As a small business, eCommerce offers you huge opportunities. Yes, bigger corporations have some advantages in terms of bigger budgets, brand awareness and resources. However, with the increase in shoppers looking to spend with small businesses, eCommerce facilitates this potential. Let’s take a look at some strategies small businesses can use to make eCommerce work in their favor.
Small Businesses Online
Although the financial and awareness elements of big businesses may seem to put them ahead, this is not necessarily true. When you are a smaller business, you have more scope for A/B testing, adjustments and trial and error. You can be agile with new and creative ideas. You can keep the customers’ feedback at the forefront of your decision making. Plus, there are countless tools and applications ready to enhance your small business eCommerce needs.
With the right entrepreneurial spirit, any shop owner can connect with a vast network of potential customers. The global stage is open to any business, and with the right technology, all audiences can be impressed. The potential growth opportunities are endless.
Some of the benefits are:
- Increased visibility and reach
- Connect to a wider audience
- Attract new customers
- Cost-effective
- Enhanced customer engagement
- Increased customer loyalty
- Huge personalization potential
- More social media engagement
Let’s take a deeper look at these advantages.
Increased Visibility & Reach
A strong online presence means that you can reach wider audiences than ever before. In a brick and mortar store, your only audience bracket are those geographically close to you. Within eCommerce, your reach can be nationwide, or even worldwide if you choose.
This means that you can reach any customers who might be interested, anywhere. If you are doing your SEO and social media strategy correctly, then you will be finding and attracting the right audience.
Marketing campaigns, including audience segments are also a great way of reaching your target audience. Targeted marketing and advertising is a helpful tool in expanding your reach in the right directions.
Cost-Effectivity
Certain marketing campaigns are available on eCommerce platforms for small businesses. Rather than doing broad marketing campaigns with no one specific demographic in mind, specialized online advertising can have great impacts and makes sure your money is well spent.
Social media ads, or pay-per-click campaigns are good examples of this. Deep understanding of demographics, interests and behaviors mean that the right people are receiving your marketing efforts.
Plus, many of these platforms offer ways to analyze the performance of these campaigns. These provide useful data that can be used to optimize strategies and future spending. With all of these methods together, small businesses can maximize their profits without excessive spending.
Increased Customer Engagement
The smaller your business, the more chance you have of connecting on a deeper level with your audience. Particularly when shoppers are invested in the values of businesses, being a small business online gives you the chance to be transparent and intimate with shoppers.
Having a good social media presence, responding to messages and comments fast and including user generated content in your business are great ideas. These will create a sense of community, and deeper brand loyalty. This may help increase social proof and overall brand awareness.
Personalized recommendations can also help to let shoppers know you care about them. Once a business becomes bigger, this kind of customer relationship becomes harder to achieve. As a small business, you have the opportunity to foster and maintain more genuine connections.
Conclusion
Investing in an eCommerce strategy is a great idea for your small business. Although you may feel as though you are starting out with a disadvantage compared to bigger businesses, being a smaller size gives you some advantages. Whether this is due to flexibility, or ability to connect and form relationships with customers, these should be taken advantage of.