Posted on August 3, 2020

Tips to Move your Business Online

By: iPay

With the world under strict restrictions to minimize physical interactions with clients due to the Covid-19 pandemic, businesses have entered into a goldrush era to move to digital platforms. Moving your business model online could be the breakthrough that your business is yearning for. This could be as simple as opening a social media page or having a fully interactive e-commerce website.
Below are some tips to help you move your business online:

1. Open and frequently manage your business’s social media pages

• Many Kenyans are actively buying products and services from the comfort of their homes through their social media pages. These platforms, once effectively managed, are very key in building your credibility and building your brand.

• Ensure that you have a dedicated resource to consistently post the content about your products and services that your business offers. This can range from educational information to attractive product photos. The dedicated social media representative should also be able to respond to any questions and concerns raised on your products or services.

• It is also important to use relevant and dedicated hashtags that will be applied to all your posts across all platforms.

2. Set aside a budget to sponsor content online

• To increase visibility, it helps to have a content boosting plan for your social media pages or through Google display ads, pages, and profiles with high traffic.

• Boosting helps you to reach more people in your target audience which increases your chances of making sales.

3. Invest in an SEO optimized website

• SEO stands for ‘search engine optimization’. According to SearchEngineland.com, SEO is the process of getting traffic from the ‘free’, ‘organic’, and ‘editorial’ or ‘natural’ search results on search engines which makes it easier for clients to find you online. For example, if you sell flowers, someone might be looking to buy flowers in Nairobi and will type ‘Flowers in Nairobi, Fresh flowers, Cheap flowers, Flower gifts…etc.’

• It is a good investment to have an updated website as it provides credibility to a business. It is a one-stop-shop for all information regarding what your business does.

4. Link all your sites with a digital payment gateway

• Running a business is about your bottom line. At the end of the day, you have a call to action that gives you profits and interactions with your clients. Having a digital payment solution integrated to your social media pages and website shortens the customer journey and results in increased sales. This can be done by signing up as a merchant with iPay and start receiving money through all your digital platforms.

• With businesses going online to maintain visibility during this time, businesses are encouraged to use safe online solutions for their clients. iPay is an easy-to-use payment solution that allows your business to bill and receives instant online and offline payments. It Is able to incorporate multiple payment options such as VISA, Mastercard, UnionPay, American Express, M-PESA, Airtel Money, Pesalink onto the platform, and operates 24/7, which accommodates clients from different time zones. iPay also enables one to track payments to suppliers and draw statements in real-time as well as to keep records.

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