All online stores aim to boost traffic and conversions. However, even with a simple strategy in place, it can still be difficult to determine the marketing tactics you should experiment with.
To assist you in implementing various approaches, we have compiled a comprehensive guide including effective marketing strategies, ecommerce tools, and ideas. These ideas encompass a wide range, starting from acquiring new customers to encouraging existing customers to make repeated purchases.
Ecommerce marketing
The practice of ecommerce marketing involves utilizing promotional strategies to attract visitors to your online store, converting them into customers who make purchases, and then keeping those customers engaged after their initial purchase.
A comprehensive ecommerce marketing strategy comprises of marketing tactics both within and outside your website. An effective marketing strategy can assist in establishing brand recognition, fostering customer loyalty, and ultimately boosting online sales.
Here are a few practical ideas to consider when promoting your online store using ecommerce marketing tools. These strategies can be implemented to benefit your entire business or to increase sales for particular products.
Ecommerce marketing ideas to increase online sales
1. Upsell your products
The famous phrase, “Would you like to supersize your order?” that many of us have heard is an example of upselling. This technique involves offering a slightly higher quality product compared to the one the customer initially intended to purchase.
Upselling and cross-selling can often yield greater effectiveness for numerous businesses compared to gaining a completely new customer. Occasionally, customers are unaware that a superior product is accessible, or they may require additional proof to comprehend how an upgrade (or package) better suits their requirements.
Do any of your product models have higher quality leather or include handcrafted components? Please highlight the distinctions and inquire appropriately if the customer is interested in upgrading.
When utilizing upselling to boost sales, there are two primary factors to take into account.
- Make sure your upsells are related to the original product
- Be sensitive to the anticipated price range of your customers
In order for your product to be worth the additional cost, it must be a noticeably better fit than the original product, as customers often have a price in mind that serves as a point of comparison for other prices. Therefore, your product needs to meet the customer’s initial needs and not exceed their price expectations.
2. Integrate Instagram
Instagram, a rapidly growing social app, connects consumers, influencers, and brands, boasting over 500 million daily active users.
To achieve a large Instagram following of people interested in your products, it is essential to take captivating photos, strategically use hashtags, and post at optimal times. Engaging with your followers is the key to effectively managing your organic presence on Instagram.
What are some methods for interacting with your audience on Instagram? You can experiment with running contests or providing a glimpse into your product development process. Another option is to invest in paid promotions on Instagram. In terms of ecommerce marketing, including products in your Instagram posts and stories provides a direct route for your followers to make purchases, which is crucial for boosting online sales.
3. Reduce abandoned carts
The harsh reality is that every time a visitor leaves their cart without making a purchase, you are losing money. This phenomenon, which has been extensively studied, occurs when visitors add items to their carts but ultimately abandon them during the checkout process. According to the Baymard Institute, the abandonment rate for shopping carts is 69.23%.
Addressing hesitations directly is valuable because it is possible that shoppers who abandoned their carts may have been reminded to complete their purchase. They might have been convinced through incentives such as a discount or free shipping.
A straightforward and efficient ecommerce marketing strategy to decrease the occurrence of abandoned carts involves implementing an email recovery campaign that persuades your visitors to revisit your website and finalize their initial purchase.
4. Launch a Facebook store
Despite the numerous changes that have occurred, Facebook still serves as a viable platform for both social media and ecommerce marketing. It is relatively simple to begin generating sales through your Facebook store. Moreover, your Facebook store can seamlessly integrate with your Shopify store, eliminating the need for maintaining separate inventories.
5. Make TikTok a priority
In 2019, only 2.3% of U.S. spending on creator campaigns was attributed to TikTok. However, this year TikTok will surpass Facebook and hold a 15.5% market share. TikTok’s rapid growth, fueled by its powerful algorithm that propels numerous viral shopping trends, is something that influencer marketing managers cannot afford to neglect if they wish to remain relevant in 2023.
