Online stores have become some of the leading selling markets and are continuing to grow bigger every day. They may not be the cheapest places you will find, but there are many benefits to shopping online. One of these benefits is the fact that you don’t have to leave your home going to a physical shop. Also, the goods purchased are delivered to your doorstep. However, if you are an online store owner, these facts don’t assure you of customers. You can employ other strategies to attract customers and make sure they come back to your store. Below are a few examples of how to win customers from competitors for your online store.
Statistics show that people will stop engaging the content when facing loading problems
(Source: adobe.com)
When a customer lands on your website for the first time, the first thing they notice is the welcome page. Does your welcome page lead new customers to what they are looking for? Is the website user-friendly? If not, then work on how your website can improve customer experience. Your site should be designed in a manner that is easy to navigate. Everything should be placed in an organised manner with clear content visuals of the products you sell.
Also, you should note that web hosting is another important factor for running an online business, so make sure to pick one that is strong and has advanced security features to protect your customers’ information. Choosing the right web hosting services will not only give you a peaceful time with the customers’ experience but also improve the website speed. A site with a quick loading speed is usually more preferred by customers.
An important aspect of running an online store is to know your customers. What are their interests? Where do they live? Where can you find them online? What is their age and what are their likes and dislikes? After doing this, you will have a good idea of which marketing tactics you should use.
For you to impress your target audience, you must consider them, who they are and present your brand in a way that would be appealing to them. What you intend to sell is not all about the visuals but also the tone of voice and approach. Your image should also be consistent and have a strong online presence across all the networks channels. When your brand has a clear presence, it creates a sense of trust, reliability, and quality.
Blogging is one of the best ways to keep a robust online presence. It drives traffic and increases credibility to your website. By doing this, you are merely showing people the ideas behind the brand. It also personalises the brand and gives customers the feeling that you are a real person. However, whatever you write on your blog should match the brand and what you share on your social media platforms.
The best ways of doing this are to give discounts and redeemable points. Customers will think of these points as an investment and will surely come back to your store. Besides this, make sure you entice your customers with a good user experience by hosting events they can participate in and stand a chance to win rewards.
44% of website visitors may leave the websites if there’s no clear company’s contact information
(Source: komarketing.com)
When customers shop in your online store, you will probably be left with some of their details like phone numbers and email addresses. These can be used to stay in touch with your customers later. You can ask them about their experience in your shop and whether they enjoyed the services offered. This will create a positive attitude around your brand and increase the chances of them coming back to your store. If you have their date of birth, sending them a birthday greeting along with an offer for products they bought before can also entice them to keep shopping in your store.
Many people are wary of buying goods that they have never tried, especially if the transaction is carried out on the internet. Even if your products have many positive reviews, some customers will need to be influenced in order to try something new. This is especially important in cases where the new products are competing with older and more established brands. In such cases, you can give free samples to your customers so that they can use your product for the first time without spending any money. This gives you a chance to catch their attention. Should your brand be better than what they already know, there are high chances that you just won yourself a new customer. Giving free samples also creates trust and a sense of self-confidence among your customers.
Another way of getting customers to stay in your online store is to provide several other products and services in addition to your key product. There are so many cases where customers shop in different stores for different products and services. If you can manage to sell other goods that are related to your key product, you can be sure that a higher number of them will be retained as your customers. This is because they will not see the need to leave your website for other related goods. As an example, if your shop is selling electric kettles, then offering other services like repairs and spare parts to the same product would be a great idea.
The best method of acquiring customers that are most likely to stay is by the use of referral links. Here, marketing is done by the customers that already shop from your online store. The new customers are invited by their friends, and you can give the original customer a share of the profits brought in by the new shoppers. This not only brings you a new customer but also one that is there to stay because trust in your brand was already put in them by their friends.
Winning new customers and keeping your customers need to use collaborative marketing strategies both online and offline. Take time to recognize the customers’ needs and address them accordingly. Once you apply the tactics above, you will eventually win and keep customers for your online store.
Author Bio Katherine Perkins
Katherine is the digital marketing officer based in Thailand and the founder of Social Butterfly Travel Blog. A woman who loves travelling, eating and drinking especially coffee so sometimes she is a cafe hopper.
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