COVID -19: Traders take to the streets to woo buyers
By Edith Igbokwe
Tired of waiting for customers that won’t show up in their shops, traders in Oshodi-Isolo are moving to the streets to find buyers for their goods.
Many traders initially esorted to mobile sales of their goods and services by calling them on phone to announce new stocks.
Transactions were also done using the phones to pay and receive money through the banks’ apps.
But that has not sufficed to move business to profitable margins, hence the new strategy of adopting the age old habit of hawking goods and services on the streets.
The traders now move out of their shops to the streets, going from door to door in search of customers who are in need of their goods and or services to cushion the effect of COVID -19.
ECHONEWS gathered that many business owners adopted the mobile system – going into the streets, believing that moving from one place to another to meet their customers is a new marketing strategy that could earn them more sales and recognition than staying in the shop waiting for the customers.
It was gathered that the new system of marketing was first adopted by some traders during the total lockdown when there was restriction to movement as the potential customers could not get to the markets and shops were not allowed to open.
Initially, only the traders selling some kinds of food items were the ones visiting their customers at home. These days, , the system has been adopted for virtually all kinds of goods including clothing materials despite the gradual re-opening of the markets.
A service provider, who deals in fumigation and car wash at Orile Oshodi, Adex told ECHONEWS that he took to street after the ease of lockdown in search of customers as patronage was not coming.
His words: “I took my equipment (machine) off to the streets to create awareness and to seek home services such as washing their cars and to fumigate their houses because customers are not turning up for patronage back in the shop, so I came out with my son to search for customers.
“The effect of COVID-19 is making things to be hard for people and we have to do something by moving out to provide home services to have daily bread since the business is not forthcoming.”
A phone memory card seller, Yusuf Miftahudeen switched to mobile marketing by using his bicycle to hawk his products with the aid of Bluetooth speaker to create awareness on the streets of Oshodi.
He stated: “With my bicycle, everywhere is my shop. To improve sales, I move around with my bicycle to get people’s attention and this has earned me recognition and more sales than staying idle in the shop.”
