To say that modern ecommerce is competitive would be a massive understatement.
The latest wave of merchants taking advantage of platforms like Shopify and Magento, starting full-blown businesses from scratch thanks to today’s powerful “out-of-the-box” storefronts.
The problem, though?
These platforms in and of themselves aren’t enough to guarantee a successful storefront.
In fact, there are a number of trends out there that speak to what merchants should focus on not only when it comes to optimizing their sites for performance, but also sticking with the best practices of sales.
Take the time to understand the following four trends and how they could potentially impact your ecommerce site. Although some of these might not seem like game-changers, bear in mind that anything you can to do optimize your storefront is a point in your favor to stand out from the competition.
Mobile SEO
If your site isn’t optimized for mobile buyers, you’re inevitably leaving money on the table.
“Things like site speed, usability, and mobile-friendliness also influence rankings, so don’t forget to keep these things in mind,” notes David Zheng of WiseMerchant. “See to it that your website loads quickly and ensure that it is easy to use on all devices.”
Mobile ecommerce is on the rise, meaning that usability on-the-go matters more than ever. Although merchants often obsess over specific features and plugins via desktop, don’t neglect the importance of your shoppers’ mobile experience.
Voice Search
Piggybacking on the last tip, the way consumers search for products is likewise evolving due to the popularity of mobile ecommerce.
The implications of voice search are impossible to ignore, with people searching more colloquial, longer-tail terms (“where can I buy X, Y and Z…”) rather than shorter ones. This mean diversifying your SEO and content strategies to zero in on longer terms with specific intent.
The good news is that such terms of lower-competition, meaning you don’t need to create a ton of content to attack voice-searched keywords in most cases.
Social Selling
The popularity of Facebook and Instagram ads in your social feeds these ads is no accident.
The concept of selling products via social media either organically or through ads represents the new normal. As such, you should consider how your business can hop on the social selling bandwagon as well. Testing the waters of Facebook ads is a good start given that you can target specific users based on their interests to keep your budget in check.
Either way, promoting your products via social is a no-brainer. Having any sort of social presence cements that you’re a real brand that people can trust, if nothing else.
Speedier Response Times
People are impatient, plain and simple.
This rings true beyond the likes of site speed, but also factors such as responding to customer concerns and providing speedy shipping (this rings true both physically and digitally). It never hurts to double-check your site speed and the fact that your digital messages (think: autoresponders and confirmations) are getting sent out in a timely manner.
You may also want to look into investing in a chatbot, livechat platform or even a virtual assistant to help streamline your communication to address customer concerns. Doing so is easier and cheaper than ever.
Sometimes the factors impacting the bottom line of your ecommerce business are “below the surface,” so to speak. Focusing on these trends can provide you peace of mind that you’re providing the best possible experience for your customers, therefore maximizing your earning potential in the process.
