The growing demand for highly personalized goods and services among consumers is proving to be a lucrative opportunity for brands of all kinds to switch their business models to a direct-to-consumer eCommerce model. DTC brands in a crowded market space have the chance to leverage complete control over their brand image. Since they don’t have to rely on anyone else, they can directly present their products before their audiences. They own the relationship they foster with their users and can nurture it further to maximize business gains. On the flip side, a consumer gets the maximum purchase satisfaction as they get to enjoy an interactive relationship with the brand.
So what kind of growth should a DTC wholesale brand expect if they plan to switch?
Let’s look into some facts and figures. According to the statistics published by Statista, in 2020, the direct-to-consumer for digitally native brands in the United States of America exceeded $27 billion. As per the predictions made by market experts, the figures shall rise to a $44.7 billion mark by 2023.
Does that mean a DTC eCommerce model is primed for growth? According to the forecast published by e-marketer, the global retail eCommerce sales are expected to rise further by 16.8% and become a market of $4.921 trillion. Another article by Gartner says that 80% of B2B Sales interaction between buyers and sellers will take place via digital channels by 2025.
These are pretty impressive statistics; however, there might be some doubts in your mind regarding consumer behavior. Today, many wholesale brands are turning to the DTC model because they see tons of consumers moving onto online platforms to purchase products. Conventional marketers used to look at the conversion from B2B wholesale to retailer business model as a medium to make more profits from each sale.
However, now this industry recognizes the direct-to-consumer eCommerce model as a path to beat competitors and achieve more growth. Marketers often discuss the benefits of wholesale vs retail business; however, we will precisely highlight the benefits of a DTC eCommerce model. Let’s look into the perks of switching your brand into a DTC e-commerce business for further clarity. But before we jump onto the next segment, you must ask yourself some questions. Is your business ready to meet the level of customer fulfillment demanded from DTC brands? Analyze your present situation and think about your answer.
What are the Benefits of Switching your Wholesale Brand into a DTC brand?
Before talking more about direct-to-consumer sales, we must discuss the present state of wholesale brands. Today, several wholesale brands face tough competition within the retail spaces, and more competitors are bound to come in. When the internet was not the most desired place to shop, businesses used to compete with 3-4 brands.
The retail shelf space was not overcrowded; however, today, the scenario has completely changed. Brands nowadays face hundreds of competitors who operate their business from online and offline channels. Since the cost of land or the price per square foot area is increasing, retailers struggle to deliver their offerings while paying a high amount of money. It becomes difficult for a smaller brand to maintain sustainable growth. Hence, several wholesale marketing strategy experts today recommend owners turn to the potential of DTC.
-
Elevates your sales
As the regular retail sector becomes more congested, your brand may discover a loss in its fair share of real estate. You may experience higher losses compared to other retailers altogether. In a situation like this, the DTC eCommerce model presents a great opportunity for you to regain sales that you’ve been missing out on. Suppose your business hasn’t battled this issue. In that case, you must know that the DTC business model eventually offers better avenues to eliminate several barriers present in traditional retail.
A direct channel approach with your consumers means that you can ace new ways to reach or target them. Hence, you get further opportunities to increase your sales volume or customer base. Another great advantage for wholesale DTC brands is freedom from geographical constraints that a traditional retail store usually faces. To conclude, we would say that a Direct-to-consumer model can help you reach your high-value consumers far beyond your retail reach.
-
Get complete control on pricing.
Direct-to-consumer eCommerce doesn’t merely focus on your business’ growth potential; it also allows you to take total control of pricing. Due to an immense control over product prices, brand managers have the freedom to curate enticing promotional offers, discounts, and incentives. Therefore, it will enable them to boost their customer acquisition, enhance their customer retention, and loyalty.
-
Strengthens your brand identity
Consumer behavior is evolving dynamically. Today customers are looking at brands with a microscope; they are closely monitoring their services and products. Buyers want the brand to offer a complete package with premium quality and an excellent customer experience from awareness to acquisition. Once you adopt a DTC model, you’ll be able to control your entire customer journey. Many wholesale brands struggle to provide unique and seamless customer service because of inefficient business operations or poorly trained staff. However, you can eliminate such obstacles in a wholesale DTC business model and execute a personalized customer experience.
-
Builds a deeper connection with consumers
The chance to build a deep relationship with your consumers is one of the chief benefits of DTC. Today, multiple eCommerce technologies enable these brands to analyze and collect consumer information and data to offer a highly personalized, one-on-one shopping experience. Hence, your business can leverage smart consumer data to enhance the one-on-one shopping experience. With such a level of user experience, your brand is primed for growth and increased repeat customers.
-
You can tap into new markets and products.
Compared to a retail wholesale store, the investment made on entering a new market is relatively low when you do the same in a direct-to-consumer model. Having an eCommerce DTC framework allows you to reposition your business or a product into a brand new market with lesser risk and investment.
Takeaway
By now, you know you must have understood the potential benefits of a direct-to-consumer eCommerce model. There will be new challenges; however, you’ll be in a better position to control them. The DTC business model offers an owner many opportunities to improve their sales, revenue, and growth. Such benefits are hard to find in a wholesale marketing strategy. Therefore you must start making efforts from today if you have planned to grow in this arena.
About the Author
Pamela Martinez is a writer for The European Business Review. She is dedicated to crafting timely blog pieces about business acumen, changing leadership dynamics, emerging finance and technology trends, global breakthroughs and how these spaces intersect from a millennial’s perspective. She also works as an editor and content strategist and the sister publications of The European Business Review.