Kickstarting Your Ecommerce Business With Proven Marketing Strategies

Starting an e-commerce business is fun, but the reality can differ greatly. Being new, you must navigate challenging market forces to establish yourself in the industry.

One significant thing you must do here is promote and market your products. From building brand awareness to providing after-sales customer support, a marketing strategy is crucial to accelerating your e-commerce journey.

This blog post has compiled a list of proven marketing strategies to help you jumpstart your e-commerce business.

7 Marketing Strategies to Kickstart Your Ecommerce Business#

With more than two billion online shoppers, there is a vast scope for growth in e-commerce. Below, we have mentioned seven tried-and-tested tips to help you market your business in the most successful ways:

1. Target Long Tail Keywords for SEO#

Implementing a long-tail keyword strategy can minimize the cost of paid search engine advertising. It allows you to improve organic search engine rankings while making targeting consumers with a particular search intent easier.

Researching long-tail keywords involves looking for different metrics. Mainly, you'll want to focus on keywords with low search volume, such as hundred monthly searches or less. If the search volume is low, the keyword difficulty score will also be low, making it easier to rank.

Here are some unique strategies to research relevant long-tail keywords for your e-commerce business:

• Use platforms like Reddit and Quora, where users ask questions related to your product. However, vet each long-tail keyword you find on these platforms through a keyword tool like Ahrefs or Semrush to verify it has the right metrics.
• Explore synonyms or related terms. For example, instead of using "best sunscreen for oily skin 2024", you can use "best sunblock" or "best sun protection cream for oily skin 2024."
• If you list your products on Amazon or Shopify, use their search term report to identify the phrases people type to get to your product page. You can add those keywords to your Amazon or Shopify product listing and the product page on your ecommerce website.
• Take advantage of search engine autocomplete. It suggests search queries as you type in the search bar based on popular or relevant phrases. For example, typing "bracelet for" into the Google search bar will generate a drop-down list of popular long-tailed keywords.

2. Optimize and Refine Your Product Descriptions#

According to a study by Neilsen Norman Group, 20% of purchase failures occur due to incomplete or unclear product information. This implies that descriptions are the primary source of information that customers rely on while making a purchase decision.

A well-written product description can help establish trust and confidence in the quality of the product. Using the right keywords in the description can also improve search ranking and increase visibility to reach more potential customers.

Consider these tips to optimize your product descriptions:

• Use sensory language such as "exotic," "sensual," or "romantic" that evoke emotion and help the user imagine the product in use.
• Use clear and concise language that is SEO-friendly. For increased visibility, incorporate relevant keywords in product titles, descriptions, and meta tags.
• Add high-quality images and videos of your products to present a refined image. For example, if you sell a customizable hoodie, add a description and pictures about the type of customization available, including color, size, and methods.
• Focus on benefits more than features as they are more emotionally compelling. Benefits speak directly to the customer’s desires and aspirations, which can connect them with the product. For example, Panagia focuses heavily on sustainability, using fundamental words like recycled, organic, responsibly sourced, and repurposed.

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3. Run a Mix of Shopping and Search Ads#

34% of consumers learn about products by browsing the internet. However, due to overpopulated content on the web, it’s getting harder for e-commerce businesses to rank organically for the intended keywords.

That being said, social media is not far behind. According to HubSpot's State of Consumer Trends Report, 22% of consumers prefer to discover new products on social media.

In this scenario, creating search and shopping ads is the smartest way to attract consumers by offering relevant and personalized recommendations. Both ad types run through Google Ads, a platform designed to help advertisers drive relevant traffic to their websites. They use a PPC model, where the advertiser only pays when someone clicks on their text or shopping ad.

Search ads are text ads generally displayed at the top or end of the last search result on a page. They are marked as "Sponsored."

Unlike text ads, shopping ads or product listing ads feature a product’s name, photo, brand, price and sometimes product ratings, too. Merchants can enable them through — Google Ads & Google Merchant Account or Google Shopping.

Depending on the query, shopping ads appear at the top of search results. You can see how ads are displayed when a user searches for the term "earrings."

