Ecommerce has arrived in a big way, and is here to stay.
Today, more and more small and medium businesses are turning to ecommerce to
improve their performance and figures. With a vast market to tap, ecommerce
sites are going all out to woo customers in a big way. However, businesses need
to keep up with the ever changing scenario and algorithms that can either make
or break a business. It is vital for fledgling businesses to keep up with the
times, lest they perish midway. Here are
some tips on how to keep up with the times.
Today, more and more small and medium businesses are turning to ecommerce to
improve their performance and figures. With a vast market to tap, ecommerce
sites are going all out to woo customers in a big way. However, businesses need
to keep up with the ever changing scenario and algorithms that can either make
or break a business. It is vital for fledgling businesses to keep up with the
times, lest they perish midway. Here are
some tips on how to keep up with the times.
1.
Tweak the Performance
Tweak the Performance
Today, most of the websites have more number of pages, which
have grown in size as well. This is because of the several new features that
are incorporated frequently. One problem with this development is that the
pages tend to become painfully slower, often irritating visitors who lose their
patience. According to Radware, today’s websites are markedly slower
by about 21% when compared to about a year ago. Almost half the websites
take an incredible 10 seconds to load, and the better equipped the website, the
slower it is. It is not a secret that such slow websites don’t tend to draw the
desirable traffic, subsequently affecting the conversion rates. Moreover, slow
web pages are not tolerated by mobile users as they almost come to a standstill.
With over half the traffic being attributed to mobile shoppers, it is all the
more important to tweak the performance of your web pages. A fast web page is
sure to attract better traffic. (Recently, Myntra.com announced to close it’s site on May 1st, 2015)
have grown in size as well. This is because of the several new features that
are incorporated frequently. One problem with this development is that the
pages tend to become painfully slower, often irritating visitors who lose their
patience. According to Radware, today’s websites are markedly slower
by about 21% when compared to about a year ago. Almost half the websites
take an incredible 10 seconds to load, and the better equipped the website, the
slower it is. It is not a secret that such slow websites don’t tend to draw the
desirable traffic, subsequently affecting the conversion rates. Moreover, slow
web pages are not tolerated by mobile users as they almost come to a standstill.
With over half the traffic being attributed to mobile shoppers, it is all the
more important to tweak the performance of your web pages. A fast web page is
sure to attract better traffic. (Recently, Myntra.com announced to close it’s site on May 1st, 2015)
2.
Keep Up With the Changes in SEO
Keep Up With the Changes in SEO
With the SEO factor playing a vital role in today’s
ecommerce business it is important to keep up with the changes. Last year alone
saw several changes that any ecommerce site cannot afford to ignore. Ecommerce
marketing companies need to be aware that Google
has recognized the mushrooming of mobile users and has highlighted mobile
friendly sites in searches. Google has done a lot of testing and hit upon using
https as one of the ranking signals.SEO experts need to take note of this and
have it implemented properly lest they end up with negative impact.
ecommerce business it is important to keep up with the changes. Last year alone
saw several changes that any ecommerce site cannot afford to ignore. Ecommerce
marketing companies need to be aware that Google
has recognized the mushrooming of mobile users and has highlighted mobile
friendly sites in searches. Google has done a lot of testing and hit upon using
https as one of the ranking signals.SEO experts need to take note of this and
have it implemented properly lest they end up with negative impact.
Moreover, Google is cracking down on suspicious looking links
that could be spam. Penguin 3 created ripples back in 2012; hence ecommerce
marketers should heed the warning and refrain from using anchor texts
excessively, more so when the text and title keywords match. Using paid links
and guest blogs too feature in spam detection.
that could be spam. Penguin 3 created ripples back in 2012; hence ecommerce
marketers should heed the warning and refrain from using anchor texts
excessively, more so when the text and title keywords match. Using paid links
and guest blogs too feature in spam detection.
3.
Don’t Ignore Your Analytics
Don’t Ignore Your Analytics
Auditing your analytics is an important part of the strategy
to keep up with today’s scenario. Don’t worry too much if you do not have a
capable in-house team to take care of the auditing of your analytics. You could
always hire the services of an expert consulting company to take care of the
audit of your analytics. Analytics audit ensures that the general
implementation is not lagging. You can be sure that every page is tracked with
the necessary tags; dashboards do their job of collecting the correct data, and
account filters function properly by pulling up the appropriate data. Auditing
analytics helps keep track of all micro and macro conversions, including the
several campaigns that may be active. Mobile tracking too needs to be properlyimplemented. Even if you have had an audit done recently, it is always
advisable to go in for an update to ensure nothing gets missed out. The
campaign strategies used last year may be obsolete for all you know, and the
only way to find out is through auditing your analytics by using the services
of an expert.
