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E-commerce SEO: How To Drive Organic Traffic To Your Online Store?

E-commerce SEO is one of the most complex practices today. It is also such a broad field that the internet is inundated with tons of information (and misinformation!). Navigating through this maze of SEO advice can be overwhelming, often leaving you unsure of where to start and which strategies to implement.

To cut through this noise and provide you with clear and actionable insights, we have compiled this exhaustive E-commerce SEO guide. This is the only handbook you would need to drive organic traffic to your online store and generate more sales.

What Is SEO for E-commerce?

SEO for E-commerce is a collection of strategies that helps online stores rank higher in SERP (Search Engine Results Page). Contrary to popular belief, SEO for E-commerce is much more than simply adding keywords and writing blogs.

Yes, a well-designed website with high-quality content will certainly rank higher in Google, but that’s not enough to reach the top. You need to understand the guidelines of search engines, how they work, and your buyer’s intent before implementing various SEO strategies.

Benefits of SEO for E-commerce Websites

Here are a few benefits you can enjoy by implementing SEO for your online store:

Wider Reach

E-commerce SEO is all about improving your brand’s visibility on search engines. It automatically improves your reach among audiences by increasing organic traffic to your online store. Once a visitor lands on your website, you can even reach out to them later via paid retargeting campaigns, further widening your reach.

Better User Experience

When you focus on SEO for your E-commerce website, you are essentially targeting the right keywords. This way, you are not only attracting relevant visitors to your website but also answering all the key queries they might have. Focusing on SEO makes your website more attractive and improves its overall user experience.

Better Conversion Rate

This is a given. When your website ranks for relevant keywords, it will attract visitors interested in your products. It drastically improves the likelihood of them purchasing from you, which, in turn, improves your store’s conversion rates.

Cost-Efficient

SEO is undoubtedly one of the most cost-efficient ways to drive website traffic, especially when you compare it to paid ads. Unlike ads, you do not have to pay for every click or action. You can continue to attract organic traffic for free with E-commerce SEO.

On-Page SEO Strategy

Your on-page SEO strategy should ideally focus on enhancing the elements within your E-commerce website to improve its relevance to search engines. From embedding relevant keywords to optimizing title tags, every minute detail plays a significant role in signaling your website’s value to search engines. Let us quickly go through the different strategies you can employ.

Perform E-commerce Keyword Research

Solid keyword research is the key to a successful E-commerce SEO strategy, as it provides invaluable insights into the language and phrases potential customers use when searching for products. Understanding the right keywords can make all the difference between driving relevant and irrelevant traffic to your website. Now, there are multiple ways to perform keyword research for your store. Here are three popular ones:

Using Flipkart For Keyword Research

Flipkart is one of India’s largest marketplaces selling every product that you can imagine. What this means is – it is a goldmine for product keywords. All you need to do is head over to www.flipkart.com and enter the product type you plan to sell in the search box.

Source: Flipkart Website

Flipkart will start suggesting the most popular keywords around your product type. Pick all the relevant keywords and embed them into your product description for your online store.

Finding Keywords Through Competition

Along with Flipkart, you can explore your competitors’ websites for keywords. This way, you will be able to discover keywords that are effective across multiple online platforms, including search engines, social media, and other E-commerce sites. Also, you will be able to identify gaps in your own keyword strategy and find opportunities to differentiate your online store. Also, exploring your competitors’ websites might help you in identifying long-tail keywords that cater to specific niche audiences. There are high chances of you finding content and pages that target long-tail keywords, which can be valuable for attracting highly targeted traffic.

Using Keyword Research Tools

Use tools like SEMrush & Ahrefs to find keywords and search terms related to your niche, assess their search volumes and trends, and evaluate keyword difficulty and competition. Additionally, these tools help you in analyzing your competitors’ strategies and understand their top-performing keywords with relative ease. You also gain in-depth insights into backlinks, content performance, and search visibility.

SEO Optimize Your Product Pages

By optimizing various elements on your product pages for relevant keywords, you can significantly improve that product’s visibility on search engines and drive targeted traffic. Here are the different product page elements you must optimize for better SEO:

URL: Create SEO-friendly URLs that include relevant keywords. It should accurately describe the product and, at the same time, should be kept short, readable, and without unnecessary characters or symbols. Here is a good example:

Source: Juicy Chemistry

Title Tag (H1): Use a keyword-rich H1 title tag for your product. It should accurately reflect the product’s main keyword. More importantly, it should be clear, concise, and easy to understand for both users and search engines.

Meta Description: Set the meta description for every page of your website. This is a great opportunity for you to write an engaging intro for your pages, which, in turn, will garner clicks on the search results page. Here is a good meta-description:

Source: Google

Product Description: Craft unique and informative product descriptions that incorporate all the necessary target keywords naturally. Avoid keyword stuffing and focus on providing valuable information to potential customers. Here is a great product description from FabIndia:

Source: FabIndia

Header Tags (H2, H3, etc.): Use header tags to organize your product page content logically. Incorporate relevant keywords into these headers to give search engines a clear understanding of the page’s structure and content. Nykaa, the cosmetics brand, has neatly organized all its blog content in H2 and H3 tags:

Source: Nykaa

Image Alt Text: You also need to ensure that all your images have alt text which is descriptive and keyword-rich. Alt text helps search engines understand your images, making them more likely to appear in image search results and improving overall accessibility to your products.

Product Reviews: Encourage customer reviews and User-Generated Content on your product pages. This not only enhances credibility but can also naturally include additional relevant keywords. Here is a product description from the brand Nykaa:

Source: Nykaa

Using E-commerce Content Marketing For SEO

E-commerce content marketing is a powerful tool to drive organic traffic to your E-commerce store. You need to consistently create valuable and engaging content such as blogs containing your target keywords and answer questions that your audiences might have.

You can also leverage social media to promote content and interact with your audience. Posting content on social media is a great way to foster brand awareness, and ultimately enhance your website’s authority in search engine rankings. It’s also important to maintain a consistent publishing schedule. Regularly posting content will increase the likelihood of attracting backlinks further boosting search engine visibility.

Technical SEO Clean Up

The technical clean-up involves a careful review and enhancement of various technical aspects, including your website’s structure, page speed, mobile responsiveness, canonicalization, and internal linking, among others. By conducting this process, you will be able to improve your website’s overall health, facilitate better search engine indexing, and ultimately boost organic traffic.

Make Your Site’s Architecture Simple

Site architecture is all about how the pages on your website are arranged. Your goal must be to keep the architecture simple and well-organized. A typical E-commerce website tends to have significantly more number pages than an average blogging website or a service-oriented website due to the presence of category pages and product pages. This makes it even more crucial for your site architecture to be simple, as it helps search engines to effortlessly browse through your site and assists customers in finding the information they need.

When your architecture is well-defined, you can also scale your website in the future. As you add more products and categories, you will find it easier to maintain your website.

While designing your website architecture, your goal must be to ensure that every page can be accessed within three (or fewer) clicks from your homepage. This ensures that your customer journey is short and frictionless, making it more likely for users to complete their purchases.

Let us now look at the structure of two websites, one with bad site architecture and another with solid architecture.

Bad Site Architecture Example For E-commerce

As you can see in the above example, the architecture is not straightforward. It’s challenging to understand what category comes where. This means it’s not scalable. Whenever you plan on adding a new category, you need to build an additional layer and(or) reorganize all your existing categories and subcategories. Lastly, if you notice, some of the pages can be reached only after 6 clicks from the home page.

Good Site Architecture Example For E-commerce

This is an excellent example of how your site architecture should be. It is simple and scalable, which means it is completely future-proof. Also, every page can be reached in 3 clicks from the home page, ensuring that the user journey is short and without any obstacles.

Improve your Page Speed

Your website’s page speed is a key ranking factor for Google. Why? Because Google values user experience and if your page takes a long time to load, it will result in a poor experience, and most users will abandon that page. The probability of users abandoning a page almost triples if the page takes longer than 2 seconds to load. If you’re not sure about your current page speed, you can check on PageSpeed Insights.

Now, if your page speed is low, it simply means you either have too much content on your website or too many scripts are slowing down the page speed. And don’t forget, images take a lot of time to load, so if you have a lot of images on a page, it will slow the load time.

Here are some tips to improve your page speed –

Do not overload the webpage with too many images. And ensure that all the images are optimized and compressed.
Use fewer social media widgets on the web pages.
Do not clutter the pages with too much content. Use white space wherever possible.

If nothing is working, consider changing your web host or upgrading your existing hosting package. You can consider switching to Kartify, a highly scalable E-commerce platform that supports +1 million concurrent users without performance issues. Also, the platform helps in optimizing your storefront so that your page load speeds are always high.

Impact Of Redirects On SEO

Redirects are instructions that inform web browsers and search engines to transfer users from one URL to another. This transfer could be due to website restructuring, moved or expired content, or simply to offer a better user experience. 301 is a popular permanent redirect that indicates that the original URL has permanently moved to another location. So whenever Google encounters a 301 redirect, it automatically updates its index and caches it to reflect the updated URL. This ensures that the SEO value of the old link is transferred to the new one.

Now too many redirects are also not good for your SEO. For instance, excessive redirects can impact page load times, which will have a negative impact on the user experience and SEO rank.

Also, if redirects are not properly implemented or maintained, your users may encounter “404 Not Found” errors that can result in lost traffic.

Incorrect redirects can also cause canonicalization problems, where search engines may index the wrong version of a page. For instance, if you use a 302 (temporary) redirect instead of a 301, it may lead search engines to keep indexing the old URL, thus losing your link equity.

Importance Of HTTPS

HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) is a protocol that encrypts the data transmitted between your website and its users. This makes it more secure against potential cyber threats and eavesdropping. Unsurprisingly, this has been a Google ranking factor as Google has always valued data security.

You will know that your website has HTTPS if it has a ‘lock’ icon in the address bar. Here is an example –

Most modern E-commerce platforms offer HTTPS as the default protocol for your website. However, if you find that (for some reason) HTTP has been used instead, you need to fix it immediately. We recommend partnering with trusted E-commerce platforms like Kartify to make sure your online store is always secure.

Make Your Site Mobile Responsive

With a major chunk of internet traffic coming from mobile devices these days, search engines like Google have started adopting mobile-first indexing. This means they primarily use the mobile version of your website for ranking and indexing. Make sure your website is mobile responsive which will not only improve your SEO rankings but also result in lower bounce rates and increased user engagement.

Here are some best practices to follow while making your website mobile responsive –

Test your website across a range of mobile devices and operating systems to ensure a consistent user experience
Optimize all your images by compressing them without compromising quality.
Streamline your E-commerce checkout process by eliminating unnecessary form fields and providing multiple payment options
Replace complex dropdown menus with simple, easily accessible navigation elements like hamburger menus.

Provide Good Internal linking

Interlinking helps search engines understand the organization of your E-commerce website and allows users to navigate with great ease. This greatly boosts the user experience and subsequently your SEO rank.

The best way to implement internal linking is via breadcrumbs. These are navigational aids that highlight the user’s current location within the website hierarchy. Clicking on a breadcrumb will help users backtrack or switch between different categories. Here is an example of a breadcrumb:

The other way to implement internal linking is via product recommendations. Implement a product section widget on all your product pages to encourage users to explore related products or complementary items. Besides being a good internal linking strategy, it also helps in improving the chances of cross-selling and upselling.

Source: Myntra

Lastly, if your E-commerce website has a blog section, make sure to provide contextual interlinking to blog posts, relevant product pages, and category pages. For example, if you are writing a blog about the benefits of a product, link it to the respective product page where users can make a purchase. This not only enhances conversion rates but also strengthens the association between your content and products in the eyes of search engines.

Importance of Hreflang

Technically speaking, Hreflang is an HTML attribute that specifies the language and geographical targeting of a webpage. It is a crucial element of E-commerce SEO, particularly for online stores that cater to an international audience or offer content in multiple languages.

It aids search engines in understanding the language of your web pages, thereby ensuring that the right content is always presented to the right users in search results. In simpler words, when you add hreflang tags to your website, you are clearly highlighting which version of your website is relevant to a particular location.

Without this tag, search engines might index and display the wrong version of your website to users accessing it from another country. This can result in irrelevant search results and frustrating experiences for the users.

