2009 is about to come to a close and let’s be honest, it wasn’t the best year for retailers. The economy is still trying to make a comeback and consumers everywhere tightened the purse strings over the past 12 months. But there was some good news, most notably being that online shopping popularity and sales were up yet again this holiday season, giving us all something positive to build on for the future.
For our final Merchant Tip posting of 2009, we’re going to give you some broad ideas for helping your operation grow and succeed in 2010. Most important is that you learn from the past year—what worked, what didn’t—and use that experience to craft your strategy in the coming year. Eventually, the economy will fully rebound and you want to be positioned well when it does. So here we go:
Be a Leader (not a Follower)
This encompasses every aspect of your business but more specifically, we’re talking about your technology here. Is your site running smoothly? Is it aesthetically appealing to the eye? Crafting a website that stands out and operates quickly is a must in the world of e-commerce. You should be constantly seeking ways to enhance your site, as well as your shopping cart and check-out process. Don’t copy others’ styles! Find your own, use it and maybe someone will copy yours!
Get Social
We’ve been saying this for quite some time, but if you’re not branching out to social media networks,you’re putting your business future in peril. Fact: Facebook alone has an audience of nearly 250 million users. That’s 250 million potential customers for you to tap into if you’re using something like Sortprice’s Facebook Store application. Make social media networks like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter part of your business plan in 2010 and you’ll bepleasantly surprised with the results.
Boost Your Customer Service
More often than not, a consumer will remember his or her shopping experience with you not because of price or selection, but because of how they were treated by your customer service team. Now more than ever, customer retention is crucial so put even more time and effort into making customer service a cornerstone of your operation. Give shoppers every available means of contacting you if something comes up—email, phone, fax, whatever. And most importantly, highlight how serious you are about customer service on your site and in your marketing materials.
Email Baby!
If you haven’t already done so, start a customer email database in 2010. The benefits are endless. Set up a spot on your site where shoppers can add their email addresses to your database, then stay in close contact with all of them. Monthly email newsletters are a great way to stay on your customers’ radar screens throughout the year. Offer discounts or sales to these loyal customers and encourage them to communicate with you with tips or suggestions. The more you involve them, the better. You can build these email lists with software you already have, or you can browse the web for a special service that will do it for you.
Promote in New Ways
We hate the term “outside the box” but when it comes to your promotions, that’s exactly where you need to be thinking. It’s survival of the fittest out there, so find new and interesting ways to promote because you never know what the “next big thing” will be. We already covered the value in email marketing but don’t stop there. Run a few contests throughout the year that will ensure increased traffic to your site. Make yourself more visible in the media and on blogs and get involved in your local communities. These are all small things that you can do to increase your brand awareness and ensure a successful 2010.
Got more tips? Leave a comment! Good luck to all of you and best wishes for a Happy New Year!
[...] We’ve stressed the importance of optimization in several posts before, most recently in our 5 Merchant Tips for 2010 and Cyber Monday Merchant Tips blogs to reinforce just howcritical this component of running an [...]