE, Flash Deal, Voucher Campaign, etc.

Drawbacks of selling on online marketplaces

Some cons to consider when selling your products on selling platforms:

- – Fees: Whenever you make a sale on an online marketplace, you will need to charge a commission fee. If the platform unexpectedly increases their fees, your business profit will be negatively influenced.

- – High competition: Your products are likely to be placed next to your competitors. This way of setup may enable customers to compare the price of your products with the other, pushing you to lower the price significantly less than you would want to.

*Want to build your own ecommerce website? We are here to help_____

- – Hard to promote your brand: On online selling platforms, your store looks similar to others, making it challenging for you to build your brand and reputation. Therefore, if your business objective is to build a unique brand, selling your products on these platforms should not be your priority.

*How to build your brand with your ecommerce website? Link ____________

Steps to start selling on online selling platforms in Singapore

Shopee – the biggest Singapore selling platform

Shopee is the top ecommerce platform in Taiwan and Southeast Asia, and it has a rapidly expanding global footprint. Here are 7 steps to sell your items on Shopee

1. Sign up on Shopee App / Seller Centre

2. Create a Shop Profile

3. List your products

4. Add your bank account information so you can withdraw money

5. Choose your shipping method

6. Make shipping arrangements with Shopee Supported Logistics as soon as you receive an order

7. Verify and take money out of the seller balance

In order to sell your products, you don’t need to pay any register fees, however, Shopee charges you an amount of transaction fee for each of your sale

Lazada – one of the top marketplace in Singapore

Here are steps to take at the beginning of selling products on Lazada

1. Create an account on Lazada Seller Centre

2. List your products

3. Link your bank account to transfer revenue to your bank account

Importantly, you should be aware of the following three sorts of fees if you sell on Lazada in Singapore:

- – Commissions: As of the end of 2018, Lazada has stopped charging commission to its vendors. Instead, only brands that have a LazMall are subject to seller fees. Depending on the product category, these charges might be anywhere from 1% and 13% of the purchase price for each item sold.

- – Payment fees — To enable transfers from a seller’s Lazada wallet to their online bank account, Lazada has collaborated with Payoneer and World First. As a result, to make such transfers possible, these payment providers charge a 2% fee. This % charge will be added to the product price, plus the shipping cost and any applicable promotional fees.

- – Delivery costs – You can choose whether to cover the cost of shipping or charge customers for it.

Amazon – the online selling platform from the West

There are 4 steps to start selling on Amazon:

1. Register as seller

2. List your products

3. Fulfill your product order (based on your company’s requirements, select your chosen fulfillment option (merchant fulfillment or fulfillment by Amazon).

4. Get paid and keep track of your sale

When being a seller in Amazon, in addition to the monthly price of S$29.95 (excl. GST) you have to pay for Amazon, there is a fee for each product sold. Various categories have different prices.

Qoo10 – one of the oldest selling platforms in Singapore

The selling process in Qoo10 has 7 basic steps:

1. Create a profile

2. Establish a product listing.

3. Sell goods

4. Buyers pay for the goods.

5. Send the items you purchased

6. Verify delivery of the order

7. Receive the earnings

The service fee for Qoo10 is minimal and is applied once the transaction is finished. The seller fee for a seller in the “normal” grade is 12% for sales under S$200, 10% for sales in the S$200 to S$500 range, and 8% for sales over S$500. The fee for a seller with a “good” grade is 10% for sales below S$200, 8% for sales between S$200 and S$500, and 6% for sales over S$500. The seller fee for a seller in the “power” grade is 9% for sales below S$200, 7% for sales between S$200 and S$500, and 5% for sales over S$500.

Moreover, there are no registration or listing costs.

Conclusion

Opening a store on a marketplace can be an affordable approach to launching your ecommerce business if you’ve been considering doing so. However, if your goal is to build and scale up your brand, opening an ecommerce website for your business will be an ideal way. Learn more how to build an ecommerce website at __________

Hiring the dedicated web developer in Singapore: The complete guide

Posted on January 17, 2023 by hello@scuti

Making the right choices when starting your ecommerce business will determine how successful you are. Hiring a dedicated web developer to help build your website is one of the crucial decisions you might have to make. Therefore, in this article, we will list things you should take into consideration when you want to hire a web developer in Singapore.

