What should a WhatsApp seller check before choosing a store builder?
Four limits decide whether a plan keeps working as your shop grows: product count, order caps, domain, and GST invoicing. A plan can look right on the pricing page and still stop fitting your shop in the middle of a festival sale.
Product count
Variants add up quickly. A clothing seller with 8 designs in 5 sizes and 3 colours has 120 stock-keeping units (SKUs), not 8 products. Check how the plan counts variants before you upload your catalogue.
Order caps
An average month can fit under a cap while a festival week does not. Ask what happens when you reach the cap, and whether you can keep selling while you upgrade. Moving a store in the middle of a busy season is hard.
Domain
A subdomain on the platform's name works for a link you share on WhatsApp. It is weaker for ads, repeat search traffic and printed packaging, because you may not be able to take that address with you if you move. HOD Media stores run on your own custom domain, with SSL included.
GST invoicing
If you are GST-registered, each invoice needs your GSTIN, the correct tax split and a serial number. HOD Media adds GST invoices once you add your GSTIN, and handles CGST, SGST and IGST. Ask whether invoicing is included on the plan you would use, or only on a higher plan.
When is a simple link enough?
A WhatsApp catalogue link can be enough if you take a few orders a week, collect payment yourself and hand parcels to a local courier. Move to a store when order handling, shipping and invoices start to take hours each week.
Questions to ask any vendor
- Are variants counted as products, and how many can I add?
- What happens when I reach an order cap?
- Can I use my own domain?
- Is GST invoicing included on the plan I would use?
- Can I export my data if I leave?