Hack the Gap presenter outlines five practical ways for Hennepin County small businesses to add online storefronts

Caroline Karanja, a presenter with Hack the Gap, delivered a step-by-step guide on adding online storefronts in a session produced in partnership with Elevate Hennepin of Hennepin County. She said digital storefronts give businesses “additional flexibility” to sell when a physical location is closed and provide opportunities for growth and sustainability.

Karanja outlined five core approaches businesses can use to sell online and explained the trade-offs for each. “Adding an online storefront is really important because it helps provide additional flexibility to your business,” she said, emphasizing that different business models favor different solutions.

A dedicated ecommerce website gives a business full control of branding, customer data, search-engine optimization and analytics, Karanja said, but requires more time to set up and a reliable operations system to prevent inventory mismatches between online and in-person sales. She advised businesses that expect concurrent in-store and online demand to invest in systems that synchronize inventory so they do not oversell.

Third-party ordering platforms are especially useful for restaurants and some service providers because they handle payments and logistics, Karanja said. She cautioned that these services commonly add transaction and monthly fees and can reduce brand visibility; she cited platforms such as ChowNow and Uber Eats as examples. “Customers are often going to associate the experience with that platform and not necessarily your business,” she said, recommending businesses think through how to preserve their brand within those services.

Social-media shops on Instagram, TikTok or Facebook can be quick to set up and effective for businesses that already have an audience, Karanja said, but platforms often limit customization, control discovery through algorithms and restrict access to customer data. Marketplaces such as Etsy offer built-in traffic and an easy start for sellers of goods, she added, but competition on those platforms can make them less suitable as a long-term, sole sales channel.

For service-based businesses, Karanja recommended appointment-based selling using tools like Calendly connected to payment processors (for example, Stripe) or paid Google Workspace calendar features. She described appointment-based setups as low-administration ways to sell consultations and time-based services, while noting easy booking features can also make cancellations simpler.

Karanja also urged businesses that manage both in-person and online sales to choose integrated point-of-sale systems that tie hardware to online ordering—she named Shopify, Toast, Square and Clover as examples—to simplify inventory and transaction syncing.

Practical tips she recommended include using clear product photos with natural lighting (a smartphone is adequate), writing detailed product descriptions, testing the mobile experience (most customers shop on phones), tracking inventory carefully and planning modest ad spend to boost discovery. She also advised budgeting for platform fees, shipping costs and relevant taxes—especially for food businesses—and consulting an accountant on pricing and tax treatment.

The session closed with a reminder to access Elevate Hennepin’s free resources and advising services; attendees were directed to the program website for vetted resources and one-on-one assistance. The presenter’s guidance focused on weighing operational complexity against control and brand needs when choosing how to sell online.

For more information and free support, the moderator directed listeners to Elevate Hennepin at elevatehennepin.org.