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Published by Programme B
Starting up an online retail business can be exciting. However, getting done with the basics isn’t enough. You need to have the right tools and the right people to make it successful in the long run. To make your website catchy and user-friendly, you need to do some content planning.
It also helps to remember that customer experience is essential. Buyers will only come back if they’re satisfied with the quality of your product, competitive prices, and customer service. With these few tips, you can decide if you’re cut out for the challenge of an online retail store and how to manage it the easy way.
Have your inventory ready.
It would help if you didn’t wait until your business is days old before you start inventory. This should be available even before you start up the store. With this complete list of the products in stock, you need a digital asset management system (DAM system). A DAM system helps you, the vendor, manage your digital content efficiently in a central location. This way, you can build brand consistency and get a lot done with only a few clicks.
Try your best to update your inventory frequently and keep customers updated with the new arrivals and best deals at least once a week. People love new things but also prefer to have various options. They also prefer shopping at stores that have enough stock available. So, try to stock up on products to match your current sales.
Know your target audience.
If you know your niche and focus on it, you’re likely to profit more and thrive. For example, if you’re selling footwear, you can choose to focus on women’s shoes. There will always be a high demand for women’s shoes, including slippers, wedges, flip-flops, and heels, and selling affordable shoes online would help you build something sustainable.
Endorse brand ambassadors, freelancers, advertisers, and brand managers (depending on your budget) who will try out your products and market them. This is a faster and more effective form of advertising. You could also interact with loyal and prospective customers daily or weekly through social media or blogs. When you have their attention, you can keep them hooked with low prices and free shipping deals like most top brands do.
Build and follow a straightforward navigation structure.
The good thing about digital media is the ability to track user activity. You can check how long a buyer stays on each page before switching to the next. You can then track frequently used keywords and check where they go after your site. Tracking user journeys can help you determine if your users are enticed to keep shopping for your products and what products potential customers may love the most.
That’s why it’s crucial to build a clear and straightforward navigation structure. You don’t want to have difficulties tracking user activity. Ensure that your category pages are named for better search capability and that there are no broken links in your internal building network. Creating a good navigation structure isn’t just good for searchability: It’ll also help Google discover your website and add it to their index.
Ensure you make good use of visual content.
Online stores are 90 percent imagery and 10 percent written description for a reason. First of all, online retail stores seek to mimic on-site stores. They want their customers to feel like they’re shopping in a boutique store but with the convenience of shopping from their desktops or laptops. So, your site needs to be as visual as possible. Try your best to photograph your products from all angles. That way, your customers know exactly what the product looks like before even reading the description.
It’s advisable to hire creatives like professional photographers or graphic designers to help with this. The more premium your photos look, the more credible your site will seem. If you’re on a tight budget, then you can use some good photoshop apps.