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Diving into your eCommerce marketing strategy can feel overwhelming, to say the least. There are so many different techniques, strategies, and methods scattered across the internet, and it can be hard to find the ones worth implementing.Your eCommerce marketing approach should involve a variety of elements. Finding the best fit for your business is going to be a combination of strategies that, when put together, give you the widest and most effective reach in communicating to your target market.
Whether you are just starting off or well on your way to establishing a solid customer base, you’re going to want to stay up to date with the latest eCommerce marketing trends. Keeping the edge on your competitors means connecting directly with your customers. You’ve spent so much time, energy, and resources on building an eCommerce website that hosts your brand, so developing a marketing strategy to get it out there is vital.
In this article, we’re going to cover some of our tried and tested techniques to get your brand out there and into the hands of your customers (both old and new).
Since its beginning, eCommerce as an industry has grown at an unprecedented rate. What it was years ago is not what it is today, and as a business, you either have to keep that in mind as you’re going into this endeavor or (if you’re already up and running) continue to adapt.
Social media marketing has made things bigger and better than ever before, and with recent events and the state of our world, online shopping has changed our collective retail experience forever.
One thing to note is that eCommerce is becoming more and more accessible. More brands are embracing new methods of marketing to accommodate more platforms, which makes it more imperative than ever to stay up to date on the latest trends.
Your eCommerce marketing goals are going to include:
To answer this question, we have to answer the question of what eCommerce marketing is. Essentially, eCommerce marketing is the strategy you’ll put in place to drive awareness and traffic towards your online store.
The most important thing in any marketing strategy, and especially when you’re an online merchant that doesn’t have the advantage of direct contact with your customers, is content that resonates.
Creating content that resonates isn’t easy. You have to be willing to be authentic, knowledgeable, and to provide valuable insight for your customers. If you’re willing to go the extra mile and dedicate time and resources to this strategy, though, it will be worth it.
Since we’re trying to create awareness around your brand, knowing how to get yourself seen and heard is the other essential part of the strategy. Once you make your content, you need to get it seen by the right consumers. SEO optimization, email marketing, keyword research, and social media marketing are all essential players here.
The short answer is this: find out where your customers are and come to them with relevant, engaging content.
Now that you understand the basics, we can dive into a few of the best specific strategies to implement in your business.
Email marketing is one of the oldest and most valuable tools you can leverage in your eCommerce marketing strategy.
Think of it like this: email marketing is a way to bridge some of the gaps between you and the retailers your customers can shop at in person. Email marketing is a more personal, more direct form of marketing that should (ideally) be tailored to your customers. You’re providing content that was written specifically for them, and in that attempt, you’re building a stronger relationship between your brand and your customers.
Leveraging email marketing is one of the most, if not the most powerful things you can do for your eCommerce business.
Social media marketing is the new kid on the block, but it has entirely changed the eCommerce industry (and the world, for that matter). Figuring out a solid social media strategy for your brand is essential to standing out in today’s market.
Social media is all about having a constant presence on the internet. If your social media accounts are always posting valuable content that is relevant to your customers, they always have a platform to find you on. You’re on their feeds every day (or at least a few times a week) and thus have a presence on their minds.
Paid ads are another avenue that might be a good fit for your business. Paid ads can increase traffic to your website and can lead to more action once your customers get there if your ads are targeted enough.
This one isn’t nearly as fun as the others, as it does require a lot of manual work, but making sure that your website and blog posts are optimized for search engines is imperative.
You don’t want to go through all the work it takes to get your eCommerce website up and running just for it to sit and wait for the occasional customer. That’s not why you built your business. To get the kind of traffic you need to scale, you’re going to need to make sure things are optimized.
Conducting keyword research and finding out what your customers are searching for is a great place to start.
Your post-purchase experience is as important as your purchase experience. When your customer hits checkout, the next question on their minds is when their package will arrive. It’s up to you to make sure that experience reflects your brand the way you want it to.
Branded shipping packaging is a great way to do this. Everybody loves a good unboxing, and it can be a fantastic way to promote your brand. Customizing your delivery experience is also a way to bridge the gap between being an online retailer and creating physical contact with your customers.
A great unboxing experience is something your customers will remember long afterward, and create brand loyalty.
There are many ways that you can go about constructing your eCommerce marketing strategy, but one of the most important things to remember is that not everything is going to be a great fit for your business. If you’re trying to do everything at once, it’s unlikely that you’re going to create a unique, memorable, and personalized experience. Focus on doing what you do well, not trying to do everything.
Using an order management software (OMS) is a great way to take some of the stress out of running your eCommerce business. SmartShyp’s OMS takes the guesswork out of managing your shipping experience and frees your time up to focus on getting your voice out there. Get in touch to find out more and receive a live demo.
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