Add Canonicals

Canonicals are tags that instruct Google on which version of a page to index and display in search results. The three important goals of canonicals are-

To avoid potential duplicate content issues
To ensure that the right page receives proper SEO value
To consolidate link equity from all the duplicate pages of a particular E-commerce page

E-commerce websites often have multiple versions of the same product page, category page, and other pages. For instance, if a particular product has multiple variants, then multiple duplicate pages will be created for these variants.

Without canonicals, Google might end up interpreting all these duplicate pages as separate entities, resulting in the dilution of SEO value for that particular product. It might even penalize you for having duplicate content across all these pages. To avoid such issues, you need to use canonicals.

Include a site map

A sitemap is a file on your website that contains complete information about all your web pages and content. Search engines use this sitemap to crawl your website more efficiently. A good sitemap will not leave out any page be it a category page or a product page. Sitemaps use both XML and HTML, however, HTML sitemaps are generally considered to be more useful for users. You can create a sitemap either manually or by using various tools. Google’s Webmaster, Lucidchart Sitemap Generator, and Powermapper are some of the popular tools used for generating sitemaps. Here is a sample HTML sitemap:

Source: H&M Group

Link Building Strategies For E-commerce Site

Link building is important for SEO as it improves the authority, visibility, and rankings of your website. When you build high-quality backlinks from reputable sources, you are essentially attracting high-quality organic traffic who are more likely to buy. Here are a few strategies you can adopt for link building:

1. Resource Page Link Building

In a resource page link-building strategy, you get backlinks from webpages that curate and link out to useful resources within the industry. You, as a website owner, can suggest your webpage as one of these resources. The best part is you do not have to do too much convincing to get your webpage added because you are helping the resource page owner to keep their pages fresh and up-to-date.

But your website must be relevant to the resource page, otherwise, your request will be rejected. Just search for all the relevant resource pages in your industry, vet these pages, reach out to the page owner, and suggest your website as a potential resource.

2. Partnering With Influencers And Affiliates

It is not difficult to find major and micro-influencers in every industry. Partnering with these influencers and affiliates can expose your products to a wider audience, thereby attracting natural backlinks. This, then, has a positive impact on your SEO score.

You can ask influencers to write product reviews, create unboxing videos, or even write sponsored content that highlights your brand and products. Many influencers have their own blogs or websites where they can publish in-depth content about your products, generating additional backlinks.

3. Broken Link Building

Broken links are amazing opportunities to gain backlinks to your website. Start by finding websites that have mentioned products like yours and linked them to the original website. Some of these links might be broken or inactive.

If you find such links, reach out to the website owner and share your webpage as an alternative option. They will be happy to replace a broken link with a working one. You can use tools like Brokenlinkchecker to identify broken links in a particular URL.

4. Stealing Competitor’s Links

Though this strategy might sound highly dubious, this is a legitimate and very common way to build backlinks. You need to first analyze your competitor’s backlink profile and identify high-quality backlinks that your competitors have earned over the years. Now, see if there’s a chance for you to obtain similar links.

Platforms like Ahrefs and SEMRush offer backlink analysis tools to help you identify opportunities in competitors’ links. While reaching out to websites that link to your competitors, be honest and showcase how your products or brand can add value to their audience beyond what your competitors offer.

5. Guest Posting

Guest posting involves creating valuable content for other websites within your niche. In exchange, you can get valuable backlinks to your E-commerce site. The key is to identify reputable websites that accept guest posts, have good domain authority, and have an audience that matches your target market.

The good thing about guest posting is that it not only generates valuable backlinks to your website but also improves your brand visibility and showcases your brand as an authoritative name in the industry.

Keep Track Of E-commerce SEO Success

Your responsibility is not over once you have implemented all the above strategies and optimized your E-commerce store for search engines. It is equally important to understand the impact of your strategies so that you can identify areas for improvement and finetune your strategies to improve the outcomes. Let us now understand how to track your E-commerce SEO success.

Key Metrics To Track For E-commerce SEO Success

Conversion Rate: It is the percentage of visitors who complete a desired action on your website. In an E-commerce environment, the action is usually making a purchase. A high conversion rate indicates that the keywords you are targeting in your SEO strategy are highly relevant to your target audience.
Bounce Rate: It is the percentage of visitors who leave your website after viewing only one page. A high bounce rate indicates that the products or your website’s content may not be meeting the search intent of the users. In other words, you need to tweak your keyword selection.
Click-through Rate: It is the percentage of visitors you are attracting to your E-commerce website after they see your page in the search engine results pages. A high CTR indicates that your title tag, meta description, and content are appealing and are capable of attracting clicks from search engine users.
Core Web Vitals: These are specific website performance metrics that measure different aspects of user experience. It predominantly includes Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), First Input Delay (FID), and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS). These metrics help assess website loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability respectively.
Keyword Ranking Changes: The changes in positions of specific keywords that you are targeting in search engine results pages over time. If a keyword improves its ranking, it indicates that your SEO efforts for that keyword are bearing fruits. On the other hand, if a keyword’s ranking drops, you may need to investigate the possible reasons, such as algorithm updates, changes to your website, or increased competition.
Non-branded Keywords: Non-branded keywords are generic keywords that do not include any specific brand names. By analyzing these keywords, you can identify new market opportunities and potential product categories that might be in demand. This can help in fine-tuning your SEO strategies to capitalize on emerging trends.

How to Track Your SEO Success?

The easiest and most effective way to track your SEO success is by using tools like Google Analytics, SEMRush, and Ahrefs. For instance, Google Analytics offers comprehensive insights into your website’s performance and captures metrics such as organic traffic, user behavior, conversions, and bounce rates. And it is quite easy to set up Google Analytics on most E-commerce platforms.

Tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush also help in keyword analysis. For instance, they can track the rankings of your target keywords in search engine results and even highlight how your rankings have changed over time. They can even track your performance against competitors.

Choose The Right E-commerce Platform For The Best SEO

As we wrap up our blog, you would have realized that the strategies you use to optimize your website’s SEO impacts your online success. The intricacies of search engine optimization can’t be underestimated, and your chosen platform plays a pivotal role in how well your website ranks and performs.

Kartify – E-commerce Platform is the best choice for most businesses because it is the only platform you would need to handle the entire lifecycle of an E-commerce order. Right from inventory tracking to payment processing, Kartify takes care of everything you need to manage your store.

Some of the key features of Kartify include:

Search-engine-optimized product listings
Advanced analytics covering sales, traffic, and products
Native integrations with 80+ relevant platforms
Site speed optimization with super-fast smart search capability
Optimized checkouts to reduce cart abandonment
Seamless selling across platforms with Omni-enabled capabilities

To know more about Kartify and how it can help in driving organic traffic to your online store, contact us now.

How To Choose An SEO-friendly E-commerce Domain Name?

Have you ever owned a physical store? If yes, then you know the difficulty and pain of finding the perfect location for your business. Your E-commerce store is no different. The only change – a domain will replace the physical location.

You need to find a domain name that is not only easy to remember but also attracts potential customers to your online store. In other words, you need to pick an SEO-friendly E-commerce domain name. So how do you do that? Let’s find out.

What is an E-commerce Domain?

It is the web address of your online store on the internet. It serves as a unique identifier for your E-commerce store, making it accessible to anyone with an internet connection.

Examples of Good Domain Names

Here are some good E-commerce domain names that have helped brands in driving more traffic to their online store and feature in the first page of search engines:

As you can see, each of these domains is carefully chosen to reflect that particular store’s specialization. It is also memorable, easy to recognize, and resonates with the target audience. This makes these domain names memorable and relevant for the respective users. Such domain names also help in establishing a strong online presence for these brands and enhancing their overall credibility.

Does The Domain Name Affect SEO?

The short answer is–yes. Everything from your domain’s length to the keywords used in it will impact your SEO. Just like how a keyword-enriched, relevant, and value-driven blog attracts readers, an SEO-friendly domain that is simple, trustworthy, and focused will draw more traffic from search engines and garner better interest from people.

Let us understand this with an example. Here are 2 domain names –

cheapjeansoffer.net
zbrandjeans.com

The first domain looks spammy and doesn’t instill confidence in our minds. Most of us will stay away from such domains.

On the other hand, the second domain looks promising. It not only looks credible but has the keyword ‘jeans’ in it, which will be useful for those searchers looking to buy jeans.

How To Choose The Domain Name That Represents Your Brand And Helps SEO

Here are some handy tips to adopt while picking a domain name for your E-commerce store –

Choose The Right Keyword That Is Synonymous With Your Brand

There was a time when search engines like Google immensely valued the presence of keywords in the domain. And many brands went on infusing keywords into their domain to take the top spots in search engines. Keywords are still important today but in a different way. You no longer have to add the exact keywords into your domain for search engines to take notice. As long as you can add some concepts or words that give clarity to your E-commerce store, you are fine.

For example, the popular clothing brand Max has adopted the domain https://www.maxfashion.in. By using the word fashion, Max has successfully highlighted what they are selling clothes without sounding too obvious or awkward.

Keep Your Domain Name Short

Here’s a simple thumb rule when it comes to domain names – the shorter, the better. Why? Because shorter domain names are more memorable. If you notice, most of the popular brands around the world have short domain names. For example –

These domains are easy to remember, easy to type, and easy to print on materials. The benefits are endless. Now, you might wonder – how do I pick a shorter domain name, especially when my brand name is long?

The key is to remove all the unnecessary verbiage. For example, if your brand name is “The Best Exotics of Flora”, you can remove words like “The”, “Best”, and “Of”. You can choose the domain name – exoticsflora.com.

The other option is to abbreviate. Ferns & Petals is the best example. They have picked the domain name www.fnp.com, which is shorter and easier to type than fernsandpetals.com.

Pro Tip: If your brand has uncommon spellings after abbreviations, it is recommended to buy domains with potential misspellings so that your potential customers will reach your website even if they make minor mistakes in spelling.

Understand Linguistic Psychology

While selecting a domain name, you also need to play a bit with the psychology of the language. The domain name you pick should not only resonate with your potential customers but also spark their brains to connect your brand with positive emotions. In other words, the words you use should carry emotional weight and associations.

For instance, if your store sells luxury watches, then you could pick a domain name like “timeelegance.com” . It adds a touch of sophistication and elegance without sounding too salesy.

Use A Trustworthy Domain Extension

Undoubtedly, “.com” is the numero uno when it comes to the list of popular domain extensions in the world. It’s also the most trusted domain extension as it conveys a sense of legitimacy, which can positively influence how customers perceive your business. While the use of .com may not give you a major SEO boost, it will definitely help in driving traffic organically to your store, thanks to better trust.

Now, if you do not get a .com domain extension, all is not lost. Extensions like .co, .in and .net still continue to be popular. And .store is another emerging domain extension focused on E-commerce stores.

Understand The Role Of Folders, Subdomains, And Relevance

Before you go ahead and pick a domain name for your store, you must know the role of folders, subdomains, and relevancy,

Start by analyzing how relevant your site is to a particular search query. This will help you determine how high or low your domain will rank on a search engine. For example, if you are a brand selling laptops, you’ll naturally have the keyword ‘laptop’ spread all over your website, right from product descriptions to metadata so that your website shows up in the search engines when customers search for the keyword ‘laptop’. Now, it would also help if your domain name had the word laptop or its concepts in it so that you can improve the relevancy of your overall website.

Similarly, you must understand the role of subdomains and folders.

Subdomains are:

www.blog.abc.com
www.shop.abc.com

Subfolders are:

www.abc.com/blog
www.abc.com/shop

While they both look quite similar, search engines read them differently. Subdomains are read as if they are separate websites. Subfolders, on the other hand, are read as part of the original domain. Obviously, subfolders are better than subdomains because subfolders show Google that you are building a solid repository of pages around your brand. So if given an option, always pick subfolders for your website.

Bonus: Make Sure Your Domain Name Passes The Radio Test

This is a unique and interesting way to identify if your choice of domain name is right or not. All you need to do is imagine that you are running an ad for your brand on the local radio station. At the end of the ad, the radio host reads your domain name loudly and directs listeners to visit your website.

If these people can easily spell and type your domain name correctly later, then your domain name has passed the radio test. If not, you need to revisit your choice of words in the domain name. You can try this test with your friends and family. The goal of this test is to ensure that you have spelled your domain name in the most common way instead of an interesting and unique way that might confuse people and redirect them elsewhere.