Skills checklist of a dedicated web developer in Singapore

1. Technical expertise

Obviously, a web developer possesses technical skills that you need can help your website to grow. There are some crucial factors to take into account when hiring a website developer in Singapore to build your online store:

Expertise in MySQL, JavaScript, and PHP

A solid understanding about ecommerce solutions

Website design trends

Good familiarity with platforms to build ecommerce websites such as Shopify, Woocommerce, etc.

Can deal with cross-browser compatibility problems

More importantly, the web developer should have skills and be clear about your goals and type of ecommerce website you want to build. This is because even in terms of size, websites might vary. Google and Amazon are websites, however, creating websites with billions of visitors will be very different than creating a personal blog.

2. Knowledge about users’ experience

The ability to comprehend user psychology and how to improve experience on your website is a requirement for ecommerce developers.

Especially, an eye for design, programming, and analytics is essential for website developers.

The ecommerce developer you hire should be able to create a website that looks great on any platform, including desktop, smartphone, tablet, and any new gadgets they might not even be aware of yet.

Understanding user behavior and what makes a good website are skills that a website developer in Singapore should possess.

3. SEO understanding

In order to make your website accessible with millions of consumers out there, your web developer needs to have deep knowledge about SEO (search engine optimization). Also, having insight about sitemaps and metadata tags is crucial if you want your developer to understand how search engines crawl and index web pages.

4. Work experience

The right candidate to help you with your website should have professional experience in ecommerce applications and development. A skilled and knowledgeable web developer should be familiar with the fundamentals of SEO, how to analyze website traffic using Google Analytics, and how to utilize and handle various CMS platforms like WordPress, OpenCart, Magento, etc. They also need to be familiar with working with PHP custom coding so they can quickly alter the plugins & theme of your ecommerce website.

5. Fit with your organization

When seeking for the right web developer in Singapore to work with, evaluating their attitude is also a crucial step. This is because you want to make sure that the web developer will fit in the culture of your company.

You should make a list of characteristics requirements. Do you want to hire a good team player? Do you want to hire someone creative coming up with new interesting ideas to help your website? It’s important for the candidate to meet 70-80% of your requirements.

Steps to hire the right web developer in Singapore to help you with your online website

1. Decide what kind of developer you need

Have a clear objectives of your website so that you can determine the features you require and choose a developer who can build a website that satisfies those criteria. Based on these factors, you can choose what exactly type of web developer in Singapore you want to hire in the following areas:

Front-end: web designers who concentrate on a website’s visual appeal are frequently front-end developers. While the front-end developer applies the style sheet when coding, you may hire someone else to design the website’s components.

Back-end: Back-end developers are programmers who create the functional elements of your website. To build the website, these experts frequently specialize in particular programming languages.

Full-stack: Full-stack developers are able to code both a website’s design and its functionality. If you need to construct a comprehensive ecommerce website, you might choose this type of freelancer because they frequently have experience with programming languages and design coding like HTML.

2. Consider your budget when hiring web developer in Singapore

Determine the amount of budget you can spend for your ecommerce website. Your website developer must understand what you want to build, how much money you have to spend, and be prepared to give a package that includes everything from the initial design to ongoing regular maintenance fees.

Your website developer in Singapore will comprehend that getting the website up and running is the top concern. Small business owners would not benefit if website developers charged a high upfront fee. It ought to be a cooperative relationship where the

fees are payable as the website and the company start to turn a profit.

3. Find potential candidate and check their portfolio

The databases that experts use to find web developers for their organization are numerous. You might look through these to discover whether applicants have the necessary skill set for the position you need. Ensure that they are familiar with the platforms you intend to use to build your website, such as Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, or WordPress. If they have websites in their portfolios that you may explore to see if they can construct anything similar for you. Beside, make sure they can help you with maintenance and support.

4. Hire web developer in Singapore and sign in contracts

You can interview candidates and review their project proposal. Once you find the right candidate that meets your requirement, you should write a contract with details of work and your requirement. Specify the work needed, the outcome you want to see, and payment you offer for the web developer so that there would be no confusion.

Conclusion

It can be challenging to find a dedicated web developer in Singapore who can help to build and maintain your ecommerce website. If you need help with finding the right candidate, we are here to help.

About Scuti

Established in 2015, Scuti with 7+ years has developed into a dynamic, flexible, and quick-moving business that specializes in delivering web development for the ecommerce industry. We’ve created a global presence and work with clients in many different industry sectors. We provide web developer hire service and assist our clients in reducing operational complexity and putting innovative ecommerce solutions for businesses of all sizes, from startups, SMEs to large enterprises. Our main areas of specialty include Shopify, Adobe Commerce (also known as Magento), and ecommerce tools.

