Outer Adventures - SA's new e-commerce site - hopes to turn fishing and outdoor gear market on its head with the introduction of its online store.
According to Alex Band, COO at Outer Adventures, the new e-commerce store aims to provide SA's adventurers with fishing, outdoor equipment and accessories.
"It is our goal to become SA's most trusted and affordable online supplier of first-class fishing and outdoor gear."
Customers do not need to register for an account on the site to purchase goods, says Band. However, registering an account allows Outer Adventures' system to remember key information, such as delivery address, so users don't need to fill this out each time they are looking to buy, he elaborates.
The company says it is taking a 'grow slow and steady' strategy.
Band says for now the small numbers are what the company needs to refine the experience of what consumers are looking for using tracking and analytics services.
However, in the long term the company hopes to get more anglers buying online.
"We've estimated that currently about 10% of fishing gear is purchased online in SA. That's dismal when compared to the US or Australia, but that's not surprising when you look at the available options locally."
The vast majority of South Africans are still getting used to the idea of shopping online (fishing gear or not), says Band.
"You can point to Internet speeds, security concerns and not being comfortable with the technology/process as some of the contributing factors. That said, all indicators suggest that online shopping in South Africa is growing at a rapidly increasing rate."
Band believes the current online fishing store options are really limited and poor and are after thoughts to the physical stores.
"The products have never been marketed to fishing consumers online - it hasn't been a part of their consideration phase."
"At the end of the day, our belief is that it's not a question of whether or not people are willing to buy this type of equipment online, you only need to look at the health of the online fishing retail industry in the US, UK and Australia. Our local market just needs a trustworthy option available to them to begin the movement online."
The company's go-to-market strategy focusing on three areas, says Band.
The company will run a pay-per-click customer acquisition campaign, through Google AdWords and the Facebook advertising platform, he adds.
Also, it will post content promoted through social media (especially Facebook's promoted posts) in collaboration with pro anglers and brand manufacturers, says Band.
And lastly it will engage with SA's adventurers on the ground at relevant events across SA, he adds.
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