By James Cooper on Small Business UK - Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs
Marketing your e-commerce website can be a daunting task. There are so many different platforms and strategies available that it can be hard to know where to start. This article will provide an overview of the best marketing techniques for your e-commerce website. We will also give you some actionable tips that you can use to get started straight away.
>See also: How business buyers can increase margins and grow their business through e-commerce
Why e-commerce marketing?
E-commerce marketing is the process of driving traffic to your online store and converting that traffic into sales. It is vital to invest in ecommerce marketing because it can help you reach a wider audience, increase brand awareness, and boost your sales.
There are many different platforms and strategies that you can use for ecommerce marketing, but some of the most effective are Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) and social media.
Defining your goals
If you want to create a successful e-commerce marketing campaign, it is crucial to start by defining your goals.
What do you want to achieve? Do you want to increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, or boost sales?
Once you have defined your goals, you can start planning your campaign. It is also essential to choose the right platform for your e-commerce marketing campaign. If you are selling products on Amazon, for example, then you will need to focus on Amazon marketing strategies.
Similarly, if you are selling products on your ecommerce website, you will need to focus on driving traffic to your site and optimising it for search engines.
Pro tip: Utilise SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timebound) goals to ensure you and everyone at your company has clarity on what they aim to achieve.
>See also: Six things to consider during e-commerce website development
An e-commerce website fit for purpose
Your e-commerce website is your online store, so it is vital to make sure that it is an excellent introduction to your business. More specifically, if your website is hard to navigate or slow to load, then customers are likely to leave without making a purchase. Similarly, if your website is not optimised for search engines, it will be difficult for potential customers to find you.
Pro tip: These days, you can build a high-quality website with all the necessary bells and whistles through a CMS like WordPress or Squarespace. So, you don’t have to spend vast sums of money on a developer or designer.
Invest in marketing channels
There are many different marketing channels that you can use to promote your ecommerce website. The most effective channels will vary depending on your products and target market.
Some of the most popular channels for e-commerce marketing include SEO, PPC, social media, email marketing, and affiliate marketing. Therefore, it is crucial to invest in different channels to reach the broadest possible audience.
SEO: Get found online
One of the most important aspects of e-commerce marketing is search engine optimisation (SEO). It optimises your website and content to appear as high as possible on search engine results pages (SERPs). That is because when potential customers search for products like yours online, you want them to be able to find your website.
Pro tip: Write a wide range of content on your topic to capitalise on topical SEO. That is where Google rewards your site because they believe you to be a topical expert due to your wide array of relevant content.
PPC: Pay per click advertising
Another effective ecommerce marketing technique is pay per click (PPC) advertising. It is a form of online advertising where you pay a fee every time someone clicks on one of your ads. PPC can be an effective way to drive traffic to your website and boost sales. However, it is essential to note that PPC can be expensive, so you need to target the right keywords.
Pro tip: Utilise geo-targeting to ensure that your campaigns are laser-focused and you don’t waste ad spend unnecessarily.
Social media: Increase brand awareness
Social media is a powerful tool that you can use for e-commerce marketing. It can help you increase brand awareness, drive traffic to your website, and boost sales. It’s also valuable in allowing you to reach your customers where they spend time.
Pro tip: Find micro-influencers in your niche and leverage them to elevate your brand. A micro-influencer with 10,000 followers will be infinitely more valuable to your brand than a huge (and likely more expensive) influencer with millions of followers.
Email marketing: build relationships with customers
Email marketing is another effective e-commerce marketing technique. It can help you build relationships with customers, promote new products, and drive traffic to your website.
Pro tip: Testing will likely be your best friend. You can use A/B testing to compare emails and see which works best. The best email marketers are constantly testing and never rest on their laurels.
Affiliate marketing: drive sales with partners
Affiliate marketing is a form of performance-based marketing. It means that you only pay affiliates when they drive sales. Affiliate marketing can be an effective way to boost sales and reach a wider audience.
Pro tip: Don’t wait for affiliates to come to you. Reach out to successful sites in your industry and entice them with custom offers, special discounts and even individualised landing pages.
Monitor your progress and adjust your strategy as needed
It is crucial to monitor your e-commerce marketing efforts to see what is working and what is not. You should track website traffic, conversion rate, and sales. It is imperative when doing small business marketing as every penny needs to be spent wisely.
Pro tip: Make sure you have key metrics that you monitor throughout your campaigns. Work out what is vital to your business and watch these metrics like a hawk.
Some good examples are:
- Conversion rate
- Traffic
- Average order value
- Social media engagement
- Social media follower count
- Customer lifetime value
Summary
If you follow these tips, you should be able to market your e-commerce website effectively in 2022. However, it is essential to remember that the digital marketing landscape is constantly changing, so you need to be prepared to adjust your strategy as needed.
James Cooper is founder and CEO of Convoboss, which empowers small business owners to succeed online with affordable, effective digital marketing solutions. His business leadership combines expert analytics, strategy and creative design with advanced digital marketing execution and performance. He is an entrepreneur and business consultant with over 10 years of experience helping Fortune 500 and SME clients achieve business success with digital marketing
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James Cooper, Khareem Sudlow
