Running an eCommerce store can be your chance to make some good money while providing a reliable and convenient service in an industry that’s growing exponentially. Online sales during COVID-19 have skyrocketed to 43% higher in September, and continue to climb as more and more people look to the web to solve the dilemma of shopping without risking viral exposure. If you’re new to eCommerce, you’re probably wondering what it takes to make it to the top and keep your site generating income.
In this short guide, we’ll cover seven of the most important best practices for eCommerce success. We’ll cover everything from SEO to having a good website and beyond. You’re going to need these tips, so pull up a chair and keep reading!
1. SEO Is Your Best Friend
So, what is SEO, anyway? How does it apply to my website? I’m glad you asked. I put SEO as the number one best practice for a good reason. It can literally mean the difference between a dead site and a flourishing oasis of profitability. Half the battle with eCommerce is making it so that people can find your brand. Appealing to new customers is how you increase sales, grow your business, and establish a reputation.
SEO is an acronym for search engine optimization. To put it simply, it’s how you rank on search engines. When someone searches keywords related to your site/product/services, do you show up on the first five pages of the search results or the bottom five?
Improving your SEO strategy is an entire science by itself. If you want to learn more, try sites like https://neilpatel.com/, https://moz.com/, or https://yoast.com/. (They all showed up on the first page for a reason)
2. Use Social Media To Your Advantage
If you’re running an eCommerce store and not utilizing social media, you’re basically shooting yourself in the foot. Your customers are on social media. They’re looking for what you provide. All you have to do is bridge that gap between you and them, and you’ll be able to grow your business.
Instagram now offers Instagram Business pages, Facebook has business pages, and even Twitter can help you market your products and services. Social media is essentially the main connection between you and your customers, and often the first place people visit to learn more about your brand.
Go here for more tips on using social media to your advantage.
3. A Unique And Functional Website
Have you ever visited a website and thought, “Wow, this looks like every other site on the internet,”? Websites that aren’t unique or have trouble with mobile integration are problematic for eCommerce. Your job is to capture a customer’s attention as soon as they visit your site. The site is like the face of your business—and it should work to attract the right people.
Make your website as unique as possible. One site that comes to mind is https://blackbuffalo.com/. The site is aesthetically pleasing, provides everything I need to know about Black Buffalo’s product lineup and mission, and functions well on both mobile and desktop. This is what separates the good websites from the bad. You can pretty much guarantee that a poorly designed website will scare off leads and result in lower web traffic. Hire a professional!
4. High-Quality Images
When you’re showing products to customers, you don’t want a pixelated, out-of-date image that doesn’t show the details of the product. This is a good way to lose a customer rather than gain one. We’ve all seen those eCommerce sites with poor pictures. If you’re like me, you tuned out almost immediately because you like to see what you’re buying in detail.
If you need to hire a professional photographer, do it. The expense will pay for itself when your customers aren’t jumping ship as soon as they see the pictures you took with your toaster. Oh wait, that was your phone? This is especially important with edible products.
Take these awesome CBD gummies from Verma Farms. Do you know why they look so tasty on the website? Because they were photographed well! They look so good you can almost research through the screen and eat them!
5. Automatic Shipping Calculator or Free Shipping
One of the things that makes Amazon so appealing is that a Prime membership gets you free two-day shipping on thousands of products. Even if your site doesn’t offer free shipping (which you should consider), you can still provide a shipping discount on bulk orders and definitely include a shipping calculator plugin.
6. Respond To Comments And Reviews
Leaving comments, questions, or reviews unaddressed either on your website or social media account makes it look like you don’t care much for the customer—or what they have to say. This simply won’t do with an eCommerce business, especially because you don’t get a chance to interact with your customers face-to-face.
Make a habit of responding. Yes, even to the good reviews. Letting a customer know that you’re thankful they visited your site, purchased your items, and left a review can go a long way in making them feel appreciated. The more appreciated your customer(s) feel, the more likely they are to recommend your brand. Word of mouth is still a powerful tool, even in the digital age.
7. Watch Your Competition
Your competition will be watching you like a hawk, so you’d better be far above them watching like an eagle if you want to keep your edge. Watch how they interact with customers, how their site is designed—anything you can think of that could potentially give you an edge.
Does the competition offer free shipping? A better warranty or return policy? Better designs? Better social media and SEO strategy? What’s keeping your business from being on their level, or what are you doing that’s allowing the competition to catch up?
Don’t underestimate your competitors. It could be the last mistake you make in business!
