10 Ways to Double Your Sales in 90 Days
Getting a new lead for your business and new people to your online store is challenging but not as difficult as getting them to purchase a product or a service before moving on.
While running various advertisements, being active on social media and other tactics could definitely get you a considerable amount of daily traffic, it is the number of people who actually turn into customers after that, that matters.
Let’s assume a scenario.
100 visitors come to your website.
50 of them browse through various offers.
10 of them submit their name, email and phone number.
But then only 2 of them actually end up becoming customers.
So where did 98 of the possible customers who landed at your store go?
Poof!
Optimization tips to double your online store sales
1. Let the visitors know what they can find On your store
With so many online stores getting launched every day, it is difficult to figure out which one sells what. That’s exactly what a first-time visitor wants to know – so why not address it?
Start with optimising your homepage to highlight the services and products that are available on your website. Use a neat design that focuses more on the popular services that most of your target customers could be interested in.
Think like a customer when you’re optimising your homepage. What do you think he would want to see? Here’s what we think he wants to know:
- Category and type of service available
- Popular products on your site
- Brands that your online store is selling
- Clear pricing, testimonials and information on time frames
For example, many cosmetic brands simply display their featured products on the home page.
2. Trust signals – plenty of them, please!
The problem with digital is that while there are businesses that want to add value to the consumer market with their genuine products and services, there are also those who are fleecing them. That’s exactly why you don’t see the consumers experimenting with where they purchase products from – trust is very important.
So what should you be including that helps them identify you as a ‘real’ business?
- Customer testimonials
- Ratings and reviews on your service
- Site security certificates like VeriSign, TRUSTe, etc
- Cancellations and return policies
- Press coverage of your online store
3. A little about yourself will do you more good
What a lot of online stores don’t think is important, is the ‘about us’ section. They believe that having a great range of services being offered at amazing deals is all they need to get sales. But today’s consumer market is far from that behaviour.
They want to know more about the brand they are thinking of making a purchase from. What does that brand believe in, what are the causes that they are actively contributing to, what is the story behind the brand and what it is all about?
Even if it is a small one like the GymShark About Us section, it helps build a rapport with the customers!
4. Display your current promotions and sales
We know your store has the best of deals running. But how does a visitor know which category to look into to find that deal? This is why it is important to display your popular sales on the homepage itself!
Create promotional banners for the season’s sales or new launches. It is the best way to get your store visitor’s attention to them and drive them towards making a purchase from that section.
For example, Anglian Homes has a slider of banners promoting new products, popular ranges, fast-selling items and the season’s special – in this case, a Black Friday deal which will probably grow into a Cyber Monday deal also
5. Make personalised on-site retargeting a part of the plan
Not all visitors to your store come with the intention to purchase a product. Sometimes they are just there to browse through the products you have, compare the deals you are offering to the other online stores you have visited and maybe…just maybe, wish list a few items that they’d like to come back for later.
But them making an interaction with you or sharing their contact details on the first visit isn’t always going to happen. They need a reason and a little nudge – that’s why personalised on-site retargeting is important.
Understanding what they are looking for, their needs and preferences, retarget them with a personalised message before they leave the store. Exit intent technology can help boost your newsletter subscriptions, redirect them to popular products in the range they are browsing, prevent cart abandonment, encourage actions like wish listing and so much more. Better than letting them go away and explore products with another store, right?
For example, Viari wanted their store visitors to check out the ongoing sale on men’s and women’s belts. They chose exit intent as their opportunity to retarget their store visitors, redirecting them to the page they showed interest in.
6. Cross-selling should come to your store naturally
It’s never a great idea to push a customer into buying a product. But making relevant product recommendations that could add more value to him is a big YES! This is why you should have cross-selling campaigns on your online store.
Based on the products that a visitor is browsing through or planning to purchase, show him other products that could complement this choice of his. For instance, if I am buying a rider’s jacket from your store, recommending some sassy gloves to go along with it could definitely complete my look and get you a higher sale as well!
7. Cart recovery before letting it get abandoned
The average recorded cart abandonment rate for online stores is about 69%. That’s really not a good number – almost half your sales reach the point of purchase and then you lose them for one reason or the other. It could be as simple a reason as the shopper getting distracted or being called for lunch by a family member, giving him more time to think about the purchase.
An on-site cart recovery campaign is the one that retargets this shopper before he makes a dash for the ‘close’ button on the tab. It could be offering limited-time free shipping or a custom code that encourages a purchase right then!
For example, the House of Blouse used a coupon to retarget shoppers leaving their checkout pages without making a purchase. They got a 10% conversion rate on their campaign, getting them more sales than abandoned carts to feel sorry over.
8. Encourage sharing of purchases on social
You got a visitor to complete a purchase – great. This only means he loved what your store had to offer and had a wonderful experience shopping on it. Now isn’t he more likely to recommend your online store to his friends and family?
He is! Then why lose the chance? Encourage social sharing of the purchase a shopper makes. You could incentivise the activity or simply ask them to let their friends know of the store – maybe, as goodwill?
You could do this right after someone completes a purchase like Amazon does:
Or retarget them with an exit intent campaign just when they are leaving your online store after the purchase asking them to share:
The greater the number of recommendations and shares you get from your shoppers, the more sales you get. After all, recommendations are trusted by people more than advertisements and promotions made by the store itself.
Or encourage social likes so you target them later with campaigns:
9. Make product recommendations always
Just like cross-selling campaigns, make product recommendations a priority on your store. This is because not every visitor to your store will explore all the products you have to offer him. He might take a look at some of the products in specific categories and leave thinking that there is no more.
Making personalized product recommendations at the right time is the trick to doubling your store’s sales. For instance, I am looking for loungewear, t-shirts. Now I may have explored a few options, but then given up on not seeing my favourite colour. Because of a lack of patience, I simply decide to leave the store and look someplace else.
Using this moment to retarget your online store visitor with a campaign recommending products will save you sales. And even increase the discoverability of the remaining products that weren’t being noticed otherwise.
10. Social media retargeting always works
Let’s face it, each of us spends a lot more time on social media than on websites. That’s where your friends are and that’s where you can figure out what’s trending and that’s where you need to retarget your online store visitors.
Considering that despite all the optimization, the visitor doesn’t convert on his visit to your store. You should enable retargeting this visitor on social media channels that he is active on. Showing him the products, he has previously shown interest in, will keep your online store at the top of his mind and make him want to reconsider entering his/her details and completing the purchase.
Remember how you saw a few products on an online store, and they ended up stalking you everywhere on social media? That’s the retargeting every store needs! I remember looking for a massage for my mum on Mother’s day and for the entire week leading up to Mother’s day, all I saw were offers and deals for massages. This is where investing in lead generation adverts comes in as retargeting campaigns.
For instance, this retargeted advert:
Conclusion
We aren’t saying that a visitor is bound to make a purchase from your store the very first time he or she lands on it. But in a digital space where the eCommerce competition is rising by the day, it is important to make the most out of the attention you get from a visitor.
While the visitor is still on your store, try to convert them. If not purchase, becoming a new lead, new subscriber to your email list, then an interaction like a social media follow-up or an email will only help you promote your products to them on channels other than your own store! To get more traffic and leads to your website, check out our link building service to skyrocket your organic traffic.