Dropshipping in Singapore: The comprehensive guide to make money successful

Posted on January 10, 2023 by hello@scuti

Dropshipping is a type of retail order fulfillment where the seller (or dropshipper) accepts customer orders but does not keep any inventory on hand or own any of it. This is considered to be one of the easiest ways to make money online. In this article, we will make suggestions about how to make money through dropshipping in Singapore.

Process of dropshipping in Singapore

The process of dropshipping in Singapore is as follows:

Step 1: Firstly, the dropshipping business gets a purchase order

Step 2: Then, they notifies the supplier to the order

Step 3: Lastly, the supplier completes the order

Pros of dropshipping in Singapore

Low cost of launching

Sellers are not required to buy inventory or stock a warehouse because the supplier manages the items, therefore you could be able to launch a dropshipping business with less money.

Low risk of losing money

Because you aren’t storing extra inventory, there is almost no risk that you will lose money when you employ drop shipping

High chance to scale

The majority of the work is still being done by suppliers as more orders arrive. As a result, dropshippers can scale more easily and with less effort.

Flexibility

Since everything is digital, you can work anywhere in the world to manage your business and get things done.

Cons of dropshipping in Singapore

Limited chance to promote your brand

The supplier typically creates, brands, and manufactures the products. Therefore, your ability to brand and customize the product is limited.

Less control over the fulfillment of orders

Orders will be fulfilled by your supplier on your behalf, so if there are any delays or problems with the order, you may have to deal with customer complaints.

High competitive

It’s easy to dropshipping, so there is fierce rivalry. When choosing your tactics, you must use extreme intelligence and creativity.

Low margins of profit

Dropshipping involves the sale of already-made goods, thus suppliers would have taken their profit margin into account. Consequently, you might need to raise the selling price in order to boost earnings.

Additionally, with low profit margins, you might need to dramatically boost sales in order to match the profits of shops who use the standard retail fulfillment technique.

Reasons to start dropshipping in Singapore

One of the world’s simplest countries to dropship is Singapore. You enjoy special advantages that enable you to manage the company more swiftly and effectively.

High Internet usage time: Needless to say, you’ll have no trouble engaging with your customers thanks to the high internet penetration and smartphone usage.

Available International Payment Gateways: Additionally, the country has access to international payment processors like 2CheckOut and PayPay, making it simple to receive and handle your money.

Multicultural Business Setting: Additionally, the multicultural environment makes it simple for you to comprehend diverse ethnic groupings, making it simple for you to customize your offers for various customer segments.

Government Support: It’s also important to remember that Singapore has one of the most business-friendly governments in the world, offering subsidies and incentive programs to companies. Nothing prevents you from expanding your drop shipping business internationally and breaking down geographical barriers.

The detailed guide to start dropshipping in Singapore

Steps to start dropshipping in Singapore

Step 1: Researching the market

You ought to comprehend the market into which you are about to venture because this is where it all begins.

You should choose the niche that best fits your needs. Which platform you want to use to construct your business is the next thing to think about. Magento, Shopify, and WooCommerce are your choices.

Magento: Offers a variety of customization and extension options. This implies that creating a distinctive website is simple.

A free WordPress plugin called WooCommerce. A WordPress website must first be created before you can use the plugin to turn it into an online store.

Shopify: Anyone looking to build an easily scalable ecommerce website for their drop shipping business should use this platform. The possibilities with this platform are virtually endless.

Learn about how to build an ecommerce website on Shopify here.

Step 2: Deciding what to sell

You ought to have some concepts for what goods to sell by this point. However, it’s crucial that you take your time selecting the item. In addition, make sure there is a ready market and less competition for the goods you desire to offer by taking your time to research and understand the market.

Step 3: Look for trustworthy suppliers

Finding the correct suppliers with high-quality products is a crucial component of a successful dropshipping operation.

Note a few things:

- – Prior to selling the supplier’s goods, you should purchase and test them yourself.

- – Keep an eye out for consistency and quality across various order batches. A rule of thumb would be to only market high-quality items that you would buy for yourself.

- – Take into account how easy it is to contact your provider.

- – You will need effective communication with the supplier to handle orders, shipping concerns, and customer grievances for a dropshipping collaboration to be successful. It’s crucial to pick a provider who can communicate with you in your favorite language and who is responsive.

