eCommerce is becoming more and more popular as it offers the opportunity to people to make a decent living no matter where they are.
One of the latest trends — dropshipping — has made it possible to run an online store and ship goods without having to store products anywhere.
For people running physical shops who want to expand their business by selling their goods online, eCommerce also offers a sustainable alternative.
That being said, getting ahead of the competition isn’t easy. If you want to make a living off of eCommerce, you’ll need to devise a sustainable long-term strategy, work on your brand’s online presence, master email marketing, and keep an eye on the competition.
On the upside, you’ll be able to run your business from anywhere in the world.
Let’s see how to get started with eCommerce.
1. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Search engine marketing (SEM) is critical for eCommerce stores as it helps potential customers find your business online. Ranking on the first page of Google search results is absolutely crucial as there are many dropshipping sites that offer the same products as you do.
You can complement your SEO efforts with a pay-per-click (PPC) advertising campaign via Google AdWords to help you get started. Of course the latter depends on your budget — you should perform research to come up with the best solution.
Next on, if you truly want your eCommerce store to stand out, you’ll also increase your presence on YouTube. This part is a bit more demanding as YT, as you know, is an online video-sharing platform. Basically, this means that you should create video content in addition to textual.
The task doesn’t necessarily have to be demanding. Creating short videos advertising various products you sell should do the trick for starters.
2. Email Marketing
Email marketing campaigns are very popular, chiefly because they’re either free or very cost-efficient (depending on your plans).
This way of advertising may be suitable for everyone who is literate and polite. The rest is just research and creativity.
To get started properly, you’ll need to compile an email list. This first step must be done right to ensure your future email marketing efforts will be successful. The easiest way to compile a proper mailing list is to offer rewards for subscriptions. Rewards don’t necessarily have to be expensive or exclusive; you may simply offer a relevant, short e-book or a discount for the next purchase.
Never ever buy lists! It is crucial that the recipients provide consent to receive your brand’s emails themselves, otherwise, your campaigns will fail miserably. Once your emails start being flagged as spam or deleted without even having been read, your email marketing efforts are doomed.
The next thing to keep in mind — especially if you’re targeting international audiences — is the time zone of your respective offer recipients. There are way too many spam messages around, so, optimally, you should send your emails when they’re likely to be on top of recipients’ incoming messages (ideally, in the morning local time).
Finally, don’t send emails too often — timing is very important. Plan your campaigns well so that they target only one special event or product and stick to the topic.
3. SMS Campaigns
eCommerce SMS email marketing is another way to kickstart your business. In actual fact, statistics show that SMS marketing is capable of generating 10x the revenue when done right.
As for its dynamics, SMS marketing is similar to email marketing. You’ll need a recipient list, with obligatory consent from the people.
SMS marketing is especially effective with new customer acquisition and loyalty programs, as it allows for a more personalized tone for each recipient.
4. Content Marketing
Finally, eCommerce can’t be successful without a proper content marketing strategy. As mentioned above, Google and YouTube should be your primary focus, but also make sure to keep up with the trends and adjust your efforts as needed.
As for your website, make sure it includes all relevant information.
Content types may vary depending on your focus and a combination of suitable formats is usually the best approach.
Among the most popular content types are blog posts, video content, infographics, e-books, and (especially) podcasts.
Points of Interest for eCommerce
On top of your marketing efforts, you should absolutely make sure that your business is offering everything customers are looking for.
There’s so much more to online shopping than product quality. You should focus on returning customers. To reach that goal, you’ll need to establish your brand as reputable and reliable and keep communication alive.
Social media marketing (SSM) is one way to reach out to the audience. Next on, make sure to always send a welcome message to new subscribers, order receipts, order shipment emails, info on tracking eCommerce shipments, and feedback requests.
Key Takeaways
Everything considered, much can be done to make an eCommerce business successful. A well-planned marketing campaign coupled with quality content management and constructive communication is the best recipe for success.
Use your imagination and be creative — there’s literally nothing to fear!
