Although the ‘R’ word is on everyone’s lips, online trading remains extremely positive with sales in January up by an impressive 19% (according to IMRG). That being said, all online retailers need to work harder this year if their businesses are to continue to succeed in these challenging times.

The team at Tiger Commerce have in-depth experience of ecommerce and ecommerce website software, and we’ve put our heads together to come up with some top tips to make your online shop work harder for your business.

Improve Customer Experience

• A new year, a new look. Make sure you refresh the look of your shop front. Home pages can become tired or cluttered and your customers are increasingly sophisticated in their expectations.
• Clear, visible delivery charges/terms/returns policy. If you sell online successfully you will know that this is critical to reduce shopping cart abandonment. Do check to see if there’s room for improvement on your site.
  

  Reduce Shopping Cart Abandonment

• Enhance your product descriptions to make the most of selling your products off the page. Focus on imaginative and persuasive copy, quality & multiple images, videos and links to brochures, technical descriptions, buying guides etc.
• Use customer generated product reviews - they can increase conversions by more than 20%.
  

  Customer Reviews

• Take every opportunity to upsell or cross sell to increase basket values.
  

  Upsell to Customers

• Enhance customer service via Live Chat and dynamic FAQs. Don’t commit the cardinal sin of poor visibility for your phone number and Do answer emails promptly.
  

  Live Chat

Drive Customer Loyalty

• Use email marketing to promote customer loyalty. Not only is it a cost effective online marketing tool, but customers also like it. According to eMarketer, nearly 60% of consumers had a more positive impression of online retailers they had purchased from when they received email from them. More importantly, 40% said such email made a future purchase from the company more likely. Discount codes, exclusive promotions, free delivery, one day specials really do work.
  

  Promotions

• But make sure that your email marketing is targeted and relevant to your customers by making use of email preferences. Don’t switch off your consumers with irrelevant communication.
• Add offers or discounts to your automated order confirmation emails (or dispatch notifications). Of all the emails your customers read, you can be sure that they will read anything relating to an order they have placed.

Recruit New Customers

• You will know that Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is critical to gain visibility in the search engines. Over the long term, it’s also the most cost effective approach to search engine marketing when compared to Paid Search. Your ecommerce website software should be search engine friendly and allow you to maximise keywords, meta data, Alt tags on images, site maps etc. However, you’ll also know that SEO is a bit of a ‘black box’ and unless you have the time and expertise to do it yourself, you should consult the experts. The online marketing team at Tiger Commerce have a strong track record of success in this area - see our Services shop for details.
  

  Search Engine Optimisation

• If you’re looking for short term results, then Paid Search or Pay per click makes sense. If you do this yourself (and it’s relatively easy to set up with Google Adwords), you will need to dedicate time, effort and money to achieving the best results. However, with a compelling offer and/or promotion, this method of marketing can be highly effective in delivering revenue growth.
• Social marketing is the real buzzword in online marketing for the moment. Tapping into social networks such as Facebook, online forums and blogs are all ways increase the links to your site, achieve higher visibility and ultimately help you sell online. Again, you’ll need to dedicate time or alternatively use a professional in this evolving media.
  

  Social Marketing

• Use Google Analytics to constantly review and measure all your activities. It will help you fine tune your ecommerce website and online marketing.
  

  Google Analytics

Finally, consider whether your ecommerce solution is optimal for the challenges ahead. Tiger Commerce is a leading ecommerce website software package with best in class functionality. Easy to use, fast to set up and costs just £17.99 per month with no Set Up Fee or hosting charges. Ideal for start ups or existing online businesses looking for a better ecommerce platform. Sign up for a Free eCommerce Trial today and see how Tiger Commerce will give your business the best chance of online success.