Conclusion: Be Mindful While Choosing A Domain Name For Your E-commerce Business

Your domain name serves as a representation of your brand, your values, and the products you offer. They will also aid in brand identity and recall. Therefore, it is essential to approach the process of selecting a domain name with mindfulness and consideration. Follow the tips highlighted in this post to ensure that your brand enjoys the whole benefits of an SEO-friendly domain name.

If you need help in managing your E-commerce business, reach out to ANS Commerce. A Flipkart group company, ANS Commerce, is India’s #1 Full Stack E-commerce Enabler trusted by 200+ Brands.

From creating your online store, running profitable performance marketing campaigns, managing marketplaces to order fulfillment & warehousing – we do it all to supercharge your brand’s growth!

To know more, book a demo now.

How To Create Urgency In Sales To Boost Revenue (Without Being Pushy)

Are you tired of watching potential customers walk away without making a purchase? Do your sales numbers need to catch up to your expectations? It’s time to turn the tables and create a sense of urgency that will propel your sales through the roof!

In the fast-paced world of sales, creating a sense of urgency is a powerful strategy that can significantly boost revenue. The ability to tap into the innate human desire for immediate action can drive customers to make purchasing decisions more swiftly and decisively. Strategies that create urgency can make all the difference when selling products or services.

In this blog, we explore urgency in sales and outline procedures and strategies that you can use to boost your E-commerce sales. Continue reading to discover.

What Is Urgency In Sales?

Urgency in sales is a technique employed by businesses to create a sense of immediate action among their audience and prospective customers. By leveraging urgency, sales and marketing teams motivate customers to make a buying decision in the present rather than postponing it for later.

For instance, imagine a furniture store promoting a limited-time sale on a popular sofa model. They highlight the sofa’s attractiveness by promoting its quality, comfort, and elegant design. However, they also mention that the sale is only valid for the next three days or until stocks last.

It encourages buyers to act immediately by combining the appeal of desirability with the introduction of limitations or time constraints. This strategy takes advantage of customers’ FOMO and forces them to make a purchase decision to not lose out on a great deal.

Benefits Of Creating Urgency In Sales

Creating a sense of urgency in sales offers numerous benefits to your business:

Increases Conversion Rates

Creating a sense of urgency in sales is like adding fuel to the fire. It ignites a spark within potential customers, compelling them to take action and make a purchase decision. The fear of missing out or the excitement of limited-time offers can significantly increase conversion rates. Urgency eliminates hesitation, pushing your potential customers toward the desired outcome.

Helps To Boost Sales Volume

You’ll see a significant increase in sales volume once urgency is integrated into your sales and marketing strategy. Customers who might have been on the fence suddenly find themselves compelled to buy now rather than later. By creating scarcity or time-limited deals, you create an environment where customers feel they need to act fast before opportunities vanish into thin air.

Reduces Procrastination

For both businesses and customers, procrastination slows growth. Employing urgency strategies reduces this tendency by encouraging people to make decisions right away rather than continually delaying them for a day that might never arrive.

Competitive Advantage

Implementing urgency sets you apart from your competitors. You can stand out in a competitive E-commerce market by giving your customers another reason to choose your products or services. Customers may prioritize your offerings over others if they feel pressured to act quickly with promotions or limited-time offers.

Enhance Customer Engagement

Sales urgency increases customer involvement and engagement. Customers are more likely to actively look into your promotions, discounts, or deals if they see time-sensitive offers or limited availability. A higher level of interaction with your brand and products may arise from this increased engagement creating brand awareness.

Fosters Brand Loyalty

Lastly, effective use of urgency can foster brand loyalty. Customers feel appreciated and unique when they receive exclusive offers or time-limited promotions. This positive experience can lead to repeat purchases and long-term customer relationships.

10 Simple Ways To Create Urgency In Sales Without Being Pushy

In a market saturated with varied marketing messages and sales pitches, sales urgency has become an essential tool. By effectively communicating a sense of urgency, businesses can break through the noise, capture their prospects’ attention, and drive them toward making purchasing decisions promptly.

Different techniques can be used to increase urgency in E-commerce sales. Although many of these practices seem to be the same, they all have different goals and potential outcomes.

Here are 10 simple ways to create urgency in sales without being pushy. Let’s dive in.

#1 Create Urgency With A Deadline

When there is no time limit on your product or service, customers often face decision paralysis. With multiple options in hand, they tend to spend excessive time evaluating the pros and cons of the products. They may also explore competitor offers, review product specifications, read feedback, or, in some cases, just give up and move on.

Setting a deadline or time restriction with your E-commerce sales event is an effective way to overcome these issues. You can encourage customers to respond more quickly by creating a sense of urgency.

Credit: Flipkart Website

For instance, Flipkart often runs time-limited sales events like the “Big Billion Days” and “Diwali Sale,” where they offer steep discounts and attractive deals on a wide range of products. These sales are typically held for a short duration, such as a few days or even just 24 hours, creating a sense of urgency among consumers.

Likewise, platforms like Swiggy and Zomato offer time-limited discounts and exclusive deals during specific hours of the day. These offers are displayed on their apps and websites, encouraging customers to purchase within the given time frame. The limited-time nature of these deals motivates customers to quickly decide on their food choices and place orders.

#2 Use The Fear Of Missing Out To Create Urgency

Fear of missing out, or FOMO, is a powerful emotional trigger that can drive customers to move quickly and make more purchases. It is predicated on the idea that nobody wants to miss out on an opportunity or be left behind.

Countdown timers, deadlines, expiration dates, limited-time sales promotions, giveaways, and hosting user-generated contests are some techniques to create a sense of urgency and leverage FOMO in your marketing strategy. By incorporating these elements, you effectively communicate to your audience that time is limited and immediate action is required.

The urgency can be emphasized even further by employing specific words and phrases like “now,” “today,” “last chance,” “limited time,” “only,” or “don’t miss” to highlight how time-sensitive it is.

In the below example, Shoppers Stop has integrated the FOMO effect by putting “Limited Time Offer” in big bold letters next to a clock creating urgency among customers to buy the products.

Credit: Shoppers Stop website

In addition, you can utilize visual clues, such as a creative or label that shows the product is a “hot” item or selling quickly, to further increase the FOMO effect.

For instance, First Cry is using the FOMO concept by introducing “The FOMO Sale” with a clear start and end time. By limiting the sale period, they create a sense of urgency among parents, encouraging them to make their purchases quickly to take advantage of the significant discounts.

Credit: Firstcry Website

#3 Create A Sense Of “Scarcity” and “Exclusivity” To Your Offer

Indeed, “scarcity” and “exclusivity” help create sales urgency.

You can evoke a sense of scarcity and encourage customers to act swiftly to buy the product by displaying the number of products remaining in stock.

For instance, Myntra has displayed alerts like “Only Few Left ” on Kurta Sets. This emphasizes that there is a limited supply of the products. This communicates that the product is in high demand and encourages customers to purchase it before it runs out.

Scarcity tactic used on website by Myntra

Credit: Myntra Website

Likewise, position your product as an exclusive or limited edition. Let people know that it’s only accessible to subscribers or members for a certain period. This creates a perception of exclusivity and makes customers feel special for having access to something unique.

Exclusive discounts offered on website by Firstcry

Credit: First Cry Website

In this example, First Cry is using the exclusivity of their Club Membership by offering “ Club Price” to create urgency in sales. They offer benefits like up to 10% additional discounts, exclusive offers, club cash benefits on products, free shipping, exclusive coupons, etc to their club members. By leveraging the concept of exclusivity and tying it to a special discount offer, First Cry aims to drive more conversions and generate excitement among its customer base, encouraging them to make a purchase decision promptly before the opportunity slips away.

While creating a sense of scarcity and exclusivity can be effective in driving sales, it’s essential to maintain integrity and avoid misleading or false claims. Be transparent about the availability and exclusivity of your offer. Make sure that your customers feel respected and valued throughout their purchasing journey.

#4 Add A Countdown Timer On Your Website

A powerful tool that can increase conversions and sales for your business is adding a countdown timer to your website. Whether it’s completing a purchase, subscribing to a newsletter, or signing up for an event, your website visitors are more likely to take action if you create a sense of urgency.

Countdown timer example by Pepperfry website

Credit: Pepperfry Website

In the above example, Pepperfry has added a timer to their sale items indicating the duration of the limited-time offers. This technique reminds the customers to act quickly to take advantage of discounted prices or exclusive deals.

Countdown timers can help your business establish credibility and trust by adding a sense of urgency while also demonstrating your commitment to keeping your promises. They can additionally contribute to improving the perceived value of your offer, which will boost its value to customers.

Here’s an example of boAT, a consumer electronics brand, displaying a countdown timer on their website to create a sense of urgency and excitement. The brand has used one color across the page to signify the daily deals. This timer shows the exact time left until the deal ends. Thus, the timer can help the boAT brand achieve its sales objectives and engage customers effectively.

Credit: boAT Website

#5 Show Remaining Stock Quantity To Create Urgency

A useful strategy for encouraging customers to make a purchase is by displaying the number of products in stock on the product page.

In the example below, Booking.com creates urgency by highlighting the high demand and limited availability of rooms in Lonavla. The message “only 4 left at this price” emphasizes the risk of missing out on the best accommodations if not booked promptly. This strategy triggers the fear of losing a desired stay, compelling potential customers to make a quick decision to secure their preferred place. Due to the high demand and limited supply, there is a sense of urgency among visitors that prompts them to book a reservation to avoid disappointment.

Example of remaining items left on website

Credit: Booking.com Website

Instead of using generic terms like “Stock: 1,” create a sense of urgency with phrases like “Hurry up, only 1 left”, “Hurry, limited stock,” or “Almost sold out!”. The use of such language motivates shoppers to act quickly and buy the desired item before it sells out.

Further, you can highlight the remaining stocks using bold text, different color schemes, or graphic elements to make the stock quantity stand out.

#6 Start Selling Limited-Series Products

Limited-series products are designed to be unique and rare. This exclusivity inherently creates a sense of value and desirability. Customers are more motivated to buy limited-series products because they feel they have a chance to grab something special.

Limited series products sold by Kamal Watch

Credit: Kamal Watches Website

For instance, Kamal Watch Co. Pvt Ltd is a leading retail chain of watch stores. It also sells limited edition watches of different brands. Limited edition products effectively create a sense of urgency by producing unique and limited products.

Further, limited products often attract collectors or enthusiasts who are specifically interested in owning unique or rare items. This creates excitement and enhances customer interest in the products. As buyers are aware that they might not have another opportunity to purchase the item in the future, their interest and mindset increase the sense of urgency. They may take prompt action out of concern about missing out on something that fits their collecting preferences.

#7 Create Urgency In Your Copy And Creatives

Copywriting plays a crucial role in creating urgency. Your ad or product copy is a powerful tool for influencing how customers perceive and connect with your products. Here are some ways to create an urgency-focused copy:

Use words and phrases that highlight the time-sensitive nature of the offer. Words like “limited time,” “for a limited period,” or “while supplies last” communicate that the opportunity to purchase the product is fleeting.

Use emotional language and expressions that stir up desire or aspiration in your audience. The words “exclusive,” “premium,” or “must-have” can highlight how desirable the product is.

Include social proof, such as customer feedback or testimonials in your product descriptions. This helps build the trust of your customers.

For instance, Nykaa has integrated urgency through its ad copy and creative by including discounts and end dates for sales.

The ad begins with an attention-grabbing phrase like “All I can think about is HOT deals”. This creates a sense of excitement and encourages users to read further.

The ad mentions “up to 50% OFF” on some amazing brands, enticing customers with significant savings. Further, it also includes a clear call-to-action button (“Shop Now”) to prompt users to click and browse the sale offerings immediately.

In the video, they have also added the Hot Pink Sale logo, making it visually engaging and relevant to the sale.

Credit: Nykaa’s Instagram Page

#8 Reward Your First X Customers

Reward your customers and encourage more people to purchase. For example, you can offer them a special discount code, or the first 100 customers will receive a free gift with their order.

This not only gives your customers a sense of urgency, but it also gives the first 100 customers a sense of exclusivity. The rewards should be something your customers will value and can’t get anywhere else, like an exclusive product launch or a limited-edition item created only for them. By doing this, you give your first-time customers a special experience that motivates them to share your products with others and spread the word about them.

