Some few years ago, business activities such as buying and selling were mostly carried out physically. In most parts of the World, the norm was to have business centers or Office Apartments where teeming clients could always conjugate with the Business Owners. Additionally some business owners would have telephone numbers to enhance communication with their clients. This form of business has been referred to as brick-and-mortar businesses. This form of interacting was often referred to as the traditional offline business meetings.
Today, many offline businesses have been taken online because technology has given us another seamless way of transacting. With the Internet, we now have many online and partially online businesses operating along traditional offline businesses. Being visible is an essential for thriving online businesses. Most businesses aspiring to be an international brand ensure their online presence so they can have global visibility.
Taking your business online is a business decision. It all depends on what your business aims to achieve. To take your offline business, online:
- You require a Domain Name. Just as it is important to register the business at Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in Nigeria, you also need to register your business domain name. This domain name representing your online identity, will host your custom email address, and is your business website address.
Take for example max.ng, https://www.max.ng/. Max is on a mission to fix Africa’s notorious last-mile delivery and online-retail problems by using mobile and web platforms to connect consumers, retail businesses and independent drivers in real-time. They are eliminating all logistics and technology barriers that have historically prevented retail businesses in Africa from realizing their full potentials.
To register a domain name, contact a NiRA Accredited Registrar. For .ng domain registration, NiRA the registry for .ng ccTLD has over 63 Accredited Registrars that can be reached via this link: http://nira.org.ng/accredited-registrars - The second important thing to consider when you decide to take your business online is webhosting. This is renting a web space online to host your website, emails and your other web file. These web hosting services is being offered by web hosting service providers and most of the NiRA Accredited Registrars bundle the service with domain registrations.
Benefits of Expanding an Offline Business Online
With your online business, there is more access to new and prospective customers. Shopping online is extremely convenient as long as you operate according to rules. Most people in the Nigeria now prefer to shop online because of the convenience associated with online shopping.
With online business, you make available the variety of your goods/produces to a wide variety of audience. This gives shoppers the opportunity to quickly peruse all products in stock.
Potential clients are well informed of the products in stock before stepping out.
Conclusion
Depending on the nature of your business, it is pertinent to keep your offline brand alive and well. If your offline business is thriving, treat your online expansion as an additional component of the business rather than a replacement.