Are you looking for a few effective strategies to market your online store to the masses?
Without some strong marketing efforts on your part, it’s unlikely that many people will hear about your online store. I mean, let’s be honest, creating an online business is rarely a “build it and they will come” sort of endeavor.
However, with the right marketing methods, you can start to drive more traffic to your online store and increase your sales.
In fact, here are some of the most effective ways to market your ecommerce store in order to start seeing real results in your business.
Let’s dive in!
1. Start Blogging/Content Marketing
One of the best ways to boost your domain authority and get more eyes on your website is by blogging.
Writing and sharing blog articles may not sound like the most exciting marketing strategy, but it’s one of the most effective long-term strategies.
Think about your target market and the problem your product solves for them. Then, create content that helps address your ideal customers’ pain points, and demonstrate the value of your product within this content.
This is a form of “soft selling,” and it will help encourage more interest in your online store.
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2. Post Consistently On Social Media
Growing awareness of your business on social media is a surefire way to market your online store.
As more people learn about what you have to offer, your website traffic will increase and you’ll likely make more sales.
Choose a social media platform that you can remain consistent on.
Whether that’s Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, or something else, try to choose a platform that aligns with your content and lends itself to sharing about your products.
3. Use Email Marketing
If you aren’t yet utilizing the power of email marketing, now is the time to start.
Your email list is one of your most valuable tools as an online business owner.
People who opt in to receive emails from you typically fall into one of two categories. They’re either former customers who have made purchases from you, or they’re people who have explicitly shown interest in what you’re offering.
This is what makes email marketing such a powerful tool.
You have a list of leads that you can market to at any time.
As a business owner, you should create an email marketing strategy that nurtures these leads, educating them about your product and encouraging them to make a purchase.
4. Send Free Samples To Influencers
Influencer marketing is a powerful way to get your products in the hands of your target customers. This is because certain influencers already have an established audience of people who are the exact people your products are meant for.
By offering free samples of your product to influencers, you give them the opportunity to try it and give their honest opinion of it to their followers.
You may even want to pay influencers to promote your product. However, in the early stages of your business, this might not be a viable option.
5. Write Guest Blog Posts
Another way to get your brand’s name out there is to write guest blog posts for other blogs.
Browse around for online publications or blogs that tie in with your industry and pitch a guest post to them.
Many of these publications are in constant need of fresh content, so in many cases, you’ll be doing them a favor.
If things go according to plan, you’ll end up with a prominent byline on their website, and you’ll also get a backlink to your website.
This is another important step toward boosting your domain authority.
6. Create Video Content
An increasing percentage of today’s consumers prefer to consume content in video format. Video tends to be more engaging, and it allows you to demonstrate more information about your product than static photographs.
And the best part is, you don’t have to have a huge video production team to create a high-quality, engaging video that educates people about your product or industry.
If you enjoy creating video content, you may even consider starting a YouTube channel.
This is another potential source of website traffic to your online store.
7. Try Different Social Media Platforms
Social media can be exhausting to figure out.
The always-changing algorithms can be difficult to navigate, and it can be discouraging to try to build a following when the rules are always shifting.
If you’re putting a lot of consistent effort into a certain social media platform and you’re still not seeing success, try switching up your platform.
It may be the case that your product or brand is a better fit for a different user base.
Keep experimenting with social media platforms until you find a few that work the best for you. Then, focus your efforts on the ones that are providing you with a return.
8. Optimize Your Website For SEO
Make sure your online store is structured in a way that is optimized for search engines.
There are countless helpful SEO tools and resources online that can help you optimize your site.
At a minimum, ensure that your product names and descriptions are searchable.
For instance, if you sell blue t-shirts, will someone searching for “blue t-shirts” on Google be able to reach your product?
While it can be tempting to give products names that are more clever, don’t sacrifice search visibility for wittiness.
It could end up damaging or hindering your results.
9. Interview Influencers In Your Industry
Interviews make valuable and informative pieces of content.
Therefore, you should reach out to prominent players or influencers in your industry and ask them if they’d be willing to do an interview.
This marketing method can expose you to a greater audience, as the influencer’s followers are likely to want to consume this type of content.
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10. Drive Traffic With Google Ads
Another way to market your online store is to run paid ads through Google.
However, before you pay to run ads, it’s important that you have a comprehensive understanding of your ideal customers and that you’ve done some keyword research.
Google has tools that make paid advertising a lot easier than it used to be.
For instance, you can use automatic targeting to learn about which search terms are generating the most traffic and conversions.
From there, you can refine and improve your Google ad strategy as you gain more data about what’s working.
11. Create An Affiliate Program
By creating an affiliate program for your online store, you allow other people to market your online store for you!
After all, many content creators, bloggers, and loyal fans of your products would be happy to promote your business in exchange for commissions.
When you create an affiliate program, people can sign up to promote your products to their networks on their own websites or through social media and other marketing strategies.
In return, they’ll receive a percentage of each purchase customers make through their unique affiliate links.
There are existing affiliate marketing platforms, such as Flex Offers, Commission Junction, AvantLink, and Impact Radius, that can help you set up your own affiliate program.
