Bernard May is the CEO of National Positions, a 5-time Inc. 500 company, award-winning marketing agency and Google Premier Partner.
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E-commerce is such a hot topic right now, even non-marketers can probably outline the KPIs that affect their CPC and impact their CPA to determine their ROI. (We marketers do love our acronyms, don’t we?) This is usually the name of the game when it comes to e-commerce. We find ourselves up to our eyeballs in metrics trying to figure out where we are going to put this quarter’s budget. The cycle can feel endless, monotonous and often devoid of creative differentiation. As the CEO of a marketing agency, I am not a stranger to this game.
So, acronyms aside, I thought it would be refreshing to review a few exciting and innovative strategies you may have overlooked over the past 18 months. I still believe that most of us in the marketing world were drawn to it for its creative allure, and I hope that at least one of these strategies will help reignite the creative flame for you, your brand and your clients.
Tap Into The World Of ‘Shoppertainment’
Perhaps “shoppertainment” was fueled by the two-year lockdown and the online shopping gold rush that has ensued. Or it could simply be the latest example of “everything that’s old is new again” that has pushed shoppertainment into the e-commerce spotlight.
For those of you who are too young to remember, people used to actually watch their televisions and tune in to shopping channels. You will never know the agony of actually calling an operator, placing an order and then waiting six to eight weeks for delivery—and you are all the better for it.
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Shoppertainment is taking this pretty basic model and dusting it off for a new generation of customers. Influencers, product reviewers and brand advocates are going live from social platforms and e-commerce sites to provide a live, firsthand look at the latest and greatest products. And this goes beyond product demos. The live nature of shoppertainment lets the customer become part of the experience with the ability to ask questions and receive interactive responses in real time.
So, if you have a product that needs to be “seen to be believed,” start exploring your shoppertainment options on the likes of Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and even Amazon.
Focus On Conversion Rate Optimization
When it comes to e-commerce, conversion is where the rubber truly meets the road. Ultimately, all the site traffic you drive or ad clicks you get mean nothing if you can’t convert this interest to paying customers. This is where conversion rate optimization (CRO) comes into play. (This acronym couldn’t be helped!)
One study shows that over 75% of businesses online were dissatisfied with their conversion rates, which may not be too shocking considering that most of us would love more conversions.
Applying a CRO strategy across your marketing funnel is crucial so you can find your weak spots and keep your marketing budget from bleeding. In a practical sense, you could look at it like this:
• On-Site Engagement: How long are visitors staying on your site and actually navigating to your product pages? You are essentially converting attention into interest.
• Add To Carts: What percentage of your visitors are taking the first step and putting your product into their shopping cart? This is converting interest into obvious consideration.
• Completing Checkout: What percentage of those adding to their cart are actually moving forward and converting into a sale? Here, you are converting their consideration into actual revenue.
This is a massive oversimplification of the multitude of CRO touchpoints. But, in essence, any point that you are seeing a drop-off in conversion—from attention to interest to consideration to purchase—is an opportunity to increase conversion and, in turn, profitability.
Consider Amazon As An Additional Channel
We can’t talk about e-commerce without addressing Amazon. I know that Amazon has its share of cheerleaders and haters, but it would be a disservice to not highlight some opportunities on the platform. There is no disputing Amazon’s impact and influence on e-commerce retail; it is the top e-commerce platform in the U.S. and has grown in the double digits over the past two years. But a lot of brands out there don’t know how Amazon is gearing up to be an all-encompassing e-commerce ecosystem.
Over the past year, Amazon has been pushing new features akin to social media platforms by giving customers the option to follow specific brands’ “posts.” They are even (beta) testing direct email outreach between brands and the customers who follow them.
In short, Amazon is expanding into new territories far beyond just product listings. So, if you are on the fence and are able to register your brand, now is the time to give it some serious thought.
Leverage Social Commerce For A More Seamless Customer Journey
Diversifying where your products can be purchased can be a huge advantage. It can reduce the built-in friction that comes with having to click off of a social platform and onto your site. Social media platforms have been pivoting from “top of funnel” to “mid-funnel” to—in some cases—the whole funnel. Not to mention, if you are driving awareness on social media anyhow, why not cut out the landing page “middleman” and give your customer a pathway to buying your product directly off Facebook or Instagram?
Social commerce shopping is poised to blossom into a $1.2 trillion market by 2025, and with the possibilities ranging from direct purchasing to virtual reality product interactions, we have moved far beyond clicking a “like” button.
I know that every brand and business model is different, but as the actions of your customers pivot, you need to be willing to adapt or even take some risks. So, if you’re ready to change your e-commerce game, I recommend giving a few (or all) of these strategies a try.
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Author: Bernard May, Forbes Councils Member
