Sears has been a trusted name in business for decades, and in the digital world, they’ve actually expanded what they do and what they offer, and they’ve even opened up to letting other sellers, such as you, go through their site in a number of different ways. One of the biggest benefits to this is naturally the association with Sears. Sears is a name people know and trust, and by selling through them, you can put your products in front of customers who might not see them otherwise.
What Avenues Do They Offer?
When you choose to sell through the site, you will find three different avenues to take. Depending on the type of ecommerce website and business you are running, one of these may be more appropriate than the others are.
Sell on Sears
This allows you to sell your items through Sears. They will come up in the search results for their site. The customer will buy through their site, and then Sears will contact you with the order. You will then have to ship the order to the customer. Those who choose this option will also be able to use Sears Local Marketplace, which lets customers choose to pick up the items from one of your stores. Naturally, this is only an option for those who have a brick and mortar store. The current cost is $39.95 per month, along with between 7% and 20% commission.
Sell Through Sears
With this option, you can sell through Sears by shipping inventory to them to hold until you make a sale. Your products will appear on their search engines, the customer can order through their site, and Sears does the shipping. The cost is nominal, just as it is with Sell on Sears. Again, the cost is $39.95 a month, along with $3.00 “pick and pack”. You also need to pay $.45 per square foot for the space your inventory takes up in their warehouses.
Advertise on Sears
This option shows customers your products on the Sears site, and when they click on those products, they go to your ecommerce website to make the purchase. You will take the order and then ship it to them. This can help you to build up your business and number of customers, and the cost is minimal, as with the other options for selling with Sears. This is the cheapest of the options at only $.15 to $.90 per click. Of course, just because one of the customers decides to click on the product and goes to your site does not mean they will actually make the purchase.
As you can see, these are vastly different options, so you will want to make sure you choose the one that works the best for your type of business. When you are dealing with these venues, you want to make things as simple as possible for your business. You should consider using multi channel order management software, especially when you are selling through your site, Sears, and other sites. It makes keeping everything under control far easier. Consider software from Appath.
Summary:
Sears is a known and trusted American brand that has been in business for a long time. Aligning your ecommerce website with Sears and using one of their three methods of selling with them is a great way to increase sales and to find new customers that might not have known about your site. It is important to understand the difference between their selling options – Sell on Sears, Sell Through Sears, and Advertise on Sears – to make sure you are using the option that is correct for your business.
Resource: http://voices.yahoo.com/how-multiply-income-sell-sears-marketplace-8816879.html?cat=46