‘Be Your Own Boss’ is a saying that has kick-started many innovative ideas around the world. Considering the plight of the pandemic and the way it has impacted physical retail stores, e-commerce stores have boomed, providing its customers with more than just products. It has become possible to establish your own e-commerce store, without any physical infrastructure.
With the help of ever-accessible internet, people have been able to easily navigate the pool of opportunities, and have pretty quickly stumbled upon that of an e-commerce store. To all those who have even the slightest idea of an e-commerce store, it is your physical store on the internet, what a layman would say. If you have capability and confidence along with the quality of products you are dealing with, it is so easy to set up your own online market store.
But those who know the tricks of the trade, know it is just not that. Because, even with the accessibility of the internet, and the myriad of knowledge that is available, it still is a task to really know how to start your own e-commerce business, and the one that continues to be profitable over the years. Just starting the e-store is not important, it’s marketing, visibility, internet search improvement along with ease of transactions and delivery is necessary.
Here is a small guide, and all the information you need to keep in mind when venturing in this space.
5 Things to Know Before Launching your E-Commerce Store:
1. Your Target Market-
To launch your own e-commerce store, thorough market research becomes an integral part. You have to understand your business model and who is going to be your target audience. An important tip that will go a long way is that you have to sell what your target audience desires, and not what you want to sell. This small tip will make all the difference to your business. You always need to narrow down the exact target audience for your products, so that you can easily plan out the advertising/ digital marketing campaigns.
2. Research Your Competitors-
When you complete a thorough research on your target, you also need to keep a lookout on your competitors. Competitor analysis is always the most important factor while selecting and pitching the e-store products. Because if you want to stand out from the crowd, you need to first study the crowd. When you study the crowd, you can make amends in your products and services as such. Like the kind of website copy, or you can add something different in your arsenal of services. Or you can simply study your competitors using e-commerce monitoring tool to see if they are providing something innovative, something different that you haven’t thought about.
3. Develop a Market Strategy-
No matter what your product is, if you have a strong marketing your audience will just as easily be attracted to your business. Since there are multiple channels of engagement for the customers, simple short advertisements do not make sense anymore. To build a brand identity, you need to have a strong marketing strategy, which will also help you in your branding. There are multiple digital and social advertising options available in the market. As you have started e-commerce store/ e-store, you must use the social ad campaigns effectively. Lead generation campaigns, brand awareness campaigns, Google Ads should be combined together to get a better result.
4. Create a Brand-
To execute a successful marketing strategy, you need to make a brand out of your store. Although, making a brand is lengthy process, the sooner you start is better. Proper branding of the store will make sure that your store remains in the memory of your customers. It also allows for your customers to distinguish your products and services from others in the market. Your all marketing efforts should be lined up with only one goal to make your e-commerce store a brand. Social Media Influencer Collaborations
5. Keep a Close Eye on Industry Trends-
E-commerce is a space such that you need to follow all the market trends. And if you succeed to do so, if you are able to recognize a trend as soon as it enters the market, its easy for you to establish your place in the market. So, in the beginning you should follow and study the market trend, but in the longer run you should be the one that makes the market/ industry trends.
Apart from these few important points, the four most important pillars that build a strong foundation to a successful e-commerce store begin here-
- Great Website Design
- Easy Payment Gateway Window
- The Best Customer Support
- Shorter Delivery Time
- Top-notch product image quality
- USP (Your unique selling point)
- Easy Return & Exchange Policy
This is the process that makes perfect sense. Your customer support always has to be the best. Your website design should be appealing and attractive if you want your customers to hover on to it for longer periods. The website loading speed should be minimum and the design and information on the website should be engaging. All of these four qualities, balanced in a perfect combination makes for a successful e-commerce store!