Reward your first customers to create urgency in sales

Credit: Huawei Website

Here’s how Huawei integrated the reward program by providing gifts for the first 100 purchases to their buyers. This approach helped the brand to create buzz, generate excitement, and encourage word-of-mouth marketing, especially for new product launches or services.

Thus, this method encourages customers to buy or use the new products or services right from the start, boosting initial sales and adoption rates.

#9 Show Others Interested In The Product

By showing customers what others are buying from your store, you create a sense of popularity, desirability, and urgency. You can implement a system that sends pop-ups or real-time notifications whenever a purchase is made on your website or mobile application.

These notifications can be in the form of small overlays or sidebars that indicate a recent sale, including the product purchased, the customer’s location, and a timestamp. You can further pin the best-selling products for higher visibility.

Show tags on how many people are interested in the product

Credit: boAT Website

boAT, a leading electronics brand builds trust with potential buyers by including the Users’ Love section on their product page that highlights the unit sold on Flipkart and 5 star reviews by customers. This transparent approach reinforces boAT’s reputation as a reliable brand, ultimately increasing buyer confidence and driving sales.

How to show frequently bought together on website

Source: Flipkart Website

Flipkart’s integration of “Others Interested Products” on their product pages shows a clever approach to create a sense of urgency and encourage buyers to consider combo offers or complementary products. Flipkart encourages customers to add additional items to their shopping carts by advertising combo offers, which increases the order value and the platform’s overall revenue.

However, too many notifications can distract and irritate your customers. So, make sure to implement them strategically, ensuring they do not disturb the overall user experience.

#10 Sent Out Last-Chance Emails To Create Urgency

Send last-chance emails and remind customers of the deadline to take advantage of the offer. Include a countdown in your emails to create an additional sense of urgency.

For instance, Good Pair Days have integrated the last chance email by highlighting the discounts along with a Click-To-Action that labels as “Get yours today”. The brand has a well-designed and responsive email that enhances the user experience and increases the chances of conversion.

Credit: PairDays

Make sure you include a strong call-to-action that makes it easy for people to act quickly and make their decisions before time runs out. Phrases like “Shop Now,” “Grab Your Deal,” or “Don’t Miss Out” encourage customers to click through.

Additionally, use eye-catching visuals and design elements in your email to capture attention. Highlight the discounts, deals, giveaways, timeframe, etc. so that your audience doesn’t miss out on the important details.

You can also create a specific landing page to showcase your limited edition products or fast-selling products. For instance, Marks and Spencer highlight the “Last Chance To Buy” message on their landing page creating a sense of urgency, prompting visitors to make a decision quickly. This leads to increased conversions and engagement, as visitors are motivated to take advantage of the time-limited offer before it expires.

Must read: 17 Best Abandoned Cart Email Examples With Key Takeaways (+Free Templates)

Display last chance to buy to create urgency in sales

Credit: M&S website

Tips For Using Urgency In Sales

When using urgency in sales, here are some tips to keep in mind:

Communicate The Details

When communicating the details of your sales deal to customers, it’s essential to provide clear and comprehensive information. When communicating the details of your sales deal to customers, it’s essential to provide clear and comprehensive information. Include any other details that could help customers understand the sales offer. This could include details about the product, testimonials, case studies, or reviews that highlight the benefits and value of the product or service.

Authenticity

Ensure that the urgency you create is genuine and based on real factors, such as limited stock, limited-time offers, or upcoming deadlines. Creating a false sense of scarcity or using false advertising could negatively impact your reputation with customers.

Use A Clear Call-To-Action (CTA)

Make it simple for your customers to take action by using language that is action-oriented. Also, add links or buttons that can be clicked to land at the intended conversion.

Eliminate Distractions

Keeping the sale and the products at the forefront might be useful when creating urgency. This maintains sales efficiency and makes decisions quicker. Unimportant links or irrelevant information can distract your customers, affecting their purchasing decisions.

Boost Your E-commerce Sales By Creating Urgency

In conclusion, businesses can enhance conversion rates and motivate customers to act quickly by fostering a sense of urgency. One effective approach is to leverage time-limited promotions or exclusive offers.

However, it is important to employ urgency wisely. Constantly pressing potential customers can cause them to become disinterested. Instead, the emphasis should be on offering exceptional deals that genuinely cause FOMO.

Lastly, effective communication is essential to conveying urgency. To get your audience’s attention, use convincing language, clear calls to action, and eye-catching creatives.

Need help with increasing your E-commerce profits? We at ANS Commerce (A Flipkart Group Company), offer end-to-end E-commerce solutions to brands launching & expanding their presence in India.

From providing technology solutions to implementing impactful marketing campaigns and seamless warehousing & order fulfillment services, we are supporting 200+ E-commerce brands in India.

Book a demo today to explore how we can help you create impactful marketing campaigns.

How To Measure Your Online Sales Success?

There is a popular saying – “If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.” This may seem like a worn-out cliché, but there is some truth to it, particularly in the E-commerce sector. An online store needs constant fine-tuning to stay relevant and attract customers throughout the year. And the best way to do this is by measuring its performance.

Now, there are certain metrics that you need to keep an eye on. Tracking them will offer you rich information about what’s working and what’s missing the mark in your campaigns. The question is: Which metrics? In this post, we will learn which KPIs you need to measure for your E-commerce store and how they are useful.

Why Should You Measure Your Online Sales?

Let’s put it this way. Following your gut and intuition might not work all the time. Unless you measure your online sales, you will not be able to improve those campaigns that aren’t bearing fruits. Besides this, there are a few other reasons why you need to measure your online sales –

Set Accurate And Achievable Goals

You will gain valuable insights into your business’s performance, customer behavior, and market trends by measuring your online sales. You will get answers to key questions like “How is the improvement in overall sales,” “Which products were purchased the most and least,” “What are the different opportunities available to boost the sales of your store” etc. With this knowledge, you can set specific and measurable targets and align them with your overall marketing strategy.

Make Quick Business Decisions

A simple look at the dashboard highlighting different E-commerce metrics will help you identify trends, spot sudden changes in demand, and respond promptly to opportunities or challenges. For instance, you can quickly identify which products are driving the most revenue in a particular campaign and use this knowledge to prioritize and allocate resources effectively and quickly. You can also adjust product pricing or promotional tactics to maximize revenue and profitability.

Attract Investors

When you have data to back your success story, investors and financiers are going to be convinced about their investments. In other words, by measuring your online sales, you can provide investors with a clear picture of your market traction, customer demand, revenue generation capabilities, and growth prospects, which will help them make a favorable decision.

KPIs To Measure The Success Of Your Online Sales Event

Running a successful campaign requires careful planning, execution, and evaluation. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) play a crucial role in measuring your sales campaign’s success and determining the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. Monitoring the below metrics will help you optimize current campaigns and guide your future marketing strategies – helping you drive more sales.

E-commerce Metrics For Sales Measurement

Tracking metrics related to sales is crucial because they provide valuable insights into your revenue generation, customer behavior, and the effectiveness of your sales strategies. Here are some essential E-commerce metrics for sales measurement:

1. Sales Generated

It is the total sales generated within a specific period or a particular campaign. This figure provides a clear understanding of your revenue and the success of your campaign. It can also highlight seasonal trends — and help you plan your inventory for high-traffic periods.

2. Average Order Value (AOV)

It is the average monetary value of every order placed on your website. Tracking this will help identify customer spending habits, price your products correctly, and optimize your upselling and cross-selling strategies. To calculate AOV, simply divide the total revenue of your online store by the number of orders placed. For instance, if the total revenue of your store for the month of June was ₹2,50,000 and the total number of orders placed was 250, your AOV is:

AOV = 2,50,000/ 250 = ₹1000

3. Product Affinity

It shows the likelihood of certain products being purchased together. Tracking this will help create more targeted product bundles and offer personalized recommendations.

Must Read: E-commerce Personalization: How To Make Your Customer Feel Valued

4. Day Part Monitoring

It shows the specific timeframes when your website attracts the maximum number of visitors. Evaluating this metric will help you time your product launches and promotions to drive maximum conversions.

5. Website Traffic From The Campaign (New Vs Returning)

Website traffic is the number of people visiting your website for a particular duration. It tells you how many of these visitors are new and returning. More new traffic means your marketing strategy is working well, while more returning users means your customer retention efforts are producing results.

7. Shopping Cart Abandonment Rate

It is the percentage of online shoppers who add products to a shopping cart but then abandon it before completing the checkout process. Tracking this metric will help you identify potential pain points in your checkout process. Here’s how you can calculate cart abandonment rate:

Cart Abandonment Rate = (1 – Completed Orders/ Shopping Carts Created)* 100

Where,

Completed Orders are the number of orders that are paid.
Shopping carts created are the total number of shopping carts created, irrespective of whether they were completed or abandoned.

So if the total number of shopping carts created in 2023 was 50,000 and the total number of completed orders was 10,000, the cart abandonment rate would be:

Cart Abandonment Rate = (1-10,000/50,000)*100 = 80%

High cart abandonment rate is direct revenue loss. You can take many proactive measures to convert them into paying customers. One of the best ways to make them complete the purchase is by sending abandoned cart emails, here is our complete guide on abandoned cart emails with free templates.

8. Bounce Rate

It is the percentage of visitors who leave your website after visiting a single page. A high bounce rate indicates issues with your website’s navigation or content.

KPIs To Measure Marketing Campaign Success

Marketing campaigns ensure that your brand and products reach the right audience. To gauge the success and effectiveness of these campaigns, it’s important to track the following KPIs:

1. PPC Campaign Metrics

Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns are a popular form of online advertising, where you pay an amount every time an ad is clicked. Here are the essential PPC campaign metrics to track:

Traffic

It indicates the number of visitors who click on your PPC ad and land on your website. It gives you an idea about your campaign’s reach and effectiveness in driving potential customers to your site.

CTR

It is the percentage of people who click on your ad after seeing it. A high CTR signifies that your ad copy and targeting are appealing and relevant to your audience.

CAC

It stands for Customer Acquisition Cost and it tells you how much you have to spend to acquire a new customer. By measuring this metric, you will know the ROI of your marketing and advertising efforts.

Must Read: 8 Best E-commerce Advertising Campaigns To Get You Inspired

2. Email Marketing Campaign Metrics

To evaluate the success of your email marketing campaigns and make data-driven decisions for improvement, it’s essential to track key performance indicators (KPIs). Here are the crucial ones to track:

Email Open Rate

It is the percentage of subscribers who open an email campaign compared to the total number of emails sent. It helps gauge how engaging and relevant the email content is to the subscribers.

CTR

It is the percentage of email recipients who click on one or more links within the email compared to the total number of emails sent. It measures how successful your email campaign is in driving subscribers to take the desired action, such as visiting a website or making a purchase.

Subscriber Growth

It is the increase in the number of subscribers over a specific period. It shows the effectiveness of your email list-building and email marketing efforts. A steady and healthy subscriber growth rate is important for expanding your reach.

3. Social Media And Affiliate Marketing Metrics

The following metrics serve as quantitative indicators of how well your social media and affiliate marketing efforts are performing. They offer a clear picture of the impact of these campaigns on your brand visibility, audience engagement, lead generation, and conversion.

Followers

It indicates how many followers your brand has across different social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. It indicates how large or small your online community is and shows whether or not people are engaging with your brand and content.

Number And Quality Of Product Reviews

Product reviews offer valuable feedback and social proof to your potential customers. It can positively influence their purchasing decisions, especially if the number of reviews is high. The quality of reviews is also important as it holds more weight in building trust with potential buyers.

Affiliate Performance

It typically includes the number of clicks, conversions, sales, or revenue generated via affiliate links or partnerships. Measuring these metrics can help identify top-performing affiliate partners and optimize the non-performing campaigns.

Other KPIs You Should Track

Besides the above metrics, there are a few more KPIs that you must track to gauge your online sales success. Here are they –

Gross Profit

It is the difference between the total revenue generated from sales and the cost of producing/acquiring and selling products. Monitoring this metric will tell you whether your E-commerce business is profitable or not.

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

It gives you the total value a customer will bring to your online store over the entire duration of their association with your brand. Measuring CLV is important because it helps in predicting your future revenue and long-term business success. Here is our in depth article on Customer Lifetime Value and its importance.

Customer Retention Rate (CRR)

It is the percentage of customers you retain over a specific period. By measuring CRR you will know whether your customer base is satisfied and loyal. This is important for sustained business growth.