6. Embrace augmented and virtual reality technology
Platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and Pinterest have improved their capabilities, allowing brands to create unforgettable customer experiences and enable consumers to perceive products in a whole new way. This has been made possible by the emergence of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), which have greatly expanded the opportunities available to marketers.
In addition, since deliveries of AR and VR devices are projected to grow by almost 800% by 2026, it is an ideal opportunity for forward-thinking marketers to start exploring this emerging trend.
Rayhan Perera, the CEO and Founder of OneDash, expresses his hope that this year will witness significant advancements in AR and VR, emphasizing the need for out-of-the-box thinking as they grow weary of repetitive experiences. These sentiments were shared by Perera during his appearance on the GRIN Gets Real podcast.
7. Emphasize retargeting
When consumers show interest in your products and services, it is important to capitalize on every opportunity to retarget them after the first sale. The two groups that are most likely to be successful in retargeting are:
- Consumers who left an item in their shopping cart – Roughly 83% of consumers are willing to share personal details in exchange for a more personalized shopping experience. Take advantage of this opportunity and ask for an email address so you can follow up if they don’t complete a purchase the first time.
- Consumers who have already bought from you – These people have already proven they’re willing to give your products a try. Be sure to ask for feedback on their purchase and follow up with them on any new products you think they could be interested in.
8. Personalize your marketing emails
Adding a personal touch whenever possible contributes significantly to ensuring that the recipient does not feel like just a number, even when sending automated email sequences to numerous prospects simultaneously.
Consider the following strategies: Think step by step and rephrase the text below while ensuring the same meaning is retained. Avoid adding new information and refrain from removing any information.
- Segmentation – Segment your email list based on gender, location, role, etc. Even using a small amount of available data can help add a personal touch that makes the recipient feel like the message is tailored specifically for them.
- Emails from a person – Make sure your emails come from a person within the organization rather than the business itself. This will make the correspondence feel less like a “marketing email” and more like a conversation.
- Celebrate anniversaries – Keep a list of your customer’s birthdays or other important dates. A simple message commemorating an anniversary is a small gesture that goes a long way.
9. Implement SEO best practices
If you don’t have a strong grasp of best practices, producing amazing content without search engine optimization (SEO) will likely result in being uncertain about getting discovered online.
Below are some effective strategies to impress Google’s website crawlers.
- Produce blogs and educational resources on your site with high-ranking keywords.
- Create compelling title tags and meta descriptions.
- Optimize images for search.
- Optimize page loading speed.
- Add internal links from top-ranking pages on your site.
- Go after authoritative backlinks.
- Create useful content.
10. Start an affiliate program
Due to its performance-based structure that compensates creators for generating conversions, affiliate marketing is a highly effective and economical tactic for ecommerce brands. Consequently, 81% of brands integrated an affiliate program in 2021. Together, these creators generated approximately 5 billion clicks, resulting in over 170 million completed transactions worldwide.
11. Leverage user reviews
User reviews play a crucial role in influencing purchase decisions, from buying a new car to choosing a restaurant after leaving the dealership. In fact, an online review holds equal importance as a personal recommendation, according to 90% of consumers.
In order to ensure that customers can easily provide favorable reviews, brands should consider simplifying the process. Additionally, providing some form of incentive would further encourage customers to share their positive feedback.
12. Improve your email campaigns
In order for the channel to be an effective ecommerce marketing activity, it is not sufficient to just gather a collection of email addresses. It is then necessary to consistently send valuable emails. There are numerous instances in which sending emails that your subscribers will genuinely value is ideal.
- Send a welcome email as soon as a customer makes a purchase.
- Provide exclusive promo codes and free gifts.
- Send regular newsletters to alert subscribers of new discount offers, product tips, and, when appropriate, company news.
- Share relevant content to help customers get the most out of their recently purchased items.
- Run a BOGO campaign in time for the holidays to promote self-gifting during the season, too.
- Thank your highest-value customers. Send a personal note expressing your appreciation for their business.
- Solicit feedback. If someone visits your site but doesn’t make a purchase, ask about their experience and how you can improve it.
