We are doing well with our “Online Shop” status

For those who have not heard yet, Cebu Balloons is now operating mainly as an online shop. We can still do client meet-ups but we prefer to discuss through FB or phone. At first, we thought that the transition is going to be hard but it was the other way. It was fairly easy and customers continue to come and patronize our products and services.

There were hesitations in closing our storefront but because most of the customers would prefer to discuss online or though the phone, we decided to stop the operation of our physical store and focus on online sales and marketing. Now that we have more time on online marketing, we can now easily sell our other products such as Clowns, Ice Cream, Inflatables, Mood Lights and many more.

We understand that we are the best balloon shop in Cebu when it comes to online marketing. We have a well-managed website, heartily done to gain first-page search engine rankings. We have a regularly maintained Facebook page, with a decent number of followers and we have several other secondary pages that are related to our main FB page.

We are doing very well with our online shop. In fact, we already have four online staffs that work in their own homes, spend nothing for jeepney fare going to work, and can work without taking a bath and changing pajamas. They take care of the online inquiries, phone calls and creative designs.

Having a storefront may be great for others who are in the same industry but for us, it is just an added cost. It used to be beneficial because we need to have the “trust factor” of having a storefront. So that customers will think, we will never run away from them. Now that we have been in operation for 5 years, many clients know and trust us already. The satisfied customers help in promoting our business to their friends and family. All we have to do is give the customers what is due to them and they will keep on returning and bringing in more customers to the business.

Our production area is now located in our small house in Basak, Mandaue City. It is just a few meters from the old store. A sketch is in our Contact Us page so that those who have items for pick-up can easily find our location. We are still registered with the DTI, BIR and Local Government to give new and existing customers the peace of mind that they are transacting with a reliable company. We all know that there are many bogus online shops and they can easily run with your hard-earned money.

We are now planning to extend our house to have a bigger and better space for production of balloon decors, giveaways and styrocrafts but our savings is still not enough. Hopefully, by April we can start the construction.

We are very thankful to the customers who continue to recommend us to their friends, even with the rise of the online shops. Rest assured, every time we setup a decoration, dessert buffet, styro backdrop, etc we do it with all our heart. Sometimes, we get tired but we strive to give each client the best product and/or service that he/she deserves.

Aside from the huge savings from the monthly rental, common area usage, commercially priced electricity and water, we are also saving money from our internet usage, cellphone load and security.

Because of the savings, we can still give the same delivery amount to our clients, even though the TRAIN law is fully implemented already. Prices of gas and diesel are higher but we continue to sell most of our packages with free delivery and setup.

The drawback of staying at a secluded village compared to having a store in a prime location is that other suppliers can no longer deliver their items to us because of the size of the vehicles they are using. We have to pick up some of our items for sale at the suppliers’ location.

This year 2018 will be extra fun! Working online has never been better. Yes, we spend a portion of our money through online ads but it is mostly through organic work that we get clients to avail our services and products.

This page is last updated on Feb 26, 2018 @ 6:22 pm