Breaking out into a new industry and making a great name there is a tedious task, especially in today’s demanding market. However, with the right strategies up your sleeves, you can essentially achieve that goal.
In this article, we dive deeper into how you can successfully step into a new market and make a great name there. Plus, we discuss how you can connect with your next wave of customers at a deeper level to retain them for extended periods.
Let’s get started.
Influence and connect with your next wave of customers
The traditional processes involved in retail aren’t as effective today as they once used to be. Today, customers are looking for brands that make and sell their own products, so they can have a deeper connection with the company their products are coming from.
One of the core elements of eCommerce success today is customer satisfaction and retention. And these elements can’t be achieved if you’re not connecting with your customers directly.
Hence, now it’s important to have a Direct to Consumer (DTC) approach. In a DTC, you sell your products directly to the people who are going to consume them. There’s no middle party involved. Hence, the customers know exactly who’s manufacturing and supplying their products to them.
Here are a few benefits you will leverage when you start using the DTC approach.
1. Stronger brand trust
With DTC, you can connect with your customers at a more personal level. Hence, you can build stronger relationships with your customers, letting you build better brand trust with them.
2. Stronger customer retention
As we all saw during the pandemic, retail eCommerce stores can lose their customer base during extreme circumstances. After all, these are just resellers of products that are not made by them. However, DTC businesses were able to retain their customers even when others were suffering. That’s because DTC businesses have a solid, long-term relationship with their customers that lets them retain them in almost every circumstance.
A prominent example of such a brand is Apple. Even though most of the eCommerce stores and brands were suffering from extremely hindered performance due to lockdowns, Apple managed to retain its sales and make substantial profits even during the lockdown.
3. Ability to improve products
As DTC businesses sell directly to their consumers, they can get direct, one-to-one feedback from them. With that valuable feedback, these businesses can improve and update their products based on what the customers want. As a result, these brands are able to build an even closer relationship with their customers.
Harness the power of social media
Social media platforms are huge. They once used to be a place to post pictures of pets and kids. Well, they still are — but there’s much more to them now. For instance, Facebook serves as a fully-fledged marketing hub today.
If your brand wants to connect with the customers, gain their trust, and retain them for extended periods, it needs to build a strong presence on social media.
Breaking into a new industry as an entrepreneur
The entrepreneurial journey is a tough one; not everyone has the skill set needed to stay on this path. However, with DTC, things are much more likely to go as expected.
You see, many of the global markets are already saturated with every kind of product. It’s hard to come up with an existing product (with your own bells and whistles, of course) and make it stand out from the existing competition. The best way to invade such a market is through direct connections with the consumers.
For instance, let’s say a consumer is looking for a product for their skincare routine. They don’t know about any brands that sell products of that category. When they search on Google and look at a few products from different brands, they’re more likely to build a better connection with a brand that sells its own products. They won’t prefer brands that sell their products through a reseller or retailer.
However, bear in mind that the path to entrepreneurship is filled with hardships and failures. A failure doesn’t mean you must stop and accept your loss — it means you have to get up again and hit it harder and stronger.
The bottom line
Stepping into a new industry and making a great name in it is a tough job — but it’s indeed possible with the right strategies and mindset. With the tips mentioned above, you can improve your entrepreneurial journey to invade new markets and build a solid reputation there.
