How Inbound Marketing Improves eCommerce Sites

Many entrepreneurs often discount the value of inbound marketing and its impact on eCommerce websites. This common misconception couldn’t be further from the truth.

Consider the following scenario. A potential customer arrives at your website. The customer adds a product to the cart and proceeds to checkout. While on the checkout page, for some unknown reason, the customer cancels the transaction. What now? Did you really just lose a sale, client, and lead all at the same time? You have no method of re-establishing contact with this specific client so basically it’s like receiving a Dear John letter with no return address. Think about it, you were just a few seconds away from a possible long term commitment and then they just vanished from the face of the earth. Yes, it’s an amusing analogy but this situation is actually very common, it’s what we refer to as “shopping cart abandonment.” In a study provided by Clickz.com data suggested that 25% of shopping cart abandoners will never return to a website. Interestingly enough this leaves an eCommerce website with a 75% qualified lead pool. The study suggests that shopping cart abandonment is essentially a characteristic of the consumer decision making process. Therefore, re-marketing or lead nurturing is not only beneficial but absolutely necessary when closing a sale. Without inbound marketing strategies and sales funnel initiatives e-commerce websites basically forfeit qualified leads who are not ready to purchase but at same time still in the market to buy. Taking these prospective clients through the inbound marketing sales funnel will increase revenues and improve online success.

eCommerce Sites and Search Engine Optimization

According to Limelight.com, Google drives 81% of search engine referrals. So how exactly can Search Engine Optimization increase your website visibility? If you noticed a hint of sarcasm in my tone you’d definitely be “spot on” because quite frankly, ranking at the top of the largest SE referral source and its counterparts is really a no brainer. Can you say FREE targeted traffic? According to studies conducted by Brigthcove and TubeMogul, Google is also the highest referral source for online videos as well. Therefore, search engines collectively generate the largest referral source in terms of textual and multimedia content. Many smart businesses leverage the power of search engines to generate traffic.

Social Media Marketing

Recently Limelight reported that the average Twitter referrals spend more than $123.00 per referral which is above the average expenditure for search engine referrals. Social media marketing is an excellent opportunity to engage with prospects in real-time and quickly or virally increase exposure to your e-commerce website. The sticking point here is that more exposure equals more traffic and more traffic equals increased product exposure which leads to increased sales conversions.

Implementing Inbound Marketing Strategies on eCommerce Websites

Don’t hesitate to start implementing inbound marketing strategies on your eCommerce website. You can start by ensuring your cart collects the customer email information. This way you can preserve the relationship whether or not he/she decides to purchase a product. You can also make simple changes to your cart like adding a contact number viewable during the checkout process. If customers are experiencing delays or technical difficulties provide them with a means to acquire support.

Optimize your content to include keyword rich descriptions of the products and services provided by your company. You can take content creation one step further by attaching a blog to your eCommerce website. Optimize your blog content to include highly searched keyword terms.

Create a Facebook Page, Twitter Account, and Google+ Business Page. Share your blog posts, tips, news, and promotions across these social networks. The more engaging you are with your fans or followers the more responsive they will be to sales, promotions, and website content in general. Does your Social Media need help? Why not check out our Free eBook?

Key Takeaways

All businesses, including eCommerce websites, can and should leverage the power of inbound marketing strategies. Think of inbound marketing as the revival of the lost. It’s a really unique strategy that helps you save your business deals and increase company revenues. If you need help getting started let us know. Check out some of the guides and free downloads available on our site so you can start filling up the shopping carts of your customers immediately…as well as checking them out.