to keep up with today’s scenario. Don’t worry too much if you do not have a
capable in-house team to take care of the auditing of your analytics. You could
always hire the services of an expert consulting company to take care of the
audit of your analytics. Analytics audit ensures that the general
implementation is not lagging. You can be sure that every page is tracked with
the necessary tags; dashboards do their job of collecting the correct data, and
account filters function properly by pulling up the appropriate data. Auditing
analytics helps keep track of all micro and macro conversions, including the
several campaigns that may be active. Mobile tracking too needs to be properlyimplemented. Even if you have had an audit done recently, it is always
advisable to go in for an update to ensure nothing gets missed out. The
campaign strategies used last year may be obsolete for all you know, and the
only way to find out is through auditing your analytics by using the services
of an expert.
4.
Mobile
users need to be reckoned with
Mobile
users need to be reckoned with
No ecommerce marketer worth his salt will ignore mobile
users today. Over two thirds of emails are read using mobile devices. Only 40%
of browsers using desktops access their social media network accounts. The
rest, a good 60% prefer to log into their accounts using their mobiles. What’s
more is 60% of the search traffic
is directly attributed to mobile. This translates to almost 30 to 50%
percent of traffic that comes to any ecommerce site is from mobile. Hence, if
you haven’t gone in for responsive web designing/redesigning, it is high time
you did. Smartphones and tablets play a major role today, and have a say in
today’s sway in traffic to ecommerce marketing sites. Marketers cannot deny the
fact that the customer acquisition rate has increased drastically, thanks to
mobile users. Considerable research has gone into the purchase patterns of
mobile users, and more often than not, the trend tends to be viral in nature.
users today. Over two thirds of emails are read using mobile devices. Only 40%
of browsers using desktops access their social media network accounts. The
rest, a good 60% prefer to log into their accounts using their mobiles. What’s
more is 60% of the search traffic
is directly attributed to mobile. This translates to almost 30 to 50%
percent of traffic that comes to any ecommerce site is from mobile. Hence, if
you haven’t gone in for responsive web designing/redesigning, it is high time
you did. Smartphones and tablets play a major role today, and have a say in
today’s sway in traffic to ecommerce marketing sites. Marketers cannot deny the
fact that the customer acquisition rate has increased drastically, thanks to
mobile users. Considerable research has gone into the purchase patterns of
mobile users, and more often than not, the trend tends to be viral in nature.
5. More meaningful propositions
An ecommerce marketer may have a value proposition to offer, however it may not be enough unless it is compelling and matches the needs of the customer. A great way is to make use of coupons and deals and persuade the customers to buy more. Make use of coupon sharing sites like Couponmachine or Groupon to get even more referral customers back to your main site. No point in coming with a great offer that not many are interested in. Moreover, price alone should never be a consideration that a customer looks for, always try to add more value to the product by focusing more on the benefits than the price alone. Marketers may include campaigns like PPC, where only the most persuasive will come out successful in today’s highly competitive market.
6.
Email
delivery optimization
delivery optimization
Although the social media has weaned away most of the crowd,
who prefer to ping and chat on these sites, email
is still a force to reckon with. Over 90% of the existing email users check
their inboxes at least once in a day, if not a couple of times. Most US email
users are bombarded with not less than 11 brands through email. The figure for
Facebook is 9, and Twitter is not far behind with 8. Email fares better at
customer acquisition when compared to Facebook and Twitter, and the conversion
rates too are better with email users. Users too prefer to get updates through
email, instead of Facebook, as they believe the record is permanent and
accessible at any time. Almost half the email users have made a minimum of one
purchase by responding to email campaigns. However, it is important to ensure that
the emails reach the recipients. For this any emails that bounce need to be
removed instantly. Making the ‘unsubscribe’ option easier is important. Avoid
cumbersome steps that can irritate a customer. It makes sense to always get the
permission of the prospective customer first, before proceeding, so that time
is not wasted with uninterested customers.
who prefer to ping and chat on these sites, email
is still a force to reckon with. Over 90% of the existing email users check
their inboxes at least once in a day, if not a couple of times. Most US email
users are bombarded with not less than 11 brands through email. The figure for
Facebook is 9, and Twitter is not far behind with 8. Email fares better at
customer acquisition when compared to Facebook and Twitter, and the conversion
rates too are better with email users. Users too prefer to get updates through
email, instead of Facebook, as they believe the record is permanent and
accessible at any time. Almost half the email users have made a minimum of one
purchase by responding to email campaigns. However, it is important to ensure that
the emails reach the recipients. For this any emails that bounce need to be
removed instantly. Making the ‘unsubscribe’ option easier is important. Avoid
cumbersome steps that can irritate a customer. It makes sense to always get the
permission of the prospective customer first, before proceeding, so that time
is not wasted with uninterested customers.
