Ecommerce sounds like an industry which would be easy to find success in because online shopping is so popular, and the industry continues to grow at a rapid rate. While there certainly is the potential for success, most find it much harder than they anticipated. This because it is so competitive online. Simply setting up a store and launching will not be enough, and you will need to put in the work if you want to make good money out of your online store. There are a few secrets to success which most are not aware of and utilising these tips could help you to achieve your goals.
Excellent Customer Service
One of the biggest mistakes that people make when starting an ecommerce store is not providing good customer service. Although it is all carried out online, consumers are still going to have questions and queries and how you respond to these will have a huge impact on your success. It is helpful if it is easy for visitors to contact you and you should always be friendly yet professional. Having live chat on your store is a smart move, but you should also make it easy for people to contact you via social media and email.
Efficient Shipping
Following on from this, you must also make sure that the shipping is affordable and quick. People do not want to wait around for packages but they also do not want to pay through the teeth for delivery – this is the main reason for shopping cart abandonment. Consider offering free shipping when a customer spends over a certain amount as a way to offer free shipping while still earning enough from orders.
Easy-to-Navigate Store
Much like a physical store, it needs to be easy-to-navigate so that the customer can find what they are looking for and have a smooth experience. Make sure that it is easy to switch between the various pages on your website, and allow visitors to be able to search and filter their results so that they can either browse or look directly for a product.
Sell The Right Products
It might seem obvious, but you need to be selling products which are in demand. Additionally, you need to have a range of products that fall under a particular theme so that you can cast a wide net and both attract and retain customers. This also allows you to develop a target customer which you can then keep in mind when promoting your store and creating original content.
Assess The Competition
A smart business owner will have a strong understanding of the competition, so that they can find gaps in the market, learn from their strengths, and exploit weaknesses. Find out how to reverse image search on your products, and peruse the different stores that are selling the same product – spend time looking around their store and visiting their social media to learn everything that you can and then use this information to your advantage.
High-Quality Product Details
Having high-quality products is what separates the great stores from the average ones. Keep in mind that the consumer is not able to physically hold the product to inspect it, so you need to -provide as much detail as possible. This should include
-High-quality photographs from different angles
-Product videos
-Augmented reality apps
-Unique and detailed product descriptions
-How to use guides
-Customer reviews
Visible Customer Reviews
Following this, you need to ask your customers for reviews and then put these in highly visible spaces on your store and on social media. Modern-day consumers are wary because there are so many ecommerce stores, many of which will not provide a good experience. Customer reviews will be one of the first things that people look for as social proof, and to get an idea of what the shopping experience is like with your business.
Smart Social Media Usage
Most ecommerce store owners recognise the importance of having a presence on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, but very few use these platforms effectively. Social media is a powerful tool that allows you to show your expertise, advertise your store and products, and communicate directly with your target audience. You should be sharing original content which is of value to your target customer (such as how-to guides), keeping followers updated on the latest news from the store, and responding to comments and messages in a friendly yet professional manner.
Store Optimised For Mobile
Mobile commerce has been steadily growing for the last few years, so you need to make sure that your store is optimised for mobile users otherwise you will be missing out. You could even have an app that can make it quick and easy for mobile users to navigate your online store and make orders, plus this also allows you to send push notifications and advertise your brand throughout the day.
Use Digital Marketing
As such a competitive industry, it can be hard to make people aware of your store and get traffic to your website. Digital marketing is one of the most important steps to take as an ecommerce store owner and you should be using a variety of techniques to increase your visibility online. This will include digital marketing practices such as:
-SEO
-PPC
-Affiliate marketing
-Content marketing
-Influencer marketing
– Email marketing
These are the secrets to success in the ecommerce industry. It is amazing the number of people who set up an online store believing that it will be easy to succeed, when the truth is that it is incredibly competitive and you will need to put in the work to succeed.