Step 4: Set up your business online

Create your online store next to begin selling your goods! Amazon, Qoo10, eBay are great places to launch your online store.

In order to start your business on these platforms:

- – Describe your business.

- – List your selling products

- – Optimize product listings

Step 5: Launch your marketing plan

After creating your online store, use a variety of marketing strategies to make your company more visible. Forums, Google Ads, and social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are all excellent channels for promoting your products.

Learn more about how to create a referral program here.

Step 6: Scale up your business

Your business’s expansion should be your main priority.Specifically, you can achieve this by expanding your product pipeline and customer base.

Here are some helpful guides you can utilize to expand your company:

- Utilizing tools: (like Google Analytics) to examine your online store and make a strategic plan to grow your business based on these analysis.

- Use Efficient Advertising: Internet advertising for your company and items is encouraged. You can first choose from the free options, but as your company develops, you might think about trying with the verified advertisement options.

- Investigate Your Competitors: You must establish your specialty. But if the competition is fierce, this can be challenging. Discover what your rivals are doing—or not doing—and you’ll know which way to go.

Other options to dropshipping in Singapore

1. Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is a different business strategy to take into account if you’d rather not handle any inventory, orders, or returns. This advertising business strategy has nothing to do with product sales.

Instead, this entails advertising the goods of the vendors and getting paid when sales are made using your special referral link. This may have advantages like fewer initial costs and letting you develop a solid rapport with your audience who trusts your advice.

2. Dropshipping with private agents

If you are searching for a dropshipping substitute because you have had it with dropshipping vendors who:

- – take long to deliver the product to the customer

- – unable to provide nice products at a reasonable price.

- – provide no alternatives for branding your product.

Then you ought to consider dropshipping agents.

An option to a dropshipping supplier is a dropshipping agent. It’s a person that locates the best provider for the product you want to buy. When orders start coming in, they make sure the goods are immediately packed, sent to your consumers, and stored!

3. Establish your own unique brand.

Because pre-made products are sold through dropshipping, you have less control over the packaging and branding of your products.

Consider developing your own brand for complete flexibility. This gives you the ability to:

- – Set your brand out from competitors

- – Boost brand awareness and identity

- – Boost client loyalty

- – Establishing a strong brand can help businesses attract clients and keep them over the long term.

Learn more about top ecommerce marketing trends of 2023 here.

Conclusion

Understandably, with relatively little initial investment and risk, dropshipping is a popular business concept that enables entrepreneurs to launch online businesses. Therefore, if you want to launch your dropshipping business in Singapore, be sure to conduct a research and plan carefully to make it successful.

Ecommerce fulfillment Singapore: Challenges, solutions, models and effective strategies

Posted on January 9, 2023 by hello@scuti

When launching your ecommerce business in Singapore, one of the top concern you should focus on is ecommerce fulfillment. In this article, we will discuss challenges, solutions, effective models of Singapore fulfillment and state strategies to tackle the problems.

Definition of ecommerce fulfillment

The aspect of your online store where your products are delivered to clients is called ecommerce fulfillment. Your ecommerce fulfillment procedures consist of a number of steps, take place after a customer puts an order. In other words, the fulfillment model includes picking and packing orders, shipping, and delivering to customers.

Challenges and solutions for Singapore ecommerce fulfillment

Generally, Singapore’s ecommerce business has seen retail shopping become more and more competitive. We provides vital statistics that illustrate Singaporeans’ digital behaviors and states strategies to tackle the challenges as below.

1. The issues of last-mile delivery

The final and most important link in the ecommerce process chain is the complete process of the parcel leaving the courier service and arriving at the customer’s doorstep. According to a McKinsey & Company analysis, the last-mile delivery charges make up about 50% of the overall shipping costs.

The following are the main difficulties Singapore has currently encountered with the last-mile delivery:

- – High prices for delivery.

- – Deliveries of packages were either missing or delayed.

- – Ineffective method to deal with customers’ special request. There was no method for customers to ask questions. Ordering and waiting were the only choices.

- – Incomplete transparency and poor packaging

- – The size of the delivery worker fleet did not correspond to the capacity of the orders, which fluctuated.

- For the convenience of delivery routes and management, smart technologies like artificial intelligence and data analytics were not integrated.

Solution

Planned delivery route

To assist in optimizing their delivery routes, businesses have turned to last mile software.

