Tips on how to have Sellers join your on demand community
Onboarding a critical mass of suppliers for your On-Demand Mobile Platform is essential to its success. Indeed, without the necessary personnel, your Platform is merely an empty space buyers will leave faster than you can say My Space. Here is how to create an effective supplier onboarding program. For further information refer to our other post on How to Find Sellers for Your App.
Pre-Populate with Suppliers who Match the Platform
Potential buyers are looking for convenience, savings and quality services they can trust. You want suppliers who can come in and deliver value immediately within the Platform’s brand experience rather than requiring significant support to align their services with its offerings.
Effective onboarding precedes sign up – i.e. it should be part of your recruiting. Integrate onboarding into your recruiting through meaningful education, training and content which builds the brand, demonstrating what sets its apart and how they can succeed using it. This will also get your suppliers working for you by making them ambassadors for your brand.
Gather Supplier Information Seamlessly
Once a supplier signs on to your platform, you have a lot of information to collect — from full details about their services to smaller pieces including addresses and phone numbers, tax forms and payment gateway information. Ensure your Platform offers a streamlined way to gather all this information.
Avoid Conversion – Lead Them To Revenue and Make it Fun
New suppliers onboard with zero loyalty and varying degrees of competence. If they don’t see early results, they may move on to other channels. How do you avoid losing them before they have a chance to earn revenue? Dry manuals, PDFs, and videos won’t cut it; think embedded training with concurrent education and support.
Ensure your Platform is self-explanatory and use push-based and bite-sized immersive training techniques which move suppliers toward their first transaction.
Offer training and support via blogs, newsletters or even a comprehensive in-app or web-based library. Set up email autoresponders to notify suppliers of new material. Create meaningful content around topics like marketing or customer service and provide direct advice like what makes a compelling profile photo, business bio or product description.
Onboarding doesn’t end with sign up and training. Lead suppliers with milestones – i.e. their first sale, review, anniversary and more. For more on this topic see our post on How to Reward Your Best Sellers.
Showcase successful suppliers, reviews and testimonials to get your new suppliers excited.
