The whopping number of internet users today (5.18 billion) makes it necessary for companies to promote their business online. Further, with retail e-commerce sales estimated to reach almost $8.1 trillion by 2026 globally, businesses worldwide are making digital platforms one of the main aspects of their sales and marketing strategies.
This allows brands to present key information to their target audience, increase demand for their products or services, and generate leads/sales for their business.
If you are an e-commerce brand looking to make a mark in this competitive field, the best way is to build an e-commerce marketing plan that helps you address the needs of your unique target audience.
To help you navigate this better and reach your full potential, here is a quick guide to help you promote your e-commerce store.
What Is E-Commerce Marketing?
E-commerce marketing is a type of marketing that involves using various online channels to increase awareness for your e-commerce or online store.
Unlike a brick-and-mortar business that typically relies on a physical location to bring in traffic, e-commerce businesses leverage various online channels to enhance their reach and send relevant messages to their target audience.
Put simply, e-commerce marketing is the process of encouraging consumers to buy products or services that are sold online.
The tactics employed in this type of marketing include everything from search engine optimization (SEO) to email marketing, social media marketing, paid advertising, affiliate marketing, and more.
Types Of E-Commerce Marketing
E-commerce marketers today use a variety of channels to contact potential customers/new users while staying engaged with existing contacts. Among these are-
Email Marketing
Email marketing refers to sending promotional emails to customers to connect with them. It is considered one of the most effective tools for e-commerce and is estimated to reach almost 17.9 billion by 2027.
Marketers today send promotional emails based on the specific context, such as welcome emails, sale announcements, birthday celebrations, and exclusive offers. In this context-driven email landscape, DMARC configuring will ensure email authenticity, build customer trust, and maintain deliverability, optimizing targeted campaigns' impact.
Content Marketing
Many people don’t see the difference between copywriting vs content marketing, but content marketing is another inbound marketing technique that helps generate leads, build your brand and drive more users to your e-commerce website.
In this type, marketers use written articles, video content, and visuals to connect with customer needs through personalized online experiences.
Social Media Marketing
The market for social media apps was valued at $49.09 billion in 2022 and is projected to experience a CAGR of 26.2% from 2023 to 2030.
This is why an increasing number of e-commerce marketers are leveraging social platforms like Instagram and Facebook to advertise products, gain customer feedback, and sell products in-app.
Mobile Marketing
The latest mobile users statistics suggest that the number of global mobile users is expected to reach a whopping 7.49 billion by 2025. This means that most of the world's population will own a mobile device.
This makes mobile marketing an important area to prioritize for every business out there. Mobile marketing is largely about optimizing your e-commerce website for mobile users and connecting email, SMS, and social media to your mobile marketing efforts.
How To Promote Your Online Store-Your Guide
A powerful e-commerce marketing strategy helps you drive targeted traffic to your e-commerce store, sell more products online, and improve your revenue significantly.
This section will discuss key steps and strategies you can implement to grow your business online.
Invest In Social Media
Social media marketing is an excellent tool that allows you to easily communicate with your target market. Various social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc., can boost traffic to your website and generate engagement and interaction.
What is important, however, to make the most out of your social media e-commerce marketing efforts is to maintain a solid tone and personality of your brand, as consistency helps you create trust within your audience.
The need here for the marketing teams is to choose social media platforms that will be the right fit to manage and distribute this content.
For instance, people on Facebook would not want to see the same content as people on Instagram. Therefore, understanding which platforms your target customer base prefers to use is important.
Optimize Your Product Pages And Checkout Experiences
Optimizing the category and product pages of your e-commerce store can help you optimize your conversion rate. The focus here should be on ensuring that visitors to your pages can see the product easily and learn about its features or specifications. This will convince them to buy the product.
As a product marketer, using analytics data to determine which pages to optimize for conversions is important. This will help you identify where sales are coming from and where they may be lost.
In addition, it is important to ensure that the checkout process is optimized for the convenience of customers. You should also minimize the number of steps required for a prospective buyer to complete their purchase successfully.
Leverage Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is another popular strategy among e-commerce brands that wish to tap into a specific set of audiences through someone the community already trusts.
Data also suggests that 37% of shoppers trust influencers more than brands, making the channel an important part of your e-commerce marketing mix.
The strategy can specifically benefit the brands and organizations developing new products. They can send influencers free trial products in exchange for promotions, reviews on the product, and an increased reach for the brand.
Therefore, E-commerce marketing teams should consider influencer marketing a strong channel as it involves building positive relationships with influencers and ensuring they give positive reviews or feedback about the product.
Apart from these, here are a few other strategies you can employ to boost your online sales-
- Run A Referral Program
Utilizing a referral program can be a highly effective way to motivate your current customer base to recommend your e-commerce store to acquaintances, family, and friends. One of the best ways to promote referrals is by giving a free presentation or a discount to the new consumer and the referrer.
- Use Social Proofs
Another excellent marketing approach to promote your online store is to show off client reviews, testimonials, and other user-generated material.
This is a great way to increase customer trust and drive more transactions by highlighting the most favorable reviews and customer images on your website and social media platforms.
- Use Retargeting Advertising
Retargeting advertising is crucial for e-commerce businesses to connect with potential customers that have shown an interest in their brand. You can influence customers to revisit your website and buy a product by giving customized adverts.
If you’re running a new business, it would mean you have a lot on your plate. Hire an expert assistant for your startup to handle your promotions so you aren’t spreading yourself too thin.
In Conclusion
E-Commerce today is a 6.3 trillion dollar industry. Irrespective of the type of product you're selling, every brand always has a target audience if a proper strategy is implemented.
If you want to develop a strong online presence and grow your client base, start with a well-rounded e-commerce marketing strategy that can ultimately lead to higher sales and profitability.
In this post, we have shared a few of the proven e-commerce marketing tools and strategies to help you gain new customers and engage existing ones. All you have to remember is that personalization and creativity are the keys to improving your internet presence, making it easy for users to find your online store.
Alternatively, you can use Cococart to help you manage your online sales without apps or marketplaces that charge high fees and commissions. Contact us to know more.
