Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, online shopping has witnessed immense growth, showing no signs of slowing down. Statista’s research reveals that eCommerce sales worldwide reach 6.54 trillion USD in 2022.

These figures speak volumes, indicating that more and more consumers are making digital purchases, offering the brands the opportunity to tap into a significantly larger audience than brick-and-mortar stores can afford.

Online sales is an art that needs to be mastered all the time. We will help you figure out how to run an online store effectively.

How can I improve my online retail?

#1 Gain a deep understanding of your audience

To ensure you make informed decisions about your products and marketing activities, it’s crucial to have a deep understanding of your customers. In a brick-and-mortar store, you can engage in conversations with customers on the spot to discover their preferences and what resonates with them. However, when dealing with online customers, it becomes essential to take proactive measures to gain insights into their behavior.

By leveraging analytics tools within your online store and point-of-sale (POS) system, you can effectively identify purchasing patterns and preferences. Although face-to-face conversations are irreplaceable, there are still numerous opportunities, such as emails, online chats, and phone calls, to inquire and learn about your customers.

#2 Analyze traffic sources

To utilize your time and marketing resources effectively, use analytics tools like Google Analytics to research how customers find your store when making purchases. This information allows you to optimize your marketing efforts accordingly. For instance, if your cookware store receives substantial traffic from a blog post about healthy eating, consider creating more content on this topic. Similarly, if the majority of your sales originate from Facebook ads, investing in additional advertising might prove worthwhile.

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#3 Invest in PPC advertising 

If you want to increase brand awareness, customer loyalty, and sales, using PPC is a must. It’s a highly effective and cost-effective channel, with e-commerce businesses generating 46% of their total revenue from PPC campaigns and enjoying a 200% ROI. So if you’re new to the market, the first step is to drive as much traffic as possible by investing in PPC ads, which will attract more people to your site. Start using PPC today and watch your brand grow!

#4 Don’t let go of your recent clients

When you make a purchase, you have the brand fresh in your mind. Reaching out to recent buyers and offering them personalized and targeted offers is important. Speak directly to your customers through targeted emails, offering exclusive promotions. You can educate, up-sell, and cross-sell by providing relevant and timely offers and promotions. Contacting previous customers is just as important as quickly communicating with recent buyers; nurture them with special offers, like a VIP discount code that gives them additional savings on their next purchase.

#5 Simplify customer experience

Make it as simple as possible for customers to find and purchase what they want. If your analytics reveal a large number of visitors leaving without making a purchase, the reason could be the customer experience.

Enlist friends and family who represent your target audience and observe as they navigate through your online store, searching for and buying items. Identify any difficulties or mistakes they encounter. Areas that commonly need improvement are the search feature, product navigation, and checkout process on your website.

#6 Grow your influence on social media

If you’re looking to connect with both current and potential customers, social media is the way to go. With 4.6 billion users worldwide, people spend an average of 2.5 hours scrolling through social media every day. Although platforms like Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram weren’t initially designed to help e-commerce businesses boost sales or reach new audiences, the digital revolution has made it possible.

Statistics reveal that 27% of customers use social media to discover new products, 77% prefer shopping with brands they follow, and in 2021, 36% of US customers made social commerce purchases.

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#7 Add live chat to your website

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, more customers have come to depend on chat as a means of communication with businesses. If you are without a chat feature, incorporate one into your website and diligently monitor it throughout the day.

Since being tied to your computer around the clock is impractical, opt for an autoresponder that informs customers of your availability. Additionally, leverage Virtual Agent Technology (VAT) as a website plugin that promptly addresses common and fundamental customer queries.

#8 Create content

When you have a question, you go to Google and search for the answer. To make your eCommerce store discoverable through SEO, create content that offers interesting and relevant information to your customers. Address common challenges or provide tips on using your products, instead of solely focusing on product descriptions. For example, if you sell dog toys, write about exciting games to play with your furry friend or ways to alleviate separation anxiety in dogs. Consistently writing fresh articles is essential as search engines prioritize pages that offer consistent content.

Conclusion

Selling online is a way to grow your business and take it many steps higher. However, not everyone is able to attract customers and bring them to the stage of buying and selling. The 8 strategies listed are not something we came up with, they are generally accepted practices. It’s worth starting with them, but not limiting yourself to them.

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