To make the most out of any eCommerce site, a solid marketing plan is essential to establish your brand and spread the word. Digital marketing is a different beast than traditional marketing, and eCommerce sites should learn to embrace these differences to really make an impact online.
In this article, we take a look at how to do digital marketing for eCommerce websites, with a range of strategies and tools to grow your online business.
Table of contents
- What is digital marketing for eCommerce websites?
- Digital marketing strategies for eCommerce websites
1. SEO
2. SEM
3. Content marketing
4. Email marketing
5. Affiliate marketing
6. Remarketing
7. Social media marketing - How to do digital marketing for eCommerce websites
1. Think about your goals
2. Test a few strategies
3. Use industry benchmarks to assess progress - Setting your eCommerce website up for success
What is digital marketing for eCommerce websites?
Although the overall goal is the same, digital marketing is quite different from traditional marketing. Both forms of marketing aim to promote their brand, spread their message and funnel the right people towards their business. Things start to deviate when we talk about their methods for achieving these goals.
Digital marketing for eCommerce sites relies heavily on using an online platform, which makes sense because that is where you will find the eCommerce site! There are lots of different strategies to do this online, from social media to online content and search engine optimisation. We go through some of these methods in more depth below….
Digital marketing strategies for eCommerce websites
Just some of the most common digital marketing strategies for eCommerce sites are:
1. SEO
Search engines are the main channel for customers looking to find products online, so it really benefits an online business if they are easily found on Google or Bing. Search engine optimisation (SEO) is a strategy that raises online exposure for eCommerce sites by improving their visibility when people search for relevant keywords on search engines.
There is a lot of effort and meticulous background work that goes into making an eCommerce site optimised for search engines, including SEO copywriting, so it is usually a good idea to enlist the help of a professional digital marketer for this task.
2. SEM
Although SEO works by making it easier for search engines to view your eCommerce site, it is search engine marketing (SEM) that is responsible for pushing your business to the top of the list in the search engine algorithms. There are multiple types of SEM, such as pay-per-click advertising campaigns and product placement campaigns.
In essence, SEM allows you to push your advertising to the top of related search engine results by paying for ad space. Most eCommerce sites will use Google AdWords for SEM advertising campaigns, as it is a direct line to the most popular search engine.
3. Content marketing
Content marketing is focused on establishing authority within your industry and creating useful, engaging content that search engines will love. As we have discussed previously, it is also a great way to build brand trust. It may seem out of the wheelhouse of eCommerce sites to offer advice or useful articles, but it really does help drive engagement and bolster your brand authority online.
As well as useful information, such as articles about the latest products in your store, content marketing looks to optimise the copy for search engines. This means content that is written to include product-driven keywords, as well as meta titles and other information for search engines to use.
4. Email marketing
Using emails to reach customers is perfectly suited to eCommerce sites, and it can be implemented to run automatically too. Emails are a direct line to customers, and if you have a solid mailing list available then email marketing is a perfect way to spread the word about new items, upcoming deals and events.
You can use automation to send out marketing emails across the globe at a predetermined time, as well as create drip campaigns to send out tailored emails to customers interested in specific products.
5. Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is a great way to market an eCommerce site as it allows businesses to leverage the influence and reach of affiliate partners to promote their products and services. It involves partnering with other websites or bloggers to promote your products in exchange for a commission on sales.
By partnering with affiliates, eCommerce businesses can reach new audiences and drive more traffic to their website. Additionally, affiliates are typically paid a commission for each sale they generate, which means that businesses only pay for results. By executing an effective affiliate marketing strategy, eCommerce businesses can increase their brand awareness, drive more traffic, and boost their sales.
6. Remarketing
Retargeting customers who have already shown an interest in your products or services can be a good way to increase spend per customer. This strategy involves placing paid ads on social media platforms, search engines or relevant websites aimed at those who have previously visited your site, added items to their cart or viewed specific product pages.
By focusing on customers who are already familiar with your brand, retargeting can help to increase conversion rates, reduce cart abandonment and drive more sales for eCommerce businesses. It's also more cost-effective than marketing from scratch to a new user.
7. Social media marketing
Social media marketing is a powerful tool for marketing an eCommerce site because it allows businesses to connect with their customers and target audience on a more personal level. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter enable you to engage with customers, build brand awareness and drive traffic to your website all by creating engaging content, sharing promotions and discounts and showcasing products. It's also a good way to find influencers who can expose your brand to a bigger audience.
To make the best use of social media marketing, you'll need to identify your target audience and create content that resonates with them on the most appropriate platform(s). This usually requires you to produce creating aesthetically appealing product images and videos and research the kinds of conversations your customers are having, and then create posts using relevant hashtags to increase visibility. However, paid social media advertising can also help you target specific demographics and reach new audiences to kick-start your campaign.
Read More: What is content creation in social media
How to do digital marketing for eCommerce websites
Now you know some of the key strategies, we can take a look at how to implement all of these tools successfully in a campaign. If you're interested in how to market ecommerce sites, then follow the steps below:
1. Think about your goals
Before embarking on any marketing efforts for an eCommerce site, it is crucial to define and establish clear goals. Without clear goals, it is challenging to measure the effectiveness of your marketing efforts or track the return on investment (ROI) of your campaigns. For example, if the goal is to increase sales, then your efforts may focus on driving traffic to certain pages on your site and optimising your sales funnel. Alternatively, if your goal is to build brand awareness, then your efforts may focus on creating engaging content and social media campaigns that resonate with your target audience.
Defining your goals can also help you allocate your resources effectively and optimise your marketing budget. With clear goals in mind, you can choose the most appropriate marketing channels, strategies and tactics that align with your objectives. Ultimately, defining clear goals before marketing your eCommerce site can help you develop a more targeted and effective marketing strategy that drives growth and success.
2. Test a few strategies
There are countless approaches that you might want to take to effectively market your eCommerce site, but it is important that you successfully roll them out. Try to spend your early stages focusing on strategies that work with your goals and that you can easily employ for the most benefit.
One of the first things you might want to focus on is boosting your online visibility through a mix of SEO content marketing and PPC. This dual approach can build up an online presence while also giving your traffic a boost by directing searchers to your priority pages. Take the time to really lay the foundation for solid SEO down the road, as this will offer you useful insights into what is and isn’t working. You can then bring these lessons into other aspects of your marketing strategy.
3. Use industry benchmarks to assess progress
It might feel like a strange new world, but there have been many other eCommerce sites that have been in the exact same position in terms of marketing. Use their experience to your advantage, and use the standard industry benchmarks to track your own progress.
Store Growers have a thorough list of metrics that you can use for your eCommerce site. There are lots of factors to consider depending on your aims, from click-through rates to sales conversions. Try to identify relevant benchmarks for your site and set your goals with those in mind. Above all, make sure you give your campaigns time to bed in before jumping to conclusions.
Setting your eCommerce website up for success
Making an impact with your eCommerce site is all about how you spread your brand online. There are lots of strategies to help you achieve this, from content marketing to SEO and social media that are geared towards improving your online visibility. With a well-laid-out marketing campaign, you can elevate your eCommerce site and reach the right customers to grow your brand and business.
✏️If you need high-converting eCommerce copywriting for your business, speak to us at Copify today and partner with our ecommerce copywriters.
Header image: Mark König
Embedded images: NordWood Themes, Firmbee.com
