Every small business owner who starts selling online faces the same question sooner or later. Should I put my energy into my own store link, or into a place where lots of shoppers already browse?
It feels like a choice between the two. It is not. Your own link and a marketplace listing do different jobs, and they work best side by side. One keeps the customers you already have. The other brings you people who have never heard of you.
This post explains what each one does, where each one falls short, and how to use them together without confusing your customers.
What your own store link does
Your own store link is the address that belongs to your business. On Krobr, every store gets its own storefront on a Krobr web address, which is a subdomain of krobr.com. Think of it as your shop's front door on the internet.
It is the link you put everywhere you already talk to customers:
- Your WhatsApp Business profile and status.
- Your Instagram and Facebook bio.
- The QR code on your counter, table tents and delivery bags.
- Your business card and printed menu.
- The "order here" reply you send when someone asks for your menu in a DM.
When a customer opens that link, they see only you. Your logo, your colours, your menu or products, your delivery areas and your opening hours. There is no list of competitors next to your biryani, and no other shop's sale banner pulling their attention away.
Why your own link matters
It builds a direct relationship. A regular customer who saves your link comes back to you, not to a list where you are one of many.
It carries your brand. With Krobr's ready-made themes, you choose a design and edit it visually so the storefront feels like your shop. You can browse the live demos on the themes page.
It looks more professional with a name. Picking a custom subdomain name, such as your shop's name, needs a Pro package or above. Connecting a domain you already own is a paid add-on on Pro and above. The web address guide explains the options.
You keep your margin. Krobr charges a package fee, not a commission on each order. So an order through your own link costs you the same whether it is a small chai order or a large family dinner.
Where your own link falls short
Your own link only works for people who already know about you. If nobody shares it, nobody finds it. A new shop in Johar Town with a great menu can still sit quietly if the only people who see the link are the owner's friends.
That is the gap a marketplace fills.
What a marketplace listing does
A marketplace is a single place where shoppers browse many stores at once. They come with an intention, such as "pizza near me" or "a gift under a certain budget", and they look around until something catches their eye.
Krobr Marketplace at marketplace.krobr.com is live. Shoppers can browse products and stores, filter by location, by restaurant or shop, by order type and by rating, and search by name. When they choose your item, they continue to your store's own checkout to place the order.
Why a listing matters
It brings strangers to you. Someone in Karachi searching for a burger may never have seen your Instagram. On the marketplace, your store can appear in front of them.
Good service gets noticed. Store ratings show on marketplace cards, and shoppers can filter by rating. Honest reviews from happy customers help you stand out. Our post on customer reviews covers how to collect them.
The order is still yours. The marketplace does not take the order itself. A shopper who finds you there places the order on your storefront, through your normal checkout, with your prices and your payment options, such as cash on delivery or bank transfer.
Where a listing falls short
On any marketplace, you are one store among many. A shopper can compare you with the next store in a second. That is great for discovery, but it is not where loyalty is built. Loyalty is built when the customer has a good experience and comes back directly.
Why you want both
Put the two together and you get a simple growth loop:
- A new customer discovers your store on the marketplace.
- They order through your storefront and get a good experience, with a clear order status link to track it.
- They save your link, or scan the QR code on the bag, and order directly next time.
- They leave a review, which helps the next new customer find and trust you.
Here is how the two compare:
| Your own store link | Marketplace listing | |
|---|---|---|
| Main job | Keep existing customers | Reach new customers |
| Who sees it | People you share it with | Shoppers browsing many stores |
| Competition on the page | None, only your store | Other stores nearby |
| Where the order happens | Your storefront | Your storefront |
| Best for | Repeat orders, loyalty | Discovery, first orders |
A worked example
Imagine a small home bakery in Lahore. In the first month, all its orders come from the owner's WhatsApp contacts and family groups through her own link. Then she turns on her marketplace listing. Over the next few weeks, a few new customers find her cakes there and order. Each box goes out with a printed card that has her store QR code. By the next month, some of those new customers are ordering straight from her link for birthdays and Eid.
The numbers here are made up, but the pattern is the real point. The marketplace opens the door, and her own link keeps it open.
How to set this up on Krobr
Step 1: Get your storefront ready
Create your store, choose a theme, add your menu or products, set your delivery areas and payment options, and publish. The create a store guide walks you through it.
Step 2: Share your link everywhere
Add the link to your WhatsApp profile, Instagram bio and Google listing. Use the print tools in Krobr Partner to make QR posters and business cards that point to your store. If you have been taking orders in DMs, our post on Instagram DMs versus an online store explains why the switch is worth it.
Step 3: Turn on your marketplace listing
Being listed on the marketplace needs a paid package. Free stores are not listed. Once your package includes it, you turn the listing on from your store Settings in Krobr Partner. Settings also shows whether your store is listed and, if not, what to fix, for example setting your delivery country or making sure at least one product is visible and in stock. The marketplace listing guide has the details, and you can compare packages on the pricing page.
Step 4: Look after the experience
Whichever way a customer arrives, the experience after the order is what brings them back. Keep your hours accurate, snooze sold-out items, confirm orders quickly and reply to reviews.
A few common questions
Will the marketplace replace my own link? No. Your storefront is still where every order is placed. The marketplace is an extra way for new people to reach it.
Will customers get confused by two links? Not really. A marketplace shopper who taps your store lands on your storefront, the same place your regulars use.
Do I have to be listed? No. The listing is your choice, and you control it from Settings.
In short
Your own store link is home. It holds your brand, your regulars and your direct relationship with customers. A marketplace listing is the busy street outside, where new people walk past and notice you. Use the street to bring people in, and use your home to make them stay.