A marketplace is a website on which buying and selling transactions are carried out. These sites bring together different sellers who offer their products to potential buyers in a single point. Generally, these platforms are managed by a third party.
The marketplaces they’ve been around since the dawn of the Internet, ever since eBay began operations in 1995. Nowadays we all know and, surely, we have bought in some of them.
These sales sites are so big that, for this year, it is estimated that 75% of Internet transactions will be made through them, in this lies their importance.
These portals have increased their presence in the country and new ones have also emerged. This situation has attracted a large number of entrepreneurs who want to use these sites to sell their products and reach more customers.
For this reason, and also because of the interest of more people in selling on these sites, we decided to make this guide to explain to you: what is a marketplacehow they work, which are the most popular in Mexico and how it is possible to sell in some of them.
Let’s get started!
What is a marketplace?
The term marketplace It comes from English and literally means market. As we know, a market brings together different vendors in a physical place where customers come to make purchases. In this market there are shops specializing in different products, such as food, fruit, meat, cleaning supplies, etc.
digitally, a marketplace It is the metaphor of a digital market or mall that brings together different vendors and provides them with a platform to make sales, handles payment transactions, shipments (in some cases) and promotion of the space.
Some of the most popular marketplaces in Mexico are: Amazon, Mercado Libre, eBay, Aliexpress and, recently, Facebook Marketplace. On the other hand, there are also new marketplaces offered by traditional department stores, such as Walmart, Coppel, Sears, among others.
Each marketplace is different and there are conditions that each offers for sellers and customers. We recommend you review this article to understand the .
How does a marketplace work?
A marketplace consists of five fundamental actors for its operation and each one has specific tasks that we will detail below.
- Customers: They are the ones who make purchases within the platform and are registered and protected by the platform’s rules.
- vendors: are those users registered in the marketplace who meet the conditions to sell their products or services.
- Marketplace Developer: It is the company that is responsible for creating the marketplace platform to bring customers together with buyers in exchange for a commission.
- marketplace platform: the digital medium that facilitates transactions within the marketplace.
- payment service provider: the financial entity that is responsible for collecting the money for the purchase before delivering it to the sellers.
Once we know the parts of a marketplace, let’s objectively analyze the advantages and disadvantages of selling there.
Advantages of selling on a Marketplace
The main advantages of selling in a marketplace are:
- A place to sell everything
- Visibility for your products
- Extra sales channel
- International sales
- web positioning
Let’s explain each of these below:
A place to sell everything
In a marketplace it is possible to find thousands of items with different brands and characteristics. So it is very likely that your products can find space within them, as long as they meet the required conditions.
Visibility for your products
Your item within a marketplace will benefit indirectly from the marketing and communication actions carried out by the developers of that platform.
Extra sales channel
If you have a sales website, then a marketplace becomes an additional channel to sell your products. You can benefit from this medium without neglecting your online store.
International sales
Many marketplaces, thanks to their infrastructure, can operate globally, so your products can be purchased by customers from different parts of the world. You just have to keep in mind the shipping costs.
web positioning
A marketplace, due to its size, reputation and infrastructure, is very well positioned in search engines, so your products have the opportunity to appear in the first results of Google following a good search.
Disadvantages of selling on a Marketplace
When selling on a Marketplace not everything is hunky-dory and the main disadvantages are:
- Constant collection of commissions
- price competition
- No contact information of your clients
- Lose everything when you leave the marketplace
- Not having the money immediately
Analyze each of them.
Constant collection of commissions
The collection of commissions or monthly fees is the way in which the marketplaces guarantee the operation of the platform. Some marketplaces charge from 5% to 20% for each purchase. This can directly affect the earnings you make.
price competition
When you sell on a marketplace, you compete with dozens or hundreds of sellers who can sell the same products as you or some very similar ones. In this scenario, the price is a determining factor of purchase and whoever sells at a lower price will surely close the purchase.
