Growing your business beyond online marketplaces

Main ways to grow your business

There are a few ways you can grow your business to reach more customers. You just need to decide what will work best for you around your time, budget and resources. You can choose to do a few or just one.

Launch your own online shop

Creating a shop on your own website can sound technical, but modern tools make it simple. An e-commerce platform is a service that provides all the parts of an online store including the shop window, checkout, payment system and admin area.

The most popular include:

• Shopify: You build your shop using drag-and-drop tools and ready-made templates. It hosts everything for you, so you don’t need to worry about implementing web servers or updates

• WooCommerce: This is a free plugin for WordPress, ideal if you already have a blog or website. It’s highly flexible and you can add extensions for almost anything, from delivery options to customer reviews

• BigCommerce, Wix and Squarespace: All-in-one website builders that include online store functions. They’re great for small catalogues or design-focused brands

These platforms handle payments securely and help you track stock, customers and orders. Most have apps to link with marketplaces, social channels and shipping systems.

Tip: Start simple. Pick one theme, write clear product descriptions and use strong photos that show details. A clean, trustworthy shop beats a cluttered one every time.

Still keep your marketplaces active

Even though you’ll have a new website, you don’t need to close your marketplace. It will be useful for doing other things and working alongside your shop website.

1. Don’t close your Amazon, eBay or Vinted accounts just yet. Marketplaces are valuable for discovering what sells and for clearing older stock. The best sellers treat them as one channel among many
2. You can be clever by testing new product ideas on marketplaces first. Once you discover which performs well, promote those best-sellers more heavily through your own shop or social media, where you make a larger share of the profits

Add social commerce

Social commerce means selling directly through apps like Instagram Shopping, Facebook Shops and TikTok Shop. People can view and buy your products directly on the app without leaving it.

It works like this:

• On Instagram, you tag products in your photos or videos and a tap takes customers straight to checkout
• On Facebook, you tag your products in your Facebook posts or in carousel posts to show bundles so users can buy directly from tapping on what they like
• On TikTok, you can add links under your videos or run live shopping sessions that let viewers buy instantly

Social selling works best when you post engaging content. Think short videos, behind-the-scenes clips or styling ideas. If you’re camera-shy, try product demos or “how it’s made” posts instead.

Explore wholesale or B2B selling

If you have consistent best-sellers, you can offer them to independent retailers, subscription boxes or online stockists. Selling in bulk gives you bigger order values and smoother cashflow. It also gives you a chance to reach new customers. Start by contacting local shops or trade groups in your product area.

How do I get people to visit my new online shop?

Online traffic rarely appears by itself, without doing some work. Think about doing some of these things:

• Search engines: Write product pages that answer questions people search for. Use clear titles like “handmade soy candle gift set” instead of lengthy titles

• Email marketing: Offer a small incentive for email sign-ups, like 10% off or early access to sales. Use emails to announce new stock and share tips, hints and guides for clicks

• Social media: Link to your shop in every profile and post your products with inspiring content

• Content: Blog posts, size guides and care instructions can help your shop rank on Google

• Reviews: Bring genuine marketplace reviews (with permission) and collect new ones on your site

• Paid ads: Allocating a small budget for Meta or Google Ads can help launch promotions and drive traffic to your shop

How can I prevent overselling?

Overselling happens when the same item sells on two channels at once. To avoid this happening and disappointing customers, try the following:

• Use a system that syncs stock across all platforms

• Give every product a unique SKU (stock keeping unit) so you can track it easily

• Keep a small amount of buffer stock hidden from sale as backup to replenish when you run out

This is where a central order dashboard like Parcels Online helps, because it brings all orders into one place and updates their status automatically.

How do I protect profit margins?

Know exactly what each item costs to sell. Include cost of product, packaging, label, fees and average return rate. Then price with a small buffer. You can still run discounts, but you’ll know your bottom line.

Read more: How to start a subscription box business

Where to sell next and how Parcels Online helps

Once you’re ready to grow, look for platforms that connect smoothly to your shipping for efficiency. Parcels Online is designed exactly for that. It imports your orders, prints labels in bulk and lets you ship through trusted couriers like Royal Mail, DPD and Evri from one simple, online dashboard.

