A good storefront should help someone quickly understand what your business offers, where you are based, and what they can buy or book. It does not need to look complicated. It only needs to be clear, honest, and easy to use.

This guide will help you add your store tagline, description, banner, social media links, and store link.

1. Open your store settings

Go to Store in the Side navigation bar.

2. Check your store name and logo

Your business name and logo may already appear because you added them to your business profile.

Check that:

The business name is correct.
The logo is clear.

When something is wrong, return to Business Profile and update it. You can also replace the logo from the store page.

Your logo may appear as a circle or a rounded square. Keep the important words or picture near the centre so that nothing is cut off.

3. Choose and upload a banner picture(s)

The banner is the wide picture shown near the top of your storefront.

It is often one of the first things customers see, so choose a picture that clearly represents the business.

For product sellers

You can use:

A clean picture of your main products.
A picture of your shop.
A simple business design.
A picture showing how your products are used.
A clean arrangement of several products.

For event organisers

You can use:

A picture from one of your past events.
A clean picture showing the type of events you organise.
A simple banner with your event business name.
A picture of a stage, meeting, festival, or crowd when it matches your work.

For places to stay

You can use:

The outside of the property.
A clean bedroom.
A sitting room or shared space.
A view from the property.
A swimming pool, garden, or other important space.
Another picture that guests will care about.

Use a real and current picture. Do not use a picture that may make customers expect something you do not offer.

A good banner picture should

Be wide, Be clear, Be bright enough.
Show the main subject near the centre.
Match the business.
Have enough empty space around the edges.
Have little or no writing on it.

Avoid banners that

Are blurry or screenshots.
Belong to another business.
Show a product, event, or property you do not offer.
Have too much writing.
Have important words near the edges.
Show an old promotion.
Include several phone numbers.
Include a WhatsApp number when the platform does not allow it.
Use very small text.

Important: Parts of the banner may be cut off on different phones and computers. Keep important faces, products, buildings, and words near the middle.

For the best result, use a wide image.

A good starting size is:

1600 × 600 pixels

You can also use:

1920 × 720 pixels

Both sizes use a wide shape that works well for store banners.

Try not to use an image below:

1200 × 450 pixels

A very small image may look blurry when it is shown across the full storefront.

Use JPG or WebP for normal photographs. Use PNG when the banner has a simple design, logo, or text that needs to remain sharp.

4. Add your store tagline

A tagline is a short message shown near your business name. It should help customers understand what you mainly offer.

Keep it simple and try to use fewer than 10 words.

Examples for product sellers

Fresh farm products from local growers.
Quality electronics in Lilongwe.
Everyday fashion at fair prices.
Home products for everyday living.

Examples for event organisers

Find your next great event.
Music, food, and good times.
Events that bring people together.
Great experiences across Malawi.

Examples for places to stay

Comfortable stays in Mangochi.
A clean and peaceful place to rest.
Simple stays for work and travel.
Stay close to the city.

A good tagline should say something useful about the business.

Avoid messages such as:

Welcome to our page.
We are the best.
Quality is our priority.
Number one in Malawi.
Shop with us today.

These messages are not always wrong, but they do not clearly explain what the business offers.

5. Write your store description

If you already wrote the business description from your business profile, it will be shown here. Your store description gives customers a little more information about what they will find on the page.

It should explain:

What you sell or offer.
Where your business is based.
What customers can expect.
Any useful information about delivery, pickup, tickets, rooms, or service.

Use two to four short sentences. You do not need to tell the full story of the business.

Example for a product store

We sell phones, laptops, accessories, and selected home electronics in Lilongwe. Each listing shows the price, product details, and the delivery or pickup choices available.

Example for farm products

We sell fresh vegetables, beans, groundnuts, and other farm products from local growers. We serve customers in Lilongwe, with pickup and delivery available for some orders.

Example for an event store

Find music, food, business, and community events from City Lights Events. Each event page shows the date, place, ticket price, and important information before you buy.

Example for a place to stay

Lakeview Guest House offers clean and comfortable rooms in Mangochi. You can view room pictures, prices, what is included, and booking details through our store.

Keep the description useful

Write for someone who has never heard of the business before.

Avoid:

Long business stories.
Difficult words.
Information that is not true.
Old offers.
Prices that change often.
Writing everything in capital letters.
Phone numbers when Tambala Market does not allow them in the description.
Claims such as “the best in Africa” when you cannot prove them.

6. Add your social media links

You can add links to your business pages on:

Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, LinkedIn.

