E-COMMERCE: Control your own destiny. By Erin Calvo-Bacci

Control your own destiny

A WEBSITE IS YOUR PERSONAL GATEWAY TO LONG-TERM SUCCESS

By Erin Calvo-Bacci

CB Stuffer

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and Massachusetts issued a statewide shutdown in spring 2020, business owners had to pivot quickly.

Some opted to close and wait out the state mandate in hopes of a short interruption. Others chose to embrace online opportunities because their shuttered brick-andmortar stores needed to generate revenue.

This was a creative time for those who launched new endeavors or perhaps made the move from hobby to business. Many introduced themselves on social-media platforms because it was fast and there was a captive audience.

Social-media platforms are a great way to increase your brand reach and track how people engage with your content.

But social-media pages aren’t a substitute for a business website. In fact, using social-media pages in place of your own website is like renting versus owning: You’ll never build equity and value.

Having your own website is a necessity because it’s where you build and promote your brand identity and create business development opportunities.

TAKING CHOCOLATE CRAVINGS FROM RETAIL TO WHOLESALE

In 2015, I sold off my brick-and-mortar retail store, The Chocolate Truffle in Reading, to concentrate on the wholesale chocolate manufacturing facility my husband and I operate in Swampscott. The following year, I rebranded to include an online retail store.

I initially attempted to create my own online store. But, with the variety of items we offer, the effort proved too time consuming.

After doing some research, I connected with an award-winning website designer who I knew and who touted 20 years of experience. What I later learned is this website designer was not an experienced e-commerce web developer, but a marketing design company that then subcontracted with an e-commerce professional who I did not know.

I wish I understood the importance of that when I started the process in 2015 and the challenges I would face as a result.

SPIT AND PAPER CLIPS WERE HOLDING MY E-COMMERCE SITE TOGETHER

Not going directly to an E-COMMERCE, PAGE 52

Erin Calvo-Bacci is an award-winning business advocate with over 30 years of experience in business development, marketing and public relations. With her husband, Carlo Bacci, she operates CB Stuffer, a nationally recognized chocolate wholesale manufacturer and online retailer based in Swampscott. Calvo-Bacci currently serves on the executive board of the Retail Association of Massachusetts and the Small Business Steering Committee of the National Retail Federation.