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Writer's picturePhilip Kushmaro

How to Get Ahead of Your Ecommerce Competition

Originally posted on thenextweb.com.

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The art of ecommerce is increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to achieve a complete mastery of. Valued overall as a trillion dollar market, ecommerce’s burst onto the global scene is unprecedented, and everyone wants an opportunity to get their spot on the money train. On top of that, out of more than 12 million e-commerce stores, only 650,000 of them are earning over a thousand dollars a month. That is merely half a percentage point of stores even earning a reasonable return on their ecommerce store investment. Perhaps the outburst of ecommerce stores can be explained by the success of companies like Amazon, who produce a greater GDP than half the world’s countries. With that in mind, it is important to keep in mind that there are ways to increase the odds of getting your e-commerce outlet (of any industry) more recognition and relevancy in this evermore competitive business climate.


Appeal to your Audience


Though it comes off as a rhetorical suggestion, this is a severely underrated, underutilized aspect of ecommerce. Believe it or not, demographic marketing in ecommerce is more important than in-store shopping experiences, where you are limited to how much information you can provide about a product. Think about it. If an online user only engages with a sidebar advertisement, you have about a 33% chance of them looking at your ad 6-20 seconds. The odds are against you, so you have to raise them yourself. Take into account who you want. Is it a millennial? Almost 40% of them are in debt. Keep that in mind when you show a price point on your advertisement. Do not market your highest priced product if you anticipate the website your ad is being distributed on will be millennials. There are plenty of ideas that run parallel to this as it pertains to making sure your ecommerce site will purvey the right message to the audience at hand, all the while attracting the target demographic to buy from you.


Gain Insights


In and of itself, having the courage to start your ecommerce outlet is commendable, but it is not enough. If you plan to be serious about your ecommerce store, you absolutely have to be ready, and that means being technologically up to par. You have to be ready, and that means taking a look at tools that help give you insights and make your life easier. Companies like Intelligence Node have developed technology that helps users gain pricing insights they need. By adjusting your pricing to that of the competition, companies have seen major returns on their investment while placing their product pricing in the proper tier for its target demographic. Gaining proper insights to the forecast of a certain product line is essential to setting your prices, and doing it correctly is of the essence if you want to get off on the right foot and get a quicker ROI. With the proper insight, you attain a new perspective on your target demographic, what they are willing to spend, and establish a reason as to why they should purchase from you. There are also companies like Insite that take a different route. By working to provide insights to e-commerce retailers by bridging the gap between the complex relationships of people, products and the channels through which they are connected, ecommerce stores thrive. It all depends on what the most relevant approach is for a given company and its current climate. Companies like Clavis Insights strategize strictly based on data analysis. By identifying what consumers see, and at what rate, data analysis can influence your next move that will ultimately drive ecommerce profit.


Let the Critics Speak!


Sometimes your best and worst friend comes in the same package. In the ecommerce world, this notion manifests itself in the form of a customer review section. Companies like Yelp have gained such a high level of relevance. People genuinely care what consumers think about a product or service, and it has a tangible impact on their choices. You can go on all about yourself and how great you are, but it is not always believable. The fact is that 70% of consumers consult reviews and/or ratings before making an online purchase. 63% of consumers are more likely to buy from a site that has product ratings and reviews. The proof is in the pudding. Allowing your client base to speak on your product, for better or worse, gives you a substantial upside. The likelihood of a newcomer purchasing from your site increases dramatically by permitting your customers the opportunity to verify your product’s usefulness and legitimacy.


Key Takeaways


Like we said, finding your way in the world of ecommerce is exceedingly difficult in this day and age, especially considering how many relevant players are there as competition. By appealing to your target demographic, gaining insights to scale your pricing, and allowing reviews to run freely on your product pages, you are drastically increasing your odds of bringing customers your way for days to come.

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