16 Strategies For Increasing Your Online Sales

Many customers who began online shopping due to COVID-19 stay-at-home orders are turning into loyal online shoppers. With some fundamental strategy and marketing tactics, you can capture the benefits of this trend to increase your online sales and build loyalty to your company.

There are a lot of ideas on our list to select from, so choose a few that work best for your business and dive in. 

* Understand your target audience

To make the right decisions about your products and marketing activities, you need to understand your customers. When you have a brick-and-mortar store, you can have conversations with your customers right there and find out what appeals to them. When your customers are online, you have to proactively take steps to learn about them.

By using analytics tools in your online store and point-of-sale (POS) system, you can identify purchasing patterns and preferences. While nothing can replace a face-to-face conversation, you still have lots of opportunities, including email, online chat, and phone calls, to ask questions to learn about your customers. 

* Use analytics to learn how customers find your store 

You want to use your time and marketing resources wisely. By using analytics tools such as Google Analytics to research how customers who make purchases are finding your store, you can then better focus your marketing efforts. For example, if you get a lot of traffic to your cookware store from a blog post about healthy eating, you should write more content on that topic. If almost all your sales are coming from Facebook ads, it may be worth it to invest in more advertising.

* Find your unique selling proposition

What do you offer that no one else can? What is the story behind your store, your products, and yourself?

Once you know what makes you different, you need to shout it from the virtual rooftops. You can include it in your tagline, make it prominent on your home page, announce it in social media ads, and highlight it in your email marketing. By building your marketing campaigns and efforts around your unique selling proposition, you give people a reason to come to your online store and, most importantly, buy your products. 

* Simplify customer experience 

You want it to be as easy as possible for customers to find what they are looking for and then buy it. If your analytics show a high number of people are visiting your site and leaving without buying, your customer experience may be the reason.

Enlist friends and family representatives of your target audience and watch them go through the process of finding and purchasing items in your online store. Look for areas where they struggle or make missteps. Common areas to fix include your website's search feature, product navigation, and checkout.

* Focus on customer service

Customers value great service. According to a Zendesk report, 84% of survey respondents reported that customer service is a key factor when deciding whether to purchase. Create a contact page on your website that clearly shows how to contact you. Include a phone number, email address, and chat link if you have one. To help people get answers right away, add an FAQ page to your website.

Most importantly, when customers contact you, respond promptly. Since in-person conversation is rare with online stores, use the opportunity to build the relationship as much as possible.

* Provide a chat feature on your website

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, more customers have started to rely on chat to communicate with businesses. If you don’t have a chat feature, add one to your website and monitor it throughout the day.

Since you can’t be tied to your computer 24 hours a day, include an autoresponder to let customers know when you will return. You can also use Virtual Agent Technology (VAT), which is a plug-in for your website that immediately answers common and basic questions for customers.

* Create a simple checkout process

While the checkout process is part of the user experience, it’s a big sticking point for many sales and deserves extra attention. Offer a guest checkout option so customers can buy without filling in long forms. Break up the checkout into multiple pages or an expanding page to keep from overwhelming the customer with buyer information fields. Keep the text short and concise. Use standard buttons and verbiage, such as a “Buy” button and a shopping cart icon.

* Select the right eCommerce platform for your needs

By choosing a platform that has a simple process and management features, your customers can easily navigate your site. Then you can spend more time growing your business instead of growing your store. If you don’t need a full website, choose a platform such as Square Online Checkout, which allows customers to pay online without you needing to have a full website. 

* Don't forget SEO

In a brick-and-mortar store, customers can see your kiosk or storefront and come right in. But with an online store, you must help them find you. You’ll want to specifically work on improving your search engine ranking for terms your customers search to find your business. In fact, a 2019 Statista study found that search led to 65% of all eCommerce sessions. Square makes it easy for you to set up your site and pages for SEO.

* Create content

When people have a question, they head to Google and look for the answer. By creating content that provides interesting and relevant information to your customers, you can help people find your eCommerce store through SEO. Instead of writing about your products, address common challenges or ways to use your products. If you sell dog toys, write about fun games to play with your dog or how to help dogs with separation anxiety. Because search engines prioritize pages that provide consistent content, be sure to write new posts on a regular basis.

