If not attract customers to your online store, you cannot generate any sales there.
The issue: Business owners make the mistake of assuming that every website visitor is worthwhile. Conversion rates are decreased when low-quality traffic—people who have no interest in what you sell—is sent.
Your chances of generating a sale increase with the degree of interest a visitor have in your products.
What is the best way to attract customers to your online store—those who will make purchases? This manual offers 17 smart strategies.
17 ways to attract customers to your online store
1. Optimize your social media bios
A strong method for increasing traffic to your online store is social networking. The sole issue? The majority of social media sites dislike it when businesses entice users away from the platform.
For instance, Instagram only permits one link in your profile bio. Since there is no method to attract customers to a particular page on your e-commerce website, implementing social advertising to boost online traffic is challenging.
Create a landing page that attract customers to your most popular sites using Linkpop to get around this problem, such as:
- Your brand story
- Other social media profiles
- Lead magnet landing pages
- Popular item category pages
- Product pages of bestselling items
One online store utilizing this tactic is Pink House. It makes use of Linkpop to highlight the brand's unique selling proposition and attract customers to its newsletter sign-up website, other social media accounts, and physical stores. The Face Fix Serum, which is its best-selling product, occupies most of the page real estate as a ploy to entice social media users to its website.
2. Partner with creators and influencers
Run an influencer marketing strategy to increase website traffic by using the audience of a well-known social media user. According to research, 61% of consumers believe influencer suggestions are trustworthy (as opposed to just 38% who believe in branded social media content).
Finding influencers and producers whose audience coincides with your own is crucial. You may work with them by finding them on Instagram or the TikTok Creator Marketplace.
- Sending free gifts
- Paid sponsored content
- Inviting them to be an affiliate
The proprietor of Pants & Socks, Richard Clews, is one small businessperson that used this strategy to build brand recognition. He has teamed with several well-known sportsmen, including Nick Campbell, a top boxer, and Jason Roy, a well-known cricketer for England and Sussex.
Richard adds, “Even though we are a specialized niche, our target demographic is rather large—men 18+. This is a terrific approach for us to expand our reach.” “Sports have been the ideal vehicle for us to connect with our target audience's various age groups.
“With some of our partnered athletes, we have run a really cool campaign where we change the location of our logo on their equipment or uniform, announce it on social media, and offer a 15% to 20% discount code to anyone who can identify the location in whatever game, match, or tournament they may be taking part in”.
These influencer marketing strategies often result in conversion rates of 2.4% to 3.2%, which is significantly higher than the 1.4% the typical ecommerce store experiences. However, Richard continues, “We have observed week-long rises as high as 7% to 8% conversion rate the few times we have done this campaign.”
3. Run flash sales and promotions
According to research, 37% of consumers frequently search for coupons online before making a purchase. Utilize them as a draw to stand out from the chatter on social media and encourage people to visit your online store. That may be:
- Percentage discounts
- Limited time sales, such as “30% off for the next 24 hours”
- Free shipping thresholds, such as “spend $50 for free next-day shipping”
- Product bundles, which combine two or more products at a lower price than buying each one individually
Use a discount app like Daily Deals, MyBulk, or Wheelio to create the coupon.
Then, advertise them on Facebook Groups, suggests Stephen Light, co-founder, and CEO of the mattress company Nolah: “Facebook is the home to hundreds of private groups, each with niche members. It might be wise to join a few of these organizations for online shoppers looking for discounts.”
By publicizing your deals within these forums, Stephen claims that you may significantly increase the traffic to your website and your purchases. Since the majority of the members are actively looking for product discounts, this strategy is certain to get leads who are eager to buy into your online store.
4. Write optimized blog content
You might be surprised to learn that 48% of consumers begin their purchasing journeys on search engines like Google. Your ecommerce business will appear on their search engine results page with the use of search engine optimization (SEO), a content marketing approach.
Create blog posts around the terms that your target audience uses to search. For instance, if you offer Apple Watch straps online, a search for “best apple watch straps for men” or “are apple watches waterproof” would come up.
To get your blog material to rank in search engines, adhere to SEO best practices. That contains:
- Using a short, clear, easy-to-read URL structure
- Build backlinks to your website from external websites
- Actively distributing the blog post on social media channels
- Embedding the keyword in meta tags, alt text, and headings
- Building internal links that attract customers to similar pages on your website
For instance, Illuminate Labs writes blog entries on health on its website. According to President Calloway Cook, “We started content marketing as the main tactic to attract customers to our Shopify store in July of 2021. We started posting several thorough pieces each week on our business blog, Illuminate Health.
“Our website had 6,300 organic page visits in that month. In July 2022, a year later, our website had 162,000 organic page visits.
5. Optimize your product descriptions
You may improve product pages, which are already-published pieces of content, to increase organic traffic. Your target consumer should be in mind when you write the product description; use their language, their problems, and the keywords they use when searching.
You can trust Milk Tooth owner Kath Vaughn when she states that “Organic search traffic is my number one source of sales.” Because I don't just duplicate the generic product descriptions that everyone else does, my website outperforms other toy retailers selling the same items as Milk Tooth.
I spend the time—and it does take time, don't get me wrong—to write my own and, as a mother myself, attempt to include details about the toy that would be useful and enticing to a parent. Although it takes much more effort, I also strive to post original product images to go with stock photos.
In the 12 months leading up to August 20, 2022, Kath continues, “Just over 45% of all orders for Milk Tooth came from organic Google traffic. I didn't run any Google ads throughout this time.
6. Start a free quiz
People like discovering more about themselves. Utilize a free quiz to scale up the personalization of your content. People have a cause to visit your online store, and you also get their email addresses for retargeting in the future. It's a fantastic technique to convert casual visitors into paying clients.
Take Wicked Edge as an illustration. Octane AI is used by the knife sharpening company to ask customers about the product they require. People are prompted to choose their use case, knife thickness, and the reason they are sharpening their knives. To receive their quiz results, they must submit their email address.
After completing the quiz, participants get a list of tailored product suggestions with a convenient Add to Basket” button that adds the suggested items to their online shopping cart right away.
The quiz created by Wicked Edge performs a fantastic job of drawing visitors to its website and, more importantly, converting them. The conversion rate for this straightforward widget is 3.6%, which is higher than the 1.5% site-wide average. Additionally, the average order value is 67% greater than when customers see regular website material.
But keep in mind that even if not every quiz taker will convert, you have already gathered information to tailor subsequent communications. Your possibilities of creating marketing campaigns that entice users back to your online store increase the more precise your questionnaire is.
7. Create YouTube videos around trending topics
Users stream 694 hours of video on YouTube, the second-most-visited website in the world, every minute.
Utilize the immense potential of YouTube by making videos about popular subjects. Find out what subjects attract your audience by conducting market research. Upload your material to your company's YouTube account in an interesting style, such as a “how to” manual or video lesson.
YouTube combines elements of a search engine with social media. By using the following YouTube SEO best practices, you may increase the likelihood that your target audience will find your videos:
- Upload a unique thumbnail to persuade people to click on your video
- Add video tags to show YouTube which terms are relevant to your content.
- Use callout boxes, playlists, and end screens to increase video watch time.
- Write video descriptions that include keywords someone interested in your video would search for.
- Enable the Shopify connection to direct customers to your online store's merchandise.
One online company employing this tactic to attract customers is Best Price Nutrition. We're a vitamin and sports supplement company, so we frequently film videos introducing new companies, new items coming out, new flavors of current products, as well as performing product reviews, says ecommerce manager John Frigo.
“These movies frequently score highly in Google search results. Every visitor to these movies is usually a highly targeted consumer”.
According to John, the company's video marketing strategy is effective: “We normally produce at least two to three films every week. We occasionally produce movies every day, which often results in daily sales of $200 to $500”.
8. Land press coverage
Obtaining press attention on websites for industry news is one method of receiving free internet promotion.
Journalists are constantly seeking for subject matter experts to add to their work. Use a portal like Help a Reporter Out, Help a B2B Writer, or Terkel to get requests from journalists searching for sources. In response to inquiries, provide relevant tales that highlight your brand.
As an alternative, approach journalists personally to receive free publicity. Make a short list of the periodicals that your target demographic reads, and seek out writers for the website. Send an email to the reporter about a possible feature.
