The crop of micro business owners promoting
their trade today is probably the most fortunate in the history of commerce.
Inventions in technology, particularly payment technology, continue to redefine
the market place, access to customers and the factors that affect demand and
supply. Limitations like distance and time have long been eroded with the
advent of e-commerce and the continuous innovation on digital payment techniques
continues to promote business inclusion, enabling anyone to do business online,
regardless of their size or structure.
A major game-changer is the introduction of
all-inclusive platforms that provide avenues for businesses to display their
goods and get paid as well. The Nigerian market has three major players owning
this space. You are either thinking of creating a store on Paystack’s Business
place, signing up with Flutterwave for a barter store or promoting your
services on the Quickteller Business storefront. While the availability of
options immensely benefits the business owner, it also places the weight of
choice on their shoulders.
Which of these platform options is best suited
to your business? What factors should you consider before choosing one over the
other?
Admittedly, all these platforms essentially
provide the same service. They save you the expense and pressure of getting a
developer to build you an e-commerce site that you’d have to maintain. In a few
clicks, you can create your mini e-commerce store, upload pictures, fill in
prices and terms and extract a shareable link that is adaptable to any
platform. Your customers can click on the link to see what you offer, click to
buy and also click to pay…all at no cost to you. There are however minute
differences that should influence your choice.
Flutterwave’s strength is in its adaptability
to search engines, implying that your mini store is more searchable on this
platform and could come up as part of a Google search result. Being the first
Fintech to offer this service, Flutterwave has also had more time to improve on
the service, leveraging user feedback. Paystack on the other hand is
popular for the swiftness of its processes. Everything happens quickly and you
can start selling as soon as you desire. The large base of businesses they
possess may be advantageous as well, providing you with a sense of belonging
and the assurance that comes with being part of the multitude.
The Quickteller Business storefront also has
its advantages, especially for businesses just embracing online trade. To begin
with, if you already have a Quickteller account, you are halfway in. You will
only be required to sign in with your Quickteller credentials and onboard your
business. It’s also been said that Quickteller Business may offer more security
although Quickteller Business typically takes a while longer than other
platforms, considering the KYC documents required and the detailed processes.
This is understandable though; transaction security is one of the factors that
elevated Interswitch to its current status. They have always been known to
prioritize security over quick fixes.
More so, businesses signed onto the Quickteller
Business platform get to enjoy the advantage of being exposed to the over 5
million customers already signed onto the Quickteller platform.
At the end of it all, it’s a bottom-line
conversation for you as a business owner, especially if you are just starting
out. This may be Quickteller Business’ biggest advantage so far, the fact that
new users of the platform do not have to pay any transaction fees for the first
three months after they sign up. Three months may not seem like a long time
until you calculate how much expense paying zero charges could save you. That
money can be channeled into growing your business, either by increasing stock
or promoting your business more.
Eventually, the goal is to choose a platform
that supports your business goals and enables your business to thrive. Suffice
to say a transition from one platform to the other is also possible if you find
that the grass is indeed greener on the other side.
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