* Put customer reviews on product pages

While it may feel scary to let customers share both positive and negative comments about your products on your page, adding customer reviews can increase your sales. Moz found that 67% of customers are influenced by online reviews. And if a product consistently gets poor reviews, it’s a sign that you should either address the issues or discontinue the product. When adding reviews, let customers leave both a star rating and a comment. Make it as easy as possible for customers to write reviews. Even better, use an eCommerce platform with the feature built in.

* Use responsive design 

With 1 in 4 customers using mobile devices to make purchases, your online store should be easy to navigate and purchase from when using a mobile device. Use an eCommerce platform that has responsive design, which means it makes websites render properly on a smartphone. Your customers can buy products with whatever device is in their hands, at any time that is convenient for them.

* Showcase your products with high-quality photos 

Photos matter. If necessary, invest in a professional photographer to take high-quality pictures that show your products’ features. Make sure the photos accurately represent the products, because 22% of online product returns happen when the item looks different than the photo. If you can't hire a pro, check out these tips for taking enticing product photos yourself. Post more than one image of a product. Salsify reported that 60% of U.S. digital shoppers need to see an average of three to four images when shopping online.

* Connect with customers through email marketing 

Email marketing may seem old-school, but it works. By using an eCommerce platform that automatically collects email addresses, you can easily share sales, new products, and tips with your customers. You can also collect more email addresses by offering a subscription option to your blog or offering a discount code. Consider creating an email newsletter so your customers hear from you on a regular basis.

* Keep shipping costs as low as possible

With many large retailers offering free shipping, consumers often don’t think about shipping charges until they get to checkout. Baymard Institute found that 50% of U.S. consumers say they abandon items in their cart because of extra fees like shipping. When possible, build shipping costs into your products so you can offer free shipping. If that doesn’t seem feasible, consider offering free shipping for a minimum order or providing a flat rate for shipping up front. 

* Be active on social media

By consistently sharing content on social media that’s interesting to your target audience, you can help new customers find your store and build loyalty with current customers. Hootsuite found that 52% of all online brand discovery still happens in public social feeds. On Instagram, share high-quality pictures of your products or videos of your products being used. After all, 92% of Instagram users say that they followed a brand, clicked the website, or bought a product after seeing it on the platform.

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The 8 different types of websites and how to choose the right one

As a designer or small business owner, you need to be familiar with all the different kinds of web pages out there, so you can decide which will meet your needs. Studying what competitors chose and conducting testing allow you to create the perfect format for each brand and their customer base.

1.Homepages

The homepage is your site’s main hub and serves as the face of a brand.

Your homepage helps site visitors get to different areas of the site, and it can also serve as a conversion funnel. Because most people come to you through your homepage, this is where design matters most.

A homepage can take on many different forms, but while designing it’s important to remember the purpose of the homepage as the main navigation and point of interest for site visitors. Make it clear what the business is and offer the unique value proposition (UVP) upfront. Establish the site’s hierarchy and navigation structure on the homepage. Utilize your brand’s color palette, logo and images highly relevant to the business. The homepage sets the tone for the business’ image, so it should tell a story about who you are through images and words.

Via Matcha Kari

Matcha Kari is an excellent example of this type of website. Note the navigation at the top of the page that sets the tone for what you’ll find on the site. Since the page serves as the beginning of the conversion funnel, visitors can get a coupon, subscribe to the mailing list or watch a video about their products.

2. Magazine websites

A magazine website features articles, photos and videos that are informational and educational. In the last twenty years, the magazine industry has changed from a print-only platform to largely digital format. The magazine website type works well for informational websites, particularly publications from universities and organizations.

As you think about creating a magazine site, start by building a basic framework. Users should see a similar layout no matter what day they land on your homepage, and each article must have a similar layout and navigation. Keep in mind how responsive the overall design is to different screen sizes to make sure your content is easily readable both on desktops and smartphones.

Via Urban Omnibus

Urban Omnibus is an example for an online magazine website with a fairly traditional magazine layout. The theme of their current issue is highlighted with a hero image and a box describing what’s in the feature article. Under the featured post is a grid layout of each column in the magazine with an image, headline and brief description of what readers find inside each article.

3. E-commerce websites

An e-commerce website is an online shopping destination where users can purchase products or services from your company.

