And you - would you like to be a customer of your own e-shop?
11 December 2019
Wondering how to succeed in the e-commerce industry? Do you want to have an outstanding online shop where customers love to buy? Running your own sales platform is sometimes challenging, and simply selling online is usually not enough - even when you offer excellent quality products. So what can you do to climb to the top and grow your business? Contrary to what you may think, it is not such a difficult task!
Online sales platform - what annoys buyers?
Increasingly, instead of going shopping at the mall, we prefer to turn on the computer and search for the items we are interested in in the comfort of our own home. It only takes a few clicks of the mouse, a transfer and the wait for the courier . However, buying online is not always without problems. Sales platforms can take too long to load, and it is not uncommon for a product to be out of stock after clicking on an advert. When this happens, there can only be one reaction: upset and disappointment - the customer quickly closes the page and does not enter it again. Problems most often occur during peak shopping periods, such as Black Friday, before Christmas or during seasonal sales. What else annoys consumers? Here are the most common reasons:
- cumbersome phone buying process - The e-commerce industry is increasingly leaning towards mobile devices, as these are the devices we use most often. A shop that is not adapted to smartphones will make it difficult to view offers and order items;
- lack of convenient payment methods - Two or three options to pay for goods are definitely not enough these days - customers want to have a choice. Some pay by traditional bank transfer, others prefer cash on delivery. Not having a preferred method of paying for an order is one of the most common reasons for shopping cart abandonment;
- uninteresting and too brief product descriptions - When shopping on an online sales platform, consumers are not able to see the goods with their own eyes and therefore fear a wrong purchase decision. For this reason, they pay a lot of attention to the pictures and descriptions - these should not only neatly explain the functions of the item, but also encourage them to buy. Interesting descriptions will help build brand image;
- inadequate protection of products prior to dispatch - receiving a damaged order is bound to disappoint even the most understanding customer - no one wants to pay for goods with visible defects;
- Difficult to contact the sales platform staff - After paying for the shopping cart or during the transaction, additional questions may arise. The prolonged waiting time for an answer or the lack of an answer makes the buyer lose confidence and start to worry about whether he or she will receive the order.
Running a sales platform - appropriate communication
Do you want your online shop to grow faster? Do you want to increase the number of regular customers? Then be sure to ensure smooth, seamless communication. Make your customers feel that they are your priority and that they can contact your service team with any question they may have about an order or a particular product. Above all, go for naturalness and do not create unnecessary distance - there is always a human being on the other side. A brand presence on social media is already a must. Customers like to use modern portals for communication - make sure that they always receive a reply. Of course, don't neglect the helpline and answering emails either.
Sales platform - the power of online marketing
A well-functioning and intuitive e-shop filled with valuable products is not enough to achieve sales success. We still need to reach our audience with a properly developed promotional strategy - an ill-considered advertisement from time to time is not enough. So what needs to be done? Internet marketing sales platform should include:
- campanie Google Ads,
- proper search engine optimisation,
- content marketing,
- branding on social media,
- Email marketing,
- sometimes even campaigns involving influencers.
It is worth planning a separate budget for well-developed advertising activities, which will certainly pay off quickly. Before putting specific solutions into practice, it is important to consider which methods will work best for a particular business. It is also a good idea to modify the methods of promotion on the Internet depending on the needs. Only after time has passed will we be able to see what works and what does not necessarily work.
Internet sales platform - a complex order process
Have you ever checked how the ordering process works in your e-shop? Is it simple, quick and hassle-free? Do potential customers have to register to buy an item? Account activation always takes time and requires data entry, which not everyone is keen to do. All the difficulties encountered before the transaction is finally finalised can result in cart abandonment. Try to make buying on your sales platform as easy and streamlined as possible - you will see that the number of buyers will increase significantly.
