Businesses today have unprecedented opportunities to flourish, owing to the digital revolution. It has transformed the way businesses operate, strategize and remain profitable.
Although, small businesses always face the challenge of operating with limited capital and resources. Given their tight budget, small businesses may vary in using costly eCommerce marketing strategies and might miss their benefits.
However, there are numerous ideas for eCommerce Marketing for small businesses which will not burn a hole in their pocket. If you are looking for budget-friendly ideas on how to capitalize on eCommerce Marketing for small business, this article is right for you.
Why eCommerce Marketing for Small Businesses is a great bet
We know that eCommerce involves buying or selling products or services over the Internet and given the phenomenal rise of Internet users worldwide, the sky is the limit.
Ecommerce marketing uses promotional efforts to drive traffic to your business website using various strategies. For small businesses, the marketing budget is often tight but eCommerce marketing need not be an expensive affair.
With the right strategies and tools, you can effectively use eCommerce to market and sell your product even on a tight budget. These are easy to implement and yet can prove to be a game-changer for your business.
9 eCommerce Marketing Ideas for Small Businesses
The revenue in the worldwide eCommerce Market in 2023 is expected to reach US $ 3.64 trillion. Not only big players, even small businesses can hugely benefit by implementing smart eCommerce marketing ideas.
1. Focus on Content Marketing
Content marketing is one of the most powerful tools for small businesses to drive organic traffic to their eCommerce websites. It is also an inexpensive way to attract organic visitors, garner their interest and convert them into loyal customers.
Here are ways by which you can use content marketing on a budget:
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Blogging - You can start a blog on your website and regularly post content that is interesting, informative and related to your eCommerce business. You may choose to write yourself if you like writing or can hire bloggers to write for your website. You can use eCommerce AI tools to generate content ideas.
Post blogs on topics using keywords that customers use while searching for a solution in your niche. This will also help to improve the search engine rankings of your website.
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Videos - Platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok can be used to create and share product tutorials, how-to videos, behind-the-scenes and other engaging content.
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Guest posts - You can write guest posts for other websites and blogs in your niche of eCommerce business and generate backlinks. This will provide a wide audience for your website and also help make you a thought leader in the industry.
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Podcasts - Making podcasts and showcasing your expertise is also a popular way of connecting with your audience and community
2. Create User-generated content (UGC)
An authentic and inexpensive way to build trust and credibility among your audience is by creating user-generated content. This eCommerce business marketing idea is an effective way to generate social proof which is a very powerful persuasion tool for existing and prospective customers.
You can encourage your customers to post UGC such as product reviews and testimonials. As many as nine out of ten customers worldwide read reviews before making a purchase decision. A satisfied customer through their positive review can influence many others to buy from you.
And even if some customers post negative reviews, you can always learn from the experience and address the issue. It will provide you with a chance to better your product or service.
Another effective strategy is to reach out to your customer to post their pictures or videos with your product. You can also incentivize them to post pictures and win a hamper or a contest.
Glam Theory Cosmetics, a small business in Australia that offers high-quality make-up tools, makes apt use of UGC such as product reviews and testimonials.
Another smart way to create UGC is by creating a hashtag around a popular trend, promotion or your eCommerce business in general and then encouraging your customers to post using that hashtag. The response to this could be very positive with minimum effort and practically no budget.
3. Invest in Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO is an inexpensive marketing strategy for eCommerce businesses that involves optimizing the pages of your website so that it ranks among the top 10 results on search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo.
This strategy if executed well brings organic traffic to your website without spending on advertising. SEO is free but may take some time to master. Here are certain tips to do it effectively:
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Perform keyword research by using free or affordable tools such as WordStream, ChatGPT and Google Keyword Planner to identify keywords relevant to your industry that people use while searching for products and services. Use those keywords in your page URLs, page title, meta descriptions, product descriptions and blogs.
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Ensure to create high-quality, user-friendly and informative content that addresses the needs and queries of your target audience. Such content always ranks higher on search engines.
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Local SEO is important if you have a physical store or operate in certain geographical areas only. Add location-based keywords, get listed in online local directories and publish blogs specific to the neighbourhood and areas you serve.
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Building backlinks from other reputable websites is also helpful.
4. Up-sell and cross-sell
For many eCommerce businesses, investing your time and efforts in your existing customers can be more effective and cost-efficient than trying to acquire a new customer.
