In this day and era, the allure of online shopping is undeniable. Running an online shop for your business gives you the opportunity to leverage an ever growing market. However, while running an online store sounds like a grand idea, not everyone is tech savvy. Setting up, running and managing a website is not child’s play. It requires logistics most business struggle to meet. Thankfully, e-commerce platforms swoop in to save the day. As a business, you get to sell your products online without all the stress of starting your own website.
While e-commerce platforms do have their advantages, they also have their downsides. Products from different businesses are stacked in a large pool for consumers to search and pick what works for them. As a business with an aim to grow brand identity and visibility, this can be a bit tricky. Additionally, small businesses which rely on customer royalty may suffer since they have no control over their products on these e-commerce platforms.
I recently came across a site that offers a solution to these woes of the small business owner. Mzizzi is an e-commerce platform that allows you to set up an online store to sell your goods. It lets you organize your products, customize your shop, track and respond to orders, collect payments and get the goods delivered. So what makes it different from other e-commerce platforms?

A custom-made online shop
To get started, you need to sign up your business on the Mzizzi online platform for free. After signup, you are then able to send a catalogue of all your items to the Mzizzi team. They then set up a personalized online shop for your business in two days. The site is set up with your required specifications with no other forms of branding.
Just like that, you have an online shop and link which you can share on any of your social media sites. With this free version, Mzizzi earns a 4.5% commission on every sale made through the platform. However, if you register for the premium “Mzizzi Plus” version you are able to create their own domain linked to their shop.
Quick Delivery Schedule
The success of a small business is dependent on two things; growth and a loyal customer base. To keep your customers happy, you need to ensure that goods get to them in good condition and as soon as possible. Mzizzi takes care of all your deliveries. They pick up the goods from an agreed location and deliver them to the customer at no cost to you.
Their delivery schedule is set up to ensure that customers receive their goods as fast as possible. Orders made before 5.00pm, are delivered on the same day in Nairobi and overnight in other regions. For orders made past 5.00pm, customers can expect to receive their goods the next day for Nairobi residents. Residents in other regions receive their goods in 48 hours.
Buyer-Merchant Protection
Unfortunately, online businesses are sometimes plagued by issues of mistrust between the buyer and the merchant. While this can be solved by creating a great business-customer rapport, there are policies that can be set up to ensure that both parties are protected. As a merchant, you are protected from rogue customers who may want to reject the product even after you have suffered all the product costs. Customers are not allowed to send back the packages once they break the manufacturers seal. They can, however, highlight an issue before breaking the seal by communicating their issues to the Mzizzi team.
On the other hand, to protect the customer, you only receive payment for the goods once the customer confirms delivery by providing the delivery code to the delivery agent. It is a win-win for everybody. A business set on the premise of good practices where both the customer and merchant is happy is less likely to have major sales issues.
Free Marketing
As a small business, one of the main goals is getting people to know about your product. A quality product or service can contribute to a failing business without proper marketing. Marketing can be an expensive venture so if you can get free marketing, exploit it. The customer-facing side of Mzizzi is Basket by Mzizzi where they include all the products owned by all the merchants. So just like any other online e-commerce platform, if a customer goes looking for one brand, they may stumble across your brand and want to purchase your product. Additionally, Mzizzi also markets their merchant’s products on all their social media sites.
Ease of Use
We have already established that setting up your own online shop can be taxing. The Mzizzi team does everything for you. From the initial setup to delivery. So you do not require any graphics or web design skills. All you need is ready to sell the product. Once the site is set up you are able to manage your business with ease. You can keep track of sales. Products and inventory. You are also able to monitor your growth as a business.
Additionally, you handle your own money. Since the platform allows customers to pay using cards or mobile money, you receive the payment instantly without any third party interaction. Mzizzi does not hold any of the merchant’s money.
Have you used this platform before? How was your experience? Let us know in the comments section.
*disclaimer please always do your own diligence when getting into e-commerce platforms. This is a service we think might work for you but you need to do your own due diligence.
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