Get your business online with dedicated self storage services from Storage Manchester – we provide industry-leading business storage services.
We find ourselves in strange times and businesses are looking to adapt and find new ways of providing services and products for customers amidst social distancing and other restrictions. Ecommerce has been the stand out channel for businesses to flock to during the restrictions on physically trading goods in a traditional brick and mortar store.
With the influx in online sales and trading, there has never been a better time to move your business online. At Storage Manchester, we have helped numerous customers that wish to sell their goods online by providing a low-cost space for businesses to store their inventory before selling it online. We have over 10 years of experience in self storage and we use that experience to help each and every customer that comes our way
Set Up a Website
Before you can even look at how your business might benefit from using a self storage facility you should look at establishing your presence online. One of the best ways of doing this is to create a website. There are countless tools out there to help you establish your business online and it’s never been easier to do so. Using platforms such as WordPress with WooCommerce plugins is great for people with some development and design experience or those that can afford a developer or designer. There are also other platforms such as Wix and Squarespace in which you can create a website with built-in e-commerce functionality with ease. In addition to this, there are dedicated online store platforms such as Shopify which are designed entirely around selling online for companies that sell things like personalised gifts UK and even Facebook has recently announced it will be launching ‘Facebook Shops’ for small businesses.
Advertise Your Business Online
Once you have your business set up online it’s important that you get noticed. You should reach out to any existing customers or contacts you have had in the past and let them know about your new website/online shop. One of the most powerful forms of advertising, when you start out, will be your own ‘personal’ network of friends, family, and customers that want to support your business. As your business starts to grow you can look at different channels of advertising your website through social media, paid advertising and search engine optimisation. You may even know some people with large social media followings that might give your website a shoutout, this is called ‘influencer marketing’ so it may be time to call in some favours!
Store Your Stock & Inventory
The chances are if you know you have a product that people want to buy then you may want to take advantage of ‘the economy of bulk’ which refers to buying a product in bulk at a reduced rate so you can sell it on for a lower price. This is great for you as a business and for your customers, as everyone saves. The issue with this for many e-commerce stores starting out online is that they often don’t have the space to store their stock. Self storage companies such as Storage Manchester can be a great way to store stock for an incredibly low price. We offer a range of business storage solutions and have storage units starting from as small as a locker space right up to 400SQFT.
Provide Value
One of the best things you can do with getting your business online is to provide genuine value to your customers. Providing value with an online store can come in a lot of different forms but we are going to take a look at a few bullet points on how you can provide value with your business online:
- A fast website that is easy to navigate. On average Website visitors will give a website 5 seconds to load, if it doesn’t they will go elsewhere. Ensuring your website is fast is a good way to engage with customers. You should also ensure that your website is easy to navigate and use, making it easy for people to buy your products.
- Safe and secure, much like our storage you should make sure your website is safe and secure for people to shop on. You can do this by giving your website an SSL certificate and use payment platforms such as PayPal and Stripe so people can pay with confidence.
- Make sure the products you are selling or of a high quality and fit the e-commerce model. If you work with fresh food or drink then a channel like Uber Eats or Just Eat may be a better way for you to sell your products online.
Receipt & Dispatch Service
One of your biggest concerns about selling a product online will no doubt be how you are going to get your products delivered to your customers. There are lots of different postage and courier services that can help you do this such as Hermes and DPD. At storage Manchester, we help out customers with our completely free receipt and dispatch service. If you have stock you need to get delivered you can put in the address of your storage unit and we will sign for your stock and keep it safe until you are next on-site. This is great for the likes of kitchen respray companies and other trade-based businesses who travel for jobs a lot. Our team are on site 7 days a week so no matter when you need a delivery we will sign for it. In addition to this our free dispatch service also means that you can leave your deliveries at our reception to be handed over to your courier of choice. Talk to a member of our team to find out how our free receipt and dispatch could help get your business online.
Get In Touch
To find out how Storage Manchester can help get your business online or to hear more about the kind of businesses we have helped then get in touch. Our team are on hand 7 days a week to help bring a new lease of life to your business with dedicated self storage services at the cheapest prices in Manchester.