Digital transformation has reshaped how we utilize technology. The retail sector is no different from other sectors. Nowadays, people are hinging on frictionless digital and enhanced shopping experiences. The shift to online shopping has eased the growth of new e-Commerce trends, including the direct-to-consumer (DTC) or (D2C) model. It’s a marketing strategy in which retail and e-Commerce brands sell products directly to customers, bypassing intermediaries such as distributors or wholesalers.
Building direct-to-consumer capabilities is more important than ever, after all, a chance to engage with customers directly is hard to let go of—but how do companies truly scale their D2C business? What are the features they should build in their D2C platform? This blog will discuss this and also share insights into how e-Commerce strategy is the new normal and why brands should embrace the direct-to-consumer strategy as a part of their business and marketing strategy.
5 Tips to Craft an Effective D2C e-Commerce Strategy
Let’s discuss 5 key considerations you need to think about before developing a strong D2C e-Commerce strategy:
1. Brand Identity Through a Star Product
Focus on starting with one super product rather than numerous products. Doing so, helps you make a place in consumers’ minds, and equates to your brand. It’s the product that defines your services, acts as the cornerstone of your brand, and is unique enough to capture a potential customer’s attention and spark a conversation.
2. Become a Content Powerhouse
Modern consumers are always seeking more information about the products that they wish to purchase. But to better cater to their needs, work on positioning yourself to be a trusted source of information. This could include informative articles, social media posts, or videos that are directed at your audience, make an impact, and also demonstrate the value of the product to them, and thereby create trust.
3. Focus on Knowing Your Ideal Customer
Brands can never know enough about their ideal customer, and neither can you. Invest time and resources in understanding your customer inside out. What motivates them? What are their pain points? When you gain a deeper understanding of their wants and requirements, you can have a meaningful connection with them. Remember, a satisfied customer is your lifelong brand advocate and your regular patron of your products or services.
4. Building a Strong Online Presence
While content marketing is crucial, it’s important to have a user-friendly and well-designed e-Commerce platform as your storefront. This includes optimizing for mobile devices, having a clear product presentation, and offering a smooth checkout process. Additionally, adopt data-driven decision-making in your D2C e-Commerce strategy. Start with setting up the supply chain for a product, use website analytics or metrics to understand your users’ behavior and preferences.
Learn more about Online Business Security: Ecommerce Security Guide
5. Streamlined Fulfillment and Logistics
When setting up the supply chain for a product, it is more effective to do it on your own accord rather than depending on other people. This encompasses efficient order processing, reliable shipping options, and clear communication throughout the delivery process. It not only enables you to change the plan according to market trends but also leaves a positive buying experience for your customers, thus leading to their satisfaction and repeat purchases.
Get a competitive edge with a D2C marketing strategy from our e-Commerce software development company experts.
D2C is the New Normal: Why Drive D2C’s Success?
Direct-to-consumer (D2C) is an e-Commerce strategy that directly sells your products to consumers via digital social media platforms and websites. This strategy gives you complete control over product manufacturing, marketing, and distribution. Look at some of the prime advantages of adopting a D2C approach.
1: An Omni-channel Experience
A significant benefit of employing a D2C e-Commerce strategy is that product manufacturers efficiently control all their activities. It lets them create an omnichannel experience for their end consumers by implementing the best practices of an omnichannel retail strategy.
2: More Control Over Brand Reputation
A D2C e-Commerce strategy offers manufacturers complete control over their sales strategies and marketing efforts. The strategy enables the company to contact the end consumer directly. With this strategy, a manufacturer gets the most out of its customers’ experience–from the research phase to purchase.
3: Truly Understanding Your Customers
The traditional business model used by manufacturers rarely lets them interact with their targeted audience and product buyers. The D2C marketing strategy allows the manufacturer to know their end-consumers and understand their needs thoroughly. It leads to better engagement with customers.
4: Drive Efficient Growth
The DTC retail strategy is a key source of achieving a competitive advantage. It also lets the manufacturer grab an opportunity by adopting modern technologies to improve operational efficiency with agility.
5: A Sense of Community
Embracing a D2C business model lets you get valuable buyers’ data that enables you to make balanced decisions on customer behavior, relationships, and product offerings. It was not possible with traditional e-Commerce stores. Data-driven insights help create personalized brand experiences.
Must-have Features in Your Enterprise D2C Platform
- Automated inventory and order management
- Easy navigation and better designing
- Personalized & individualized customer experience
- Logistics management and order fulfillment
- Chatbots and live chat
- Automate marketing’s repetitive tasks
- Third-party tool integration
How Much Does It Cost to Build a D2C Platform
To answer how much it costs to develop a D2C e-Commerce platform, on average, the platform price ranges from $15,000 to $30,000 every year.
- Complexities of the App: Customisation ranges from $6,000 to $20,000 more or less, given the type, moderate to advanced.
- Hosting Your Platform: Custom-developed D2C e-Commerce sites can run into thousands of dollars, and domain name and hosting can cost somewhere between $5 to $100 per month.
- Customization/ Add-Ons: The cost of the customization ranges from $6,000 to $20,000 more or less, given the type, moderate to advanced.
- Fulfillment Software: You need to bind both the physical and online end of your D2C e-Commerce website, ranging between $400 to $5000.
- Marketing and Maintenance: The cost of digital marketing can range anywhere from $500 to $2,000 for small-scale stores and $4,000 to $5,000 for medium to large-scale stores.
Also Read: Google Cloud Vision API for eCommerce Product Discovery
Closing Statement
There’s no doubt the online retail industry will continue to grow into the future, and now’s a good time to start your journey. A better understanding of how the D2C e-Commerce platform functions, its benefits, and the costs involved can help you start with a high. Businesses need to integrate with emerging technologies, and create apps that are modern as well as futuristic, and enable a user to navigate through, seamlessly.
Not just D2C e-Commerce strategy but mobile app development can also help you expand your market share and drive rapid growth. However, developing a D2C app would be a complex process. To ease your journey, we recommend you consult a top app development company. The company knows how to execute a D2C retail strategy through e-Commerce website development services.
