Starting an E-Commerce Website in Trinidad & Tobago, Part 4: Is Trinidad & Tobago ready?
Love me or hate me for you’re going to groan that it took up to Part 4 of this E-Commerce in Trinidad & Tobago series to address this question- and after all the detailed explanations about setting up an online shop to boot! The worst part is…the answer is NOOOO!!!
Whoa! Did you just read that correctly? Yes I know, it’s sad but true and I’ll hasten to add that this is my OPINION but it’s still based on feedback, observations and my impressions from where I sit as a web designer and as a shopper. I’ll also hasten to add that this is not to discourage but to reveal how to use this information to work for you and not against you as there is potential for this market but if and only if done right.
I have a mantra I chant to all my clients (well not actually chant for that would be scary and weird), that there are two kinds of businesses in Trinidad & Tobago:
- “I have a plan company”
- “ Ah trying a ting company”
I don’t need to explain that do I? Almost 70% of visits to ForwardMultimedia.Com enter via search engines (mainly Google T&T) and about half of those visitors were searching with some E-Commerce related keyword. Many of them landed on this article series of course looking for answers about the local e-commerce process. Why? Because they believe there’s money to be made.
Why the Trini shopper isn’t ready
Here are my observations on why not:
- There are not many e-commerce websites generally in T&T to choose from
- Of the e-commerce sites that exist, they’re very poorly done and don’t entice shopping
- The type of products being sold are not what shoppers prefer to buy
- The prices are the same as the store when it should be cheaper
- Shoppers have little confidence in the reliability of the merchant
- They’re skeptical and paranoid about using their credit card online fearing fraud
- Shoppers have little or no confidence in the merchant’s customer service for the general attitude of T&T merchants is that customers can to go to hell after they get their money
- Many don’t ship so what’s the point?
Why the Trini Online Retailer isn’t ready
Here are my observations on why not:
- Many have good ideas but no real plan except to wing it and ‘try a ting’
- Those who have a real plan don’t have the financing to launch it
- Those who think they have a real plan don’t
- Many don’t know what is required to establish an online site
- Many only see dollar signs and the customer is way out of view
When both Trini shopper and Trini online retailer will be ready
When there is a local site that operates EXACTLY like one in the US and this is when:
- The seller invests in a well designed e-commerce site which in reality is not that expensive, around $6,000 TT. Here is what one would look like (it’s being used in catalog mode): PCClinic.Com.
- The seller finally gets the concept that all a fancy ‘e-commerce site’ does is let the customer pay online and simply CREATES AN ORDER. It’s no different from the customer phoning in the order saying that they deposited the money directly to your bank account; it’s just another order that has to be fulfilled.
- Prices are either cheaper than at a store or works out to be the same as the store price after delivery is added.
- YOU DELIVER to the customers home/office- figure out the logistics of how and you’ll make money
- You convince customers that you’re a bona fide, legitimate business and it’s the truth
- You display a recognized SSL Certificate certifying your website is secure and you use a credible payment processor
- You offer alternative offline payment options
- You make customer service your #1 priority. Do this and you won’t need to advertise after you launch, EVER!
- You find out what your customers want, get it and give it to them.
That’s the long and short of it and that’s my opinion. From where I’m sitting, the person who does this well from the get-go, stays patient and steady for 2 years will rule the online market while actually making money.
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Hi, this is really an interesting and very informative series of articles about e-tailing in Trinidad & Tobago… and I think well and honestly put together. I am definitely interested in getting my hands on that book…. Could you talk a little about ecommerce fulfillment? do a blog post on it perhaps? as I know there is no company that does that in Trinidad as yet….. for various reasons, of course!…
Thanks for the kind words. Regarding ecommerce fulfillment, i.e. getting the goods in the hands of the Trini customer, I was planning an article but chose to defer to the book to have the info organized. I might do a blog post though. I’ll be publishing an outline of the book’s Table of Contents soon.
Hi Zaf,
I must start by saying thank you for the series, it was very informative. I like how you started by saying that all Trinis are born with that business head because I agree !00%. I have been struggling with what type of business I should get into but I am growing quite confident that an e-commerce store is the direction i want to go in.
I do have a couple questions though, since most of the payment processing is US based does that mean the website will be governed by the US e-commerce law regardless of if the store is Trinidad based?
Do you know of any suppliers that ship to Trinidad at a reasonable price and small quantities? I have been researching suppliers in Asia and while the cost of one item is cheap their usual minimum ordering quantity is 100000 for the items I am considering. I am looking for a variety of items, not 100000 of the same thing, in the same colour, with the same design. Also the shipping rates are ridiculous. (Sorry if I digress)
Do i have to register my business like an actual store or are these two separate things?
Looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Hi Sophia,
Thanks for the compliments. I agree that an online store is the direction to go as nobody is doing it right in T&T.
To answer your questions, it depends on what you mean by ‘governed’ with respect to ‘US e-commerce law’. It should only relate to that payment function which involves the customer, the seller, the payment processor and the customer’s credit card company if issues arise, and since any issue would originate either at the processing end, i.e. the US based payment processor when the payment is processed, or the customer end if there is fraudulent card use, it would involve the credit card company/customer’s bank.
On the question of suppliers, I know someone who ships regularly from China and is intimately knowledgeable with the process so I’ll send a separate email to you about that.
You’ll need to register your business (at least a sole trader) if you want to open a business account to link your payment processor, like 2Checkout for example. Other than that, if you’re using Paypal you don’t need absolutely need to register but it would be good practice to do so.
Let me know if you have any questions, feel free to email or call.