Here are some ways to ensure you do it correctly:

• More than half of the web traffic comes from mobile users. Ensure your website, landing pages, and ads are mobile-friendly to generate more significant ROI on ad spending.
• Use multiple platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram to advertise your products and attract a wider pool of consumers
• Create highly optimized landing pages for your ads. Structure it well with a clear copy and a CTA
• Optimize product details, benefits, descriptions, and images. Write clear headings, and add discount codes in the offer season
• Encourage users to rate and review your products, as it can boost your campaign performance

4. Offer Incentives to Your Supply Chain Partners#

In 2022, 4 in 5 consumer-facing businesses experienced at least one significant supply chain disruption, while 50% experienced three or more. Given the hyper-competitive web presence of e-commerce sites, supply chain partners play a major role in supporting your business.

Starting a new business means selecting a reliable trading partner with proper on-demand fleet management to avoid operational hiccups and ensure a good relationship.

As the relationship matures, you can offer incentives to your supply chain partners as follows:

• Offer rewards based on the specific needs of your channel partners. This should be based on research and an understanding of partner requirements.
• Recognize and acknowledge positive behavior, such as timely delivery of a crucial shipment. You can offer them travel or hotel vouchers or any other gifts.
• Offer training sessions to improve brand awareness and certifications, or make them attend industry seminars and conferences. This will help keep channel partners updated on distribution and supply chain information.

5. Launch Giveaway Campaigns With Influencers#

Giveaway contests and campaigns have a conversion rate of nearly 34%, higher than any other type of content. They can help your business reach new customers and re-engage with existing ones, especially if they involve influencers.

Here are some practical steps to launch an excellent giveaway campaign:

• Determine your goals first and use your goal type to shape your giveaway. For example, if your goal is to increase social media followers, you can include following the account as a mandatory step to be eligible for the contest.
• Plan your budget and choose the giveaway format. You could give away a product, a cash prize, or something relevant to your target audience.
• Plan the rules and decide the influencer you want to collaborate with. Choose an influencer who complements your brand image well so that consumers can relate more.
• Know your audience demographics to determine the correct platform to host your giveaway contest.
• To increase your reach, run and cross-promote on other social platforms, such as your email newsletter or your website.

Loungefly collaborated with Rosalie Chiang to host a giveaway for a mini backpack. The contest had clear rules, and the post garnered over 14,000 likes, with many users entering the competition. This is an excellent example of brands collaborating with influencers to promote a product drop.

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6. Encourage Customers to Create More User Generated Content#

User-generated content, or UGC, can help e-commerce businesses build customer trust and develop a sense of authenticity. You can effectively utilize UGC in different forms, shapes, intents, and styles to attract and influence prospects to buy your product.

Here are some ways you can leverage UGC to target potential customers:

• Getting UGC as a new brand can be difficult. You can encourage buyers to write reviews with photos and videos and repurpose them into a post
• Feature content with your brand mentions on your website or online platforms
• Run a contest, a quiz, or a Q&A session and record users' responses. Turn into it an engaging reel or post.
• Use a branded hashtag and encourage customers to post about your products using it. Madewell uses a branded hashtag on Instagram called #everydaymadewell. It has almost 600,000 posts, with customers sharing photos and videos about the brand. More people using the hashtag means more people are talking about your products.

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7. Use Email Marketing to Reduce Cart Abandonment#

Cart abandonment is more common than you can imagine. According to research by Baymard Institute, the average abandonment rate in online shopping is 70.19% in the USA.

Retargeting via email is a proven strategy to help recover the cart abandonment rates. Here are some ways to do it:

• Craft compelling subject lines to boost the open rate. Use personalized subject lines, be descriptive, and keep it short.
• Segment your email subscribers based on specific criteria like demographics, behavior, or preference. This will help you tailor your email content to be more relevant and personalized.
• Use unique and witty copywriting to encourage customers to complete their purchase.
• Offer answers to frequently asked questions and use a clear CTA.

Whiskey Loot’s abandoned cart email is an excellent example of how you should craft your retargeting email. This email does not solely focus on generating a purchase but on informing the audience what can be done with the product. This increases trust while establishing a clever brand voice.

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Wrapping Up#

Starting your e-commerce business is a humbling journey. There can be times when you witness the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. But if you keep these strategies in mind, you can avoid making inevitable rookie mistakes and accelerate your e-commerce journey in the best direction.