Many times your customers are not aware that an enhanced or a premium version of their selected product is available or why it suits their needs better. Upselling is trying to convince the customer to upgrade their purchase with a premium version to what they were originally considering.
This approach is quite successful in products such as gadgets, electronics and automobiles.
Cross Selling is an attempt to increase the cart value of your customers by suggesting products that are related to their original selection. Products such as grocery items, apparel, cosmetics, books, decorative products, etc., are highly amenable to cross-selling.
A word of caution though. Do not try to be too pushy and ensure that your upsells and cross-sells are related to the original product.
5. Optimise for mobile
There has been an unprecedented increase in the usage of mobile devices in the last few years. Smartphones accounted for over 70 percent of all retail website visits in 2022 and also generated the maximum number of online orders as compared to desktop and tablet devices.
This necessitates that your website is optimised for a high-quality mobile experience. Some of the ways to achieve this are by ensuring that:
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The site is responsive and loads quickly
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Site search is easy
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It is easier to zoom in
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Checkout process is simplified
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Large and clear CTA buttons such as ‘Add to Cart’ are used
6. Engage on Social media platforms
It should not be an exaggeration to say that the entire world today is on social media. You can leverage the power of social media to chart out a cost-effective digital marketing strategy for your eCommerce business.
Create and maintain profiles on leading social media platforms depending on your target audience. Each social media platform offers a unique value proposition. Here is a comparative analysis of different platforms.
Make the most of your social media strategy by;
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Posting regular content which is in line with your strategy and target audience
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Encouraging your regular customers to share their experience and generate UGC
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Engaging with followers and responding to their feedback, questions and complaints
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Using relevant and viral hashtags to increase engagement
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Run contests, polls, quizzes and reward the winners
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Adding your products to stories, posts and reels to increase visibility and hence chances of sale
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Selling on social media marketplaces such as Facebook and Instagram
7. Email marketing
Email marketing is one of the most proven and reliable eCommerce business marketing strategies. It is a great way to maintain relationships with your existing customers and keep new visitors engaged and convert them eventually into customers.
Here are certain tips for successful email marketing in a budget-friendly way;
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Convert the reliable traffic coming to your website into an email list using lead magnets. Lead magnets are pieces of content that compel site visitors to exchange their information such as email addresses to access the offer. Some popular lead magnets include newsletters, free product samples, trial subscriptions, ebooks, checklists etc.
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Create separate email lists based on browsing history, list of existing customers, list of visitors who abandoned the cart before purchase, list of customers that purchased on special offers, lists based on location and so on.
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Customise the emails according to the lists. For instance, for first-time purchasers, you can send them a welcome email. For those who have abandoned the cart, you can gently pursue them to finish the purchase. Incentives such as a discount coupon or free delivery can be offered to motivate them. You can thank your highest-valued customers for their business.
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Incorporate automation into activities such as sending welcome emails, reminders of abandoned carts, post-purchase follow-up, promotional reminders and so on. It is efficient and saves time.
8. Partnerships and collaborations
You can explore partnerships and collaborations with complementary businesses that is not direct competitor, either online or through offline events. Partnerships have the potential to get twice as much notice and exposure with an audience related to your eCommerce business.
This is a great marketing strategy for smaller eCommerce businesses as it provides access to marketing know-how, technology and each others’ customer bases which otherwise was not possible. It is however advisable to clarify expectations, have several conversations and be clear about outcomes before going ahead.
You can also collaborate with micro-influencers as they have a smaller but highly engaged following. For small businesses, they are more affordable and effective. You can reach out to them to promote your business in exchange for a small fee or a freebie.
9. Address cart abandonment
The Baymard Institute calculated an average cart abandonment rate of 70.19% in 2023.
This number is huge and one of the most cost-effective strategies is to address and reduce this cart abandonment rate.
Some of the ways you can address high cart abandonment rates are:
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Make a user-friendly interface with a simple checkout process
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Free delivery of small packages
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Increase trust in the product by showing SSL certificates and other trust symbols
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Providing multiple payment methods
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Allowing to make payments without creating an account
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Using an email recovery campaign and convincing the visitors to return and complete their original purchase
Summing Up
Among a plethora of ideas of eCommerce Marketing for small businesses, the ones discussed above are some of the most proven and cost-effective. You can use all of these or select a few depending on your eCommerce business niche and target market to thrive in the digital marketplace.
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