When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, businesses throughout Amesbury – like much of the world’s businesses – were forced to scale back or completely close. Storefronts were put in a position where consumers could no longer visit their brick-and-mortar locations; while many makers saw their sales strategy of events and festivals dry up due to social distancing. Businesses watched as customers flocked to online retailers like Amazon, and many found themselves in the dire position of having to play catch-up by building online markets, just at the moment when their own budgets were being pulled tight.

As Amesbury’s businesses and municipal leaders brainstormed strategies to support our businesses, the Institution for Savings played an integral role in proposing the development of a central, online marketplace. The hope was to create an easy-to-use digital platform that would be free for Amesbury businesses to post and categorize their products and services. Through working with businesses, IFS, and a Massachusetts developer, that initiative became a reality when the Amesbury Marketplace was launched at the end of 2020. We were even featured on the front page of the Daily News.

Amesbury businesses are welcomed to sign up and participate in the Amesbury Marketplace. Businesses do not need to be a member of the Amesbury Chamber to participate. Participation does not come with any extra fees (except the traditional credit card fees). And businesses can create their own page to act as their own e-commerce platform, saving them thousands of dollars and time.

Check out the below tutorials on how to enroll and the ways to load up products. Once you enrolled, PLEASE contact the Amesbury Chamber of Commerce by contacting Phil DeCologero at 978-388-3178.

TUTORIALS
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SETTING UP YOUR ACCOUNT

Due to the generosity and support of the Institution for Savings, creating an account is both free and easy. Check out the below video on how to create an account for your business:

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LOADING PRODUCTS ONLINE

Once you’ve created an account, you’ll want to load up your products and services.

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VARIABLE PRODUCT LISTINGS

Being a retailer, some of your products are unique, while others are part of larger categories. Check out the below tutorial to make sure you know the different ways you can list your product/services: