In today’s digital world, many businesses operate solely online. For those who do, marketing and advertising can be quite challenging. Below, we will discuss some of the key issues surrounding marketing and advertising for online stores.

Marketing Channels

When it comes to marketing and advertising for an online store, you have many options. You can utilize social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter to gain exposure. You can establish an online store blog and use relevant articles and new content regularly to attract potential customers. Or, you can take advantage of email marketing and send out regular newsletters with important information about your business. Each of these channels has its perks but, as with any other marketing technique, you must be careful not to overdo it and spam your customers.

Product Listing & Descriptions

When a customer lands on your website and clicks on a product that they see listed, it is known as a ‘product landing’. Product listing and descriptions are two of the most important factors that make or break a product’s conversion rate. It is important to keep in mind that not all products are created equal, so you must write unique descriptions for each product to ensure that it appeals to as many people as possible. It is also important that your product listings and descriptions are easy to understand and to the point.

Shopify’s Recommendations for Online Stores

When establishing an online store, you are bound to come across many different opinions and suggestions on what to consider and use. One of the best sources to find informed advice and practical suggestions is from Shopify, a website platform that essentially acts as an online store’s accountant, marketing manager, and product manager all in one. The platform handles all of the busy work so that you can focus on running your business.

Based on decades of experience serving hundreds of thousands of sites across the globe, Shopify makes several suggestions that can dramatically increase your website’s conversion rate and sales.

• Offer a money-back guarantee. People hate wasting money, and if your product is defective or faulty, they may try and go through as many hoops as possible to get their money back. This could even include taking the product back to the store or showing up at the store with a money order. So, by offering a money-back guarantee, you may see an increase in the number of people that are willing to try out your product or service.
• Use video marketing. Video marketing is booming, and the platforms that promote and host video content are becoming more and more prevalent. Every day, people are watching video content on their phones, tablets, and computers. If you want your business to be seen and recognized, you should consider using video content in your marketing and advertising.
• Avoid using too many keywords in your copy. Having too many keywords in your text can result in your site being marked as ‘spammy’ by the search engines, which will hurt your SEO. While it is important to get as many people as possible to your site because you have a good product or service to offer, you don’t need to sacrifice your integrity in order to do so. Always choose the most relevant keywords for the products that you sell and make sure that your chosen words are used consistently throughout your website.
• Put yourself in your customer’s shoes. If you want to succeed as a business owner, it is important to understand what your customer wants and needs. The better you understand where your customers come from and what they want, the better you will be able to give them what they need. Ask yourself questions and try to think as your customer does in order to understand their point of view. When you know your customer’s needs, you can provide them with the best service possible.

With video marketing, SEO, and conversion rate optimization all rising as topics of the day, you must consider how these tactics can work together to improve the effectiveness of your marketing and advertising efforts.

User Experience (UX) Design

Let’s face it; running an online store isn’t easy. Even simple things, like finding your products or checking out, can feel complicated and frustrating when done through a clumsy website. UX design plays a big role in making your online store easy to use and appealing to the eye. You want people to come back for more, which could mean better UX design.

Consider the following elements that make up a good user experience:

• Navigation: Is it easy for the customer to find what they are looking for and to return later when they have more questions?
• Page layout: Are the overall page elements presented in the right way so that the customer understands what they are looking at and can easily navigate around?
• Color scheme: Do the colors appropriately represent what the business is and does?
• Font style: Is it easy to read what is displayed on the web page?
• Content: Is everything presented in a logical and structured manner, and does each piece of content contribute to the total meaning of the page?
• Compatibility: Are all the browsers, devices, and software able to render the web page in the same way, with the same quality, and without any problems?
• Accessibility: Does every visitor have an equal opportunity to access the page and use it?
• Functionality: Can the customer complete the desired action, easily and without any problems?

Additionally, don’t forget about mobile usability when considering the UX of your website. In a world where 50% of the population is expected to have a mobile device by 2019, it is crucial that you develop a user-friendly mobile experience for your website. Having a responsive design that automatically adjusts the layout of your website for mobile visitors is becoming the standard.

Performance Optimization

Performance optimization, sometimes called ‘web performance’, ‘site speed’, or ‘page speed’, deals with the fact that not all computers are created equal. Different devices have varying capabilities and speed, which can affect how websites perform. For example, if your website is overloaded with video content and images, it may take a while for the web browser to fully load and display each page. Performance optimization focuses on making websites run as quickly and efficiently as possible and preventing major down times due to poor loading speeds.

There are several tips and tricks for performance optimization, some of which are: