Marketing an e-commerce site?

[AquaGirl]

Hi all!

I have a bricks and mortar retail store and am about to add an online store too.

I'd love some tips on getting people to know the online store exists..

I plan to put the website address up on the window of the bricks and mortar business, as well as alert existing customers. i'll also market it on my facebook site for the business..

However it would be great to know other ways to attract new buyers, including people outside sydney and internationally.

Ive read about google first page services and the prices have generally been $250 per month to keep your business on the first page of google for relevant key words.

If anyone has some great ideas for marketing, i'd appreciate it so much

cheers
Linda

[clintmaher]

Hi Linda,

In my line of work we see many ecommerce startups come through with grand ambitions of being on page one of Google for their keywords, and paying $200 or $300 per month for the pleasure.

Unfortunately it is rarely that simple, or that inexpensive. Of course, it totally depends on the keywords you are trying to rank on, although it is pretty safe to say that even if they are mildly competitive, it's going to cost you a lot more firstly to get to page/position 1, and then to stay there.

We generally advise ecommerce startups to go and do a micro PPC campaign on Adwords, gather the buying keywords, then come back and look at SEO.

Also look at FB PPC campaign, normally less expensive and you can really target your audience.

Hope I did not dash your dreams, just wanted you to be aware of the reality. Many SEO companies will promise you everything for $300 p/m, and yet sadly deliver nothing.

[tonyk]

Using Twitter, starting up a newsletter. Just a couple of ideas that may help. I'm sure plenty of other people here on the forums will be able to assist you in achieving your goal. Best of luck with it all

[Phillip P]

So you already have a client list right from people you do business offline with in your normal store?

So get a piece of advertising done send it out to them with a discount code or something like that and get them to refer friends in a nice way for them to get further discounts.

You can use things like coupons (i hope your ecommerce site suggests these things)

Create some buzz around the site with your old and possible new clients.

Make sure you have a join our VIP club for free and have your mailing list software top right of the page to collect emails and member to your VIP club.

First place google stuff is bullshit usually you want impact right away and not over the next 6months spend some money on google advertising or facebook advertising talk to an expert about it. get them to setup one campaign for you ($300-400) and you can do the rest yourself.

SEO is good but you really need a long term plan... and it will take months to build up. Paid advertising is direct to the point and targeting the people that need your services RIGHT NOW, TODAY!

[mexham]

Hi Linda,

Good stuff on getting onto an online store. Definitely a good way to go.

It is one of those things, depending on how much you put into it (and spend on it) the more you will get out of it.

You can spend countless hours reading up on SEO, social media, blah, blah, then even more trying to apply it.

An online e-commerce startup is usually something that grows up and develops over time. Unless you have big money to spend promoting it, don't be discouraged if you don't see much happen for awhile. Until people start finding you on the web it can be slow going. Not that you shouldn't do it of course, but just to be aware that it is an ongoing process. Posting on Facebook, tweeting, blogs etc all take up a fair bit of time if doing yourself.

In terms of marketing just promote the website as much as you can. Have an email signature that goes out with every email with the website address. Same on forum boards like this. Post it on your Facebook page and get your friends to like and share. Have all your shop stationary (letterhead, receipts, business cards etc) branded with the website address. The more it is out there the better.

Also just to consider when selecting your site URL, unless you have a very well know brand, it is usually better to go with something that describes what you sell. Eg, if selling candles, sweets, hammocks etc make sure that word is in your URL as it will help people find your site when searching keywords on search engines.

Good luck, I hope that helps some.
Mike

[AquaGirl]

Thanks for the comments.

Im not planning on spending much at first so was just wondering what other options apart from google there were

I like the idea of a discount code for first purchases... im not sure how to set it up on my gold cart plugin that i integrated into my wordpress theme.

I have 'vip customer club' already offline which will continue online, because there is a small percentage off all purchases after the first 5.
I will need to be able to add a function to the cart for this as well.. if anyone has tips on how i'd love to hear it.
Am close to having the site ready, it is just small changes like this left to do..

The signature on emails is also a good tip.. thanks

Ive registered for google analytics to track whats happening on my site, however when i recently changed my hosts i lost my analytics data. can't seem to remember how i received it.. can't track it in my email :|

[NickHumphries]

You'll get great advice and tips here, but I also recommend you read as many books as possible on marketing. At the end of the day, the majority of the successes of your initial startup phase of your business depends on how effective your marketing is.

Read Duct Tape Marketing by John Jantsch and Guerilla Marketing by Jay Abraham - the success of your business depends on it!

[jared]

If you've already got a bricks and mortar store, then I would suggest Philip P was already on the right track - your best evangelists are going to be your current customers, and if you spread the word enough then you'll start getting more traction online.

I would suggest (and I am biased here) that printing flyers that educate folks about the new online store and stuffing them into every shopping bag of yours that walks out the store, have them sitting on the counter, and word up your sales force to talk up the site. It really would provide a spot for folks to purchase what they try on/test out today later on if they didn't take it home.

Facebook ads are another area that would certainly be worth trying, as they're so targeted and reasonably cheap. You can do FB ads yourself very easily - experiment and continue tweaking, don't just set up a single ad and let it go.

Another thing to consider would be creating something useful that folks may pass along socially, creating some viral lift. For example, we created a guide that demystifies some of the intricacies about purchasing commercial print: http://australianqualityprinting.com...rchasing-guide

Finally, and you've probably already done this, but make sure you have Google Analytics or similar set up. Check it regularly, check who (or what keywords) is referring visitors to your site, and you may get ideas for other areas to promote your site.

That's my 2c anyhoo!

[HBTRADE]

As you already have a site, could I suggest trying ipricecompare http://www.ipricecompare.com.au/ ?

Serey (also on FS) was quick to have my info on his site & was quite helpful in explaining what he needed - which was a link to the sitemap file.
It can't hurt to try.

[iPriceCompare]

Thanks Paul.

Let me know if anyone else is interested in listing their products on our website. Our aim is to drive you more traffic to your website via search engine and get your more exposure.

Originally Posted by HBTRADE

As you already have a site, could I suggest trying ipricecompare (http://www.ipricecompare.com.au/)?

Serey (also on FS) was quick to have my info on his site & was quite helpful in explaining what he needed - which was a link to the sitemap file.
It can't hurt to try.