Due to the high internet penetration all over the world, the ecommerce industry has emerged phenomenally across the globe. In the USA, retail ecommerce sales are expected to be $548 Million in 2019. An interesting fact here is that popular multi-seller ecommerce companies Amazon, Ebay have nearly captured the 60% of the US ecommerce market. Similarly, in other countries the market share of Amazon, Ebay, Flipkart, etc. is very high.
What is meant by Multivendor or Multi seller marketplaces?
A multi-vendor marketplace is that where different sellers can sell their products by creating a unique store front. The vendors manage inventory, logistics, products additions, etc. things at their own end. The owner of the marketplace can earn commission on sale of every product or by the other revenue generation methods as given below.
Types of Multi-vendor business:
There are 2 types of multi-vendor businesses:
B2B Multi vendor business:
For bringing transparency and remaining competitive, many B2B commerce companies are investing in online marketplaces. Alibaba & Walmart are the popular names in the B2B ecommerce industry.
B2C Multi vendor Business:
Similarly, these days many aspiring entrepreneurs prefer to invest in B2C multi selling websites. The best examples are: Amazon, Airbnb, FlipKart, etc.
Business Models:
Business Model of B2C Multi vendor Ecommerce Marketplace
Business Model of B2B Multi vendor Ecommerce Marketplace:
Source: https://www.unilogcorp.com/b2b-business-model/
Revenue generation channels on a multi-seller website & mobile app:
Here are top revenue generation methods of a multi-vendor ecommerce website & app:
· Commission on every sale
· Monthly and yearly subscription fee from sellers
· Promoted and features products on home page
· Affiliate partnerships
· Side banner ads
· Google Adsense Ads
Must have features of a multi-seller website & mobile app:
Here is the list of features that yours’ B2B or B2C multi-vendor ecommerce website or mobile app must have:
Multivendor Website & Mobile App Features from Buyers’ Perspective
· High website speed
· Mobile optimized
· Easy order processing
· Multi-step checkout pages on a mobile app
· Seller’s reviews and ratings
· Coupon codes and rewards points
· Advance search features on website and app
· 3 dimensional images and well written product description
· Customers’ testimonials
· Login and signup with Social media profiles
· Digital wallet and multiple payment gateways
· Multi-lingual and multi-currency
· Bulk order feature for B2B marketplaces
Multivendor Website & Mobile App Features from Sellers’ Perspective:
· Powerful vendor dashboard
· Product import/export
· Rating and review system
· Features products option
· Shipment of products by vendors
· Direct communication with the customer
· Push notification for vendors
· Automated payment with draw
· Products listing and management through mobile app
Multivendor Website & Mobile App Features from Admins’ Perspective
· Upload unlimited number of products
· Multiple revenue generation methods
· Customizations and scalability
· Automated task processing
· Reporting and data analytics
· Integration with third party tools
· Registration pages for customers and sellers
· Detailed product listing pages
· Product review management
· Search engine friendly
· Content management system for easy website management
· Fully native IOS and Android apps
How to Start:
As I’ve written in the 1st paragraph, the online ecommerce companies Amazon, Ebay, FlipKart, etc., have already grabbed the 60% of market and it becomes tough for an ecommerce startup to make their presence. To excel in such a competitive industry, you need to develop an ecommerce multi-vendor website/app by targeting the hyper-local market. Initially, you can start an online multi-vendor marketplace like Amazon, Ebay, FlipKart, etc. in our local city or town by understanding the audience needs and once your startups click well, you can expand it in different cities.
To build a multi-seller ecommerce website and mobile app, you can choose a turnkey solution like YoKart. It is award winning multi vendor ecommerce platform launched in 2015. Though there are many solutions available in the market, but Yokart is a specialized platform for launching B2B and B2C marketplaces websites and mobile apps at a less cost.