Want to Build a Great Marketplace? Be Great at Retail

Marketplaces
Written By Rick Watson

If I had one piece of advice for someone trying to build a new marketplace, stop trying so hard to be a great marketplace first.  But what to do instead?

Try hard to be a great retailer.  What do retailers need to be great at?

  • Identifying new up and coming brands.

  • Marketing these brands existence to the world.

  • Communicate the essence of your great new found brands to your buyers.  Engage their emotions.

  • Acquiring new consumers.

  • Setting proper consumer expectations.

  • Knowing your competition and your customer's alternatives, and finally.

  • Keep raising the bar on your experience.  The sun never sets on your consumers' #ecommerce expectations."

Then, layer in the marketplace parts on top of that.  Many people are too busy trying to get their marketplace flywheel going that they forget completely why retail consumers are there in the first place.

Rick Watson

Rick Watson founded RMW Commerce Consulting after spending 20+ years as a technology entrepreneur and operator exclusively in the eCommerce industry with companies like ChannelAdvisor, BarnesandNoble.com, Merchantry, and Pitney Bowes.

Watson’s work today is centered on supporting investors and management teams incubating and growing direct-to-consumer businesses. Most recently, in partnership with WHP Global, Rick was a critical resource in architecting the WHP+ platform, a new turnkey direct to consumer digital e-commerce platform that powers AnneKlein.com and JosephAbboud.com.

Watson also hosts a weekly podcast, Watson Weekly, where he shares an unbiased, unfiltered expert take on the retail sector’s biggest players.

In the past year alone, Rick has spoken at many in-person and virtual events as well as podcasts on topics ranging from retail/ecom to supply chain/logistics and even digital grocery including CommerceNext IRL, ASCM Connect, and Retail Innovation Conference.

https://www.rmwcommerce.com/
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