By enabling businesses to respond to any last-minute changes in the plan, the software helps them prevent delivery delays and so increases productivity.

An efficient transport management system aids in optimizing the use of the fleets that are available in comparison to the orders that must be delivered, which reduces total expenses.

2. Exorbitant real estate prices

Singapore is renowned for having exorbitant real estate costs. It is exceedingly challenging for investors or even well-known Singaporeans to set up a sizable multipurpose warehouse. This business model is probably not going to benefit from the time and rate of ROI (return on investment).

The following drawbacks of centralizing warehouses in a location like Singapore are also presented.

High Outgoing Costs

Singapore offers remote access to shopping centers and stores. A product must travel more to reach shops in a centrally located setting. As a result, shipping and other outgoing expenses go up.

High Shipping Time

The longer it takes for a product to go from a central warehouse to a store and then to the client, the more expensive and time-consuming the entire process is.

As a result, the geography and consumer market of Singapore are best served by a decentralized warehouse planning model.

Solution

Distribute multiple small warehouses

Setting up multiple small warehouses across different areas of Singapore is a probable solution

3. Ineffective inventory and management in ecommerce fulfillment

Inventory distortion is a significant issue in the global ecommerce business as well as in Singapore. Only roughly 63% of accuracy is even accounted for by retail inventories. One example of the poor inventory and management is that Singapore experienced a terrible egg scarcity when the epidemic hit in 2020. The need for necessities surged suddenly. In order to fulfill the increased demand, shops had to place more and more egg orders. It was stated that once the demand was met, the distributors had to discard 250,000 eggs in June of the same year.

– The following are some of the main causes of poor management:

- – The centers frequently encountered stock-out or overstock problems

- – The registered data on manually updated sheets did not match the actual inventory.

- – The management and warehouse workers had trouble adding and removing items from the inventory.

- – The processes and return-orders associated with it were not adequately integrated.

Solution

Smart inventory management

Inventory management helps prevent business from selling out-of-stock items and alert when business need to place an order or produce more of goods. If you build your ecommerce website on Shopify, you may set up inventory tracking, monitor your inventory, and modify your inventory levels in Shopify’s Inventory section. For products and variants whose inventory is being tracked by Shopify, you may also check the history of inventory modifications.

Learn more about Singpost delivery time and shipping here.

4. Order management across omnichannel

Only when clients had numerous touchpoints to place their orders did order management become difficult. As of right now, a warehouse or fulfillment facility receives orders from physical stores, social media sites, e-commerce platforms, or other online marketplaces.

The following are the main order management difficulties the Singaporean ecommerce market confronts:

- It was challenging to prioritize and keep track of the orders coming from various sources.

- It was a laborious chore for workers at various same- and different-centers to manage multiple spread-sheets for order records. It was prone to numerous entering and synchronizing mistakes.

- The center’s procedures, starting with order receipt, picking and packing, batch sorting, and order delivery, could not be tracked using an aligned system.

Solution

Automating the process with an Automated Order Management Software is the best way to ensure that an omnichannel order management runs smoothly. With Shopify Plus, business can integrate point-of-sale and ecommerce systems, which helps achieve business’ ultimate goal of being an omnichannel retailer and treating every consumer the same, regardless of where they purchase.

Learn more about omnichannel and multichannel here.

Ecommerce fulfillment models in Singapore and effective strategies

1. Direct order fulfillment

Direct fulfillment refers to delivering an order to the customer directly. It occurs when your ecommerce business completes D2C (direct to consumer) sales and sends orders to clients.

Benefits of direct order fulfillment

- – Lower cost

- – Customization of packaging and branding

Drawbacks of direct order fulfillment

- – Hard to scale

- – Waste of time

- – Human errors can occur

This type of ecommerce fulfillment is best suitable for small online store who has lower than 100 orders per month.

2. Third party logistic

An associate or service known as a 3PL (Third-Party Logistics) supports online retailers in managing their supply chain. The management of warehouses and inventories, order fulfillment, shipping arrangements, retail distribution, exchanges, and returns are typical 3PL services.

Benefits of 3PL

- – Simple integration and time-saving technology

- – Easy to scale and quick to install

- – Viewing sales data to gain useful insights

- – Access a vast supplier network and more affordable delivery prices

Drawbacks of 3PL

- – Loss of control

- – Loss of customization

- – Fixed storage fee

Startups having a shortage of resources and are seeking to grow or concentrate their efforts on product development and marketing should choose this type of ecommerce fulfillment.