No contact information of your clients
When you sell in a marketplace, you tend to lose visibility of your customer data, which is very valuable to you, since you will not be able to contact them directly for future purchases or to send them promotions. Who benefits from the data of your buyers, only, is the developer of the platform.
Lose everything when you leave the marketplace
When you stop selling on a marketplace, for any reason, you lose everything you have done on the platform; your history, sales record, recommendations, reviews and analytics, since this data will belong to the developers of the marketplace.
Not having the money at the moment
Each platform decides the minimum fund retention time, it can be 7 days like Amazon, or even weeks in other cases. So once you make a sale you will not be able to dispose of the money immediately.
Once you know the advantages and disadvantages of selling in a marketplace, it is your decision to assess whether it is convenient to distribute your products in them, always taking into account your .
Now let’s see the main marketplaces in Mexico to discover how it is possible to sell in them.
Main marketplaces in Mexico
The most visited marketplaces in Mexico are:
- Facebook Marketplace
- Free market
- amazon
- Coppel
- Walmart
- eBay
- aliexpress
- Sear’s
However, it should be clarified that they are not the only ones that exist and in the country there is a range of marketplaces where you can sell your products or services. It’s just a matter of analyzing which ones give you the most benefits for your business.
Now let’s review each of these marketplaces and see how it is possible to sell on them.
Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace is the platform developed by Meta, formerly Facebook, in 2016, to buy, sell and discover items. In its beginnings, most of the items that were sold were used, but over the years, entrepreneurs have used this platform to offer their new products.
The platform is the largest in terms of users, it has 93 million users over the age of 13, since to sell or buy items you only need a Facebook account.
How to sell on Facebook Marketplace?
This is one of the platforms where it is easiest to sell an item, and you just have to follow the following steps:
- Create an account on Facebook.
- Enter the Marketplace section in the main menu.
- Select the “Create Post” option.
- Choose the type of listing you want to sell (item, vehicle, or property rental).
- Add photos, choose the category, write the product description and specify its location.
- Publish the item in the marketplace and in specialized Facebook groups.
✋Important: Facebook Marketplace does not have shipping or payment systems, so you will have to personally agree on these aspects with potential buyers.
There are several things you should keep in mind before selling on this platform. For this reason, we recommend you consult the following article as a professional.
Free market
Mercado Libre is the most visited sales site in the country. Of Argentine origin, it has become one of the favorite options of Mexican buyers since its arrival in 1999.
Initially, it catered to sellers and occasional buyers of used products. But over time it has developed more functions and has become another sales channel for entrepreneurs. This thanks to its functionalities such as the possibility of buying items without bank cards, paying in cash in self-service stores.
How to sell in Mercado Libre?
Record
- Within the Mercado Libe portal, go to the Create your account section.
- In this record, go to the Create a company account section.
- Enter the fiscal data requested, such as RFC and company name.
- Upload your proof of tax situation, define what type of taxpayer you are and if you are going to need to invoice.
- Complete your profile with your contact information, address, telephone number so that customers can contact you and to coordinate the delivery of packages with Mercado Libre.
product publication
- Choose what type of product you are going to publish.
- Define if it is a new or used product.
- Choose the variants (only in some categories).
- Add photos.
- Define SKU and universal code.
- Fill out the technical sheet.
- Define price, type of publication (free, classic or premium) and delivery conditions.
- Write the product description.
- Post the product.
✋Important: Mercado Libre has different things to do, these can range from 10% to 19.5%.
If you have more questions about how to sell this marketplace, how to appear in its product lists, shipping fees and types of sellers, we recommend you consult.
amazon
The largest marketplace in the world and a technological giant. Since the launch of its marketplace in 1999, it has continued to be a place where every entrepreneur would like to sell. In 2015 it officially arrived in Mexico and since then it has established itself as the second shopping site in the country.
The ability to ship the next day, or faster by hiring the Amazon Prime plan on some of its products, is one of the main advantages of this marketplace, not to mention the number of items you can find here.
How to sell on Amazon?
Record
- Create an account in .
- Login to .
- Select the location of your company, the type of company and its corporate name and confirm the…
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