5 ways to make your online store successful and generate sales

So you decided e-commerce was the way to go for your business and you put in place some measures in order to make your online store successful. If you’ve been paying attention, you’d be aware that the percentage of all retail sales projected to be made online by 2021 is 20%. This means the online or e-commerce space has lots of businesses to do.

But then, just as you’re aware of the expected online retail boom, countless others are also privy to such information and would want to cash in too. The result is that you’ll have competitors to contend with for domination or market share.

To stand out in a sea of competitors offering almost the same services as you do, you’d have to offer something unique that the others don’t have. You don’t necessarily need to do something profound. The little thing you neglect often mean a lot to customers, and these are the things we’ll focus on in this article.

Make your online store successful and push sales

Choose an easy to remember domain name

Think of all the major e-commerce sites, from Amazon, to Alibaba, to eBay, and Jumia, etc. What to they have in common? Short, easy to remember URLs. You don’t have to pick a domain name that becomes a chore for users to type into their browsers.

People are easily put off by long website names. Of course, the success or otherwise of your online store depends on a lot of other factors, however, don’t unwittingly become the architect of your own downfall.

Be professional, right from the onset

A common problem with many online businesses today is that they don’t pay as much attention to image quality as they should. In e-commerce, or the  business world for that matter, when people log on to your homepage and it has low quality and blurry images, no one would regard you with any amount of seriousness.

And the focus shouldn’t be on images alone either. The site layout should be well organized, the loading times faster, and the site should be easy to navigate. The typical online shopper may leave a review or suggestion based on their experience. Pay attention to that feedback they have given.

Properly brand your outlet

Proper branding walks hand in hand with looking professional. Although branding goes beyond just a logo and tagline, those two are the first impressions regular people get concerning your brand. Add things such as signage and advertising to that. It should be classy. Everyone loves classy.

Beyond that is the culture, or the vibe people can attest to about your business. Can you consistently present your business to be trusted to deliver on its promises? It takes months to get it right, however, as you’ll probably go through some light trial and error. Have a goal, give your customers a promise; and consistently work at that to make your online store successful.

Make use of social media and influencers

Social media is probably the most inexpensive way to effectively advertise while being able to track ROI (return on investment) in the modern era. Once you know your target audience, you’d know which social media platform is best for you to push your ads on. From Snapchat and Pinterest, to Facebook and Instagram; there’s a place for you to effectively play your cards.

So go ahead, identify your platform and create a profile. From there you can begin creating content to spark interaction with your audience. You can even strike partnerships with the right influencers on each platform to place your brand in front of their audiences and help make your online store successful.

Be known for your great customer service

You’ve heard it being said countless times that a customer is always right, right? Well, we all know that’s wrong. But how do you disagree with a customer without damaging your business’ reputation? That’s a question for another article. Customer service is strongly connected to your brand’s perception, and you should invest in providing service that’s top-notch.

For a modern e-commerce site, you should invest in chatbots, as well as push notifications. Chatbots are essential as they eliminate the need for a floor filled with customer service representatives. This saves you a lot in money, resources, and of course, time.

Customer satisfaction would result in great reviews that in turn drive more people towards your online store from all around the web.

___
by Julian Mawuli
source: jbKlutse