A robust e-commerce web page makes it easy to browse products, filter by categories, highlight special sales and make purchases.

Via Flipkart

An easy way to get started is through a full-solution, e-commerce platform like Shopify or Squarespace. Your team can easily update online inventory and list new products. Plus, because the system is interconnected, sales, logistics and marketing are all kept apprised of what’s working well. On the design front, e-commerce platforms offer several templates that match the needs of nearly any business type.

Flipkart is an example for this type of e-commerce website. They sell a wide range of products, which means there are a lot of items featured on their homepage. Note how they break items into specific categories but also offer highlighted deals of the day on their homepage. Each image is professional and shows the product clearly, but descriptions are initially brief, with more detail on the product page.

4. Blogs

A blog features regularly updated articles, photos and videos. Blogs started with more casual, personal content compared to magazines. But since then, the lines have blurred, and now it’s extremely common for major brands and businesses to have their own blog. Adding expert content improves the overall credibility of a company or an individual. Blogs also provide material for social media posts and email campaigns.

However, a blog can also become cumbersome for smaller companies. Make sure you have a team and strategy in place to keep content fresh before you consider launching one. It’s actually better not to have a blog and instead offer a few videos or guides, than to have a hopelessly outdated blog.

Via Nourish Eats

Nourish Eats is an example for a blog website that keeps things simple and focused on the content. Instead of using a slider at the top of the page, the site integrates a rotating slider to the right, which goes through the different categories on the site. The slider keeps the content fresh and engages users. Users can navigate at any point or use the arrows to go forward or back.

5. Portfolio websites

A portfolio website allows creative professionals a place for showcasing their best work. This is perfect for artists, writers, designers, filmmakers, furniture builders—you name it.

As you build a portfolio, there’s no need to add every single project you’ve ever worked on. Instead, focus on creating categories of items and highlighting the best work from each category. A portfolio website is a bit more creative by nature, so this is the place to try unique layouts and add interesting features.

Via Gautier Maillard

For example, the online portfolio for designer Gautier Maillard is the perfect blend of creativity and best project highlights. As the user scrolls down the page, different images get highlighted. Click on any image, and you see ad campaigns from the project. If you want to know more about the designer, click the about navigation button in the upper right corner and learn that he lives in Paris, where he’s studied and what projects he worked on. This layout and strategy work because the focus is on his actual work and the text is limited. Users process and remember images better than text alone.

6. Landing pages

A landing page is a specific type of website created for a marketing campaign that drives visitors to take a specific action.

The content on a landing page should be limited and point toward the call-to-action (CTA) you’d like the user to take. Allow plenty of white space around your CTA and save elements not related to the purpose of that campaign for other pages.

Via Shopify

Shopify’s free trial landing page is an example of this type of website. It provides simple headlines and calls to action, such as “Start free trial.” All the elements on the page drive the buyer through a very specific journey meant to have them become a qualified lead. They use relevant, trendy images and add a bit of a 3D effect with the sunglasses in the corner while also showing what one of their shopping sites layouts looks like.

7. Social media websites

There are approximately 2.77 billion people on social media with dozens of different platforms available. No matter who your target audience is, you’ll probably find them on Facebook or Twitter or Instagram or Snapchat or LinkedIn. Although you can’t redesign the platforms themselves, you do have some control over the look of your page, and you can create content that drives social media shares.

Go for a consistent look across all your social media pages and web pages, so users instantly know your brand is behind the page. Use the same logo and color choices. Choose a specific voice and personality that shines across all content.

When creating content, focus on things that have a high potential of being shared on social media, such as entertaining videos, infographics, memes, in-depth reports and free offers. Find more tips on how to make your social media pages work for your business here.

Via Nutella on Facebook

Nutella’s Facebook page for example shows an interesting mix of content that all align with the overall color palette and look of the brand. They feature memes made specifically for social media, such as “Today, I’ll share my Nutella with…” However, they also offer videos and ideas for how to use their product in unique ways. Note how they also feature social media buttons on their website so users easily find them on the different platforms.

8. Directory and contact pages

A directory or contact page is a place where users can connect with you or others.

This type of website works well when you want to list a repository of businesses or people within an organization. For example, a local restaurant directory features eateries in the area with menus, price ranges, phone number and reviews.