There's a strong possibility a writer will cover it if you have something intriguing to say, much about a new product line or influencer cooperation, and the subject pertains to the website you're writing for.
9. Build an email newsletter
Your consumers may reach you directly through the inbox. Email marketing ensures a line of communication with your potential clients, unlike social media platforms, which can immediately sink organic reach.
But before you can contact potential clients, you must get their permission to add them to your mailing list. Give anything away for free to accomplish this. Put the following pieces of content, sometimes referred to as lead magnets, behind an email opt-in form to increase your subscriber base:
- A free quiz
- A coupon code
- A checklist or downloadable PDF
This traffic-building strategy is combined with content marketing at Pearly Drinks. The goal of the brand's strategy is to attract customers to the website, convert them into blog readers, and then convert them into customers by publishing high-quality blog entries on the website.
To increase conversion rates, Filip is trying a variety of pop-up boxes; this one has a 2% conversion rate for now. Filip explains that once a subscriber joins the list, “We have a three-step email flow alerting them about the competition, our brand, and our products with the objective of conversion.
“So far, the popup on traffic that ordinarily brings us nothing has produced extremely high opt-in results. We receive hundreds of signups every day thanks to our extensive network of articles, and as we continue to offer them more informative material, they will eventually become paying clients”.
10. Use SMS campaigns
Almost everyone carries a smartphone, and 86% of them have SMS notifications turned on. SMS is an excellent marketing strategy to attract customers to your online store if you have their express consent to contact them.
Start by gathering mobile phone numbers using existing consumer touchpoints. Use pop-up boxes on your online store's most popular pages, including a phone number option in the checkout form, and invite your email subscribers to opt-in to SMS marketing.
Send these subscribers to your website via SMS marketing campaigns. That may be:
- Loyalty program invites
- Text-to-win competitions
- Subscriber-exclusive offers
- Flash sales and promotions
- New product or restock alerts
SMS is a fantastic technique to increase website traffic, and it can also offer outstanding customer care to online buyers who are still debating. Ask subscribers to discuss their top sales objections in a brief text exchange. To increase the number of people who convert on your website, have your customer service personnel allay their pre-purchase angst.
11. List your store on free advertising sites
The likelihood of reaching your target audience rises with advertising. But to start, you don't have to spend money on advertising. List your online store on sites that offer free advertising to draw in your target audience.
Free advertising doesn't deplete a tiny business's already meager resources. Spend some time making a profile, adding your product listings, and crafting copy that tempts customers to make purchases from your online store (instead of the free advertising site). You'll get in front of the millions of consumers that browse internet markets to find new products.
12. Run Google Ads campaigns
We already know that 49% of individuals use search engines to begin their purchasing trip. To reach them, run Google Ads. They are excellent sources of potential clients since they are people who are already seeking the products you provide.
Experiment around with various Google Ad kinds, such as:
- Display ads, which appear on sites in the Google Display Network
- Video ads, which appear on the Google-owned YouTube platform
- Search ads, which appear in Google search results either as text-based or Shopping ads
According to Catherine Wilson, owner of Essential Derma, “We highly encourage increasing your brand's recognition within your target market, even if this costs a significant portion of your money.
“An effective Google Ads sponsored brand search campaign can assist Google's machine-learning algorithm to identify new clients who are similar to your converted customers once you establish yourself as a credible brand in your industry. Our brand search efforts have a 31% conversion rate and an average cost per conversion of 78¢”.
13. Host a referral marketing program
Getting new clients is becoming more expensive. Let your satisfied customers perform the marketing for you to relieve some of the burdens. They are the ideal salesmen for your online store since they are aware of what you have to offer, the customer type most likely to purchase it, and the information that customers need to hear before making a purchase.
Utilize tools like Referral Candy, Yotpo, or Bloop to create a referral marketing strategy. Give your existing clientele commissions, gift cards, or shop credits in return for each new client they refer.
You only pay for outcomes with this marketing technique, which is its finest feature. You only pay for incentives when a new client makes a purchase, saving you from having to spend $1,000 on a new influencer program that you are doubtful would be profitable.
14. List your business on review aggregator sites
Before giving a new company their credit card information, 93% of customers actively search for reviews. To attract customers who are actively seeking your products, join the more than 500,000 businesses listed on review aggregator websites like TrustPilot.
