Establishing an online store has become a necessity for businesses today. Simply because companies need to survive and thrive in the contemporary marketplace. Every business, big or small, is rapidly adapting to the changing scenario and adopting e-commerce.

Customers prefer online shopping to the traditional mode due to ease and convenience. Large online ecommerce giants like Amazon and Alibaba, with their extensive range of retailers and wholesalers, earn trillions in revenue annually. They are a live example of this changing mindset. Customers like access to a large variety of merchandise available across various retail sites with just a few clicks. It makes price comparison much more effortless. Moreover, it is time-saving.

According to Statista, 263 million consumers in America use online shopping as their primary medium, and this figure is expected to rise to 291 million by 2025.

Don’t you want to tap into this customer base?

We know you do! Hence, here are six tips that will help you build a profitable online store:

1. Design an SEO-Friendly Website:

Remember, you need to receive traffic for purchases to happen. The more traffic you receive, the greater your chances of a healthy conversion rate. Adopting an SEO-friendly web design and model is the key to generating traffic.

Greater visibility is the first essential milestone for success. When your product has SEO keywords tagged in its description and included in its title, you’ll see that it will be easier for the consumer to find their way to your website. You’ll be ranked higher in the search results.

You should also adopt google shopping categories to ensure that your product ID is recognized by Google shopping. It aids SEO in generating more significant traffic and effective campaigns and feeds for you. It provides organic traffic and creates a professional e-commerce store layout for your online store. Customers can quickly locate products on your site when grouped under one category, ultimately leading to a lucrative conversion rate.

Large platforms like Shopify and such have recommended that users update their product portfolio to google shopping categories so that their platforms get maximum hits. Moreover, using SEO tools to identify keywords in terms of popularity and competitiveness is very important for future strategic decisions.

2. Attractive Web Design:

Designing a website or online store that isn’t engaging and suitable for your niche will be your most significant setback. No matter the benefits and services you provide, your online store is doomed if your customer isn’t comfortable and at ease while using your website.

A visually and aesthetically pleasing online presence will draw customers to your site. An interactive and engaging website is your first touch point with the customer and your first impression. Make it count!

There are many ways to create an engaging web design. You can hire a web designer or do a short course in web designing and design it yourself. For long-term convenience, it is better to do a web designing course. You can also use ecommerce templates from different web developers.

A website with minimal text, a captivating layout and HD pictures of your products, and a smooth transition between tabs will lead to a smoother experience for potential buyers.

3. Add an About Us Page:

Customers today are searching for a lot more than just a product. They are looking for a solution to their problem, and a means to satisfy their needs. They need to know that the company they buy products from has a personality and style they can resonate with. It makes it easier for them to relate with the company and helps retain them long-term.

This is what an About Us page helps you accomplish. It contains your brand personality and tells your product proposition to the customer. You can add endorsements, achievements, past projects, and testimonials. Moreover, if you have any referrals or any upcoming projects with renowned brands, you can publish and showcase them here.

This information will help the customer develop a positive and professional opinion of you. Though you should avoid overcrowding the page and ensure maximum readability for the customers. Moreover, ensure that you add your social media pages, email, postal address, and contact numbers at the end of the page.

4. Have Reliable Support Services:

An effective and reliable support team is one of the things that a lot of businesses lack long after they have established their online presence. Your consumers should be able to reach you and your representatives easily if you want to ensure maximum success for your business.

Businesses should troubleshoot all customer queries immediately and keep customers in the loop during their wait time. It helps retain customers for the longer term.

Add a live chat feature to your website to ensure the customer can interact with a company consultant. It helps deal with customer queries and often leads to higher conversion rates. Remember, it isn’t necessary to provide a 24/7 support service; you can have an eight-hour window during office hours to resolve customer queries and complaints. But ensure that the customer feels heard.

5. Common Payment Options:

Payments generate revenue and hence are an essential part of any purchase. You should ensure that your website provides popular payment options to the customers. This will make the purchase a lot easier for them.

Popular payment options today are:

● Credit/ Debit Cards
● PayPal
● Google Pay
● Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)
● Apple Pay
● Western Union
● Amazon Pay.

Your customers should be able to create their profiles on your stores to save their payment information. A large variety of payment options ensures that customers can choose any option that suits them the best.

6. Add Product Reviews:

Product reviews and ratings are a great way to build customers trust in your product. When a customer reads positive reviews from other buyers, it helps them take a leap of faith. Your online shoppers cannot physically meet or touch your products before buying them. Hence, you need to work ten times harder to build trust.

The greater the number of reviews, the more trustworthy you’ll be.

Moreover, if the ratings are visible next to your products, it saves the consumer a lot of time. However, sometimes customers that buy your products avoid giving reviews. Gently ask them to publish their reviews. With just the right push, you’ll see that your customers will be more than willing to help your business grow.

Bottom Line:

Every business needs to add e-commerce to its business model to ensure success in today’s highly competitive market structure. It opens up new doors for you and increases your reach. Moreover, it creates convenience and ease for the customer.

Hence, invest in an online store to stay updated with current customer needs and wants. Ensure that you have an engaging web design, use SEO, provide high-quality customer services, and have positive reviews on your site for a better conversion rate and greater profits.

Subscribe with us to get your dose of interesting news, research & opinions in the startup segment. Fill the form below: [email-subscribers namefield=”YES” desc=”” group=”Public”]