10 Steps to All-Year-Round Sales on Your E-commerce

Here are ten ways to ensure that your e-commerce store is selling year-round, not just during the holidays:

Understanding the Three Levers of E-commerce Growth

• New customers: Finding new people who might want to buy your products or services.
• Returning customers: Increasing the rate at which customers return to buy from you again.
• Average order value: Increasing the amount your customers spend when they buy from you.

A good growth strategy will involve all three levers.

1. Get on Other Shopping Platforms

This might sound like an odd way to increase sales year round on your e-commerce store. You want people buying from your store after all. However, this can actually help.

• Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and other platforms all offer a way for people who have never heard of you to find you. Essentially you are giving yourself another storefront.
• Google shopping and other comparison sites help people who are comparison shopping to find you.
• Treat these the same way you would a new storefront. Make sure that you are accurate and consistent across them all.
• Price consistently across them all and make sure that your inventory is accurate.

2. Retargeting Ads

When is the last time you went to a website with the intent to buy something, put it in your cart, and then closed the window never to return again? Probably never. So why do you expect that of your customers? Retargeting ads allow you to follow them around the web and remind them of products they are interested in.

• Retargeting based on the buying cycle. There are several phases in the buying cycle and retargeting for each is a little different.
• Awareness phase. In this phase customers are just becoming aware that they have a problem or need. It isn’t even on their radar to buy something yet. The best retargeting ads here are more informative.
• Consideration phase. At this point customers are aware that they have a problem and are considering a solution. They may or may not have decided to buy yet. This is a good time for customer testimonials and product information.
• Decision phase. At this point the customer has decided to buy a product, they just need to figure out where to buy it from. This is the time for retargeting ads with special deals or value adds.

3. Lower the Risk

What is stopping your customers from buying from you? Whatever those objections are you need to overcome them. Here are some of the most common ones and how to overcome them.

• I don’t want to spend the money and then be stuck with something I don’t want or can’t use. Money back guarantee.
• I don’t want to spend the money to ship something back if I don’t want it. Free return shipping.
• I don’t trust this site with my information. Trust badges and https.
• I don’t want to spend that much money at once. Financing options.
• I don’t know how much it is going to cost to ship. Flat rate or free shipping over a certain amount.

All of these should be very visible. They shouldn’t be buried at the bottom of a FAQ page.

4. Live Chat/Chatbots

Shoppers who have a question are shoppers who aren’t buying. If there is no one to answer their question they are going to leave and go somewhere else where someone will answer it. Live chat or chatbots can solve this problem.

• Answer questions. This is the obvious function.
• Guide purchase decisions. Help shoppers decide which product is the best one for them.
• Abandoned cart recovery. Use them to proactively reach out to shoppers who have abandoned their carts.

5. Upsell and Cross Sell

Upselling and cross selling are two of the best ways to increase average order value. Here are some ideas.

• Related products. On every product page have a section for related products.
• During the checkout process. Suggest products that go with what is in their cart.
• Bundle and save. Offer discounts for people who buy multiple related products at the same time.
• Follow up emails. Based on past purchases suggest other products that they might be interested in.

The key with this is to not be pushy or obnoxious. Don’t suggest a million things and definitely don’t require people to buy something else. Just make helpful suggestions.

6. High Quality Product Descriptions

Your product descriptions are your salespeople. They should answer every question that a potential customer might have. Here are some tips.

• Write your own. Don’t use the manufacturer descriptions.
• Focus on benefits. Instead of listing features and specs talk about what they mean.
• Anticipate questions. Try to anticipate questions that shoppers might have and answer them in the description.

7. Customer Reviews

Customer reviews are one of the most powerful tools you have for selling products. Here are some ways to increase customer reviews.

• Ask for them. After someone buys something follow up with an email asking them to review it.
• Make it easy. Give them a direct link to the product they bought.
• Showcase them. Put them front and center on the product page.
• Respond to them. Respond to negative reviews in a professional way.

8. Valuable Content

One of the great things about a blog is that it gives people a reason to come to your store even when they aren’t in the market for anything. Here are some tips.

• Write about things your customers care about.
• Try to write evergreen content. You want it to stay relevant in the future.
• This helps search traffic and establishes you as an expert in your niche. It also keeps you top of mind with your customer.

9. Social Media Campaigns

Use social media to create events that will drive traffic and sales.

• Contests.
• Start a campaign. If you sell athletic wear you might start a campaign to get people to work out.
• Partner with other brands. Partner with other brands to create new and interesting things.
• Live video. Use live video to show off products or answer questions.

10. Loyalty Program

Your customers are your biggest asset. You should have a loyalty program in place that rewards them for shopping with you. Here are some ideas.

• Points program. Implement a points program that rewards them for buying.
• Exclusive discounts. Offer discounts that are only for loyalty program members.
• Early access. Give loyalty program members early access to new products.
• Referral program. Implement a program that rewards referrals.

In conclusion, this will help you keep your store full of customers year round and not just during the holidays.