95% of People in Nigeria Distrust Online Business - Learn How A Digital Sport Marketing Company Overcame This Myth

Never ask a Nigerian to pay online! Otherwise, be ready to face over 95% rejection from potential customers. And if your product is that hot and irresistable, then be ready to answer 99.9% objections from potential buyers.

Majority of People in Nigeria still prefer the old way (Brick and Mortar), where transactions are completed face-to-face, and customers could discern for themselves phyiscal countenance  before they could make their decision to do business with you. The first question they frequently ask you online: "where is your office?"

From the onset, your online offer raises an eye brow, because of the incredible rate of corruption in this part of the world. Customers first label you a fraudster, and you must work hard to prove you are not.

I don't blame them really, they have fell victim to several ploy in the past... networking business like Wonder Bank, MMM, Soccer Networking, cryptocurrency... and lost a lot of money in the process.

Fraudsters popularly known as "419" or "Yahoo yahoo" claim to have some good offers or impersonate some high profile individuals in other to defraud innocent people online.

It is even more rampant with Sports business online. many naive football players have been duped by some impersonators who claimed to be player's agents, scouts or management of a club and manipulate their preys to remit million of Naira, claiming they can help them get trials and pro-Club contract abroad.

But as a sport marketing company in our digital age, we cannot afford not to do business online, rather we found out over the years how our business can build trust and loyal customers to pay regularly online.

1. Pay on Delivery: This is perhaps, the most acceptable way to do online busimess in Nigeria. No problem, you can set up your e-commerce website where customer can place order and know all the charges for home delivery. But you must allow the customer to  pay on delivery..when you have delivered the goods or rendered the service at his or her location.

Popular online stores like Jumia, Konga and Yudala had to adopt this strategy to survive. However, there are challenges with pay on delivery. Customer may declare he doesn't have the money to pay on delivery. When we used the payment strategy in our 2013 football trials, many players came to the venue begging to be allowed to participate without paying the complete registration fees.

2 Transparency Online: When you make online offer, the first thing potential customers will do is to search out your company and those behind it on Google (Search Engine). Therefore, your company profile must be well crafted, as well as the profiles of the major staff, because the customer will surely check them out deligently...who you are, what are your pedigree and credibility.

So you should be consistent and transparent online. Use you real names and officially dressed pics on your display photo (DP). Display the educational and work experience of those major staff running the company. Most important publish referable results and achievement your company and staff have acquired over time.

Any issue of intergrity found in your profiles are likely to kill a lot of potential businesses for you and your company. Always have a well reharssed answers to all possible objections your customers will raise about your online business..

3. Consultative Selling: Not many people understand how the business of sports works here in Africa. So your duty is to educate them first and let them see that your offer is the best for them. Whether you are dealing (B2C) with individual players/ coaches or (B2B) clubs/ institutions/ organizers;  first understand their need and their erroreous thinking of how to get solution. Let them know what is obtainable.

Consultative selling work for us like magic online. Be sure before the customer buys online, he or she must call your company for clarification. Make sure your mobile phone is working 24/7 (have alternative phone numbers); train yourself and staff in modern telemarketing strategies and customer relations. Be ready with the right answers to all their possible objections. Sit down with your staff and brainstorm on the best answers for frequently asked questions (FAQ). Finally, be patient with the rather ignorant or aggressive customers.

4. Follow Up and After Sales Service: In online business, a customer that bought once are likely to buy and buy again if you treat him well. Human being generally like to be given attention. Following up a customer to find out how the product is working for him and give after sales services or conusel where necessary. when you discovered that he or she is satisfied, then you subtly tell the customer the nect range of products you have that could equally satisfy his or her need.

We think of a customer life time value, rather than just concluding one transaction, we aim at building a loyal customer. It has worked for us in our digital Sport Marketing business, especially with football players career management and brands sponsorship with clubs, leagues and tournaments. Though, our job is more of consultation and agency, but we have a lot of players, clubs and brands as our longtime clients.

5. Power of Refund: In online business, refund of a client's money when you cannot deliver or when the client seems not satisfied, works like magic to build trust and loyality ffor a life time value, especially if you refund when the client did not even solicit for it.

 "Sorry sir, due to this or that we could not deliver as promised. Give us your bank account, we will refund your full money immediately. As soon as we recify the short coming, you will be one of the person we will deliver to. We regret the inconvinience this may cause you."

This is a letter of integrity that will immediately reward you with credibility and a life time loyalty of the client that received it.