We all know and understand by now that e-commerce is an essential aspect to your companies survival, and is that importance is being increasingly more critical by the moment. Whether you’re a fresh start-up brand or a major corporation, E-Commerce is an essential tool for rapid expansion.
The problem?
This relatively young aspect of business; and isn’t always easy to understand and can be a minefield to navigate if you aren’t yet adequately informed. The good news is that there is a wealth of information out there to help you maximize your business by optimizing e-commerce.
And that’s precisely what we are here to do. You can think of us as your personal GPS; guiding you through the overly complicated city streets.
But first, let us give you an idea of why e-commerce is such a meaningful aspect of today’s business climate to master.
Why It’s Important
Measuring the importance of e-commerce is essential for one specific reason. If you don’t know what you’re dedicating yourself to, or why you’re doing it, then it’s extraordinarily difficult to ‘actually’ devote yourself to it.
That’s why we’ve taken a little time to discuss the importance of e-commerce with you and why you should even want to dedicate resources to it in the first place.
Most Effective Way to Scale
All companies want to do it, I’ve been hard-pressed to find anyone wants to be a start-up or small business forever, and I’m willing to bet that you’re not one of those people. Which is why finding an easy route for scaling your company is so important to so many people.
And wouldn’t you know it; e-commerce is the easiest and often the least expensive way to expand your companies reach. Online commerce allows a business the ability to grow into more territories and usually at a much lower cost.
It’s the reason eBay sellers, and Amazon stores are able to be so profitable in a relatively short amount of time.
Increased Visibility
These days, you’re open at box-stores or operating by word of mouth then you’re doing it wrong. And you will find yourself falling behind the competition rather quickly. E-commerce allows you to take your business worldwide, reaching hundreds of millions of potential customers. Think of all that revenue you can add!
Furthermore, with the way that search engines like Google and Bing, once more people start visiting your site, your site will then begin to show up higher in the search results. Throw in some common SEO practices, and you’ll start to see customers purchasing your goods faster than you can replace them.
Convenience
Today, business and consumerism are all about convenience. People no longer go into brick and mortar to order food, instead, opting to order on the website and pick it up. The same can be said for banking, and even groceries now. The point is, as consumers we demand an experience that doesn’t require us to put in much effort.
E-Commerce is one of the single most accessible ways to provide your customers with that convenience they crave. It allows them to shop from home at any time of day or night they choose and even enable them to have the goods they purchased to be dropped off right at their doorstep.
The bottom line, giving your customers the flexibility to shop their way, is the best way to keep them happy and coming back to give you some more of their hard-earned cash. We say in the nicest way possible!
Let’s get to the 5 surefire ways to improve e-commerce.
Stunning Easy to Navigate Websites
First impressions mean a lot in the business world. It’s why Forbes has countless pieces talking about how you only have seven seconds to make a first impression. If those seconds are that crucial to a face to face meeting (where we afford people way more empathy), then imagine how important it is for your website.
Do you have slow loading times, sub-par aesthetics, or a clunky website with a poor interface? If you do, then you are killing the traffic coming to your site. Not only that, but it also results in a decrease in search results rankings.
Go ahead and spend the time necessary to make a beautiful website that people want to stay on. It takes dedication, but we assure, the results are definitely worth it.
Merchandise your Product
This is a no-brainer here, but we still see too many people not taking advantage of an already beautiful website they have. Add a landing page for the merchandise you sell, and you’ll see sales figures go through the roof in no time.
Plus, it drives clicks and views increasing search result rankings (you should be catching the theme that SEO is highly relevant), further increasing visibility. Which of course, increases profit.
PunchOut Catalogs
Do you remember that seven-second rule? Well, that goes double (or is it half) for large corporations that mostly operate on a B2B level. These days large clients don’t want to spend hours scouring through each supplier’s hosted catalogs. Instead, they want something more streamlined that lets them look at every product from every supplier – in one place. This is what PunchOut provides.
With the help of Punchout System, suppliers can offer a smooth and streamlined place for B2B clients to shop. In fact, it is fast becoming a necessity if you want to land contracts with large corporations. So if you haven’t yet taken this step, then it’s time you do.
SEO
The most overlooked aspect of e-commerce is somehow still “search engine optimization.” SEO is far more than keywords and properly headlined articles. It requires that you keep your website up and running constantly, keep loading times down. It requires backlinks, bounce rates, leads/sales, pages per session, click through rates… The list goes on and on.
We understand (trust us we do) that SEO is a pain, but it has to be a high priority if you truly want to improve e-commerce. If you aren’t sure where to start, a quick Google search will help you find your way around your SEO woes. Just be willing to put in the work.
What are some other great ways to improve your companies e-commerce? Let us know if you have any suggestions below.
Author Biography: –Melissa Stanley is a veteran tech writer and editor who has worked in several eCommerce companies so far. She has been covering technology online for over five years. She is Client Service Manager of PCGT – PunchOut Catalogs.