Small e-commerce websites face a tough task of getting their products out to there. Let’s face it, they’re up against it; new brands will lack credibility online, there isn’t much of a budget for advertising, and you’re most likely going up against already established e-commerce goliaths in the industry. It’s an uphill battle to get customers, but hey, you have to start somewhere right? Here are some actionable tips for small e-commerce websites to take to effectively and efficiently spend your money.
Reach Out to Influencers
One way to gain instant credibility and get your products in front of the right audience is to partner with influencers. Influencers who cultivate a following both and number of followers and loyalty can effectively widen the reach of your products. Reaching out to influencers will cost money, so spend it on the right ones for your business. Influencers can do so much more than write content. Some will take professional pictures.
Estimated cost: $100-$250 per influencer
Get Feedback from Your Audience
Beyond Google Analytics data about demographics and geography, you should reach out to both current customers and those within your target audience to get qualitative feedback. Getting qualitative feedback on your company and products provides the insight needed to pivot your messaging of a landing page, advertising campaign or branding in general. If you don’t think you have an audience to do this for free, offer a gift card as an incentive to fill out a survey or participate in an interview.
Estimated cost: Free-$200
Find Guest Blogging Opportunities
Guest blogging is just another way to expand your brand’s reach. Guest blogging gives you the opportunity to write about a topic that you’re considered an expert on, for another website or publication. It demonstrates your expertise to your target audience that is hard for you to reach as a new e-commerce site, and it also provides SEO benefit with a do-follow backlink. You can use HARO (help a reporter out), which is a free platform for online journalists to find qualified people to write for content pieces.
Estimated cost: Free (just takes time)
Go Offline with Event Marketing
A lot of hesitation from online users comes with uncertainty with buying new products. They don’t know what it looks like in person, or how it works. Going offline can help to diminish these fears. Sometimes you need a good old fashioned face-to-face to get the sales going. And be sure to capture email addresses if you don’t get the in-person sale.
Estimated Cost: $500-$1,000
With these tips in mind, your small e-commerce business can steadily build a name for itself. Have any other tips you think I missed? I’d love to hear them.
