Powerful eCommerce Holiday Marketing Strategies for 2014

Online shopping and online selling has become more efficient and fun these days. With new technologies been introduced round the year, eCommerce stores are making haste by harnessing new techniques that sets them on the path of spectacular growth.  

Last year, it was all about guest blogging, website optimization, higher CTR & conversion rates, and responsive design. This year, it's all about mobile, social networking, big data, analytics and personalization. All these changes has led to new trends in the world of eCommerce.

The long and short of it is that there are significant changes happening in the eCommerce space and some of the important ones have been listed below:

1. Mobile Optimized Websites:

Last year, the chant was all about building responsive web design that were mobile-friendly. This year, however, the eCommerce owners are completely focusing on building sites that blossom beautifully on smartphones and tablets.

2. Mobile Advertising:

Mobile Advertising is catching fire. It's the latest fad to enter the eCommerce arena, and the big, branded eCommece stores are going to the first big spenders on mobile ads. Though, small store owners may be not be prepared for the big leap, larger store owners will try to reach as many mobile users as possible. Even video mobile ads will be in great demand.

3. Advertising On Wearable Devices:

Google glasses, smart watches and other wearable devices are set to enter the market in 2014. If demand of these devices pick up, eCommerce stores are sure to bombard it with promotions, offers, and updates to their customers through these wearable devices.

4. Re-emergence Of Long Content:

Bid adieu to short content. Long-form content is the order of the day. We will see the rise of long-form content for all the products and services offered by the stores. Plus, all the articles and blog posts will have to be long enough going forward. Moreover, the easy availability of analytics and data will lead to the creation of more data-based content.

5. Increase In Social and Search Ads:

With more and more content marketers turning toward social media and search ads for revenue, PPC and CPC ads experiments in small and large eCommerce companies will increase manifold.

6. Brand and Author Identity Assumes More Importance:

The death of large-scale guest blogging has inspired the rise of digital brand both for authors and businesses. Going forward, a brand blog plus a team of well-known bloggers will be  for eCommerce businesses.

7. Personalized Product Displays:

With users becoming more comfortable sharing personal information with brands and trusted online stores, it would lead to rise in personalized product displays and suggestions for registered users.

8. Instant Delivery:

Amazon is stepping up its delivery services manifold with drone delivery. Online stores are not meant for instant gratification. For this offline stores are better as you get your goods instantly. However, in case of online stores you have to wait for 2 days to 2 weeks. But this won't be the case in 2014. Next-day delivery options and same-day delivery options are on the top of the agenda for many eCommerce stores.

9. Local SEO:

While larger eCommerce stores try out new ways to attract customers, smaller eCommerce store owners will focus on traditional SEO to target customers in a limited geographic area.

10. Marketing Automation:

Online shoppers are known for their notorious trait of browsing the store for endless hours and leaving it without buying anything. Targeted marketing can solve this issue to a greater extent. For instance, lead nurturing, emails and analytics should be automated to help small online store owners gain better insights and convert visitors into buyers.

These are some of the most important eCommerce trends that can be used in upcoming holiday season and increase sales.

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4 Tips To Improve eCommerce Brand

When you are selling online, it’s quite important to create a strong brand. A brand that will stand out among thousands of products and services; a brand that differentiates itself from your competitors. 

Brand strengthening can be done through social media comments, customer reviews, videos and content syndication. 

Let’s discuss them further.

1. Social media comments

Social networking platforms aren't just for socializing; they are great for connecting with the customers too. When you engage and discuss with customers, you are doing free advertising of your business as well as growing your brand online at the same time. Be proactive and post more than just one-line sentences about your products. Use social networking platforms to tell stories, ask questions, sharing news related to your products and initiating discussions about your products. Also, when you get comments, respond to them – thank customers for positive comments and try to resolve customer’s query for negative comments. Once you solve their problems, those customers will get converted into loyal customers, always ready to buy from you.

2. Customer reviews

When customers are unhappy, they are going to review your product negatively – if not at your website then somewhere else. Why not convert the unhappy customer into a happy one? Actively ask for their reviews and feedback. When those are positive, it’s a great way to attract new customers; and when those are negative, you can work with the customers to change their opinion. However, do remember not to spam your customers’ email box with repeated requests. One email asking them to post what they thought of your product is a good idea. Also, when you respond to reviews, you are building a positive image for your brand.

3. Videos

Videos are great for giving a product demo for potential customers. And they have the ability to go viral, presenting your brand to millions of people. Apart from showcasing your products, you can use videos to tell your story or use various techniques to engage people in your brand and draw them to your store. You can even make a funny tutorial to make your brand lively.

4. Content syndication

In simple terms, content syndication means the content – including text, video and audio – that’s created by you is made available at other sites for use.  When you syndicate the content, you are allowing customers to access the information about your products that you want them to have, instead of information created by the secondary company. Syndication is the best way to offer accurate and consistent information to your customers.

Now, all you need to do is to make sure that all the functionality or eCommerce branding features as mentioned above should be implemented and customized in your eCommerce website properly as a part of your branding and marketing.

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