Social media links can help customers see more of your work and know that the business is active.

Only add pages that:

Belong to your business.
Are open to the public and still active.
Have the correct business name and information.

It is better to leave a field empty than to add the wrong link.

Do not add:

Another business’s page.
A private personal account.
A page you no longer use.
A page that customers cannot open.
A broken or incomplete link.

How to copy the correct link

Open your business social media page.
Open the page in a browser.
Copy the full link from the top of the browser.
Paste it into the correct field on Tambala Market.
Save the link.
Open it from your storefront to make sure it works.

For example, add your Facebook business page to the Facebook field, not the Instagram field.

7. Create your store link

Your store link is the web address you can share with customers.

In the page it is called Store URL.

Choose a short name that matches your business.

Use:

Lowercase letters.
Numbers when needed.
Hyphens between words.

Do not use spaces.

Good examples

bluewave-electronics
mwayi-farm-produce
city-lights-events
lakeview-guest-house

Avoid

Long sentences.
Phone numbers.
Many hyphens.
Difficult spelling.
Temporary sale names.
Words that do not match the business.
Special symbols.

Choose a link that customers can easily read, remember, and type.

10. Check whether your chosen store link is available

After entering the name:

Select the button used to check the link.
Wait for the message.
Save it when the name is available.
Try another version when it is already being used.

When your first choice is not available, you can add your town, district, or business type.

For example:

bluewave-lilongwe
bluewave-electronics-mw
mwayi-produce
lakeview-mangochi
city-lights-malawi

Choose carefully. Changing your store link later may affect links that you have already shared with customers.

8. Save your store settings

Before saving, check:

The tagline.
The store description.
The logo.
The banner.
The social media links.
The store link.
Any public contact information.

When everything looks correct:

Select Save.
Wait for the success message.
Do not close the page while it is saving.
Open the page again and check that your changes are still there.

9. Preview your store

Select View Live to visit your storefront. Look at the page as if you were a customer visiting it for the first time.

Check that:

The business name is correct.
The logo is clear.
The banner looks good.
The tagline is easy to understand.
The description clearly explains the business.
The social media links work.
The location is correct.
The store link works.
Nothing looks stretched or cut off.

Open the store on a phone when possible. Most customers may visit Tambala Market using a phone, so the mobile view is very important.

10. Share your store

After your first listing is approved, copy your store link and share it with customers.

You can share it through:

WhatsApp.
Facebook.
Instagram.
TikTok.
Email.
Your website.
Printed posters or QR code.
Business cards.
Messages to existing customers.

Share the main store link when you want customers to see everything you offer.

Share one listing link when you want them to see a specific product, event, or stay.

Before sharing, open the link yourself and make sure it works.

Common problems

My banner looks cut off

Use a picture with more space around the main subject.

Keep important people, products, buildings, and words near the centre. Avoid placing important information at the far left, right, top, or bottom.

My banner looks blurry

Use the original picture instead of a screenshot or a picture downloaded from WhatsApp.

Upload a larger and clearer version. Do not stretch a small image.

My banner takes too long to load

Save a smaller copy using JPG or WebP.

Try to keep it below 500 KB while making sure it still looks clear.

My logo looks cut off

Use a square image and leave some empty space around the main name or symbol.

Remember that the logo may appear inside a circle.

My tagline is too long

Remove words that do not add useful information.

For example, change:

We are a trusted business that sells high-quality electronics at affordable prices in Lilongwe.

To:

Quality electronics in Lilongwe.

The store description can carry the extra information.

My social media link does not work

Open the correct business page in your browser and copy the full link again.

Check that you pasted it into the correct field.

My chosen store link is already being used

Try adding your location or business type.

For example:

bluewave-lilongwe
bluewave-electronics
bluewave-malawi

I made a mistake in the store link

Change it before sharing the store when the page allows it.

When you have already shared the old link, think carefully before changing it. Customers may still have the old address.

My storefront looks empty

Add your first product, event, or stay.

The listing may not appear until Tambala Market has checked and approved it.

I saved my changes but cannot see them

Refresh the page and open the store again.

Check your internet connection and make sure the page showed a message confirming that the changes were saved.

Contact Tambala Market Support when the changes still do not appear.

My store looks different on a phone

Some pictures and text may move to fit a smaller screen.

Make sure important parts of the banner are near the centre and check that all the words remain easy to read.

Next step

Choose the guide that matches what you need to do next:

Add Your Payment Details
Set Up Delivery and Pickup
Add a Product
Create an Event
Add a Stay