3. Dropshipping

Dropshipping is an order fulfillment strategy where a company doesn’t hold inventory of the goods it sells. Instead, to fulfill orders, the seller buys inventory as required from a third party – typically a wholesaler or manufacturer.

Benefits of dropshipping

- – Easy to start

- – Low overhead costs

- – Easy to scale up the business

Drawback of dropshipping

- – Limited margin of profit

- – Customer service not under your control

- – No volume discounts and quicker lead times

- – Hard for customization and branding

This type of ecommerce fulfillment is a great choice for firms that are just getting started, serving as an additional side business with no full-time obligations or risk.

Learn more about dropshipping in Singapore here.

Conclusion

Reasearching about ecommerce fulfillment in Singapore and choosing the best model for your business is one of a must strategy you should have to help your business grow. If you are considering building an ecommerce website on Shopify, this platform obviously offer the best way to tackle challenges related to ecommerce fulfillment.

Want to hire Singapore’s web developers to build your ecommerce website, click here to learn more.

The detailed guide to hire an ecommerce agency in Singapore effectively

Posted on January 9, 2023 by hello@scuti

Hiring an ecommerce agency in Singapore is a big decision for every business. Due to its complex process and overwhelmed number of agencies, you might find it daunting in finding the right company to help your business. Therefore, in this article, we will provide you a detailed guide to effectively hire an ecommerce agency in Singapore.

Why should you work with an ecommerce agency in Singapore?

You’ll save a lot of time to see the results

Obviously, compared to hiring new personnel, using an agency is much faster and more effective. First of all, agencies are adept at getting things done right away, whereas you need to teach a new employee. Second, it’s because an agency has a strategic team prepared to assist you in expanding your company. Plus, agencies have experience and expertise knowledge, therefore they can even suggest different methods and applications to enhance your strategy. As a result, you’ll save a bunch of time to observe the outcome of your work.

Let’s take the scenario when your ecommerce website encounters a challenging technical problem. Your staff members most likely lack the expertise necessary to handle complex technical issues. In this case, employing an ecommerce firm with web developers who can identify the issue and address the problem in less than a day’s work is an ideal solution.

Another reason could be an ecommerce website needs a lot of integration and security to function well and help you sell your products. Outsourcing an agency will help you to save your time and work on this technical work.

You gain access to fresh viewpoints

Hiring an agency can provide your business a new outlook if you are out of ideas. This is because they have diverse experience in dealing with various cases and working with such a wide range of clients.

It can be challenging to recognize chances outside of what you’ve already been doing when you’re running your own firm. Employing an agency provides you with a crucial outside perspective that might expose you to novel strategies and ideas.

You can cut unnecessary costs

Admittedly, outsourcing is not cheap. However, hiring an agency to help your ecommerce business is more affordable than hiring a team or an individual on a full-time basis. You can hire the necessary skills and experience through an agency without incurring the expense or time commitment of a full-time employee.

Additionally, you would need to employ more than one individual in order to establish a staff that is totally specialized to help you solve your company’s problems. And the sum can swiftly increase. Not to mention benefits, vacation pay, corporate bonuses, monthly payments for your new team, and other expenses. In addition, when outsourcing, you will be supported with 360 degree assistance. Therefore, it is definitely reasonable to hire an out-contracted team to help with your business.

When should you hire an ecommerce agency in Singapore?

You’re lacking necessary in-house talents

You may find your company lacks employees to design your own website, set up an online store, produce content for social media, and other things. Here is where an ecommerce agency will step in. When your business has grown sufficiently to generate regular cash, investing in an ecommerce agency can increase your sales and, over time, put more money in your pocket.

You don’t have much time left to tackle things on your own

Running an online business requires a lot of time.You and your team have a ton of additional responsibilities as the business owner, from order fulfillment and updating product listings to accounting and customer service. In this case, hiring a Singapore ecommerce agency to help you with work should be an approachable solution.

You notice a drop in sales

You may want to seek outside assistance if you’ve been successfully expanding your company on your own and seeing increasing revenues, but all of a sudden you’re beginning to see a drop or stagnation.

For a problem like this, you might want to work with a full-service e-commerce agency that can audit your website to check for user experience problems or give consultants in sales tactics.

What are essential steps to choose the right Singapore ecommerce agency?