It integrates directly with:

• Shopify: Import orders automatically and print shipping labels without leaving your browser

• eBay: Manage marketplace orders alongside your website sales

• Amazon Marketplace: Create a single view of all orders, even if you use different carriers

• Not On The High Street: Sync unique or handmade product orders for consistent dispatch

• TikTok Shop: Pull in orders from your social storefront to print and track them easily

These integrations mean you can expand into new channels without adding manual admin. Orders arrive in one queue, labels print together and tracking updates are sent back to each platform.

Understanding how integrations work

An integration connects two systems, so they share information and work in tandem. When you link your Shopify or eBay account to Parcels Online, it means that whenever an order appears on those sites, Parcels Online can:

1. Import the order details
2. Generate the correct postage label
3. Send the tracking number back to the selling platform
4. Update the order as dispatched

No more wasting time copying addresses or logging into several dashboards to get the information you need. Everything stays in sync, making it easier for you to manage your orders.

Building your own shop: a simple checklist

1. Get the basics right

• Choose a clear, short web address (domain name)
• Use professional, high-quality photos on a plain or appealing background
• Write short descriptions that focus on what the product does and why it’s useful
• Display delivery times and return policies clearly
• Offer secure payment options such as debit card, PayPal or Apple Pay

2. Add customer trust signals

• A brief “About us” page with your story
• Real customer reviews
• Secure-payment and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) padlock icons
• A clear contact option (phone number, email address or contact form)

3. Prepare your back office

• Keep product information organised in a spreadsheet or platform catalogue
• Standardise your parcel sizes and weights to match shipping rules
• Create a small packing area with boxes, tape, labels and a scale
• Have a daily cut-off time so you always know when orders ship

How Parcels Online makes fulfilment easier

Fulfilment can be a lengthy process when it comes to picking, packing, labelling and shipping your shop orders. As your order numbers rise, doing this manually takes extra time. Parcels Online streamlines fulfilment by letting you:

• Import orders from different platforms automatically

• Apply shipping rules (for example, send parcels under 2kg by Royal Mail, heavier items by DPD)
• Choose and pay for the postage services you want
• Print labels in bulk, instead of one by one

• Drop off your parcels at thousands of Post Office locations, wherever it’s convenient

• Track deliveries in real time

By keeping everything in one dashboard on Parcels Online, you reduce mistakes, speed up dispatch and improve the delivery experience for your customers.

Shipping tips for growing sellers

• Batch your work. Pack and label in groups rather than single orders

• Use consistent packaging.  Standard box sizes help automate label printing

• Set clear delivery options. Offer standard, tracked and next day where possible

• Communicate. Send tracking numbers and dispatch updates automatically

• Keep returns simple. Customers trust sellers who handle returns smoothly

Migrating customers from marketplaces to your shop

It’s fine to encourage repeat buyers to visit your own website, once you do it ethically.

• Include a thank-you card or care leaflet with a QR code linking to your shop for future purchases
• Offer bundle deals or small extras available only on your site
• Create a loyalty scheme that rewards direct orders
• Build an email list for exclusive updates and early-bird access

Avoiding common pitfalls

There are some things you should pay close attention to avoid problems arising and losing customers.

• Overcomplicating your tech: Start with one shop platform and a few key integrations so it’s easy to manage and you don’t become overwhelmed
• Offering too many delivery choices: Don’t overpromise and underdeliver. Stick to clear delivery options that you know you can commit to
• Hiding delivery costs: Be upfront and clear; customers appreciate clarity. Don’t disappoint customers by hiding delivery costs until they come to making the final payment
• Ignoring after-sales service: Send tracking information after each order is sent and respond quickly to customer enquiries to keep customers happy
• Running out of cash for stock: Keep a small reserve of stocks and plan ahead for seasonal peaks
• Be clear about your returns process: Shoppers may want to return items they’ve bought from you, so set out your returns policy clearly upfront