Taylor Swift once said, "If you're lucky enough to be different, don't ever change."
And that's the kind of truth we like to live by. After all, being different is the new normal.
Now, apply this logic to your eCommerce store. If it isn't 100% original, it's ordinary, just like the thousands of other online stores that prop up all the time and then get lost in obscurity.
What are you doing to make your store more memorable? Do your products and services help you stand out from the crowd? What makes shopping at your store an experience worth remembering?
This guide is here to help you figure out the answers to all these questions. Let's find out how to make your online business stand out!
1. Let Your Store Speak For Itself
An attractive store keeps the customers coming in time and time again. Therefore, one of the best tips for online businesses is to invest in the store itself. Creating an attractive eCommerce store is not even that hard if you are using Zaapi. With Zaapi, you can open up your shop in a matter of minutes!
When you are creating your store, use these best tips to make your eCommerce store stand out.
Mesmerize Users with an Eye-Catching Website
They say, don't judge a book by its cover, but that's what your customers do day in and day out, anytime they come in contact with your brand.
Research shows that 93% of customers prefer to buy from visually pleasing stores. So, make your online shop stand out by coming up with a unique, attractive, and visually aesthetic store design.
Brand – Like Your Life Depends On It!
Online stores become brands by making themselves different from the crowd. Innovative thinking, combined with creative ideas, is the key to branding an eCommerce store. First, however, your brand should be built for your target customers. To do that, answer these questions:
· Why do your customers gravitate towards your brand?
· What type of designs, advertisements, and posts do your customers enjoy?
· How can you bring together the customers' preferences with your brand's values?
Once you have all the answers, develop a unique branding strategy that sets your store apart.
Tell Your Story
Every store has a story, but how you tell yours can give you a competitive edge. Find out your store's unique selling proposition and create compelling content to feature on your Social Media
For instance, if your store donates a certain percentage of the profits to a charity organization, don't forget to mention that. Anything that differentiates you from the competition should be subtly conveyed to the customers. Additionally, your 'About Us' post must also include a brief introduction about your brand and what you have to offer. You must also include all the contact information and active links to the store's channels, so your customers know how to reach you easily.
Customer-oriented
Writing blogs that speak about your products and industry can provide customers with a lot of insight. In fact, 50% of customers consider company blogs to be helpful in their shopping experience to help your customers learn more about your products. The most effective blogs include:
· Answers to customers' common queries
· Informative content about products and industries
· Keywords or key phrases that satisfy the user's search intent
· Easy-to-understand, grammatically accurate language
2. Give Your Customer a Luxurious Experience
Customers want the royal treatment. With hundreds of eCommerce stores operating in similar niches, your customers have a myriad of choices. So, to make your store the most attractive option, you need to offer the best service.
Capitalize On Customer Preferences
Build custom landing pages that are built to your customer preferences. Use this opportunity to give your prospective and current buyers the kind of experience that'll get them to sit up and take notice of all that you offer.
A tailored landing page is a great way to attract traffic based on customer habits. For example, let's say a customer wants to buy a bamboo hairbrush that you and your competitor both offer. They would have to invest time searching for the product on the competitor's website until they find the right one. However, if you create a custom landing page, you can offer users suggestions and make the customer come to you instead.
Make Shipping Convenient
Your customers may spend hundreds on products, but the $5 cost of shipping is enough to make them question the purchase decision. Research shows that 82% of customers prefer free shipping over an additional charge for faster delivery.
Considering this, you can add convenient shipping options, such as a minimum order amount for free shipping, to accommodate customer wants without compromising on making a profit.
Make Your Store Mobile-Friendly
Approximately 40% of all eCommerce purchases are made using smartphones. Therefore, it is vital to optimizing your store for both mobile and web users. You can use Zaapi to create an online store with a mobile-responsive design.
Offer Multiple Payment Methods
Another luxury you can offer customers is multiple methods for payments. Unfortunately, most eCommerce stores make the mistake of bounding their customers to a single payment option. Instead, offer various payment channels, such as bank transactions, cash-on-delivery, wire transfer, cryptocurrency, or App transfers. As a result, you can open up your stores to a larger customer base.
3. Get Creative with Your Marketing
Creating an online store is only the first part of the process. How your store performs depends on its marketing.
Use Social Media Marketing To Its Fullest
Social media marketing is a great way to establish your brand. You can use different platforms to share pictures of your products, interact with customers, and host polls and other activities to boost customer interaction.
Customers spend more than 2.5 hours on social channels every day. So using these platforms to inform, educate, and intermingle with their customers is effective for brands. For example, if you have built a store with Zaapi, you can easily connect it to your social media channels, including Facebook, Line, WhatsApp, and Instagram. This way, you can easily share updates about discount offers or new product launches to your social media channels.
Join Forces with Influencers
Promoting your store with influencer marketing can be a great way to get the word out about your products. Research shows that 89% of marketers consider influencer marketing to provide a better ROI than other marketing channels.
To make influencer marketing effective, search for influencers who are followed by your target demographic. For example, let's say your store sells skincare and beauty products. You can search for beauty influencers in Southeast Asia, such as Abel Cantika, and send them a free package of your products to feature on their page. Then, when they talk about your products with more than 900,000 of their followers, your store can get exposure to new customers.
Make Offers Your Customer Can't Resist
Customers love an opportunity to save money. If your online store offers deals and discounts that help them cut purchase costs, you can make your store more attractive. Your promotion strategy can include discount deals for new customers or loyalty programs for returning customers.
4. Show The Customers You Care!
Successful eCommerce stores prioritize the customer experience. However, the efforts to optimize customer experience don't end when a user converts. Instead, you have to make sure that even after a customer makes the purchase, they enjoy a delightful experience with your brand.
It is essential to optimize your customer service. You can take measures to ensure your customers are happy with the products and the overall experience at your store. You can:
· Ask customers for feedback and suggestions for improvements
· Add multiple channels for customer communication. Encourage your customers to contact you in case of queries or concerns
· Make sure your customer service team is responsive
· Make sure your customer service team is friendly and empathetic towards the customer's needs
· Conduct a follow-up to ensure that your customers are satisfied with the results.
5. Build an Opportunist Mindset
Having an opportunist mindset will take you far. This means you need to actively look for prospects to promote your store in every way possible. Let's take a look at how you can cash in on different opportunities for your eCommerce store.
Collaborate With with Like-Minded Individuals
You can make a name for yourself by partnering with well-known brands that complement your brand goals and products. For instance, if you sell beauty products, you can partner with another brand that sells skincare tools to build your reputation and exposure to new customers.
Network With Local Subject Authorities
To establish and grow your eCommerce store, you can use all the help you can get. This means you need to reach out to as many people as possible within your industry and build relationships with them. Networking helps you create product awareness and expand your customer base. You can network with:
· Local Reporters: If you are selling to local customers, you can contact reporters at local publications who create content related to your industry.
· Bloggers: You can also contact famous local bloggers to review or discuss your brand's story on their blog.
· Industry Experts: Industry experts include individuals who have established their authority on a specific topic. For example, if your online store sells cooking utensils, you can reach out to a local TV chef and request to get your products featured in their videos
Build a Store like No Other with Zaapi
An ordinary store will get you a few sales, but an extraordinary store will put you on the map! So, build an attractive online store with Zaapi today, and make it as unique as possible.
Focus on improving customer experience, enhancing customer service, and networking with local authorities. And follow the above tips to make your store the go-to brand for your customers.
