Do you really need an eCommerce website?
If you don’t have one, you’re missing out big time on the many opportunities it affords.
For instance, you’ll not be able to optimize your sales strategy for voice search, and general search engine success. SERP rankings will suffer as a result and it will be harder for your customers to get to you.
Without an eCommerce website, your business seems unprofessional and untrustworthy.
It will be harder for your referrals to recommend you to their social circles because of the absence of an online pivot, which is crucial in an age where online credentials carry great weight.
Therefore, having an eCommerce website is vital if you’d like to compete where it matters most today i.e. online.
In this article, I’ll be illustrating five reasons why you should have your own eCommerce website and how it can spur your business to more sales.
Let’s dive right in.
1. It Enables Data-driven Market Research
Are you certain you know your customers’ needs?
In the world of business, knowing the mind of your customers is priceless.
Yet, it’s still shocking to note that 7 in 10 marketers don’t tap into the power of segmented advertising, as revealed by a Razorfish study dubbed the State of Always-on Marketing.
This is usually due to a lack of proper means to collect customer data in the first place, which is why you should have an eCommerce website.
While an actual storefront has its benefits, it no doubt falls short in terms of collecting customer information.
Gathering valuable data, in this case, means strenuous means of statistical analysis. You may have to hand-count walk-ins and constantly peruse your inventories to figure out the market implications of ever-fluctuating levels.
With an eCommerce website, it’s easier to gather data to power your sales strategies.
By integrating Google Analysis into your preferred customer relationship management (CRM) system, for example, you can collect important customer information such as:
- Widget interactions
- Onsite time and page visits
- Referring site details
- Network locations
All this information and more will enable you to better understand your audience demographics, then you can finetune your marketing to fit in with the interest of this target market.
PepsiCo is proof of why you need an eCommerce site for customer-centric lead generation.
The company previously relied on a mass marketing approach via traditional media.
After the switch to data-driven insight from their website, the beverage chain was able to create new pack sizes and flavors in line with customer interests. This proved a huge turning point for sales.
2. To Capture After-hour Sales
How much business do you lose to off-days?
There are about 11 federal holidays annually in the US alone to add to after-hours.
During these downtimes, your conversion rates take a plummet due to the unavailability of service.
A study by ReachLocal estimates that more than one-fifth of your leads come in after-hours from calls, forms, and other channels.
As a result, you’re losing about 23% of your potential revenue whenever you close for the day, which is why you should have an eCommerce website to cast your net wider.
In addition to that, your business is only limited to a specific location. Consequently, your market is also restricted to this geographical range.
With an eCommerce website, you can break down time and location restrictions by giving your business a global and always available storefront.
The time barrier is shattered by having a website that is constantly up and running to your different range of audiences no matter the time zone they’re in.
Customers can also still make a purchase across borders while you’ve closed shop for the day regardless of distance, which is another great reason why you should have an eCommerce website.
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3. It Enables Affordable Market Expansion
If you’re like most other entrepreneurs, then growth is always a priority.
However, expanding into new markets costs money because that means more overheads. A growing chain also means increasing staff, utility, and rental bills, among other expenses that come with it.
Rent for instance will set you back about $688 per square foot in New York, according to findings by CNBC. What’s more, additional retail space comes with new needs for insurance, which also inflates as the size of your business skyrockets
Affordable expansion is among the most vital reasons why you should have an eCommerce website, especially so if you’re just finding your feet.
While your production needs will definitely grow with your business, you’ll still be able to scale the heights without needing as much staff and floorspace as would be the case if you only relied on your physical presence.
Additionally, for most web hosting solutions, an increase in traffic and hence bandwidth doesn’t result in extra pay; another great reason why you should have an eCommerce website.
Beardbrand’s success story is an example of the expansion potential of eCommerce.
A blogger-turned-entrepreneur, the founder acted on his idea by building a brand upon his love for facial hair to create grooming products. The business completely started out online and quickly scaled to markets across America despite not having an expensive physical presence.
Today, Beardbrand is estimated to make an average of $20,000 in sales per day on the global scene.
4. It Allows You to Reignite Sales Interest
Sorry, not today, maybe next time.
After minutes of haggling, that seemingly closed deal ends up hitting a dead end. Physical store aside, your website may also have to contend with cart abandonment, given that close to 9 in 10 leads don’t make it to the conversion finish line after choosing purchase items.
This is according to a survey by Statistica, which found that many of your customers may be willing to buy later at the second time of asking.
Often, customers might think your product is great, but they may not be willing to buy just yet.
Typically, that breaks down to a lack of brand familiarity, distractions, and the inability to fully comprehend the product value, maybe due to the lack of a strong content strategy that tackles actual consumer problems.
Therefore, that’s why you need an eCommerce website to kickstart stalled customer interest.
With a well-constructed eCommerce website, inclusive of retargeting ad campaigns and email cart reminders, your business will be able to get a second bite of the sales apple.
Finch Goods is a prime example of the immense value of retargeting.
This online men’s accessory store catapulted to success on the back of a similar remarketing model that nudged leads to see through their purchases.
By doing so, the brand remained fresh in the minds of the existing market base, which also ignited interest in other product offerings. Revenue consequently went up in the long run as the company was able to recoup what would have otherwise been lost sales.
5. It Facilitates Personalized Customer Experiences
Hey there shopper, we’ve got some great new offers this week!
There’s nothing more uninspiring than generic marketing emails, which is why you should have an eCommerce website to gather personal data.
According to a survey by BRP, 64% of your leads would love to receive personalized offers from you. What’s more, they wouldn’t mind if your eCommerce website saves their purchase history to achieve this purpose.
In other words, you may not be fully connecting with the majority of your market if your sales strategies are not properly customized. Moreover, your leads are more likely to act on interest if they feel that a specific deal was made just with them in mind.
Consequently, that’s why you need an eCommerce website: to personalize your marketing and make your leads feel special.
By creating an emotional connection with your business, your brand will feel more like a friend. And you’re more likely to buy from a friend you trust than a big brand name with no ties to you.
The eCommerce website you craft facilitates personalization by feeding on customer data, enabling you to customize emails for higher click-through rates.
A study by Square backs this up by uncovering that a generic marketing email receives just 50% of the open rates that a personalized birthday offer gets. It is as a result clear just how powerful personalization is.
Personalized marketing can also be fused with loyalty programs, which have also been proven as an effective way to encourage repeat purchases.
Conclusion
Did you know that 51% of Americans shop online?
Just think about that for a moment: almost half of your market resides online.
This further substantiates the reasons why you should have your own eCommerce website, the topmost being to avoid locking out a huge share of your business leads.
If you’d love to get a move on your eCommerce website, click here for a free consultation.
We’ve transformed countless ideas and websites into high-performing sales machines, and we can help achieve your marketing goals with powerful search engine optimization.
Round-the-clock availability, affordable expansion, and personalized customer experiences are only a few of the many excellent reasons why you should have an eCommerce website today.
