Wondering how to increase eCommerce sales? Launching a digital storefront is an exhausting effort, and without a solid conversion rate and steady customers, a business is left floundering.
With some solid strategies, you can easily maintain and scale your eCommerce business.
20 Tactics for Increasing eCommerce Sales
The following tips can elevate eCommerce sales and build a stable customer base.
1. Make an Email List
Building and maintaining an email address list lets your business directly target interested customers. An email list is a unique opportunity to incentivize purchases with promotions, giveaways, early sales, and other marketing options. Keep a running list of good emails you’ve gathered from gated content or site members.
2. Prioritize Email Marketing
It’s easy for eCommerce companies to rely on social media or search optimization to ensure lead acquisition and conversion. However, using your built email list to your advantage can create many opportunities for upselling.
A solid email marketing strategy allows a company to take advantage of its existing clientele.
3. Make it Easy to Buy
This seems like a simple concept, but in practice, many eCommerce platforms make it unnecessarily difficult to purchase. A prime example of this is using gated content right before checkout. Of course, asking for an email is great but doing it when a customer is just about to purchase is a poor strategy.
The customer experience, from adding an item to their cart to checking out, should be as simple as possible.
4. Launch Several Payment Options
If possible, provide more than one payment method for prospective customers. Some eCommerce platforms will offer financing options or pay through multiple third parties. The more options and customization the customer has, the more likely they are to follow through with a purchase.
5. Solidify The Brand
What is your company’s brand? So, you may have a logo or brand colors selected, but do you have a cohesive message, and is this brand reflected throughout the site? Make sure the brand is cohesive and focused, from all content on the site to all marketing channels to the actual layout of the eCommerce site.
Solidifying the brand will help customers automatically recognize your products and trust your merchandising.
6. Offer Freebies
It’s always a delight to be offered a free gift. Consider offering up a small token if customers participate in a large sale or consider offering new customers or loyal customers just a little something extra with a purchase.
Another good option is to offer good discounts with large purchases to encourage adding a little bit more to the shopping cart.
7. Build Up Social Media Presence
Obviously, it’s important to develop a solid social media presence across all relevant apps. For one company, this could include Tik Tok, Instagram, and Facebook. For another company, this could just include Pinterest and Facebook.
Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day, so it’s important to slowly create content for social media and build a steady and reliable following. You can consider options like influencer marketing tools, creative ad placement, and highlighting user-generated content.
8. Integrate Social Media
One useful hack is integrating social media platforms on the site itself. This usually includes having a social media icon somewhere on the homepage. It can also include highlighting social media posts in use on product pages. For example, an influencer wearing one of your boots in an Instagram post could be somewhere on the boots’ product page.
This allows interested customers to find and follow your social media accounts easily. It also builds trust and faith in your brand.
9. Ask The Customer
Good site development and good eCommerce practices include consistently optimizing for user experience. This means that it’s vital to ask customers to complete satisfaction surveys and gather feedback whenever possible. Make sure this isn’t a gated request, and even consider adding incentives for a filled-out survey.
Use this valuable data to make improvements to your eCommerce platform.
10. Prioritize Customer Service
An attentive and adaptable customer service department can have a significant positive effect on customers. When customers feel seen and assisted, they are more likely to repeat purchases and recommend your brand to others. Consider adding the following aspects to your current customer services;
- Chat functions,
- email services,
- after hour FAQs,
- and phone hours.
Above all, use the data you’ve collected on your existing client base to inform positive user changes.
11. Use Scarcity Strategies
Encourage a sense of urgency in your customers and clients. When customers feel that an eCommerce product is valuable or is in short supply, then they’re more likely to purchase quickly. A great way to facilitate this experience is by stating the exact amount of products available and counting down with each purchase. An eCommerce platform can also display how many other clients are looking at a similar product at a similar time.
12. Target Offerings
Always look to upsell. Your eCommerce strategy should be designed to offer potential customers more comparable products and services. If a customer has already purchased an item or seems interested in a service, offer them a similar product. For example, if a customer’s on the site viewing a turtleneck, then suggest they look at other sweater products.
Target offerings specifically to clients who are already interested in the product. These clients are more likely to find what they need, and you’ve secured an upsell.
13. Run a Mobile App
Launching a mobile application is a huge undertaking. It’s not a decision or process that should be taken lightly. At the same time, a mobile app offers a huge opportunity to capitalize on a large customer base. If you already have a mobile app, there are always unique opportunities to improve your platform and bring in new leads.
For this kind of technical work, consider bringing in experts for assistance.
14. Optimize for SEO
SEO (search engine optimization) is a powerful method for getting your website and prominent pages at the top of organic search engines. From product descriptions to the homepage – every bit of content should be vetted. A stellar content strategy serves to optimize your existing site content for the kind of online shoppers you’re hoping to bring in. Further, a solid SEO strategy can also help with consistent ADA compliance.
15. Install a Chatbot
We’ve mentioned utilizing a chatbox for customer service purposes, and you should definitely consider this; however, a chatbox can be used for various other purposes. There are a few factors you should know of.
First thing to note when adding a chat box is it should be something a user can minimize or hide.
Second, the chatbox should offer assistance and options for helping potential buyers.
Third, the chatbox should be focused on upselling. For example, if a client is asking for one service in the chatbox, make sure to offer similar services and provide the requested information.
16. Add Reviews
Online reviews are an incredibly powerful tool for online sales. Consider the factors of a brick-and-mortar store. When a target customer walks into a physical location, they can see other interested parties pursuing and purchasing products. This powerful sales tool is absent on an eCommerce platform.
A great way to artificially enforce brand authority and customer trust is by including product reviews on individual pages. Customer reviews showcase your happy customers and online business success.
17. Promote Best Sellers
Your best sellers are doing well for a reason. You may have poured a lot of marketing efforts into these products, or you’ve really nailed a product that’s perfect for the target audience. Either way, customers should be offered lists of best sellers on your eCommerce site for easy purchase.
Consider dividing the best sellers list into product types and even coming out with new bestsellers depending on the season.
18. Offer a Money Back Guarantee
Mistakes happen, and some clients may not be satisfied with the purchased product. During the checkout process offer a money-back guarantee to help indecisive or nervous clients confidently make a purchase.
19. A/B Testing
Consistent A/B testing allows you to configure your site in the most optimal manner. Functionality and easy user interface are vital for a successful eCommerce platform. Make sure to incorporate regular A/B testing into your site maintenance.
20. Work With The Experts
Running and marketing an eCommerce platform is a complex task. It becomes nigh impossible when you add all the other necessary tasks of running a successful business. Bringing on expert developers and marketers allows an eCommerce business to flourish.
Partner With the Experts at Elevato
At Elevato, we can launch and run an eCommerce platform customized to your needs. Our marketing and design teams are poised to take your sales to the next level.
Contact us today and learn about our innovative process and history of results.