7.
Include
international customers
Include
international customers
Internet has ensured that there can be no geographical
boundaries as far as businesses or customers are concerned. However, it doesn’t
make too much sense when an ecommerce marketer shoots an email about promotions
for Thanksgiving to a recipient located in Timbuktu, it obviously doesn’t
make any sense at all. Hence it is important to segment emails geographically.
This way, you won’t have someone ordering something that you simply cannot
deliver thousands of miles away. Emails also need to have content that is country
specific. Everyone knows that a flat in US usually denotes a flat tire; however
a flat in the UK denotes an apartment. Categories need to be labeled
appropriately according to the market they are meant for. It the site is a
bilingual or multilingual one, ensure that the respective language experts are
used for not just content creation, but for follow up through email, and for
campaigns on the social media.
boundaries as far as businesses or customers are concerned. However, it doesn’t
make too much sense when an ecommerce marketer shoots an email about promotions
for Thanksgiving to a recipient located in Timbuktu, it obviously doesn’t
make any sense at all. Hence it is important to segment emails geographically.
This way, you won’t have someone ordering something that you simply cannot
deliver thousands of miles away. Emails also need to have content that is country
specific. Everyone knows that a flat in US usually denotes a flat tire; however
a flat in the UK denotes an apartment. Categories need to be labeled
appropriately according to the market they are meant for. It the site is a
bilingual or multilingual one, ensure that the respective language experts are
used for not just content creation, but for follow up through email, and for
campaigns on the social media.
8.
Know
your social media strategy well
Know
your social media strategy well
Today, the social media strategy that any ecommerce marketer
adopts helps either make or break a business. The social media networks keep
constantly changing their rules and often make it difficult for marketers to
reach their target audience. However, one cannot deny the fact that the social
media can prove to be a powerful ally for any marketing organization. They can
help with branding and lend you the much needed authenticity that can make your
brand accepted by a large audience. It is important to develop a channel
strategy by studying the pluses and minuses of each social media channel.
Selecting the appropriate content for the particular channel is also very
important.
adopts helps either make or break a business. The social media networks keep
constantly changing their rules and often make it difficult for marketers to
reach their target audience. However, one cannot deny the fact that the social
media can prove to be a powerful ally for any marketing organization. They can
help with branding and lend you the much needed authenticity that can make your
brand accepted by a large audience. It is important to develop a channel
strategy by studying the pluses and minuses of each social media channel.
Selecting the appropriate content for the particular channel is also very
important.
9.
Refining
site search
Refining
site search
Site
searches have to be usable and effective at the same time, lest they do not
serve the purpose they are meant for. Ensure that the site searches are more
contextual in nature, and always feature contextual snippets. The searches also
need to serve query-based list views, and ensure that there is a perfect match
between the query and the product attributes that the customer seeks. Remember
that the visitor’s attention needs to be held the first time, as most people
browsing do not spend too much time at a site unless the search proves to be
fruitful.
searches have to be usable and effective at the same time, lest they do not
serve the purpose they are meant for. Ensure that the site searches are more
contextual in nature, and always feature contextual snippets. The searches also
need to serve query-based list views, and ensure that there is a perfect match
between the query and the product attributes that the customer seeks. Remember
that the visitor’s attention needs to be held the first time, as most people
browsing do not spend too much time at a site unless the search proves to be
fruitful.
10.
SEM
too needs auditing
SEM
too needs auditing
Google Adwords made a drastic decision last year with the
removal of the exact match type feature. Although this change was incorporated
quite a while ago, negative keywords are still being used to stop ads popping
up irrelevantly. Moreover, it makes sense to ensure that the ‘sold out’ and ‘no
longer available’ products do not feature in the current campaigns. The least a
marketer can do is offer an appropriate substitute, if one is available.
Otherwise, it is better to remove such products as they can have a negative
effect on customers. SEM
auditing is crucial these days.
removal of the exact match type feature. Although this change was incorporated
quite a while ago, negative keywords are still being used to stop ads popping
up irrelevantly. Moreover, it makes sense to ensure that the ‘sold out’ and ‘no
longer available’ products do not feature in the current campaigns. The least a
marketer can do is offer an appropriate substitute, if one is available.
Otherwise, it is better to remove such products as they can have a negative
effect on customers. SEM
auditing is crucial these days.
On the whole, today’s ecommerce marketers need to focus on
not just feeling the pulse of the customer, but also in keeping up with the
latest trends in online marketing. With changing algorithms having become the
norm, change itself is the order of the day.
not just feeling the pulse of the customer, but also in keeping up with the
latest trends in online marketing. With changing algorithms having become the
norm, change itself is the order of the day.
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