5 eCommerce Tips for Entrepreneurs

You’ve found your niche. You’ve demonstrated your hustle. Now’s the time to make your presence in the world of e-commerce.

Starting off on the right foot, by working with experts and making thoughtful, demographics-based decisions, can help you succeed in the long-term.

1. Always, always, always reinvest (at least in the beginning).

It can be tempting to keep all your profits, especially when you’re first starting out. You’ve put so much time, money, energy, and resources into getting to a point where you’re making a profit. But being wise with your money can pay major dividends in the future.

One of the best investments you can make is beefing up your advertising efforts. Obviously, social  media should be your first target. Facebook offers boosted ads for $5. Take some time coming up with creative ad copy, then making sure that your followers see it.

Email advertising has some serious return on investment potential. It offers an unbelievable 440% return for every $1 spent. The key here, though, is getting your email lists together. Use low-gate offers, like free shipping on a first purchase, in exchange for email addresses. Spend some time monitoring what email addresses are buying what products, segment your market, then send out emails to keep them interested. Tools like Constant Contact and HubSpot can help you get started.

2. Get on board with “influencers.”

This is especially relevant if you’re marketing to younger demographics. Typically, influencers try out (and keep) your product and make social media posts that go out to their followers. Getting on board with influencers who have thousands upon thousands of followers means that you can sometimes advertising without paying in cash.

Working with influencers does have a caveat, though. Sometimes you have to change gears quickly. If their advertising ventures aren’t turning into sales, it might be time to find someone new. Products go through ebbs and flows of popularity, so keeping on trend with the most relevant social media stars is imperative. FameBit can help you stay on top of the game.Help your customers help themselves.

Picture this: It’s Sunday morning, you’re taking a rare day off from the grind, and you’re starving. You heard about an incredible little Italian place that recently opened downtown, and they deliver! You do a quick Google search and… nothing. Their hours aren’t listed, their phone number is nowhere to be found. More than likely, you’re going to give up on the search pretty quickly and opt for Chinese.

That’s what your customers are confronted with when you’re not keeping relevant information visible and accessible. Give your customers everything they need to make an informed purchase, from return information to your hours of operation. Don’t give them any reason to doubt that you’re going to be present if something goes wrong (or right).

Your e-commerce site navigation should have an obvious and intuitively placed page that lists everything they need to know. Check out Small Biz Trend’s 10 Point Checklist for setting up your store. It includes some awesome information about setting up your store for the first time.

3. Keep your copy fun.

Just because e-commerce is business doesn’t mean it can’t be fun. When you’re writing up copy for your products, give your customers more than they’re asking for. Here’s an example: Your product is a pastel pink and champagne floral dress, knee length, and strapless. A sample of your copy could be:

As a wise woman once said, “Let’s go to the beach, beach.” You’ll be serving fresh flower power at any beach party with this cotton A-line dress. Pair it with some on-trend strappy sandals and a white sun hat for that sun-kissed goddess look that you’ve been striving for. Neutral colors and a flattering hemline means that this fun number can transition into autumn. Just throw on a cozy cardigan in a coordinating color and some wedge booties. Girl… you look good!”

It seems silly, but it’s much more engaging than a bulleted list of materials and colors. Additionally, offering product pairings (especially if you sell them on your e-commerce site!) helps customers coordinate their purchase without wondering what they’re going to do with the product once they have it.

4. Outsource what you can.

Everyone’s good at something, and no one’s good at everything. Go into your e-commerce venture knowing that. There are going to be some aspects of the business that don’t fit into your repertoire of skills or don’t fit into your schedule. There’s no shame in outsourcing when you need to.

That’s why getting to know an excellent digital marketing team is important. They’ll handle the behind-the-scenes, so that you can focus on being front and center. You’ve got customers to worry about! Spend more time with them and less time worried about the nuances of marketing.

There’s no get-rich-quick method to running your business. It takes hard work and creativity. NATIV3 can help. As entrepreneurs ourselves, we want to help other business owners take their e-commerce ventures into the realm of excellence with our digital marketing packages and web development programs. Check out how we’ve helped other entrepreneurs, just like you!