How Can Using Marketplaces Give You an Advantage?

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Marketplaces are booming — with platforms like Amazon experiencing exponential growth and millions of sellers building their brands on them. But what makes marketplaces so powerful compared to other digital channels? In this article, we’ll break down what a marketplace is and explore the key benefits of incorporating one into your business strategy.
little shopping cart sitting on laptop

Marketplaces are booming. In fact, platforms like Amazon have seen exponential revenue growth since the early 2000s. And tens of millions of sellers are building or expanding their brands on these marketplaces.  

But the big question is: why? What exactly does a marketplace offer to retailers that can’t be found in any other digital channel (including social media and e-commerce stores)?  

In this post, we’ll explain what a marketplace is and look at the advantages of adding one (or several) to your business model. Let’s get started.  

What are marketplaces? 

Marketplaces are online platforms where multiple retailers sell their products, similar to a mall or farmer’s market. Each brand has its own profile, but customers can easily browse across all sellers to find what they need.

With an online marketplace, shoppers can use the search function to browse by product or category, rather than by brand. And because these marketplaces are online, all the products can be shipped directly to the customer’s door – no matter where they’re located. In some cases, they can even be fulfilled by the platform itself.  

Here are just a few marketplaces you’re likely familiar with:  

  • Amazon 
  • eBay 
  • Alibaba 
  • Etsy 
  • Zalando
  • Onbuy

How do Marketplaces Give You an Edge? 

While online marketplaces are much more competitive than your online store might be, they offer quite a few unique benefits in the way of branding, sales, and customer experience. Here are just a few notable advantages of marketplaces.  

More brand awareness 

Marketplaces are visited millions of times every year, which means you can get a lot of eyes on your brand just by selling your products there. Not only can customers find you when searching for products in specific categories, but they can also browse the rest of your products from your profile page.  

As a result, you can build stronger brand awareness and generate positive feelings toward your brand. In some cases, you might also be able to drive more traffic to your own website or e-commerce store.  

More sales opportunities 

When you only sell your products on your e-commerce site, you limit the number of people who will buy from you. Some simply won’t find you online, while others may be nervous about giving you their payment and shipping information.  

By branching out to new channels, like marketplaces, you increase your opportunity for sales. Not only can you capitalize on the trust the marketplace has already established with shoppers, but you can also reach potential buyers who prefer to do all of their online shopping on e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Ebay, Etsy, Zalando, or AliExpress.     

Woman smiling while paying for online order.

Social proof opportunities 

Customers can’t try on clothes or handle products prior to making a purchase online, so they need a way to verify the quality of the item before they buy it. That’s where social proof comes in.  

With social proof, new customers can get feedback from people who’ve already made the same purchase on everything from sizing and color to longevity and customer service. In some cases, they can get information on shipping time, pricing and return policies too.  

Since marketplaces are designed to be social, they encourage and get this type of feedback much more than standard e-commerce websites do. For example, Amazon has nearly 5,000 reviews for Brooks’ Adrenaline GTS 21 running shoe, while Brooks’ website has zero reviews for the exact same product.  

Thus, when you sell your products on one of these e-commerce platforms, you can earn more social proof for your products and increase the visibility of that social proof, exponentially. 

Strategic marketing opportunities 

One neat feature a lot of marketplaces have is product comparisons between brands. In other words, the “you might also like” or “people also viewed” sections on each product page.  

In these sections, alternative products listed market themselves under the same SEO keywords and compete for the same business. This enables shoppers to compare prices, quality, reviews, and basically everything else they might want to, without leaving the site or page.  

As a result, you can effectively compete for your customers’ attention directly on your competitors’ pages – which is incredibly useful when shoppers are still in the evaluation stage of the buyer’s journey. (Just remember, your competitors will also show up on your product pages.)    

Marketplaces are a great way to sell your products. Not just because they’re one more business opportunity, either. By selling in an online marketplace, you can successfully build a stronger brand, capitalize on new e-commerce sales and marketing opportunities, and leverage greater amounts of social proof. And that leads to a stronger customer base and more revenue for your brand.