The Biggest Sales Platforms in the EU – overview and comparison
Do you want to sell online not only in Poland but also in Europe? Thus, you need an appropriate sales platform.
Check which of them are currently the biggest and choose the one that will meet your needs.
How to build your online store?
It's true – you don’t need much to start selling online, but only if you decide to run your business using a sales platform. It gives you an access to many practical tools to run your online store. Which platforms are the biggest in Europe?
Amazon
Number one – the giant on the e-commerce market, namely the American company Amazon. It is the greatest global marketplace, which is available to vendors from all over the world. It also works in Europe, including Poland for some time. When looking at the offer, it is hard to believe the website initially existed as an online bookstore. It is currently possible to buy, above all, electronics, home appliances, furniture and many other products via the Amazon platform.
Selling through this online platform is available only for registered users. Once you create an account, you need to select a specific sales plan. This determines the amount of commission that is charged for running the online store. It is also possible to take advantage of additional services, such as the most famous service Fulfilment by Amazon (shipping and returns service). The advantages are primarily a high sales rate, access to markets not only in Europe but also worldwide, as well as customer confidence and fairly low online advertising costs. Disadvantages? Really high competition and high commissions for selected services within sales packages.
eBay
The second largest e-commerce player after Amazon is the American eBay. In 2000 it caught on – over 10 million users were taking advantage of the sales opportunity at that time. Today, the website is still popular among online store owners who want to sell their products in Europe and worldwide. The company is constantly expanding and buying other companies in order to achieve the highest possible level of awareness both sellers and buyers. For a long time, the platform operated without sales commissions, that however changed in 2008. eBay lost popularity at the time, but nevertheless remains one of the best solutions for online sales in Europe today. eBay works similarly to Amazon – once you have an account, you have to select an appropriate package and pay a commission. For novice sellers, many options are unavailable until they receive positive feedback from buyers. In return, you enjoy a number of benefits, such as trading partner protection, the ability to hold an auction, and no restrictions on the type of goods sold.
Allegro
It’s time for the biggest sales platform in Poland, which attracts customers from all over Europe. On Allegro you can encourage people to buy or bid on a whole range of different products. These are mainly clothes, household products and electronic devices. Since its establishment in the late 1990s, the website has undergone numerous changes, which today benefit vendors seeking to pull in customers in European and global markets. Running a store through Allegro isn’t complicated, it also comes with quite a few benefits. It’s an easy-to-use and intuitive platform which provides solutions like numerous tools for sales monitoring and product delivery management. Allegro is also supported by a large group of customers who regularly make purchases through this online platform. Moreover, you can put goods up for sale in selected categories free of charge. However, growing commissions and increasing competition can be considered as disadvantages. In addition, some sales rules, such as time limits, may also prove discouraging.
Of course, these are not the only sales platforms or marketplaces that are popular in Europe. They also include websites like Kaufland.de, OLX, Shoper, WooCommerce or Magento. Before you choose the right solution, read the offer carefully, the conditions and find out about commissions or additional fees.