The nature of an organization creates an opportunity for a directory website. For example, an association of local dentists in a city might list each member, their area of expertise and their contact information. Keep this design option in your back pocket for clients.

Via Manta

Manta is a business directory website featuring small businesses based on location. In addition to keyword search capability, the site offers category browsing in areas such as restaurants, contractors and doctors. Companies can add an entry to the directory and the site earns money through advertising.

Choose the right type of website for your audience

Good design is much more than simply an appealing look, but also drives user engagement and is highly targeted to the needs of the audience viewing the site. Pay attention to what other companies have done with their website design and quickly identify which format works best for each project. Knowing what others have accomplished with different types of websites gives you a strong feel for the kind of website that will work best for you.

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Top 9 Benefits of Having a Website

                                      

Today, having a company website is as crucial as having a shop, office or telephone number. Research has found that 6/10 customers expect brands to have content online about their business. Why wait any longer your customers are looking for you! If you own or operate a business which hasn't taken that step into the online world, here are 10 reasons that will leave you wondering why you hadn't done it sooner

1 Online Presence 24/7

Having a website means customers are always able to find you – anytime, anywhere. Even outside of business hours, your website continues to find and secure new customers. It offers the user convenience as they can access the information they need in the comfort of their own home, with no added pressure to buy. Plus, as most companies nowadays have their own website, there’s every chance you could be losing customers to your competitors by staying offline

2. Information Exchange

At its simplest, a website provides a quick and easy way of communicating information between buyers and sellers. You can list your opening hours, contact information, show images of your location or products, and use contact forms to facilitate enquiries from potential customers or feedback from existing ones. You can even upload promotional videos to really engage your customers and sell your business in an effective and cost efficient way. This is also a good way to promote your social media channels and build up a community with your customers  

3. Credibility

In today’s modern world, there is an expectation for any reputable company to have some kind of online presence. Potential customers would likely be distrusting of any business that didn't have a telephone number or a physical address, and the same can be said for not having a website and email address. These are useful tools to share crucial information about your business with customers and answer all the What’s and Why’s that they may have. What’s more, having a good quality, easy-to-use website makes customers feel comfortable using your services, as they will assume they can expect the same positive experience in all areas of your business.

4. It Cuts Costs

As well as simply displaying information, you can also use your website to sell goods & services directly to consumers, in some cases removing the need to use “brick-and-mortar” stores which involve large operating costs (staff wages, rental, utilities to name just a few). Eliminating these overheads will also allow you to lower your prices, giving your business that real competitive edge. It can also be used internally within your business; do you have any news you want to share with colleagues or have any important information that can be accessed by management? Having an internal website can save you a lot of time as everything you need is one place and can be accessed at any time.

5. Consumer Insights

Analytic tools allow you to identify who your typical customer is, how they found you, what they like, and adapt your business to maximise purchases through your site. The diverse range of data available can also help you better understand how your social media channels affect your brand, and can even highlight opportunities to change the offline aspects of your business such as branch opening times, promotions and product ranges.

6. Advertising

Tools like Google AdWords or advertising on Facebook give you the power to reach customers with much more accuracy and reliability than with traditional offline advertising methods. SEO and online advertising are a great way to help build up awareness, if it’s done correctly traffic to your website can see an increase. Be the first company that a potential new customer sees when searching for a specific product or service online, and use your website's contact page or e-commerce features to make purchasing a product or finding a retail outlet easier than ever before.

7. Competitors Online

If you don’t have a website it is highly likely that your competitor will do, this means that you are missing out on gaining new customers and can be in the forefront of their minds. It is crucial that no opportunities are missed and are gained by the competition.

8. Customer Service Online

Websites provide an easier way to handle customer service. Offering answers to regularly asked questions in a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section, you can reduce customer service costs and save yourself time and money, as well as providing much more information. This also means that customers can receive a reply instantly and saves time, which helps to encourage positive customer relations in the long run. This could be a benefit for you, all positive feedback can be uploaded into a testimonial, your customers are happy why not show it off?!

9. Growth Opportunity

Websites, in general, are great ways to in providing a place that potential investors can be referred to. It shows what your company is about, what it has achieved and what it can achieve in the future.

                   

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