E-Commerce and Internet Technologies

 A new Gym:

As part of starting a new gym, to me the biggest service an online platform could provide to the owners, is aiding in managing bookings. A platform that handles the bookings can ease the hassle of a back and forth with customers about times that suit both parties and instead instantly allows customers to the big the available times that suit them. This would work for PT sessions as well as setting a maximum number of people who can use the gym freely by the hour say. The platform, Hubspot, integrates with your calendar and as mentioned above, lets customers book when suits both parties. Another platform a gym could use is Wix, a website creation platform that has a booking system feature, this would allow a gym to create their own website and bundle in their booking system.

A new clothing boutique:

Product sales is the main aspect of an online platform that owners of a new clothing boutique look for. Luckily, a lot of the main online platforms are marketplaces, matching buyers with sellers. The likes of Etsy, are great for small operations, with it being more niche and for craft vendors to sell their products. Shopify, is better as a business begins to scale, as it allows you to host and showcase your products but also works as a POS system and inventory system.

A café:

Depending on the type of café a person is wanting to open, influences what online platform they should use. In this case, I am going to assume this is a community driven café with specialist coffee, due to this, I would recommend a website creation platform with an e-commerce function. Squarespace, is one such platform. Squarespace would allow a café to create their website where they can build their brand and community while showcasing promotions or events they are hosting. The e-commerce function would allow them to sell bags of certain coffee roasts or merchandise etc.