The COVID-19 pandemic has completely transformed the face of shopping, driving the demand for eCommerce experiences. To stay afloat, businesses are quickly transitioning to online platforms, which accelerated the digital revolution by several years.
When transitioning online, an IT company plays a critical role in helping business owners expand their digital skills. Meanwhile, others turn to digital marketing firms to boost their visibility in search engines and social networks. Whatever situation you’re in, online selling provides huge returns for your business.
To help you set up your online store, here are the things to consider when moving your business to eCommerce.
Set up an eCommerce store
Setting up your online store may be the most challenging process for brick-and-mortar sellers. Still, thanks to modern technology, eCommerce platforms have become more user-friendly and streamlined to meet the growing demand. If you don’t have an existing website, you don’t need digital skills to get started. Going online is a solid move for your business, so use this to your advantage.
There are different ways to sell online: host your own website, work with an established eCommerce platform, sell directly via email, or create a shippable post on social media.
Before the orders start coming in, you have to set up a few systems to manage inventory, packaging, payment, and shipping. All these aspects are part of the omnichannel retail strategy.
Reach out to the community
You have to modify your regular business operations if you rely heavily on eCommerce. This is where you let the creativity flow in trying new product offerings or service modes.
For example, use this time to expand your reach to the virtual community. There are different ways to get involved with customers. Social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, allow you to update customers on product or service offerings, business operations, sales, and promotions.
You can also try live streaming to interact with followers in real-time. Many businesses have been taking advantage of streaming to provide unique experiences and establish personalized connections with their community.
If you want to go beyond digital platforms, you can volunteer, donate, or get involved in relief programs. By helping others, you’re also enhancing the image and reputation of your business.
Enhance customer service
Customer service in eCommerce will be a little different once you move online. The major change lies in the type of customer service requests, such as troubleshooting, logistics, and medium, where agents and customers will communicate.
To solve logistical issues, you have to anticipate certain problems and questions ahead of time and provide agents with the required skills training. Make sure representatives records all interactions to spot trends immediately and apply necessary changes to address them.
The customer service medium depends on what suits your business. Choices include phone, email, text message, live chat, and social media. A great tip is to blend at least three to give customers more options without overworking the staff. Train representatives to address customer queries as quickly as possible regardless of the method used.
Leverage digital marketing strategy
In eCommerce, foot traffic doesn’t matter anymore because you’ll be focusing on actively sourcing customers. This means you have to invest in digital marketing strategies before experiencing returns.
It’s best to start on search engine optimization (SEO) to establish long-term organic traffic and paid advertising to produce short-term revenue.
While at it, continue creating an engaging and relevant social media presence. If your business already has an existing social following, it’s best to use your ad money on platforms where your followers congregate. You can also stick with other current marketing tactics that generate successful returns.
Other types of online marketing for eCommerce include Google Analytics, content creation, Google My Business, and email marketing.
Identify manpower needs
Even though your business will mainly operate online, you will need a few people to manage your online store to ensure everything works efficiently.
The people you need to recruit for your online store should include an online merchandiser, marketing specialist, graphic designer, warehouse personnel, and an eCommerce store manager. With an excellent eCommerce team, you can ensure the right people will deliver a top-notch experience for your customers.
If transitioning to eCommerce seems daunting, keep in mind that investing in digital knowledge and skills will give you a huge head start. Your insights will help you understand what customers want and need, helping you identify which pain points put off customers and which value propositions suit your business. Along the way, you will learn a lot from your failures and success as you spend more time selling online.
