When the active phase of covid restrictions began, many representatives of offline businesses, who constantly postponed the opening of an online store, rushed to do so in order to maintain their position in the market. Especially relevant was the need for customers who are highly dependent on offline sites. For example, when choosing shoes or clothes, the buyer still prefers to try on and inspect the product before buying. Moreover, in our country there is a large percentage of fakes that sellers photograph, process photos and exhibit with a “brand price tag”.
Practice shows that only about 15% of startups in the e-commerce segment achieve financial success. Designing and developing a selling web resource is only a small part of the task. How to get into the niche of successful projects and breathe life into an online store? Why are ecommerce consulting servicesм so important?
Formulation of the goal and objectives
Online business works according to the same classical laws as offline business. Much has been written about goal setting, yet most young entrepreneurs neglect this factor. There is a perfectly logical explanation for this. In the CIS, users prefer “reconnaissance in force”, when a pilot project is created instead of traditional consulting, and based on the difficulties and prospects for promotion, the entrepreneur determines the market opportunities.
A professional approach in any case should include strategic research and the formulation of a basic strategy: business model, marketing support, logistics and process monetization.
Platform selection
As the business grows, complexities and specific needs will arise. If an entrepreneur wants to combine a hobby and trying to make money online, the Tilda platform is quite suitable. If the resource contains a catalog of several thousand products, then you will need an engine with the ability to scale the site (for example, WordPress or Magento). Companies often move their resources from one platform to another as the need arises.
By the way, a platform on the marketplace can serve as an excellent start. In conditions of limited resources, an entrepreneur must have a product, a small amount for advertising and a desire to develop. There are many cases when a page eventually grows into a large online store.
Where to get visitors?
The reality is that traffic is practically hard currency today. It can be bought, redirected, changed or exchanged. Today there are several main sources from where you can get a stream of users:
• Search results. It will require profitable trade offers, unique content and a lot of information chips with a high percentage of relevance. As tools for optimizing content, you will need knowledge of SEO promotion.
• Contextual advertising. Perhaps the fastest and easiest way to get targeted traffic. To launch, you need to set up targeting tools, have finances and a product offer.
• Advertising on forums and thematic sites. A simple and effective way to attract users to the site with a minimum budget. In addition to sites, you can use free bulletin boards.
• Social media. A goldmine for young businesses. From networks, it is possible to get traffic with the maximum target. Thematic groups and communities can offer really high-quality traffic with high conversion.
This list contains proven and reliable traffic sources that you should work with first. Of course, the final result and financial success depends largely not only on the choice of a source for receiving traffic, but also on the uniqueness of the offer and the quality of the resource. This site will tell you more about this.
Marketing support
Tracking, analyzing and predicting user preferences, paired with thoughtful promotions, will attract and retain a user. Ingenuity in this case is no less important than the relevance of the product. Customers return to selling websites when they receive high-quality service and interesting offers. In terms of information support, one should not neglect useful recommendations, informative articles and comprehensive support, including advertising on thematic forums and blogs.