Platforms like Google Business, Trustpilot, and Yelp exist to compile lists of the top companies in a certain field or application. For instance, gathering client feedback might affect your ranking on Trustpilot's list of home furniture companies if your online store sold furniture.
The physical location of New Era Factory Outlet complements its online store. Flynn Zaiger, the company's marketing manager, explains, “We always make sure to request feedback on local review websites like Yelp.
Why would local review sites for walk-in businesses enhance traffic to the Shopify website, you might ask? When consumers discover that you have a Shopify shop that makes things simple, we've discovered that they are interested in buying online rather than making a journey to the store.
Flynn continues, “Online referral traffic from local directories like Yelp is frequently some of our most engaged traffic. It frequently surpasses sources of traffic that are more commonly thought of as having high levels of engagement, such as organic search results. Our data show that Google has longer average site visits and more pages per session than organic search does (Google, Bing, and Yahoo.) ”
15. Go local
One approach to providing customers experiences is through experiential retail. For this reason, 40% of firms want to give branded experiences high priority this year. Almost a third of consumers stated they are inclined to engage with branded experiences.
Physical retail may be utilized without a permanent brick-and-mortar location, though. Become more visible to local consumers by participating in events like:
- Craft fairs
- Trade shows
- Pop-up shops
- Local markets
- Chamber of Commerce events
At every event, hand out business cards or have attendees scan a QR code of your signage, especially one that says something encouraging like “Get 10% off with this card at yourwebsite.com.” You can avoid carrying or physically selling merchandise in this manner.
You may handle all sales through your internet store and leverage physical retail to draw customers to the top of your marketing funnel.
16. Host a giveaway
Organic social networking may occasionally seem like screaming into space. Sharing content that people want to interact with is the key to getting people's attention.
Competitions are a good illustration. Instagram freebies receive 3.5 times as many likes and 64 times as many comments as ordinary posts because users are eligible to win.
Put together a package of your best-selling items and raffle it off to one fortunate winner. To enter, require them to promote your company in some way. That might be:
- Liking the post
- Tagging a friend in the comments
- Sharing the post to their own Stories
- Subscribing to your email or SMS list
- Following your business’s social media account
Being that people enter the offer to win free stuff, it could seem paradoxical. However, if you make an email subscription requirement for entry, you'll have the contact information of potential consumers for future retargeting after the contest has ended.
17. Run retargeting campaigns
Don't give up once you've used these strategies to draw people to your online store. Use retargeting advertisements as a last-ditch effort to persuade prior website visitors to come back (and make a purchase).
Visitors to websites that have:
- Viewed product pages
- Liked your Facebook page
- Viewed a specific collection
- Watched a social media video
- Added items to their online cart but not purchased
Consider the following scenario: You had 200 website visits in the previous 14 days, but only 20 of them made a transaction. Create a Custom Audience on Facebook and upload your customer list to use the service's retargeting tools. Promote the product they previously viewed on your online store by using the dynamic advertisements option.
According to studies, 3 out of 5 online users are aware of adverts for items they have already evaluated. Additionally, they are 43% more likely to convert, which means that the same initial website traffic pool might produce additional paying clients.
I worked on creating eye-catching ads and hired a creative to assist me to think of fresh marketing ideas, such as showcasing consumer product feedback. My Facebook advertisements typically convert at a rate of 5.4%, and I was able to increase traffic to my Shopify store by 15% with 18,682 site visits, providing evidence that it is effective.
Ahmed Samir Fonder as-educate
Attracting customers to an online store FAQ
1- Host a giveaway on social media.
2- Create a referral marketing program.
3- Run influencer marketing campaigns.
4- Get free publicity by responding to journalist requests.
5- Write blog content that appears in a target customer’s search results.
1- Land free press coverage.
2- Host a social media giveaway.
3- List on free advertising sites like Craigslist.
4- Attend networking events in your local area.
5- Have customers recommend products in exchange for a commission.
A marketing strategy that focuses on your target market is the most effective. Create a buyer profile that includes their demography, interests, and pain areas, and then devise a marketing approach that targets them through the channels they already use.
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