In 2011, Anastasia Koutis closed down her concept store in Hawthorn and moved her business online. Her company, Persé, creates Australian-made, organic skin care products. The focus of the business has now shifted to servicing existing clients and attracting new clients through her online store, as well as growing wholesale trade to different industries. The move to online retail has required a new mindset to combat certain challenges. For one, most of Anastasia’s clients are not online shoppers and selling skincare without customers being able to test the product is difficult. Offering free postage is also hard due to the expensive postage prices within Australia. Throughout this process, Anastasia has learned to navigate technology and to use social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to drive traffic to her webstore.
Anastasia Kourtis says that a successful eCommerce site should be easy to navigate and should reward clients for their loyalty.
Anastasia’s top five tips for small businesses looking to sell online are:
- Do not put all your advertising money in one basket
- Understand the demographics of your clientele
- Be up-to-date with social media
- Reward your clients and maintain communication with them
- Be cautious of emails from overseas requesting to pay by credit card instead of your website – secure payment (i.e. PayPal) is most beneficial for you and your client!
