E-commerce or electronics commerce entails selling products using electronic channels such as Internet, or network of computers. E-commerce has drastically changed the way people sell their products because the market has become a buyer’s market, and people are continually on the lookout for ways to save money. This means any e-commerce initiative should emphasize how much amount people will be saving by buying. Here are 6 tips for startups to succeed with their e-commerce initiative.
1. Create Awareness
Create awareness about your products and business in the minds of consumers. If people don’t know you, and your product, you are out of the race even before you begin. Therefore, the first step for any startup’s e-commerce initiative to take off is to advertise the product extensively.
2. Ensure Availability
Ensure availability of the product. In the modern world, there are many other products that can fill the vacuum you painstakingly create. So going in pursuit of exclusivity and have the customer chase you so that you can dictate the terms will not work, unless you truly have an exceptional product that cannot be copied and has no substitute.
3. Plan Discount Sales
Offering coupon codes and vouchers will create awareness about your product without you spending on such marketing effort. People will read about the discount, and discuss it amongst their groups. Effectively, you get more customers, even if the profit margin on every piece that you sell is low. There is an opportunity to increase market share by ensuring customer loyalty. In the long run, returns from such loyalty are much more than short term profit. While planning to give any coupons for discount sales, it should be remembered that the customer would be looking for substantial discounts so that he or she can save a lot from the deal. If the discount does not result in reasonable savings, the customer is unlikely to take the bait.
4. Include Discount Coupons and Vouchers
Remember your choices include limited time offers, holiday coupons, discount vouchers, percentage discount coupons, “deal of the day” offers, and free shipping offers. You may choose to combine a couple of them. Try to keep limited time offers shortly but advertise such discount sale for at least a week before the actual day. This gives people sufficient time to become aware of the sale, and yet insufficient time to check whether any other deal with a better offer is in the offing. Completely, they feel trapped in this now or never situation for saving money and end up buying the product.
5. Use Established e-Commerce Portals
Use the services of established e-commerce companies that periodically offer such sales, like Indiatimes Shopping site include many other products from reputed companies. The goodwill of other brands, as well as Indiatimes, can rub off on your brand, as well. In addition, such portals have a presence on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Any company opting to use services of such portals will save substantially on time as well as marketing efforts because of such appearance.
6. Add Codes to the Products
Lastly, you need to have a proper system in place for ensuring smooth execution of sale orders. While Indiatimes records orders, it is up to the business to fulfill them within the limited time frame. Adding codes on all products is also a good idea. It helps to identify the product if there are many products that the company manufactures and sells. Such codes also help to identify the sales deals generated by portals such as Indiatimes. If the customer requires more quantities of the same product, then such codes become very crucial. Effectively, there can be saving of a lot of time and resources in searching and identifying the product.