Determine your goals

Specify your goals and your needs. It’s necessary to specify your budget, schedule, and intended outcomes. The better, the more specific.

Next, you can seek information about ecommerce agencies who can help you. Do research about them, do their experience and knowledge align with your business’s strategy.

With this knowledge, you may eliminate any organizations that fall outside of your budget, have a waiting list, or can’t demonstrate results that are comparable to what you want.

Think about your budget

The majority of your business decisions are dictated by your budget. Your account is crucial in determining your suppliers or, in this case, the agency you’ll be working with.

Search for and contact an ecommerce agency that can either provide service within your budget or whose packages you can afford. Look around and find the best team that can give you the services you require within your price range.

Evaluate an ecommerce agency in Singapore

It is expected of agencies to have websites and social media profiles that showcase their prior work. Review and examine the agency’s portfolio to see if any of the items fit within your sector or industry.

Your compatibility with their methodology and workflow can also be seen in their portfolio. Whether or not their team is flexible is something else to consider. This is a fantastic quality, especially if building your ecommerce website requires a lot of input.

Work with an agency that has experience working with many brands in various industries without hesitation. This implies that they may collaborate with you to identify the best approach to meeting your website and digital marketing requirements.

Also, you need to assess cultural and personal fit: Are they carefully listening to your needs? Does their way of working fit with yours? Have they ever worked with cases like yours?

Contact with the ecommerce agency and review their proposals

You should contact your chosen agency and arrange a meeting with them. During the meeting, try to find out whether their experience, knowledge and work process fit with your needs. When they send out the proposals, you should check it carefully to make sure it matches with your needs.

Keep in mind that an agency is there to help and support you at every turn. Find the best agency for your company, then ask them to assist you in achieving your online objectives.

If you are finding an ecommerce agency in Singapore to help grow your business, consider Scuti.

About Scuti

Top best ecommerce platforms in Singapore 2023 and how to choose the right one for your business

Posted on January 5, 2023 by hello@scuti

Undoubtedly, ecommerce is thriving in Singapore, which opens numerous opportunities for online business. However, opting for a right online platform for your business to sell products in Singapore would be a daunting task. Bear that in mind, in this article, we would discuss the top best ecommerce platforms in Singapore 2023 and guide you to select the right one to grow your business.

Definition of ecommerce platforms

In general, an ecommerce platform is defined as a software program that enables businesses and consumers to conduct trade. In specific, some tasks such as web hosting, inventory control, payment processing, marketing, order fulfillment, etc, can all be handled by e-commerce platforms.

A true ecommerce platform is much more than what the majority of people believe it to be – they believe that it is simply a tool that allows them to display their products and take payments online. You can manage everything from inventory to marketing on this platform. Therefore, considering choosing the best ecommerce platform to grow your business in Singapore should play an important role in your strategic plan.

Top best platforms in Singapore 2023

The top 5 platforms for ecommerce businesses in Singapore are shown below.

- – Open-source ecommerce

- – SaaS

- – Website builders with ecommerce-building elements

- – Marketplaces (Commission-based)

– Free marketplaces

1. Open-source ecommerce

Open-source ecommerce is ecommerce softwares that enables users complete access to its original source code, enabling them to alter and configure the ecommerce platform to match their demands, and giving them control over the display and functionality of online business.

Woocommerce and Prestashop are two popular examples of open-source ecommerce platforms in Singapore.

Woocommerce is a free e-commerce solution made specifically for use with WordPress websites. 29% of all online stores operate with its help, making it a preferred choice with ecommerce business.

A standing feature of this platform is offering your consumers a wide range of payment choices. It accepts a variety of handy payment methods, including bank transfers, major credit cards, PayPal, Amazon Pay, and Apple Pay. Furthermore, ecommerce businesses may take advantage of convenient and effective management thanks to Woocommerce’s automatic tax computations, live shipping rates, and mobile app for iOS/Android.

Although web development knowledge is not necessary for the integration of WooCommerce with the WordPress content management system, you should be proficient in the PHP programming language for adaptations.

Prestashop is an open-source e-commerce business offering more than 600 features, ranging from shipping and internet marketing to store administration. PrestaShop is simple to use and available for free download, but installation requires a maintenance cost and hosting. To completely personalize it, you will also require coding experience; otherwise, you can employ a Singaporean web developer

2. SaaS ecommerce

SaaS (software as a service) is a type of cloud-based software delivery that enables online access to subscription-licensed applications. It implies that you don’t need to install any software on your own website. To utilize their platform to sell your products, you must pay a monthly charge. This amount of charge covers use of the service, hosting, technical support, etc.

