In recent years there has been a decrease in retail sales globally.
With ongoing lockdowns in many parts of the world, shops have been forced to reduce staff or shut down altogether.
However, this has proven to be an opportunity for online shopping.
According to this Business Insider report, eCommerce will continue to experience growth in many regions worldwide. Even during the pandemic, it was expected that online sales would account for a staggering $3.9 trillion in sales.
There is absolutely no doubt that the eCommerce business model will not only dominate a significant share of the market in the coming years, but it will also be crucial for brands and retailers to survive, even in the post-Covid world.
Want to know how to play the game, right? Read below.
Here are eight ways for eCommerce shops to stand out among the competition in 2021
Use TikTok
These days, many digital sales happen primarily on mobile platforms, thanks to recent app developments that make the online shopping experience attractive and easy to use.
You’ll be surprised to know that two out of every three dollars spent online is done through a mobile device. In other words, It is safe to say that mobile commerce is on the rise.
Many social platforms have introduced one-click “buy” features for their users to purchase efficiently without leaving their site. As e-commerce shopping trends expand, mobile will continue to experience growth.
So what does this mean for you? More reach.
In the world of social media, Tiktok is the leader when it comes to engagement.
What started as a platform to share dancing and lip-syncing videos evolved into a massive social network of Facebook and Instagram.
To put it in perspective, Tiktok records around 100 million users in the US alone and keeps them around for at least 45 minutes a day. Now, don’t be discouraged by their mostly young fan base. Tik Tok is an excellent opportunity to connect with Millennials and Gen Z.
And the chances of going viral are higher than any other social media.
Here are some steps on how to sell on Tik Tok:
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Create an account for your brand
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Start producing creative video content
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Encourage viewers to take part in a challenge
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Advertise on Tik Tok
The app is also popular with celebrity and influencer endorsements. You can sign up and find the right collaborator for your brand.
Use Product Explainer Videos
When it comes to online content, video is king. That’s a given.
As you may know by now, users have an increasingly short attention span. That’s why video is the content of choice for many brands, as it captures attention quicker and opens up more space for engagement.
If you want to improve your branding and online presence, we recommend getting into explainer videos. They are a great way to tell your viewers how your products or services work and help understandably tell your brand story in the shortest amount of time.
Play around with them; try using explainer videos on a landing page or in your social media channels.
Perhaps you don’t have enough budget for a large production team or no time to get into the workings of complicated software.
Luckily, nowadays, creating videos couldn’t be easier. Many tools simplify the process without compromising on quality. Read more to find the best video editor for you.
Sell on Forums
eCommerce depends on accurate data to make the right marketing decisions. Forums are a great source of knowledge. They have many users looking for product reviews and t to exchange information before making a purchase decision.
Hence, forums are a potent social listening tool for your marketing strategy.
With forums, you get more exposure on different platforms by getting your product or service out in the market in a less “salesy” way. You may also increase your visibility and chances of reaching a wider audience outside your network.
Try going on:
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Reddit
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Quora
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ProductHunt
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Forums related to your industry
And start a conversation.
SEO, SEO, and a bit more SEO
For eCommerce businesses, it is crucial to stay up to date with the current SEO trends.
SEO is no longer an obscure process only known by a few marketing gurus. Instead, It is the way to thrive on the internet, regardless of what your business offers. There are plenty of reasons why your business needs a clear SEO strategy.
In the vast world of the internet, you need to make it easy for your audience to find you.
Here are some benefits of having a clear-cut SEO strategy for your website
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SEO increases your authority
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No need to pay for ads
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Improves the user experience
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An effective way to evaluate your site
This information might seem a bit overwhelming at first but don’t worry. We’ve put together a quick SEO guideline to get you started writing content that gets noticed.
Follow the digital marketing trends.
Best ways for E-shops to stand out among the competition in 2021
We live in an era of contactless payments, Artificial Intelligence (AI), chatbots, and voice/visual search, among other forms of technology.
Anyone running an eCommerce business knows the industry keeps evolving. That’s why you need to stay ahead of the latest trends for the year and lead the way. Change and adaptation in an ever-changing environment is the only way to stay relevant.
By following the current trends, you can understand your audience’s wants and determine what works for your business and what doesn’t. Trends can also help you assess what needs to be improved.
Here are some marketing strategies to try in 2021 to help you have better ideas and become a leader in your field.
Sell with Social Media
With all this talk about digital marketing, we can’t ignore one of the most profitable platforms to increase your visibility—social media.
Social media is about building a relationship with your site’s visitors, learning about their pain points, and offering them a product or service. It is also a great way to provide personalized content and attract prospects interested in your offering.
Popular platforms like Facebook and Instagram offer endless possibilities for lead generation. You can run creative ads on both platforms, collect user data, interact with your customers on a personal level and create a thriving community around your brand.
However, there are other platforms with great potential as well. Suppose you haven’t given it a try yet. In that case, LinkedIn, though often overlooked, is the perfect option for lead generation with around 500 million users worldwide, especially meant for those running B2B models.
There are helpful lead generation tools for LinkedIn that can help your outreach campaigns while saving your time. You can learn more about it here.
Sell on Platforms like Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and so on
eCommerce Trends 2021
Apart from using social media for branding and communications, it is crucial for eCommerce businesses to have a presence on platforms like Amazon, eBay, or Etsy.
These platforms are largescale marketplaces that offer a vast number of features that can help scale up your business, like fulfillment centers in the case of Amazon. Think of it as an online one-stop shopping mall for any possible need.
However, you must take into consideration that the competition is fierce. Everyone from big brands to independent sellers strives to rank their products on the top pages.
That’s why there are seller tools like Jungle Scout and tools like that that help you find high-ranking keywords to optimize your listings and provide product research. If need be, here’s how you can boost your sales using these product research tools on these marketplaces.
Becoming a seller and making sure your e-shop stands out among the crowd won’t be easy, but it can be done. And these big-league platforms can increase your visibility exponentially and help you tap on international markets.
Monitor Your Competitors
Finally, we can’t leave without reminding you about the importance of monitoring your competitors. By keeping an eye on the competition, you can understand their content and target strategies.
It is pretty simple. Look at what kind of problem they are solving and plan how you can do it better.
Using tools like google alerts to monitor competitors is a safe way to go, especially for startups. It’s a free service that sends notifications to your email for keywords you are targeting. It’s pretty helpful to track your campaigns as well.
These are some ways we recommend to monitor your competition:
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Analyze their rankings against keywords
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Stay alert for new content trends
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Monitor the social activity
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Research their most recent content (we can’t stress this one enough)
Some key takeaways from this post:
Things can get complicated and start looking a bit like the Wild West with the quickly evolving internet environment. But there are still many ways to make your eCommerce shop stand out.
Remember this: Almost 89% of internet traffic comes from video. More and more sales will come from mobile devices, particularly smartphones; that’s why you need to create appealing visual content.
Social media gives a voice and personality, and getting into forums or new apps like TikTok can help you reach a new audience. Don’t forget to keep your eyes open for recent trends and how your competition solves your field problems.
Go ahead and crush it!
Did you find this article helpful? What are some strategies you can start implementing on your e-shop from today? How did they work for you? Let us know your thoughts below!