Average Stock Sold Per Day

It is the rate at which your inventory is moving off the shelves. Using this data, you can identify sales trends, peak seasons, and slow periods. This will help you better manage your inventory and meet customer demands without excess stock.

Net Promoter Score

It is a customer satisfaction metric that gauges the loyalty and advocacy of your customers towards your business. NPS is valuable because it provides insights into your customers’ sentiments and helps you identify areas for improvement.

Use Analytics Tools To Track Sales Success

Now that you know what to measure, it’s time to answer the ‘how’ part. Yes, there are tools like Google Analytics that can help you track your website performance, you need a robust analytics platform to measure your online sales success.

Enter Kartapult, a one-stop solution to measure, analyze and optimize your online marketing efforts. It even offers a real-time analytics dashboard that tracks and highlights metrics from different ad platforms, so that you can make more informed decisions.

To know more about Kartapult, contact us now.

About ANS Commerce

A Flipkart group company, ANS Commerce, is India’s #1 Full Stack E-commerce Enabler trusted by 200+ Brands!

From providing technology solutions to implementing impactful marketing campaigns and seamless warehousing & order fulfillment services, we offer end-to-end support to E-commerce brands launching & expanding their presence in India.

How To Run A Sales Event For Your E-commerce Brand?

4 million first-time customers

35 million app downloads

These are the record-breaking sales numbers of Flipkart during their previous Big Billion sales event. As you can see from these numbers, customers keenly look forward to such events when the price of their favorite products drops considerably.

However, despite the popularity, many E-commerce owners shy away from organizing such events. Many of them assume that such sales events are only reserved for the Flipkarts and Amazons of the world. This is not true.

With the right planning and strategies in place, anyone can successfully run a sales event for their online store and increase their customer base and revenue.

In this post, we will walk you through the steps involved in running a successful sales event for your E-commerce brand.

How To Run A Successful Sales Event?

Running a successful sales event requires strategic planning and meticulous execution. There are certain steps that you must follow diligently to ensure the success of your sales event. Here are they –

Step 1: Get The Blueprint For The Sales Event Ready

Start by creating a detailed blueprint for your sales event. This is important because it will provide you with a clear roadmap on how to organize and wrap up your sales event without any issues. The blueprint must ideally comprise your objectives, products for sale, and the specific date and duration of the sale.

First and foremost, define the specific goals for your event. It could be improved sales, increased brand visibility, or even a surge in footfall. Whatever the goal, outline them clearly on the blueprint so that you can develop a focused marketing strategy around those goals.

Next, plan the products that you will put up on sale. The idea is to pick products that will be profitable, even at a reduced price. You must also consider factors like stagnant inventory, current demand, waning trends, and overhead expenses while selecting them. But remember – in an attempt to maximize sales and profitability, avoid the temptation to liquidate inventory at a loss.

Lastly, set a fixed date and duration for your sales event. This will help you in the proper execution of the event and you will be able to better organize your affairs, manage inventory, and ensure sufficient staff coverage during the sale hours.

Step 2: Begin spreading the word (on Social Media + PR)

Even if you are offering the best discounts on your products, it won’t be fruitful unless your potential customers know about the sale in the first place. You need to start spreading the word on different platforms to let these people know you are running a sale for them.

Social media is a great space for this. But it is important to pick the platforms where your potential customers are most active. Focus all your efforts on these platforms to maximize your reach. Create engaging content such as infographics, GIFs and videos that highlight the key details of your sales event. Exposure is the key to the success of your event, so send out as much relevant information as possible through content.

Take the case of Nykaa, the popular cosmetics brand. They have been creating constant buzz around their recent HotPinkSale on Instagram and Facebook. Here is one such post from them.

Use Social Media to create buzz around your Ecommerce sales

You could also write compelling press releases that highlight the unique aspects of your sales event. You can distribute it to relevant media outlets, both online and offline, so that it reaches everyone you wish to target.

Step 3: Focus On Pre-Event Marketing

Next, you can start your other pre-event marketing activities. You could collaborate with influencers who align with your brand and have a significant following among your potential customers. You can easily leverage their credibility to promote your sales event. For instance, you can ask them to share exclusive discount codes with their followers and encourage them to participate in your sales event.

The other option is to invest in advertising campaigns across various platforms such as search engines and social media. Most of these platforms also enable you to target a precise set of users by setting different parameters like demographics, interests, and location.

If you have a restricted budget, you can simply post engaging content on social media that showcases your upcoming event. You could include countdowns, sneak peeks, and behind-the-scenes previews of the event.

Step 4: Partner With Complementary Brands To Spread The Word

This is another great way to expose your sales event to relevant audiences. You need to partner with brands that share a similar target audience or are from a related niche. This will enable you to tap into their customer base and mutually benefit from cross-promotion.

Start by identifying related brands that are not your direct competitors. Reach out to them and propose collaborative opportunities for promoting each other’s sales events. You could cross-promote on social media and share each other’s posts or even co-create content.

Bonus if you could create exclusive bundled offerings with this complementary brand and include them as part of your sale offering. End result – better sales for both parties.

Step 5: Showcase Your Sales Event On Your Website

This is a given. Just like how retail stores set the table for specific sales items, you need to create a dedicated landing page for the sales event on your website. For starters, this will enable your customers to share the URL of the event directly with their friends and family. The new visitors need not navigate through all the pages of your website to reach the sale landing page.

Place attention-grabbing banners on your website’s homepage and at relevant sections, announcing the sales event. Add striking visuals, engaging copies, and clear CTAs directing the visitors to the sales landing page. Here is Firstcry, the renowned baby care brand in India, effectively using the home page banner area to highlight all their sale events.

Show the various sales events you are running on your website

Highlight a selection of key products that will be on sale and display them prominently on the homepage. Add enticing descriptions, images, and discounted prices to capture visitors’ interest and drive them to explore further.

To create a sense of urgency, you can even incorporate countdown timers on the website. It should display the remaining time left for the sales event, which will encourage the visitors to take immediate action.

Step 6: Highlight Your Brand Or Keep Your Brand At The Center Of The Sales Event

While running your sales event, it’s important to keep the focus on your brand identity. You must highlight your brand’s USP and message throughout the event. Why? Because your ultimate goal is to drive more customers to your store even after the sale ends. By focusing on your brand and its story, you will build better brand recall for a longer duration.

Ensure that all your marketing materials for the sales event align with your brand’s visual identity. You must use consistent colors, fonts, and logos on all your marketing collaterals to create a cohesive and recognizable brand presence across all communication channels. You must also use the sales event to reinforce your brand’s key values, mission, and positioning.

Step 7: Engage with customers throughout the sales event

This will help in building lasting relationships with them. By spontaneously addressing their inquiries, you can enhance their satisfaction and increase the likelihood of repeat business even after the event ends

Keep a close eye on your social media handles during this time. Respond promptly to customer comments, messages, and mentions. Address any concerns, answer questions, and express gratitude for their participation and support.

It’s also worthwhile to implement a live chat feature on your website to offer real-time assistance to customers. Ensure that knowledgeable representatives are operating behind the scenes who can provide quick responses to inquiries, offer product recommendations, and resolve any issues that may arise during the event.

Most importantly, tailor each and every communication to individual customers wherever possible. Use their names in messages to create a more personalized experience. Referencing specific purchases or preferences can also show that you value their unique needs.

Step 8: Get Ready To Ship And Manage Orders

If you have completed all the above steps successfully, you are bound to attract huge volumes of visitors during the sale. But this poses a unique challenge – How to ship and manage thousands of orders without delays and errors?

To overcome this, you must clearly communicate the shipping timelines, return policies, and any potential delays to customers during the sales event. Some brands have a separate shipping timeline and return policies during the sales event due to the huge influx of orders. There is nothing wrong with this. Ultimately, the goal is to reduce frustration and improve the overall order experience for customers.

You must also constantly update your inventory levels to prevent overselling or running out of stock once the orders are placed. This is quite common during a sales event. Implement real-time inventory tracking to ensure adequate product availability throughout the sales event. Consider using inventory management software to streamline this process.

Bonus: Make Sure Your Website Is Able To Handle The Traffic

You must make sure that your site is able to handle the increased load during the sales event. The last thing you want is your server crashing and your loyal customers leaving negative reviews all over the internet about their experience.

You must ensure that you have a reliable hosting provider with expansive bandwidth so that your website is completely scalable when it comes to the number of users. Also, try improving your website’s loading speed by optimizing and compressing files and images. On the technical front, you can embrace various caching techniques to minimize server load and leverage browser caching to store static resources locally on users’ devices.

You could also conduct load testing to simulate high-traffic conditions and identify potential bottlenecks or performance issues. There are many tools like Apache JMeter or LoadRunner that can help you achieve this.

But the easiest and most effective way to handle high website traffic to your site is to build your online store on a reliable E-commerce platform. Robust E-commerce platforms employ techniques like load balancing and caching mechanisms to distribute the load across multiple servers and ensure smooth performance even under heavy traffic. One such powerful platform is Kartify. Thanks to its robust architecture, Kartify can easily handle over 1 million concurrent users. This makes this the perfect choice for your sale events as you can continue to attract as many users as you want without worrying about performance issues.

Different Types Of E-commerce Sales

There are different types of E-commerce sales you can run. Here are the top 4 –

Pre-launch

A pre-launch is a type of sale that is employed just before a product is officially released. The goal of this sale is to generate buzz, build anticipation, and incentivize early purchases of such products. Businesses offer special discounts and exclusive access to pre-launch customers, creating a sense of exclusivity and rewarding loyal customers. Such a type of sale is usually employed by E-commerce businesses handling electronic items.

Limited Time Offer (LTO)

A limited-time offer is a type of sale that runs for a fixed duration. The timelines could range from a few hours to a few weeks. In this, you create a sense of urgency, which encourages customers to make quick purchase decisions by taking advantage of the discounted price or exclusive offer. Flash sales, seasonal promotions, and holiday deals are classic examples of LTO. But remember, it is important to communicate the limited availability or duration of the sale to customers effectively.

BOGO Sale

A Buy-One-Get-One (BOGO) sale is a type of sale where customers receive an additional product for free when they purchase a specific item. This type of sale is often used to increase sales volume and move stagnated inventory. BOGO sale typically triggers the customers’ desire for more value, which, in turn, encourages those who were in two minds about purchasing a product.

Tiered Discount

A tiered discount sale is a kind of sale that offers different levels of discounts based on the customer’s total order value. This type of sale encourages customers to increase their order value to unlock higher discounts. For example, a tiered discount promotion might offer 10% off for orders above ₹500, 20% off for orders above ₹1000, and 30% off for orders above ₹1500.

Best Practices To Follow While Running A Sales Event

Continuously monitor the performance of your sales event by tracking key metrics such as sales volume, website traffic, conversion rates, and customer feedback. Analyze the collected data to identify areas of improvement and make adjustments for the next sales event.
Once the sales event is over, follow up with customers to express appreciation for their participation and purchases. Consider offering post-sale incentives and exclusive loyalty rewards to encourage ongoing engagement with customers.
Encourage existing customers to refer their friends or family members to your sales event by providing attractive referral incentives such as additional discounts or rewards for both parties. This helps drive new customer acquisition during the event.
Keep an eye on your competitors’ sales events. Most of the time, they may be running a sales event during the same time as yours. So stay agile and be ready to adjust your offers or prices if necessary to stay competitive.

Conclusion: Get Ready To Boost Revenue With Online Sales

Before running a sales event, you must make sure that you don’t leave anything to the last minute. As long as you have followed the above steps and are prepared to handle the huge influx of fresh orders, you should be able to run a successful E-commerce sales event and reap benefits such as improved sales and better profitability.

If you need further help in running a successful sales event or even managing other aspects of your E-commerce store, you can partner with ANS Commerce. A Flipkart group company, ANS Commerce is India’s leading E-commerce service provider that offers end-to-end solutions to streamline your daily E-commerce operations. To know more about us and how we can help, book a demo now.

13 Proven Strategies to Boost Your E-commerce Sales

You just analyzed the latest sales report of your E-commerce store. The numbers aren’t looking good. But you did everything right this year.

Hired more staff.

Spent more on marketing.

Streamlined your logistics.

Still no improvement. You now feel the pressure to increase your sales faster. At the same time, you do not want to compromise on the quality of your service. What to do?

Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. In this post, we will take you through some of the best and proven strategies to improve sales for your online store.

1. Optimize Your E-commerce Store For SEO

When your E-commerce store ranks higher in SERP (Search Engine Results Page), it not only improves your brand’s visibility but also drives more targeted traffic to your website. In other words, your store will be visited by all those people who are actively searching for products similar to what you offer. This will increase the likelihood of conversion.

Here are some tips you can adopt to improve the SEO score of your online store-

Embed your product titles with relevant keywords.
Generate unique and compelling meta descriptions for every product you upload.
Ensure that your URLs are descriptive and include keywords.
Optimize product images with descriptive file names and alt tags.
Improve site speed for better user experience and search rankings.
Ensure that your website is optimized for mobile devices.

2. Use Paid Ads Strategy To Boost Sales

Sometimes just optimizing your website for search engines might not be enough to attract visitors to your website, especially if you want results quickly. For such cases, you must embrace Paid Ads along with SEO to boost sales. Here are some strategies related to paid ads you can adopt-

Drive Traffic With Facebook And Google Shopping Ads

Facebook and Google offer robust ad platforms that you can use to easily target the right people at the right time. Both these platforms have a large user base who are active and always on the lookout for solid information to consume and high-quality products to purchase.

While posting ads on these platforms, make sure your product images and creative copies resonate with your target audience. Also, not all your ads have to be about your products. You can even include videos about your customers or how your store works to build deep customer relationships. Here is an ad from Yogabar that is not about their brand or product. They have instead focused on one of their CSR activities involving an NGO. The goal of such ads is to drive brand awareness.

Must Read: 10 Types Of Facebook Ads D2C Businesses Can Use To Grow Sales (With Examples)

Use Lookalike Audience To Target

Lookalike Audience is a Facebook feature that lets you target people who haven’t heard about your brand but share similar characteristics with your ideal customers. By using a lookalike audience, you can drastically improve conversions for your store as you are essentially targeting those people who are more likely to buy from your brand.

While creating a lookalike audience for your brand, ensure that there is no audience overlap and you pick the audience from a quality source. Also, it is recommended to have at least 1000 people in your source audience to have a desirable effect on your targeting.

Focus On Retargeting Ads To Improve Conversions

Not all first-time visitors to your site will end up becoming a customer. Most of them will leave without purchasing anything. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t do anything about them. You can win them back with the help of retargeting ads.

Facebook, for instance, offers the Pixel which can detect who visited your website, whether they purchased anything, from which page they left, etc. Armed with this vital information, you can use Facebook Ads to attract these people. The goal of retargeting ads is to generate more exposure for your store, which will push the visitors to eventually buy from you.

Here is a great example of a retargeting ad-

Some of the best practices you can follow while creating and managing retargeting ads include:

To ensure that your ads don’t go unnoticed, make sure to highlight your logo and branding across all ad units.
Do not overexpose your ads as your potential customers may start ignoring your ads. It is advisable to set a frequency cap that will limit the number of times a tagged user will see your ad. We recommend anywhere between 15-20 ads per user per month.
Always exclude your converted users from your retargeting list. The last thing you want is annoying your customers. More importantly, why waste valuable impressions on those people who have already converted.
Do not run the same set of ads again and again. Your users will no longer be curious and will end up ignoring them. Rotate your ad creatives after every 2-3 months.

Must Read: 8 Best E-commerce Advertising Campaigns To Get You Inspired

3. Create An Email List And Build An Email Marketing Strategy

Emails are still as relevant as they were a decade ago. More importantly, it is a great marketing channel as it offers a way to communicate with your prospects directly. But successful email marketing requires thorough planning and seamless execution. We suggest adding additional information while creating an email list. Add information like, your prospect’s interest, purchase history, or last communication with the brand. It will help you personalize your communication.

Here are some more tips to master email marketing for your store-

Ensure that your emails are responsive. In other words, every element in your email must be clearly accessible on all kinds of devices
Never send an email without a clear and prominent call-to-action button. It should encourage recipients to take the desired action
Consistently monitor email metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and conversions, so that you optimize your email campaigns for better performance
A/B test different email formats, layouts, and content to identify what resonates best with your audience and yields higher conversion rates
Add customer reviews and testimonials in your emails to build trust and social proof.
Give your emails a personal touch without compromising on the professionalism aspect. The best way to do this is by by sending it from a specific employee with the pattern: <your first name> from < company>
While determining when to send your emails, keep your audience and mail type in mind. For instance, if your target audience is working professionals, and you are sending emails with a discount coupon, then you may want to send it during the lunch break or in the evening after office hours–simply because your target audience might be more likely to check it during that time
Lastly, your email copy should be concise and to the point. It should have actionable verbs to inspire action and effortlessly blend with your CTAs

4. Utilize Popups And Signup Forms To Capture Visitor Information

Time and again, popups have proven to be a great ally for marketers. Despite its intrusive nature, it can still grab the attention of visitors and get them to interact with your brand while they are browsing. To reduce the intrusiveness, you can trigger them during different scenarios like when a customer spends a certain amount of time on your page or when they scroll down the page to a certain point.

Your popups could be designed to offer various incentives, such as exclusive discounts, freebies, or access to insider information. This will encourage visitors to provide their email addresses willingly.

Here is a popup on the website of Pepperfry, asking guest users to signup in return for credits that they can use while making the first purchase.

You can also trigger signup forms to capture visitor information, such as email addresses, which then allows you to build a valuable email list for your email marketing strategy. Remember to keep the form fields simple and minimize the number of required fields to reduce friction. In other words, make the signup process quick and easy. Here is an example of pop-up to collect email addresses by Bunnai:

5. Make It Easy For Customers To Purchase

Remove obstacles and reduce friction throughout the buying journey to ensure that your customers complete a purchase. Here are some strategies you can adopt to make it easy for customers to purchase-

Offer A Variety Of Payment Options

If there is one thing you don’t want, it is your customers leaving your store without completing a purchase just because their preferred payment option was unavailable. Gone are the days when simply offering credit cards, debit cards, and Internet banking was sufficient.

Today’s generation wants payment methods like mobile wallets, UPI, and Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL). BNPL, in particular, has become quite popular because it offers customers the flexibility to spread their payments over time. This is ideal for all those customers who prefer more financial flexibility or those who may not have immediate access to funds. Myntra, the popular fashion brand offers a variety of payment methods to cater to every type of customer out there.

Various payment methods you can offer on website

Low Shipping Charges Or Free Shipping

Today’s customers not only expect convenience and fast shipping but also free shipping or at least minimal shipping charges. If you manage to offer no-charge deliveries on all your orders, customers will be more likely to choose you over other brands. You could give free shipping on products with the highest margin or only if the order value reaches a particular amount. Hamleys, the popular toy store offers free shipping on all orders above ₹999 and they have highlighted this on their homepage.

You could also keep free shipping only for loyalty program members since they’re more likely to make repeat orders from your shop and that means you have a lower customer acquisition cost. Here are some smart ways to reduce shipping costs.

Fast Delivery & Easy Returns

Most customers value quick delivery and a seamless returns process over everything else. They feel confident in purchasing from brands offering top-notch experiences. You must have a dedicated returns policy page highlighting all the information about the returns process, including the time window for initiating returns. Similarly, offer multiple refund options like store credits or the original mode of payment. Finally, you should display the return policy link on the footer or your product page for easy access.

Must Read: Strategies To Streamline Return Management And Reduce Cost: A Complete Guide

Ajio has designed its returns policy in the form of FAQs so that customers can quickly get their queries answered.

6. Run Strategic Promotions On Your Website

A well-thought-out promotion strategy will resonate with your customer base and automatically drive conversions.

You can run time-sensitive promotion campaigns that create a sense of urgency such as “flash sale” or “limited time offer”. Display a countdown timer for such promotions to encourage customers to act quickly and take advantage of the deal.

Another type of promotion that you can run is exclusive promotions. You can offer discounts to your email subscribers or loyalty program members to reward their engagement and encourage continued brand loyalty.

Some brands also go out of the box and run other varieties of promotions such as contests, giveaways, and referral programs to generate excitement and encourage participation.

Here are some tips to adopt while you run promotions on your website-

Use visually appealing banners and eye-catching graphics on your website to highlight the promotion and draw attention to the special offers.
Amplify the impact of your promotions by talking about it in all channels, particularly in social media. This will help you reach a wider audience.
Consider collaborating with influencers to generate buzz around your promotions.
Monitor and analyze the performance of your promotions. Track metrics like conversion rates and average order value to see if your strategy is working. If the numbers are not improving, you can fine-tune future campaigns.

Here’s Shoppers Stop, prominently displaying their current sale on their home page.

7. Create Urgency And Scarcity To Drive Sales

By creating a sense of urgency, you essentially tap into the psychological triggers that motivate customers to purchase from you. And the easiest way to instill urgency in the minds of customers is through scarcity. Using scarcity, you are helping the customers see the perceived value in making an instant purchase. Some of the different ways in which you can drive scarcity include:

Show stock quantities on product pages to trigger FOMO
Show how many people are currently browsing or have bought that particular product.
Using phrases like “Limited stock” or “Hurry, only a few items left” etc.
Allowing customers to pre-order select products or give them access to pre-sale opportunities

Here is an example of a brand using phrases like “Limited Stock” to create a sense of scarcity on their E-commerce website-

Show limited stock to create urgency in fast selling products

8. Upsell And Cross Sell To Your Existing Customers

Upselling is all about encouraging customers to upgrade their purchases or opt for higher-value products whereas cross-selling is about selling additional products that compliments the initial purchase. This is an effective strategy because you are mostly selling to those who already know you. You need to understand customer preferences and needs and present compelling offers to increase the average order value.

For example, if a customer reaches the checkout page to purchase a mixing bowl, and they get a personalized recommendation for a bigger one – just for ₹50 more. They’ll be obviously tempted to upgrade their product. Upselling not only increases revenue but also helps in building long-term relationships with your customers.

Here is an example of Upselling by Body Shop-

upsell and cross sell example for Ecommerce

9. Minimize Cart Abandonment By Optimizing The Checkout Process

Here’s the harsh truth – You can never eliminate cart abandonment. However, you can improve the conversion rate by optimizing your checkout process. One of the reasons why most customers leave their carts is the lack of transparency. When your customers can’t see shipping fees, taxes, and other additional costs displayed on the checkout page, they will start rethinking their entire purchase. So ensure that you have a detailed order preview page that includes all the costs involved. You can also incorporate visual elements like progress indicators to reinforce transparency.

The other reason for cart abandonment is a complicated checkout process. The longer and more complicated your checkout process is, the greater the possibility of cart abandonment. You can simplify your checkout process by leaving out unnecessary form fields, allowing visitors to checkout with a guest account, and so on. Here’s Ikea offering guest checkout for all its customers-

Simplify checkout to prevent cart abandonment

Must Read: 17 Best Abandoned Cart Email Examples With Key Takeaways (+Free Templates)

10. Display customer Reviews To Build Trust And Credibility

Most customers will look for social proof and acknowledgments from others before making up their minds about a product. So it is important to have reviews and testimonials highlighted on your E-commerce website. You need to ask your customers to leave a review after every order is placed. However, not everyone will leave a review. To encourage them you need to offer incentives like freebies, cashbacks, or discounts on their next purchase.

Most importantly, you need to display the reviews where they will create maximum impact. Here’s Mamaearth displaying customer testimonials and marketplace reviews, on their homepage.

11. Showcase Your Top-Selling Items

This strategy works on a very simple idea – everyone wants to lay their hands on products everyone else is buying. Listing and showcasing your top-selling items on your website is a great way to get customers excited about trending items. When customers see the top seller label, it makes those products more appealing and reassuring as it has been bought and enjoyed by many in the past.

Showcasing your top-selling items can also simplify the decision-making process by presenting customers with the most popular and trusted choices. This will make it easier for them to make a purchase.

Here’s Juicy Chemistry displaying all their best-selling items on their homepage.

12. Add A Post-Purchase Survey To Your Website

Post-purchase surveys give you a lot of information about your customers’ experience. For instance, you can learn about what convinced them to buy from you, what was the deal breaker, and what could have improved their overall experience. Such key pieces of data can help in learning about your own strengths and weaknesses through the eyes of the customers.