Shopify and BigCommerce are two examples of SaaS ecommerce platforms in Singapore.

Shopify is a SaaS ecommerce platform that provides a great, user-friendly platform for online businesses, especially suitable for starters who has little to no knowledge of how ecommerce field operates. It’s the biggest platform to build an ecommerce website in the world, which had more than 13,320 live Shopify stores in Singapore as at March 2022.

If you use Shopify, you will greatly profit from strong features that help with finding customers, sales growth, and work management. Additionally, you will be utilizing a platform that is all-inclusive and provides all the e-commerce and point-of-sale functionality. It’s a Saas, so you need to pay a fee monthly to use it.

Learn more about detail review of Shopify in Singapore here.

BigCommerce is a commerce solution provider, which enables entrepreneurs to set up an online store, customize it as desired, and then sell an infinite amount of digital, tangible, or even service-based goods. You can create and maintain your store from anywhere if you have access to a web browser and the Internet. Similar to Shopify, you need to pay monthly to use it.

3. Website builders with ecommerce-building elements

A platform called a website builder enables you to easily and rapidly design your own website with little to no coding required. As a result of how simple it is to create a website on your own, many of these are sometimes referred to as “drag and drop” builders.

Popular website builders like Wix and Squarespace have recently included ecommerce features. These website builders can now be used to sell goods online.

The restricted customization of website builders is their main drawback. You might not be able to monetize your website or add custom features without using add-ons from third parties. Additionally, compared to the first two platforms, these website builders are renowned for being less SEO friendly.

Wix is a web builder platform, where you can totally design your own website from scratch. And if your business expands, you can upgrade your e-commerce platform with new features.

With Squarespace, you can create your own website easily. With user-friendly tools, this platform helps you to build your ecommerce website with only 4 steps. All you have to do is create a website that reflects your individual taste and vision for the site utilizing industry-leading themes, color schemes, and designer fonts.

4. Online marketplaces (Commission-based)

You can sell your products on this ecommerce platform, but you need to pay a commission fee for each sale. On this ecommerce platform, you can establish a “store front” instead of building a full website. The plus of these platforms is that they are easy for new users to utilize because there are no monthly fees and there is no cost to sign up.

However, it would be a challenge to promote your brand as products of your competitors are typically displayed as similar products on your product sites.

Shopee, Lazada, Qoo10, and Amazon are popular ecommerce platforms in Singapore for you to sell your products.

Learn more about top online selling platforms in Singapore 2023 here.

5. Free marketplaces

If you want to start selling your products online, these platforms should be on your top list. However, there are also drawbacks to consider. Free marketplaces are highly competitive, since everyone can start selling products for free. Moreover, it is also challenging to reach your target customers, and manage logistics. Carousell and Facebook are two popular free marketplace platforms in Singapore.

How to choose the right ecommerce platform in Singapore for your own online business

Deciding what is the best ecommerce platform for your company can be challenging. You need to consider the things you want to offer, your target market, how much marketing control you want, and whether or not you intend to scale up quickly.

If you are a small business and want to sell your products for free, free marketplaces would be the right option for you.

If you want to build a brand and scale up your business, you should take SaaS platforms into consideration. Even though you need to pay a monthly charge, you can be supported with security (customer data), maintenance site, SEO, sales growth, and work management. In all industries, SaaS can serve B2C, B2B, and hybrid organizations, even those with specialized business requirements requiring some customisation.

If you are considering hiring an ecommerce agency to help you build an online store, Scuti is here to help.

Established in 2015, Scuti with 7+ years has developed into a dynamic, flexible, and quick-moving business that specializes in ecommerce website development services & solutions. We’ve worked with clients in many different industry sectors, and nations such as Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, etc. We assist our clients in reducing operational complexity and putting innovative ecommerce solutions for businesses of all sizes, from startups, SMEs to large enterprises. Our main areas of specialty include Shopify, Adobe Commerce (also known as Magento), and ecommerce tools.

Learn more about how to start a Shopify store in Singapore here.

If you have technical knowledge and want to build a website on your own with high customization, open-source platforms are the right one for you.

Conclusion

Obviously, opting the right platform to start selling your products is a big decision. As you can see, each platform has its own benefits and drawbacks. Talk to us now, so that we can advise you on the best choice for your business.