Learning how to market a product can help you quickly increase sales for your online store.
When you start to master how to sell a product on the web, you give your business a chance to succeed. This requires understanding your target audience and marketing your product to them.
In this article, you will find 5 effective marketing tips to promote your business online.
1. Know your target audience
It goes without saying that you need to know your audience before you can sell your product to them. Before launching your online store or a new product, study the market and the competition . This research will not only identify potential audiences, but also other sellers of similar products, how they market them, and whether or not the market is saturated.
Once you know the audience to target, you can plan how to market your product.
Look at your target’s behavior, i.e. the websites they spend time on. Get to know their social platforms, how and why they use these social media. Finally, think about how to distinguish yourself from your competition. It could be using a less formal tone on your website, creating a “mascot” that your audience will like…
2. Find influencers
Influencer marketing can increase your online sales when you don’t have a large following.
Finding the right influencers to partner with can be tricky for a newcomer. Have you determined your target? You should have no trouble finding which influencers your target is following.
Once your list of influencers has been established, you will need to analyze each of them a little. Are the comments about the influencer or the product? Is the position very committed? Does the same brand regularly promote its product to this influencer? If so, it’s probably because it is able to convert its audience.
Some influencers charge (expensive) brands, but generate few sales. Try to find an influencer who has at least 100,000 fans: below that the conversion rate won’t be good unless it’s an ultra-niche market.
3. Monetize your contests
Contests are usually overlooked as a source of income for your website. Whether you’re a blogger or run an online store, contests can be a great way to increase your revenue per user. However, you need to know which platform you are going to use.
Facebook, for example, does not allow you to capture the email of participants. However, by asking participants to leave their address, you can continue to prospect people on your mailing list who signed up in the hope that they would win.
Not winning can be disappointing – luckily there is an easy fix. When you email people who didn’t win a prize, tell them they won a consolation prize. This consolation prize can be a gift card of a few Euros, subject to a minimum purchase. So everyone wins: those who thought they won nothing at all, and you who make additional sales.
4. Reuse Customer Generated Content
As your brand grows in popularity, your customers will start sharing photos of your products. Add your clients’ photos to your website or repost them on your social media and tag them. When a new customer visits your website, if they see the photo of a customer who has shared it, they will be more likely to buy: others have purchased from your store and liked the product enough to share their own pictures.
Some customers may even leave a review with photos, which you can also use on your social networks. This allows you to present your product from different angles and with different photos, without having to invest in additional product photography .
Warning: If you decide to publish their photos on social media, do not forget to ask their permission, and to credit them.
5. Guest blogging
You can promote your business by writing content for other blogs. You will take care to have a link to your website or product in the article or in your author bio. By blogging as a guest, you share your expertise with other people, which reinforces your status as an expert.
The key to monetizing your guest post traffic is to have a remarketing system in place. So if someone lands on your website and doesn’t buy immediately, you can continue to target them.
Be sure to choose sites that are relevant and complementary to yours. By “relevant”, think of a site specialized in your field, but without an online store. A complementary site would rather be a site with a similar audience, but selling different products, such as a sunglasses store, in partnership with a sunscreen brand. Guest blogging is one of the ways you can build relationships that can help you in the long run.
5 fundamental principles to sell more
Do you have an online store and would like to boost your business?
While there are multiple tactics that e-merchants can use to grow and boost their sales, it is sometimes necessary to focus on certain fundamentals.
Here are 5 essential principles to win new customers and boost your e-commerce site.
1. The principle of urgency
The principle of urgency is widely used, because it encourages impulse buying . The latter encourages consumers to buy a product without thinking too much.
This key element of e-commerce is particularly found in the fields of health, well-being and food. The message often encourages potential customers to take care of themselves quickly: protect themselves from germs before winter, prepare to wear a bikini, etc.
The principle of urgency is also used during ephemeral promotions and flash sales. We then focus on the rarity of the event and the need to buy quickly to take advantage of current offers and advantageous rates. Very often, the urgency is characterized by a countdown in red letters which “hurries” the consumer.
2. The scarcity principle
To sell, the principle of rarity is also recommended. It can take different formats. For example, one can choose to reduce supplies and create a lack (a technique proven by Apple ).
We can also offer a limited series, a special edition or even a numbered collection. The goal is for the buyer to decide quickly and for that, he must think about getting a deal!
Black Friday perfectly illustrates the principle of scarcity. After Thanksgiving, a day is dedicated to very important and limited sales which mark the beginning of the end of the year holiday shopping.
3. The principle of exclusivity
The principle of exclusivity makes it possible to sell but also to enhance the customer relationship. With this sales technique, you can offer a product or offer to just a few customers to thank them for their loyalty.
It is also possible to create tailor-made offers so that customers who own certain products can benefit from related elements or associated services. For example, you can create an exclusive on video games for all customers who have purchased a game console from you!
4. The principle of reciprocity
Often used to discover a product, the principle of reciprocity relies on the generosity of consumers .
The objective here is to sell by offering, initially, a product or a sample. The consumer will then have a good chance of buying from you.
The principle of reciprocity is very much applied at the time of festivals or seasonal events. For example, we can send chocolate samples before Christmas and count on our customers to offer these same chocolates during the holidays.
5. The principle of commitment
The principle of commitment also puts the customer at the center of concerns.
You can choose to guarantee all of its products for 2 years, instead of one year, or even guarantee the exchange or refund of goods. The prices of the services may also be capped.
Here, the goal is to offer an advantage to consumers in order to guarantee their loyalty .
Our tip
It is possible to apply one or more principles to sell more, but keep in mind that the objective is to sell and therefore to optimize your turnover. You will have to choose the method adapted to your activity and your audience.
