With the E-commerce industry experiencing an explosive growth spurt in recent years and new online stores popping up at every corner as a result, it’s no wonder that aspiring entrepreneurs of the world are racing to snag their piece of the three-trillion-dollar market.
Yes, the financial cake might be big enough for everyone to grab a hefty slice, but that doesn’t mean that the road to E-commerce superstardom is not laden with obstacles and possibly business-crippling challenges.
From seemingly small tasks of finding out when exactly to post on your social media feeds to the cumbersome challenges of researching relevant networks and tailoring your content for maximum engagement, all of these tasks can mean the difference between a social media presence that drives traffic, and one that fails to populate your online store. With that in mind, here are the winning SM tactics to boost your E-commerce sales.
1. Discover the most promising networks
Market research might not sound like a lot of fun, but it nonetheless an essential part of your social media strategy. In fact, it is the foundation upon which you should build your entire approach to social media and its nuanced audiences.
The way people on different networks live, breathe, and consume their favourite content on a daily basis will tell you not only how to engage with them in a meaningful way, but also where your ideal audience truly resides.
Many marketers and business leaders make the mistake of trying to position the brand on every single social media in existence, spreading their resources too thin, and making it impossible to manage every account effectively. Ultimately, this will lead to poor brand visibility and it will hurt your reputation in the long run.
2. Win people over with compelling content
There is no denying the fact that quality content reigns supreme in the online world. The days of pushy ads and poorly-constructed copy are long gone, and people nowadays want and need to connect with a brand on a more personal, profound level. So don’t ever think that you’re “just another E-commerce store” but rather focus on building your brand’s identity with amazing content.
Finding breaking news and content for your posting schedule should be easy with a bit of research and a knack for creative writing to reel the audience in an incentivize them to visit your store. In order to win at storytelling and build a brand that inspires people to take action, focus on the following:
- Product promotion should not be the main focus of your SM content strategy, let’s get that out of the way. Your products should instead serve as inspiration for relevant stories that will get people talking about your brand, sharing them with their friends, and liking and commenting. In essence, content should build social media buzz.
- To build “the buzz”, your content should be top-notch. This means that it should be inspiring, relevant and that your brand’s values should be weaved in every article, every video.
- That said, your content should also be SEO-friendly, as it will help with SERP positioning to boot, which is always a good thing.
- The content you create should portray your brand identity in the best possible light, so be sure every piece of content you post bears your visuals and speaks in the tone and manner that’s representative of your brand’s unique personality. In turn, your store will immediately stand out in the competitive arena.
3. Align your advertisements with your website
One of the biggest mistakes marketers make, whether inadvertently or through the lack of experience, is not creating a harmonious relationship between the brand’s social media presence, and the online store itself.
Too often will you see Facebook ads (more on that in a bit) with all the bells and whistles that lead to a poorly-designed, poorly-optimized landing page? This cannot happen if you are to preserve your online reputation, especially in fast-growing e-commerce markets such as Australia, which is worth over $32 billion, and it’s still growing rapidly.
To prevent this, you need to tend to meticulous store design, management, and organization. To be more competitive and successful with their online presence, more businesses are relying on a top-tier Shopify Agency to harmonize their ads with their landing pages in order to grow their reputation, as well as their social media success. It’s vital that you know how to utilize your e-commerce platform of choice and make the most of it in your social media strategy as well.
4. Advertise like a pro
When it comes to the advertisement itself, you should understand that social media ads are some of the key driving components behind every growing E-commerce business. According to Invesp, Facebook accounts for more than 9% of total digital ad spending, and that 92% of social marketers use this platform for promotion, which makes Facebook advertising a must in your social media management playbook.
Take this Facebook advertising checklist into consideration before launching ads in order to get the biggest bang for your buck every single time you roll out an ad. Your ads should serve the purpose of getting people to your online store quickly, so they not only need to boast a compelling design and message, but they should also give out a sense of urgency.
5. Diversify your content offering
Lastly, keep in mind that written content is not the only way to get people to talk about your brand, and visit your store. In fact, written content on social media is slowly giving way to images and videos, which begs the need to diversify your offering and post a variety of content types to boost engagement.
You can achieve this by creating engaging videos, posting informative and aesthetic infographics, and striking an emotional chord with the audience with beautiful photographs in close relation with your brand. Keep it fresh, keep it short and to the point when it comes to visual content, and you should have no problem creating that highly sought-after social media buzz.
Social media is where the bulk of the online audience resides, which makes it your most lucrative prospect. If you want to make it big in the E-commerce arena, focus on building a winning SM strategy that will drive traffic to your website and help your sales skyrocket in the process.
Author Bio:
Victor T. Miller, a Sydney-based business and marketing specialist who has expanded businesses over 5 years. I am a person who loves to inform people about the latest news in the industry also as sharing tips and advice based on my professional experience and knowledge.