Difference between Marketplace, Online Shop, and E-Commerce
Now, if you need something, you don't have to leave the house anymore. Just sitting in front of the TV, you are connected to the internet, so you can see what you can buy online. Let's find out more about the difference between Marketplace, Online Shop, and E-Commerce.
Of course terms such as online shop, e-commerce, and marketplace are not foreign terms to our ears. But it could be that some of us do not understand the detailed meaning of the three terms. It turns out that in an online business perspective, the three terms are different. Then, what is the difference between the three?
Marketplace
Marketplace is a business model in which the website in question not only promotes merchandise but also facilitates online money transactions. An online shopping system like this, a website will provide land for sellers to sell their products.
Marketplace owners are not responsible for the goods sold because their job is to provide land for sellers and help them to meet customers and make transactions easily.
Each product has been given specifications and an explanation of the condition of the product so that buyers get valid information and can compare with similar products. If it is suitable, the buyer can immediately click the "buy" button and then make the transfer according to the price listed. Furthermore, after the payment process, the seller will send the goods to the buyer.
One of the reasons why the marketplace is famous is because of the ease and convenience of use. This is because the seller does not ask questions to the buyer, there is no discount, there is no bargaining like in an online shop.
Marketplace itself has a concept similar to traditional markets. The difference is that in traditional markets a seller does not need to pay rent to get land like in the marketplace. This is the attraction of the marketplace because sellers only need to register and they can start selling.
How to find profits from the marketplace can be by utilizing premium advertising services. If you've ever searched for items on Tokopedia, you've probably seen a selection of items marked with megaphones. These are products that use Tokopedia's TopAds service so that their products appear at the top of the search.
Marketplace Types
In general, there are two types of cooperation on Indonesian marketplace sites, namely pure marketplaces and consignments.
Pure Marketplace
Pure marketplace cooperation is when the marketplace site only provides stalls for selling and payment facilities. Sellers who cooperate are given more flexibility than consignment cooperation.
The seller is obliged to provide product descriptions and photos independently. In addition, sellers can also receive price quotes from buyers. Before making a payment, the buyer can make a price quote to the seller. After getting the price agreed by both parties, the buyer can send some money to the account provided by the marketplace.
Examples of this type of Indonesian marketplace are Tokopedia, Bukalapak, Elevenia, Blanja, and BliBli. Some examples of marketplaces from abroad that are popular in Indonesia are Shopee (Singapore), Lazada (Singapore), JD.ID (China), Amazon (United States), and Rakuten (Japan).
Consignment Marketplace
The second type of cooperation is consignment or the easy term is the deposit of goods. If the seller cooperates on consignment with the marketplace site, he only needs to provide the product and detailed information to the marketplace.
One example of a marketplace that provides consignment cooperation is Zalora and Berrybenka.
The marketplace site will take care of sales from product photos, warehouses, delivery of goods, to payment facilities. Different from the previous type of cooperation, in this type of cooperation the buyer cannot make a price quote because the flow of all transaction flows is handled by the marketplace site.
The basic difference lies in the responsibility of the seller and the flow of the transaction. The flow of transactions in the marketplace occurs directly between the seller and the buyer, while the consignment cooperation of all transaction flows is directly handled by the marketplace site.
Online Shop
An online shop is a place where a transaction for the sale of goods or services occurs on the internet. An online shop doesn't have to be on the website because you can open an online shop on social media such as Facebook and Instagram. Through this online shop system, buyers can submit any questions related to products to sellers directly via BBM, LINE or Whatsapp.
Some online shops usually still apply discounts after buyers often subscribe to the online shop. There is also an online shop that still imposes a bargain on the price of a product. You can contact them through the chat application to place an order. Next, you make a payment by wire transfer then send proof of payment, and the seller will send the goods to your address.
An online shop is like an online shop that stands independently so it doesn't sell its products through intermediaries. It could be because it is already famous so it doesn't need help from e-commerce to sell its products. It could be because they already have loyal customers who buy products directly from online stores due to several factors, for example the products are really original directly from the store (not in other stores).
In addition, shopping at online stores usually provides custom designs that customers can choose for themselves. If an online store is able to provide something different, it can easily stand independently and have its own customers.
E-Commerce
The way for e-commerce shopping is almost the same as the marketplace, where the buyer selects the goods according to their needs on the website then clicks the "buy" button and makes the transfer according to the listed price. It's just that in e-commerce, the products sold come from the website itself, aka not opening up land for other sellers to sell their products. In addition, there is no bargaining because the price given is the right price. Examples of e-commerce are zalora.com, berrybenka.com, lazada.com, and others.
Marketplace vs Online Shop vs E-commerce
If you are shopping and want an effective one, this can be tailored to your needs. If you feel more comfortable by asking the seller directly, then you can shop at the online shop. First, make sure your shooting online shop is not a "fake" online shop, aka a fraud.
However, if you feel like spending time asking the seller questions, then you can shop at a marketplace that has the right price, no haggling process, and can transfer immediately after clicking the “buy” button.
Meanwhile, if you want to buy goods that are sold directly from an official agent, then you can choose the e-commerce option.
All options depend on your own needs. So, are you more interested in a marketplace, online shop or e-commerce?