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Ecommerce: Simple Ideas for Great Results
Sell products online with ten simple ideas that can lead to more ecommerce website sales!
added 2.26.08
1. Keep it simple and make more sales
Selling products online requires giving your customers instant access and is imperative to making a sale. Consumer studies have shown that if consumers do not see instant access to the product they want on your home page there is an 85% chance they will click your website closed and move on down the list. Give customers instant access to your products and information about services from your ecommerce website home page and web sales will soar!
2. Update your website with new products and services for return customers
Nothing looks worse to a potential customer than an ecommerce website that has "sold" next to all of its products for sale, and they are the same products they saw months ago! Keep it fresh, and your website visitors will have a reason to keep coming back.
3. Relate to your customers and give 'em what they want
This is one thing you will never regret doing and it will always bring you positive results. Consider who may be surfing your website, who is your target audience? When surfing the internet seeking a product or information, what frustrates you? Keep these answers in mind when working on your ecommerce website design and considering its functionality.
4. Offer clear product representation
Good product presentation is critical to making a sale. Would you buy something you couldn't see or that had poor representation? If you don't have a decent picture of your products, sometimes you can improvise by just scanning in the label, fading the image into the background of the product, or using a portion of a picture creatively.
5. Remember the text for search engine optimization (SEO)
This is the way people surfing the internet stumble upon your website. It's as simple as a few specially selected keywords and phrases. Try to develop some broad keywords about your product and business and search engines will do their job by leading your customers straight to your website!
6. Offer Coupons or Discounts
With every sale, enclose a coupon for a special deal or a discount; put non permanent tags on your items with your website address and other important information. Not only will this give your customers incentive to return to your website, but the gift receiver often will see the gift's origin and come looking for more.
7. Feature products and services
It is always a great idea to feature products or services, maybe for a discounted price during a certain week or month, to get website sales rolling! Boldly feature your products and make announcements through a monthly newsletter to enhance your website marketing efforts.
8. Use an easy to use instant and secure payment program
Along with a great website shopping cart, offer simple and instant payment options by utilizing the services of digital payment vendors, such as PayPal, to receive instant and secure credit card payments.
9. Include your website address on all of your materials!
Always include your website address and contact information in all your notices, everything you send out, and everything potential customers will see. Once you get in this habit you will soon see your efforts pay off through return customers and referrals. The more active you are in referring people back to your website, the bigger digital buzz you create for your business and the higher you will rise in the search engine rankings.
10. "About (Us or Me)" doesn't work for sales!
Believe it or not, these pages rank lowest in ratings for frequent visits on informational, service related, and ecommerce websites. This indicates that most consumers want to see the product more than the story of the vendor. Unless your product is you (i.e.: doctor, attorney, consultant, artist, etc.) tone down the "about" area and focus on the products you are interested in selling.
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