12. Hold Contests/Giveaways On Social Media
People love winning. Therefore, one of the best ways to leverage the power of social media, boost your following, and gain more visitors to your online store is to hold a contest or giveaway.
You can set the terms of the contest by requiring people to follow you and/or enter their email address on your website.
Then, you can select a winner at random and award them with a special prize or discount.
13. Advertise On Social Media Platforms
In addition to advertising on search engines like Google, you may also want to pay to advertise on social media.
Just like with organic traffic, every social media platform has different rules when it comes to paid advertising.
It’s a good idea to focus on the platforms where you’re already seeing good organic results.
Paid advertising on these platforms can take your marketing efforts to the next level.
14. Offer Surprise Deals
Everyone is attracted to lower prices! Look for strategic opportunities to provide customers with discounts.
Whether it’s a holiday sale, a discount for spending a certain amount of money, or a limited time sale for no particular reason, discounts will encourage more people to visit (and revisit) your online store.
Frequent discounts bring new customers through the door and encourage them to buy from you.
If you regularly offer discounts, people may start to check back on your site frequently in anticipation of discounts.
15. Start Networking
In-person networking is far from dead. Many businesses still grow through good, old-fashioned word-of-mouth advertising.
Start intentionally expanding your network and meeting other business owners in your industry.
This will help you learn from each other’s mistakes, and you’ll be able to share tips and pointers you’ve learned from your own experience.
Remember, selling is a numbers game. The more you let people know about your business, the more likely you are to gain new customers.
Every time you meet a new person, you are expanding your revenue potential.
16. Put Your Store’s Website In Your Email Signature
This may seem like a minor way to promote and market your online store, but all it takes is the right person clicking on your URL.
Place your website’s URL in your email signature so that people you correspond with can access it easily.
After all, this only takes a few seconds to implement. Even if it only ever drives a single sale, it was worth the effort.
17. Build Connections On LinkedIn
LinkedIn isn’t just a great place to find a new job. It’s absolutely full of networking opportunities for your online store.
Engage with people on LinkedIn who are in your industry and start to grow your network.
This can end up having an even greater effect than in-person networking because you can connect with people who aren’t in your area.
18. Invest In A Well-Designed Website
As a business owner, it’s important to make sure your online store looks legitimate and is easy to navigate.
Your website should build trust and authority with shoppers, and it should minimize the obstacles people have to overcome when buying from you.
Think of your website like a brick-and-mortar store.
You wouldn’t want to shop at a store that’s cluttered, confusing, and disorganized, would you?
When it comes to your online store, minimize distractions and aim to make the checkout process as smooth and seamless as possible for your customers.
19. Host A Pop-up Shop
Even if your store is completely online, that doesn’t mean it has to stay that way.
Pop-up shops are excellent forms of marketing, and they allow you the rare opportunity to interface with your customers.
Pop-up stores are temporary, and they cost much less than traditional brick-and mortar stores.
Consider opening one at an art fair, shopping mall, farmers market, or any place where there’s lots of foot traffic.
20. Partner With Similar Brands
A team marketing effort can often be mutually beneficial for your brand and someone else’s.
So, if you want to expand your marketing efforts, find a business that offers a product that complements yours, and make sure they have a similar target demographic.
In practice, you can do a collaboration on social media, or you can create some form of co-branded content.
Whatever you choose, partnering with a similar brand is a great way to market your online store.
21. Sponsor Or Participate In Events
Whether online or in person, events offer you opportunities to increase brand awareness.
Look for opportunities to host or participate in conferences, webinars, or virtual events.
This is a great way to get the word out about your business and attract new leads.
22. Print Your Website URL On All Marketing Materials
Without exception, every piece of marketing collateral should have your website URL on it.
This includes physical marketing materials like fliers, coupons, and social media posts.
Sometimes people forget to do this because they think it’s a minor or unimportant detail. Don’t miss out on opportunities to bring people to your online store.
23. Ask For Feedback And Reviews
People who have already benefited from your product can offer valuable information for you to use in your marketing efforts.
Set up an automation to ask customers for feedback on your products after they’ve had the opportunity to try them.
If you do, you can use their feedback as testimonials.
You may even want to ask them to write a review for you on Google Reviews or some other platform.
Social proof goes a long way!
24. Place Coupons In Online Order Packages
To encourage repeat purchases, place coupons inside your customers’ order packages.
Not only will they enjoy your awesome product, they’ll already be excited to place their next order.
This is a great way to develop customer loyalty. And seriously, this is one of the cheapest (and most effective) ways to market your ecommerce store.
25. Connect A Facebook Or Instagram Store
Make it even easier for your customers to make purchases from your online store by integrating a Facebook or Instagram store.
This will allow your followers to shop directly from your social media profiles without having to click off of the platform.
Final Thoughts
So there you have it, 25 effective ways to market your online store.
Hopefully, this list has given you a few great ideas to help you expand your business. Whether you choose to get more active on social media, start blogging to become an industry leader, start a YouTube channel to promote your business, or just pay for some online advertising, there are tons of effective options out there.
All you have to do is start!
Oh, and if you’ve had success using any of the tips in this post, be sure to tell your success story in the comments below. We’d love to learn about your online business marketing efforts!
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