To increase the number of responses, you can reward survey-takers with a discount for their next purchase. You must highlight the reward right before the survey to encourage them to leave feedback. It is also important to implement the changes based on your respondents’ feedback, to show that you value their opinion. Here’s an example of a post-purchase survey from Decathlon-

13. Use Conversational Commerce To Keep In Touch With Your Customers

Conversational Commerce is a great way to have meaningful interactions with your customers. Using it, you can offer personalized support that will improve satisfaction and loyalty among customers. Two popular ways in which you can adopt conversational commerce include live chat support (both bot and human agent) on the website and WhatsApp chat.

Using Conversational Commerce, you can promptly respond to customer inquiries, provide product recommendations, and address any concerns or issues they may have. The proactive nature of Conversational Commerce showcases the importance you place on customer experience, which will ultimately drive ongoing engagement.

Here’s Bombay Shaving Company actively engaging its customers through WhatsApp Conversational Commerce.

How to Boost E-commerce Sales: Conclusion

As you have seen in this post, learning how to increase E-commerce sales doesn’t have to be incredibly difficult. There are plenty of strategies that are easy to implement and highly effective at the same time. It’s also a good idea to try out as many strategies as possible and find out which ones have the most impact in your sales.

However, if you want to put your entire E-commerce store in autopilot mode and focus on other aspects of your business, you can join hands with ANS Commerce. ANS Commerce can handle the A-Z of your online store, right from setting up to running day-to-day operations. To know more about ANS Commerce and how we can help, book a free demo now.

7 Holiday Season Promotion Ideas To Boost Sales

The holiday season is a time of joy, celebration, and shopping frenzy. As an E-commerce business owner, this festive period presents a unique opportunity to maximize your sales and connect with customers on a deeper level. To make the most of this season, it is essential to craft an enticing festive season sale that attracts customers and creates excitement and urgency. In this article, we have gathered seven holiday season promotion ideas that are sure to boost your sales and create a memorable shopping experience for your customers. Read along!

What Is A Holiday Promotion?

A holiday promotion is a marketing strategy to attract customers during the festive season. These promotions can take many forms, such as discounts, giveaways, and referral contests.

You can use holiday season offers to

Convert one-time shoppers to regular customers
Reactivate passive shoppers to make the purchase again
Attract more customers on your website
Build brand awareness and increase the sale

7 Holiday Season Offer Ideas For E-commerce Businesses

Here are seven holiday season sale ideas that E-commerce businesses can leverage to maximize their sales:

Holiday Season Sale Idea #1: Offer Upfront Season Discount

One of the most popular holiday promotion ideas is offering seasonal discounts. For instance, you can offer a flat percentage discount on all products just before the festive season. The festive sales grab attention and create a sense of urgency, encouraging customers to buy and save. Here is an example of festival season’s sale by Chroma, where they offered up to 60% discounts on electronic items.

Offer seasons discount during holiday sale

Flipkart, one of the leading E-commerce companies in India routinely runs festive sales during the major festivals of Diwali and Holi. Their Big Billion Days sale launched in 2014 has been a massive success.

It was an unprecedented online event of epic proportions, something the Indian public had never experienced before. Irresistible discounts were up for grabs, capturing the attention of even non-tech-savvy individuals. It became the hottest topic in town, particularly among the employed youth of India. People eagerly added their favorite items to their carts, patiently awaiting the price drops to make their purchases on the highly anticipated day.

Ever since, Flipkart’s Big Billion Days is the most widely recognized E-commerce sale during the festive season.

Holiday Season Sale example from Flipkart

Holiday Season Sale Idea #2: Run A Holiday Special With Complementary Brands

Collaborate with complementary brands to create a unique holiday special. Collaborations with complementary brands can be a powerful way to boost your holiday sales. Partner with businesses that offer products that align with your brand and create a joint promotion.

For instance, a beauty brand could collaborate with a spa & wellness brand to offer a “Pamper Yourself” holiday bundle, including skincare products and a relaxing spa session. The cross-promotion not only expands your reach but also adds value to customers. This strategy will attract customers who are looking for curated gift ideas, instead of individual products.

You can even go a step ahead and create limited-edition product collaborations. This will leverage the customer base of both brands, creating a compound effect.

The best example to exist is Netflix’s collaboration with boAt. In their effort to win the youth of India, Netflix teamed up with boAT to launch limited edition noise canceling earbuds. Consumers buying the limited edition earbuds were offered exclusive Fan Event tickets by Netflix.

This example shows how E-commerce brands can identify unique opportunities in other segments and create a pull.

Holiday Season Sale Idea #3: Start A Holiday Referral Contest

Leverage the power of word-of-mouth marketing by running a holiday referral contest. Encourage your existing customers to refer their friends and family to your E-commerce store, offering incentives such as exclusive discounts or a chance to win a holiday gift hamper. This creates a sense of excitement and rewards loyal customers while attracting new ones. An Indian home decor brand could reward customers with a discount for every successful referral, inspiring them to spread holiday cheer.

Referral contests are a great way to attract new customers and increase customer loyalty. Furthermore, you can create a leaderboard to showcase the customers who have been referred the most.

An example of this sale idea is Uber’s month-long refer and win contest. They offered several incentives for referrals, including free rides and modern gift hampers.

Holiday Season Sale Idea #4: Promote Holiday Special Giveaway on Social Media

Social media platforms are great channels to promote your holiday special sale. For instance, you can create a holiday giveaway on Instagram or Facebook, and ask your followers to share, tag their friends, and follow your page to enter. This will boost engagement and attract new customers.

Conduct holiday-themed giveaways, where participants can enter by following, liking, and sharing your posts. For example, a tech gadget brand could give away a limited-edition product or a holiday bundle to lucky winners. This generates excitement, increases brand visibility, and encourages user-generated content.

Here’s how the Indian hair color brand Paradyes and sneaker marketplace Find Your Kicks collaborated for the summer holiday season and grabbed eyeballs and wallets.

Holiday Season Sale Idea #5: Create A Holiday Gifting Guide

Many shoppers struggle with finding the perfect gift during the holiday season. Help them out by curating a holiday gifting guide on your website or blog. Categorize your products into different themes and price ranges, making it easy for customers to find the ideal gift for their loved ones. For example, an Indian gourmet food brand could create a holiday gifting guide featuring themed gift boxes for every palate, taking the stress out of gift shopping.

This guide can showcase your best products and ideas, along with a curated selection of complementary products. This strategy helps customers to make informed buying decisions.

Beauty E-commerce marketplace Nykaa regularly uses this strategy to leverage different product combinations on its website. Here is an example.

Nykaa presented their guide as a blog post and linked product bundles from different listings to boost sales. They made it easier to find recommendations by linking products available on their portal.

Nykaa offered bundled product during festive sale

Holiday Season Sale Idea #6: Offer Holiday Pre-Booking

Create a sense of exclusivity and anticipation by offering pre-booking options for your holiday season products or services. This works exceptionally well for limited-edition items or experiences. For example, a sneakers company could offer early bird booking for a festive season design, complete with special perks and discounted rates. By allowing customers to secure their spot in advance, you can generate buzz and drive sales before the holiday rush.

Holiday pre-booking allows you to guarantee inventory conversion. Flipkart routinely uses this strategy and creates an enticing pre-booking scheme in their festive season sale.

Holiday Season Sale Idea #7: Introduce New Products During The Festive Season’s Sale

According to a recent survey, 36% of online MSME sellers plan to launch new products before the festive season. And that is for a very good reason.

Introducing new products during holiday sales is a smart way to get more attention from customers. People tend to be on the lookout for new and exciting products during the holiday season and offering such products can help push them to buy.

Indian fashion brands often release limited-edition festive clothing lines, showcasing the latest trends and designs. This strategy not only generates excitement among your audience but also gives them a reason to keep coming back for more. Remember to create a sense of urgency by highlighting the limited availability of these holiday-exclusive offerings.

Here is a creative example to show how you can leverage creativity and the internet in umpteen ways. Sugar Cosmetics, a beauty company used Valentine’s Day to launch their long-lasting lipstick product, instantly drawing appeal in their customer segment. Here is the founder, Vineeta Singh expressing about the campaign.

Holiday Season Sale promotion by Sugar Cosmetic

They created an even better twist by sending free samples to their most loyal customers.

How To Promote Holiday Season Offers?

Apart from using these holiday promotion ideas, it’s essential to promote your seasonal offers effectively. Holiday promotions in the world of D2C e-commerce are like those extra shots of espresso in your morning cup of coffee. These promotions have the power to generate excitement among consumers in an already festive environment, where people are looking to spend and celebrate.

But here’s the beauty of it all: holiday promotions are not just about boosting sales. They’re about building relationships and forging connections with customers. When people discover your brand during the holiday season and have an exceptional shopping experience, they’re more likely to become loyal followers, long after the tinsel and mistletoe have been packed away.

Here are some tips to help you promote your holiday season offers:

Update Your Website For The Holiday Season’s Sale

Your website is the home people enter for exploring. Especially during festivals, you should deck up your website to really feel like a holiday! Present holiday promotions and best offers for shoppers. Create a banner or pop-up to showcase your promotions on your homepage. Furthermore, promote your holiday sales with digital ads and guide the traffic to these landing pages. Create a festive atmosphere on your website by incorporating holiday-themed visuals, banners, and celebrative designs. Add countdown timers, highlight your exclusive promotions, and ensure a seamless user experience throughout the customer journey.

Use PPC Campaign To Increase Website Traffic

A Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaign is a great way to drive traffic to your website during holiday promotions. Start by creating ads that showcase your seasonal offers and targeting holiday-specific keywords. This will attract potential customers who are searching for holiday deals. It’s all about strategically showcasing your holiday promotions, utilizing holiday-specific keywords, and continuously optimizing your campaign based on performance data.

Must Read: Facebook Ads For E-commerce: 10 High Growth Strategies With Examples & Pro Tips

Amplify Your Holiday Sales On Google Business Profile

Your Google Business profile is another excellent tool to promote your holiday offers. Create a Google My Business profile and update it with your holiday promotions and offers. This will help potential customers find your business and learn about your holiday deals.

Plan An Email Marketing Campaign (+ Free Email Template )

Email marketing is a cost-effective way to promote holiday offers to your subscribers. Create a holiday-specific email campaign and send out regular emails highlighting your promotions and deals. Also, consider adding a festive touch to your email design to make your audience feel more festive. Here are some free email templates you can customize and use for your holiday campaign based on different use cases.

Holiday Season Sales Email Template

Template 1: Holiday Sales Pre Launch Email

Subject: Exclusive Holiday Season Offers Inside! Don’t Miss Out!

Hi [Customer’s Name],

The holiday season is here, and we have something special just for you! At [Your E-commerce Brand], we’re excited to bring you exclusive offers and festive deals that will make your holiday shopping even merrier. Get ready to unwrap incredible discounts, limited-time promotions, and delightful surprises.

[Insert engaging holiday-themed image or GIF]

Stay Tuned!

[E-commerce brand name with link to website]

Template 2: Perfect Holiday Gift Email

Subject: 🎁 The Perfect Gifts for Everyone on Your List 🎁

Howdy, [Name}

Finding the perfect gift can be a challenge, but we’ve got you covered! Explore our hand-picked selection of holiday treasures that are sure to bring joy to your loved ones. From trendy fashion accessories to cutting-edge tech gadgets, we have something for everyone. And with our special holiday discounts, you can spread the holiday cheer without breaking the bank!

You do not need to spend hours deciding, for we already have some swoon-worthy bundles for you.

[insert products here]

Template 3: Limited Edition Holiday Collection Email

Subject: 🎄 Limited-Edition Holiday Collection 🎄

Dear [Customer Name]

Holidays are limited, and so are the best offers!

Discover our exclusive holiday collection designed to add an extra sparkle to your celebrations. Whether you’re looking for elegant party wear or cozy winter essentials, our limited-edition items are carefully crafted to make you shine. But remember, they won’t be available for long, so hurry and secure your favorites before they’re gone!

[insert product links to limited-edition products]

Template 4: Daily Flash Sale Email

Subject: 🌟 Unwrap Daily Surprises 🌟Festive Season Bonanza

Hey [Customer Name],

If you aren’t ready yet, gear up! Long holidays deserve daily fun.

Get ready for a daily dose of holiday magic! Throughout the season, we’ll be revealing exciting surprises and flash deals that will leave you delighted. Make sure to follow us on social media and stay tuned to our newsletters to be the first to know about these enchanting offers. Trust us, you won’t want to miss out on these limited-time opportunities!

