People today want to be served
The world of information technology is advancing every day. Today, over 48% of the total population actively uses the internet. This makes up to more than 3.8 billion people with access to the World Wide Web. This is because these days, everything and anything you can imagine or need is available online. You do not have to get out of the house or even move an inch in your chair to be served with what you want. People prefer staying indoors and do their shopping from behind a screen. They do not want to bother with travelling to a store, dealing with traffic on the way, and physically paying for their desired item and then carrying it back home. Whether it is a carton of milk that you are looking for or want to buy new furniture to match the curtains in the lounge; everything is accessible to you with only a couple of clicks. There is nothing that is too far from you and cannot be delivered right at your doorstep at a time of your convenience.
There has never been a better time to have an online business
Because of the people’s desire to be served with everything sitting at home, there has never been a better time to run a business online. The world is embracing the trend of online shopping with open arms. Online businesses today are doing much better than their physical counterparts. Setting up an online business is easy, cost-effective, and does not require much labor. All of these factors have led to a new online shop opening up every two seconds. Online businesses are springing up left and right, taking advantage of the open market.
The world of online businesses is a jungle – and only the fittest survive
Although setting up an entity online has become as easy as ABC, the entire opposite is true about running one. Due to so many businesses opening up online, there are bound to be more than a few that offer the same products and services. This has created extremely fierce competition in the market. Many new online businesses fail before they have even recovered their costs for setting up. In this hostile corporate world, there is survival of the fittest – and the fittest is the one who gets the most business. An important aspect of getting new business as well as maintaining old one is advertising to an audience. Let us look upon some creative ways to market your commodities that will place you on the top as the highest competitor.
Have an aesthetic website
What is the first thing that a customer will notice when he visits the website of an online store? It is not the quality of the products, nor is it the cost per piece. What immediately makes an impression in his mind is the state of the website itself. Having an attractive website can encourage even a no intending customer to stay, whereas a website that is in shambles can drive away many potential customers. Consider employing an ecommerce website design company to make your website look attractive. Having a website that is easy to surf will enhance your customers’ online shopping experience, and they will be sure to consider you when they plan their next online shopping binge. After all, the saying goes; “the first impression is the last impression.”
Build a connection
Businesses that put due emphasis on building a good client-business connections are the ones that are successful in today’s world.7 out of 10 American customers say that they do business with companies that are known for their customer service. It is not enough, or even necessary, to have the best product in the market to be on top of the pyramid today. It is not always the superior service or product that sells – a business that ensures customer satisfaction to the utmost degree is what makes the cut these days. Talk to your customers and solve any issues if present. If customers are unhappy, study why. Then adapt to their needs and solve any conflicts. Having a good customer service is one of the best ways to up your sales. Keeping your customer happy will keep you happy.
Sales and discounts
Though holding sales and discounts may sound an economic mistake and is not compatible with the long run, running a few short sales here and there can help create new business. When you reduce your prices, you gain the attention of the crowd. This means a whole new customer base gets to try your product. Given your great customer service and exceptional quality of products, these new customers may become loyal to you and shop only from you in the future. The same principle lies with giving away free samples – you basically have to make your products as available to the potential customers as you can afford to.
Collaborate with other entities
Hunt down other online businesses that offer commodities which complement yours, and partner up. For example, if you are to open an online leather jacket store, consider partnering up with a store that sells denim pants. In this way, you will double your advertising with zero costs, and each will share their customer base with the other. Impressed by the two products working together so well, there might even be some altogether new customers for both of you.
Invest in SEO
Search Engine Optimization is a digital marketing technique that brings you more website traffic. When the customer searches for a product or service, a business that has invested in SEO is much more likely to show up at the top of the search results than a business which does not practice SEO. Greater web traffic means that more potential customers are viewing your products and you are making your presence known. These links back up to enhancing your customer’s shopping experience by being easy to find and visible on the internet.
Provide incentives to get the customer hooked on
A creative way to get people to buy from you is to give attractive offers on the first buy. Doing so will again get more people to sample your products and could become loyal to you. You could also try rewarding your loyal customers with offers and discounts and encourage them to buy more. Hold giveaways and competitions for your customers to remind them of your presence. Make it seem like the customer is getting the best deal ever at your online store and you will up your sales in no time.
Use a cause to get more customers
Invest in a worthwhile cause that you believe in. A good example of this would be for a restaurant to replace plastic straws with biodegradable ones to capture the attention of those who care for the environment. Going green is all the rage right now. Not only is it the right thing to do, but it can also be used as a marketing strategy to generate greater revenues. A lot of the times, it is not the product which decides if a customer buys from you or your rival company – it is the personalities of both businesses that influence this decision. Build up an agreeable personality and an image that is loved to survive the fierce competition you are surrounded by.
Tell a story
If you can exploit people’s sentiments and emotions with your advertisements, you are guaranteed to get the most customers. Use your products and services to tell a story about how they influence the lives of your customers. An emotional, quirky advertisement that your target audience can relate to is what you need to be the best in business. Capturing the attention of your customer is not enough – maintain that attention is also something you need to focus on. Keep your customer engaged with creative blog content that entertains them.
Incentivize referrals
Although organic referrals from the customers who have experienced your commodities and loved them are the best to influence other people to buy from you, you can go one step farther. Your online business having its own social media presence is something everyone is already doing. Around 93% of customers turn to social media to decide what to buy. You can hire bloggers and influencers on social media to try your products and recommend them in their blog posts and articles – with a link to your website. Targeted blog content can pave your entire way to the top.
There are countless influencers on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram with huge fan followings that are responsible for a great chunk of business for various online shops and stores. The followers of these influencers feel that they can trust the word of these personalities and are often encouraged to shifting their decision from buying from a rival business to buying from the one their favorite influencer endorses.
Offer something new to broaden your customer base
Though it is a no brainer really, this is one thing that can highly affect the profit you generate in a limited amount of times. Introducing a new product or service means you are now catering to a greater market. Customers that would have no reason to do business with you before will be buying from you – and who knows, maybe while they are buying one thing, they might end up buying your other products as well.
Conclusion
Every online business must come up with effective and creative marketing techniques if they wish to keep themselves afloat. People are no longer impressed by the same old advertising tips and tricks – instead, they want to leave a sales page as soon as they arrive on one. You can only sell your product and avoid bankruptcy if you keep your customer engaged and entertained through new, colorful ways. The above are only a few ways you can keep old customers and generate new ones. How much farther you go in entirely dependent on you and your marketing team – the sky is the beginning, and then there is outer space.
Author Bio:
About Ashley Rosa: Ashley Rosa is a freelance writer and blogger. As writing is her passion that why she loves to write articles related to the latest trends in technology and sometimes on health-tech as well. She is crazy about chocolates. You can find her at twitter: @ashrosa2.
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