Learn how you can start an online business in South Africa and also learn How to sell products online in South Africa. As the internet connectivity system grows, and more South Africans are coming online, they migrate to eCommerce platforms to buy products and services. The internet makes it easy for shoppers to locate goods and solutions, search service providers, do window shopping, and, of course, make online transactions.
At about 1.4 per cent of the overall retail industry in South Africa, the eCommerce sector is only a small amount, but we have seen estimates that it is rising at 20-35 per cent annually. The rise in local eCommerce and the lower barrier to entry for entrepreneurs will only see this trend continuing to develop with the simplicity in building up an eCommerce-enabled platform.
If you are selling physical products or digital goods, online selling in South Africa has never been easier.
I have been collaborating with and selling on several of the online sites open to South Africans for the last three months. I still offer both physical and digital goods and have experience dealing with most of the internet sales of payment gateways that South Africans can use.
If you are considering using eCommerce as your primary source of revenue or growing your existing offline or brick and mortar business, then here are our suggested solutions for local merchants who want to sell their items online.
What requirements do you need t start selling online in South Africa?
- You need a service or product to sell online in South Africa
- You need an online platform where you can sell in South Africa
- You lastly need a payment system or payment gateway to allow you to collect payments and manage refunds in South Africa.
How can you sell your products or services online in South Africa?
Well, there are two ways in which you can sell your products online in South Africa.
- You can sell your products online in South Africa via your own e-commerce website or store. Do you need an online store in South Africa? Whatsapp me +260977770202.
- You can sell your products online in South Africa via other e-commerce marketplace platforms in South Africa.
List of e-commerce marketplace platforms in South Africa:
- Take a lot
- Bid or Buy
- Localised
- Price check
- Facebook marketplace
- Hello Pretty
- The Macro online marketplace
- The Zando online marketplace
- The Loot online marketplace
How to sell your products online in South Africa
The first thing to remember when deciding to market your goods digitally is whether these are tangible or digital items in South Africa.
In 2020, the internet transformed world shops and if a commodity can be shipped, you can sell it online (which is pretty much something). If you can sell a product in person, so you can sell it online.
In South Africa, the same is true for the marketing of digital goods. Selling stuff like eBooks, online classes and wireless downloads has never been smoother than it is today.
In South Africa, what you are selling online will essentially determine whether or not you will be able to create a profitable online company. Much like sale, making a fantastic product counts in the offline world.
When they decide they want to start selling online in South Africa, most people have a product in mind. (Affiliate marketing is a perfect place to start if you want to make cash online if you don’t have a product to sell online)
It is the next two pieces of the equation that can mess people up.
The good news is, selling online in South Africa right now is better than you’d imagine. When it comes to selling online the main stumbling block is deciding which is the right site to sell.
How do you accept payments in South Africa when you sell online?
It seems like taking payments when you sell online should be such a simple operation. Unfortunately, this is not the case for South Africans. Just as there are many sale sites open to us as South Africans, when you sell online, there are also many ways to make payments.
Here is a list of the best ways to make payments when you sell to South Africa online:
- You can accept payments on your online shop in South Africa using Electronic und transfer
- You can accept payments on your online shop in South Africa using Bank Transfer
- You can accept payments on your online shop in South Africa using Cash on delivery
- You can accept payments on your online shop in South Africa using PayPal
- You can accept payments on your online shop in South Africa using Flutterwave
- You can accept payments on your online shop in South Africa using SnapScan
- You can accept payments on your online shop in South Africa using PayFast
