Creating a Successful Ecommerce Growth Strategy
The right e-commerce growth strategy will lead you to long-term success even in a competitive marketplace. Consider the ultimate strategies for e-commerce businesses who want to grow.
It is easy to start an e-commerce business; the struggle comes with sustaining it. For any business to survive, it must grow. That requires actionable steps designed to develop a strong brand identity.
Make SEO a Priority
Search engine optimization or SEO is what drives your business growth. Studies show that the bulk of web pages see no traffic. You could spend thousands of dollars to get the best images and an eye popping design, but without effective SEO, no one will know it’s there.
Strong SEO is what separates your business from the competition. It moves your brand to the top of the organic search pages. That matters because the coveted first search position gets greater than one-third of all clicks. Strong, professional SEO is how you grab that spot.
Make Use of Social Media
A strong social media presence is one of the least expensive and most effective ways to build up your brand. There are over five billion people on social media worldwide and that number increases every year.
Word of Mouth Reviews
Humans are social creatures. They tend to be influenced by others, especially people they know in person or virtually. They go to social media to get reviews before buying.
Platforms like Facebook and TikTok are significant stops in the buyer’s journey. Consumers look for recommendations and pay attention to both positive and negative feedback.
Ads
They can be influenced by ads, as well. Maybe they are considering purchasing a new refrigerator. Facebook ads about a specific brand will grab their attention.
The ability to target your ideal buyer is why social media ads are a multi-billion dollar industry. The average business dedicates around 8.7 percent of its revenue to ads on major social media platforms.
Retargeting
Social media also allow you to retarget the consumer you lost along the way. Create ad campaigns that focus on products a visitor viewed before but didn’t buy. This makes the ad relevant to their current needs and personal.
Display Social Proof
Social proof refers to testimonials and reviews from verified customers and organizations. It is a way to build trust with your audience.
Showcase video testimonials on your website, or display quotes under photos. Let them see that regular people buy and love your products.
List any awards or affiliations you have, as well. This will reassure potential buyers and help you build a brand reputation.
Don’t Neglect Your Website
Your website should be constantly evolving to meet the needs of your target audience. Stay up-to-date on design trends to keep your pages appealing.
Review Analytics Regularly
Keep an eye on the analytics for every page. Those numbers are a goldmine of information.
Analytics can tell you what works and what doesn’t. They show how effective your marketing is and how long your visitors hang around. Data is your way of measuring the success of your e-commerce growth strategies.
If you have a blog, and you should, website statistics tell you what interests your target audience, too. You can build on those topics when creating new marketing ads and developing products. The numbers allow you to understand what makes your ideal customer tick.
Improve the Customer Experience
Make sure your website focuses on customer service, as well. Customers need information to be clear, easy to find, and informative. They want to be able to use the website to solve problems, buy easily, and learn more about your brand and products. Little things like a customer service live chat function will allow them to talk to a real person when they need answers.
Gather Customer Information
Your website is a valuable marketing tool. Use it to showcase specials and allow viewers to sign up for discounts and information about new products.
Put AI to Use
AI is revolutionizing how businesses operate. Use it to analyze customer behaviors and handle small, repetitive tasks.
For example, add a chatbot to your website for 24/7 customer service. It will help your customers find answers after the live chat closes and provide insight into what they want to know. AI could be key to sustainable growth in the future.
Develop a Comprehensive Plan for Email Marketing
It might feel a bit old-school, but email marketing is still king. Statista predicts revenue from email marketing will hit 17.9 billion dollars by 2027.
A well-planned email marketing campaign can drive your sales upward. It allows you to reach out to people who already show some interest and impact their decision to buy or not. It is also a way to keep your current customers coming back.
The best thing about email marketing is it costs very little. It is not going to take a huge bite out of your marketing budget. It is easily measured so you know what is delivering traffic to your website and social media pages.
The key to a successful email marketing campaign is personalization. Making each email speak directly to that one customer is how you get them to open the message and click through to your pages.
Fine-Tune Your Marketing Strategy With Testing
It is not enough to develop marketing campaigns and hope they work. You need data to show you what is effective and worth investing more time and money on and what failed. That requires you to test your campaigns continuously.
With A/B testing, you produce two different campaigns that focus on the same topic and see which one gets the most results. For example, if you have a promotion coming up, you might develop two social media ads or email marketing messages. Use analytics to show which one gets more clicks.
Once you find the most effective approach, do another test. Tweak the ad in a few ways and see if the numbers go up.
Produce Short-Form Videos
Short-form videos deliver a return on your investment. Reels on Facebook, for example, grab the attention of the viewers for just a few seconds but deliver a powerful message.
Effective videos display the brand personality. They let you reach out to the customer and tell them who you are and why you deserve their business.
Investing in Voice Commerce
Voice commerce provides your customers with a hands-free way of doing business. It makes the buying process more conversational and personal. Siri, Alexa, Bixby, and Google Assistant are there to help consumers make choices, do searches, and complete online checkouts with ease.
Today, consumers are looking for the easiest way to complete tasks, including buying. They are going online to get everything from groceries to new cars. With voice commerce, you can improve the shopping experience and increase your brand accessibility.
Hire Professionals To Fuel Your Growth
The downside to running most of these e-commerce growth strategies is they take time and expertise. You have to know what analytics matter the most, for example. That is where hiring a professional digital marketing firm can pay off. A team of experts will constantly run tests and tweak your marketing assets, so you have time to handle your business and see the growth happen.
Consider what hiring a professional team of digital marketing consultants might do to fuel your brand growth. Having experts partnering with you will ensure you stay on point with the latest marketing trends.