The ecommerce industry is a wide-open market. Recent advances in technology have removed many barriers to entry into the digital marketplace, and just about anyone can launch their own web store.
But this coin has another side. The accessibility of the market has led to a flood of new online retailers, dramatically increasing competition and marketing noise across the internet. As opening your own ecommerce store becomes easier, creating and sustaining long-term growth becomes more difficult.
Choosing not to have an ecommerce store, though, is becoming riskier by the day. Online shopping has become a must-place, and many consumers already expect their desire to brick-and-mortar businesses to additionally sell online. So how can you give your shoppers what they want in this increasingly crowded marketplace? As a business owner, what exactly does it take to successfully add e-tail to your retail?
The great news is, your experience of running a physical store automatically gives you so many advantages over internet-only merchants. A physical store carries with it a look and a feeling. It has customers with specific needs and products curated to your customer base. Your store is the physical representation of a brand, and you’ve doubtless already invested time and heart into establishing your brand’s identity. A good portion of your work is already done.
In this blog post, we’ll outline how to take full advantage of that head start. By combining your established brand identity with thoughtful strategy and skillful execution, you can branch into this new marketplace and capture new audiences never before reachable.
Phase One: The Devil’s In The Details
So you’ve decided to launch a web store to compliment your existing brick-and-mortar store. There are a couple of significant details to consider. Paying attention to the details as you set up your new ecommerce store will put you in a better position as your business grows—and will likely save you quite a bit of money and hassle in the meantime.
Domain Name
First, you need a domain name. The domain name is essentially the digital version of your building address; it tells customers where to find you. It ought to directly relate to your brand.
This may seem obvious, but putting sufficient thought and planning into the details will pay off. Consider this scenario: You purchase the perfect domain name and find an ecommerce platform that fits your needs and budget. But after you’ve established your site, you realize the platform and plan you’ve picked requires you to use a predetermined domain name. Missteps like that can cost you a lot of time, hassle, and frustration.
Ecommerce site Platform
Your ecommerce platform is another element to approach thoughtfully. We’ve seen many web hosting and site-building platforms spring up recently. These new technologies make it very easy to launch an ecommerce website, but which one is best for your ecommerce site? How do you choose, and what should you consider?
The answers will vary from business to business. Finding the right ecommerce platform is the most important stage to invest in, so do your research.
Research it as thoroughly as you would if you were scouting a new location for your brick-and-mortar business. Check out documentation and support forums. Talk to an ecommerce consultant.
Finding the right ecommerce platform is the most important stage to invest in, so do your research.
One rule holds true for both brick-and-mortar and ecommerce businesses: Moving sucks. Migrating all of your product details and inventory from your physical store to your online store, or from one platform to another, can be time-consuming, tedious, and expensive. Your platform should be able to scale with your business for at least three to five years. So it’s critical to define your current needs and to accurately forecast your needs for the future. Avoid outgrowing your platform early by investing inaccurate growth projections before making any platform decisions.
Phase Two: Post Launch Strategy
In the early years of ecommerce, opening an online store nearly guaranteed that you’d make money. This is not true nowadays; the landscape has simply turned into too competitive. Successful ecommerce is a direct result of a successful digital marketing strategy.
Much of that work will be in marketing. Successful ecommerce is a direct result of a successful digital marketing strategy. Once your online store is live and fully optimized, it’s time to begin executing your long-term marketing strategy. Regardless of what tools or approaches you use, no digital marketing strategy is complete without three basics: email marketing, and content marketing.
Email Marketing Software
Email marketing is the most powerful form of online marketing available to internet retailers. This classic form of marketing consists of two simple components: your email address database and your email campaigns.
Just like ecommerce platforms, your options for email marketing software can seem endless. Functionality differs from bare-bones email delivery to full-scale advertisement and business intelligence environments. Selecting the right service for your business is crucial. Once again, defining your specific goals wants, and needs will prove invaluable in the long run.
Content Marketing
Content marketing is a relatively new component of digital marketing. This phenomenon has been largely driven by increased competition in the digital marketplace. To deal with the flood of new retailers, Google has made it a priority to deliver the most relevant and most valuable results for every search query.
To use content marketing successfully, you must identify and develop the kind of content your customer will find compelling, and then create that content consistently. Reliability is an important factor here. We recommend creating a content marketing calendar and sticking to it. This ensures that you’re regularly releasing new content that’s both valuable and relevant for the season and shopping cycle.
To Succeed in ecommerce, Follow the Formula
Successful ecommerce may not be as instant as it once was, but it’s still pretty formulaic. The key is simple: Utilize your brick-and-mortar assets carefully. Practice eagle-eyed attention to detail. Plan diligently and execute consistently. Outdo your competition with content that’s more relevant and valuable than theirs.
At Builderfly, we’ve helped many brick-and-mortar retailers make the successful transition to ecommerce. If you’re interested in how we can help you, contact us today.