Template 5: Free Shipping During Holiday Sales Email

Subject: Festival-Exclusive ONLY 📦 Hassle-Free Shipping and Returns 📦

Hi [Customer Name]

We know that holidays are those occasions where everyone deserves to celebrate seamlessly and easily.

We want to make your holiday shopping experience as smooth as possible. Enjoy our hassle-free shipping service, ensuring that your gifts arrive on time. Plus, we offer easy returns, so you can shop with confidence, knowing that we’ve got you covered if anything doesn’t meet your expectations.

[Insert high-quality customer testimonial or review]

Template 6: Festive Season Promo Code Email

Subject: Holiday seasons promo code inside

🔔 Don’t Wait! Start Shopping Now! 🔔

The holiday season is fleeting, and so are these incredible offers. Visit our website today and browse through our festive wonderland. Remember to use the promo code [INSERT PROMO CODE] at checkout to unlock your exclusive discounts. But hurry, these offers won’t last forever!

[Insert attention-grabbing call-to-action button: “Shop Now”]

Spread the holiday joy and share this email with your friends and family, so they can join in the festivities too. After all, there’s no better gift than sharing the joy of amazing deals!

Wishing you a joyful and magical holiday season!

Warm regards,

[Your Name]

[Your E-commerce Brand]

P.S. Stay tuned for our upcoming surprise giveaways and holiday contests on our social media channels. You could be the lucky winner of an extra special treat!

Plan A Social Media Campaign For Your Holiday Season Offers

Social media platforms are an excellent way to promote your holiday offers and deals. Share your holiday promotions on your social media platforms and create a festive vibe by adding holiday-themed graphics or videos. Furthermore, use hashtags like #FestiveSale #HolidayOffers to promote your posts.

Here Is How To Plan Social Media Campaign For Holiday Sales:

Understanding your target audience is key to crafting compelling content. Dive deep into their preferences, interests, and holiday shopping behaviors. Tailor your messaging and visuals to resonate with their needs and aspirations.

Develop a content calendar that outlines your posting schedule, key messages, and visuals for each platform. Be consistent in sharing holiday promotions, and infuse a festive vibe into your posts through holiday-themed graphics, videos, and captions.

Remember, social media is all about building connections. Encourage engagement by responding promptly to comments, messages, and inquiries. Run contests, polls, or holiday-themed quizzes to spark interactions and boost brand loyalty.

Depending on your target audience, you can also create or repurpose memes and intelligently-crafted ad copy to generate interest. Millennials and Gen-Zs love relatable ‘puns’ and suitably reward brands who communicate in their language.

Leverage Remarketing Ads To Drive Holiday Sales

To boost sales, use remarketing tactics to reach out to customers who have visited your website but haven’t made a purchase yet. Design a remarketing ad campaign highlighting your holiday deals and promotions to attract potential customers. This personalized approach can drive sales and turn potential customers into loyal ones.

Partner With Influencers To Maximize Engagement

Collaborating with influencers can help amplify the reach of your holiday promotions. Find influencers who fit your brand and audience and get them to promote your holiday offers to their followers. Partner with bloggers, YouTubers, or social media influencers who resonate with your target audience and have a strong online presence. This way, you can reach an audience that you may not have with your regular promotions. Their recommendations and endorsements can significantly impact your sales.

Create A Sense Of Urgency In Your Campaign

Creating a sense of urgency can encourage customers to take action. For example, by adding a countdown timer on your product pages or during checkout is a smart way to draw attention and build urgency to purchase. You can also show low stock notifications, creating a fear of missing out, and motivating customers to buy now instead of later.

Conclusion

The holiday season presents a significant opportunity for E-commerce brands to boost sales and create lasting customer connections. By implementing these six holiday promotion ideas and effectively promoting them through various channels, you can make the most out of this festive period. Remember to stay true to your brand’s identity, offer value to your customers, and create memorable experiences that resonate with the holiday spirit. Happy holidays and successful sales!

Partner with us at ANS Commerce – a full-stack E-commerce growth partner that can help you boost sales and grow with strategic holiday season campaigns while creating lasting customer connections.

To know more, book a free consulting session with us today!

What Is A Flash Sale And How To Do Them Right?

The one thing that we all love about online shopping is flash sales.

Flash sales are a strategy used by brands to drive customers into buying the products RIGHT NOW before the offer expires. They are an important part of the E-commerce toolkit, which can be run by any online store. These sales encourage impulse buying, increase customer loyalty and drive sales. However, a poorly executed flash sale can hurt brand image, erode customers and cause a loss of sales.

In this blog, we will cover everything about flash sales, including free templates to make your job easier.

What Is A Flash Sale?

A flash sale is a promotional technique where E-commerce stores offer a steep discount on their products for a short period. It usually lasts no longer than 48 hours with deals like 50%-60% off the regular price.

A flash sale differs from regular sales in the following ways:

Higher discounts than every day
Short buying period
Limited product choices

The purpose of these sales is to tap into the customer’s impulse buying behavior by kicking off their FOMO (fear of missing out) through enticing deals. Brands can use their sales to increase their customer base, remove excess inventory or enhance short-term sales.

When Should You Run A Flash Sale Campaign?

All E-commerce experts will agree that there is no “best time” for running a flash sale. It depends on the type of products you are intending to sell and the customers’ buying patterns. Therefore, we recommend looking at your historical order data to determine the best time to run a flash sale.

We understand that running a flash sale can be daunting. Thus, here are some of the best times to flash them out.

Before The Holiday Season

During the holiday season, also known as “peak season”, E-commerce businesses bombard customers with sales and information, resulting in sales fatigue. Brands flood their inboxes with newsletters and promotional emails, which can cause customers to ignore them.

However, if you run the flash sale before the holiday season (around October), you will be presented with an opportunity to get ahead of your competitors and attract new customers. Coordinate the sale with carefully planned digital ads to double your success throughout the season.

After The Holiday Season

As E-commerce stores see a peak in sales during holidays, they also see a spike in returns after the holiday season. Customers start to return the unwanted gifts that were bought.

However, this shouldn’t discourage you. You can offset the influx of returns by running a flash sale after the holiday season. It will also help you compensate for the loss due to returns and retain customer loyalty.

Once In A While

Constantly running a flash sale can hamper your brand image. Timing is essential with these promotions and, therefore, you should run them every few months.

Tip: You can tie your flash sales with holidays like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day or Valentine’s Day, as online shoppers are often seeking deals.

Is A Flash Sale Right For Your Business?

Are you wondering if a flash sale is the right path for your business? Here are some advantages and disadvantages to help you make a decision.

The Pros Of A Flash Sale

A successful flash sale has the following benefits:

Increase brand visibility: Flash sale triggers an urgency within the customers, which converts casual visitors into buyers. These customers also share your brand and sales information with their family and friends, leading to word-of-mouth promotion and boosting brand awareness.

Improve revenue: A flash sale is a fast way to increase revenue and profits. These sales create urgency among the customers, motivating them to buy products and spend more than usual.

Sell excess inventory: Flash sales can help you sell out-of-season products or items that are not in demand anymore at a lower price. It will help you gain revenue out of these products, while making room in your inventory for new, in-demand items.

Attract new and loyal customers: Flash sales are a great way to attract new customers to your website. They serve as a low-stakes method for them to try on your products. If they are happy with it, they are more likely to return to your store to shop again.

The Cons Of A Flash Sale

An unsuccessful flash sale can cause the following issues:

Lower profits: A flash sale discount usually offers customers 50%-60% off the original price. Thus, this can lead to reduced profits, especially if you already have thin margins.

Damage the reputation: Some companies are not able to effectively manage flash sales and run a risk of hurting their reputation. The mishandled campaigns can cause problems like slower website loading, shipping failure, poor customer service, or inventory mismanagement. Make sure your website is ready to handle the influx of customers; choosing the right E-commerce platform like Kartify is the key here. With Kartify, you can easily manage 1 Million concurrent users.

Attract wrong customers: A flash sale is often an appeal to one-time buyers, who will purchase from your website once during the sale and then disappear. You need to build customer loyalty strategies to ensure that they keep returning to purchase from your website.

How To Run A Successful Flash Sale

How can you make sure that flash sales have a positive and long-term impact on your business? Here are 8 tips that can help you.

Decide On The Goal Of Your Sale

The key to a successful flash sale is knowing your purpose for it. Are you looking to clear out inventory? Or are you looking to gain more revenue?

Here are some goals that can be achieved through flash sales:

Clearing out old inventory
Attracting new customers
Increasing customer loyalty
Winning back inactive customers

Your goals can certainly overlap. But prioritising them during the flash sale will help with product selection, customer targeting, timing and marketing strategy.

Choose The Right Flash Sale Products

Once the goal has been discussed and decided on, you need to decide on the product(s) that will be included in the sale. The products will vary depending on the customers you wish to target.

If your goal is to attract new customers, look at the products that are popular with your competitors and offer them at a temporary discount.

However, if you want to boost brand awareness of your signature product, consider flash-selling only that particular item. In an ideal scenario, customers will likely come back again to repurchase the same product at the original price.

Lastly, if you are looking to increase loyalty among existing customers, look for products that have low conversions despite high page views. This means that customers are liking the product but not buying probably due to the high price. The flash sale will help you get rid of excess inventory of these products.

Prepare Your Shipping Strategy In Advance

Do you know what customers love more than a flash sale? Free shipping! It is a great incentive bonus for customers to ensure that they place their orders. Some customers prefer overnight shipping, while others expect their orders to arrive between 1-3 days.

Irrespective of your shipping strategy, it is vital to keep your customers’ expectations realistic for shipping, as the difference between a successful and unsuccessful flash sale largely depends on the shipping.

Thus, spend extra time ensuring you:

Communicate up-front and in advance the shipping time
Hire extra help to get your orders out of your warehouse
Pre-pack the orders to reduce turn-around time

Must read: How to create shipping policy? (+ready to use shipping policy template)

Time Your Flash Sale (Shorter Is Better)

Time is an important part of flash sales, as you can’t have a long exposure sale. Therefore, the shorter the flash sale, the greater the urgency to act and purchase quickly. Ideally, it should run between two to 24 hours.

When should you run your flash sale? Look at your analytics and patterns to answer the following questions:

What day of the week do people purchase on your website?
What time of the day do people purchase your products?
When are your highest email opening rates?

Promote Your Sale Ahead Of Time

A carefully planned flash sale can increase the chances of its success. Promoting your sale early will keep people on the lookout and interested in it. It will also help with increased traction.

Use or grow your existing SMS and email list and create a countdown message that leads up to the sale. Alternatively, you can also publish posts and stories on your social media account to motivate people to share them with their friends and family.

Use Urgency To Build Hype For Your Flash Sale

How do you spread the message about your flash sales and ensure customers buy your products? Use the urgency tactic to build hype around your flash sale.

You need to change the customer sentiment from “I can buy it later” to “I can’t buy it later”. Here are some ways to do that:

Use social media to engage with your customers regarding the flash sale.
Remind your customers regarding the sale with statements like “Only 15 minutes left before the sale is over.”
Nothing builds urgency than seeing a clock. Use it on your social media pages and flash sale landing pages.

Keep A Close Eye On The Inventory

In a successful flash sale, inventory items sell out faster than anticipated. Imagine how excited your customer will be seeing the sale, only to find out that the product has been sold out. They will be disappointed and lead to a bad customer experience. This problem can increase two-fold if you are intending to attract new customers to your website. Use order management systems like Unicommerce and Zoho Inventory.

Must Read: 20 Best Ecommerce Tools & Apps To Manage Online Store

Prepare For Shipping & Delivery

After a customer hits checkout, this is the start of the customer service experience. Prepare your shipping and delivery strategy in advance to ensure a seamless process. Notify your logistics and fulfilment partner about the sale in advance and the expected influx of orders, thus guaranteeing that every person is ready when the time arrives.

Flash Sale Examples

Gadgets Now

Credit: Gadgets Now Website

Gadgets now runs a flash sale every day on one product, which is displayed on their website.

What we love: Gadgets Now uses a timer, which builds up an urgency for the customers to buy the product before the clock runs out.

Nykaa Beauty

Credit: Nykaa Beauty IGPage

Nykaa uploaded a reel to promote their buy one get one free sale, which they were running for only 3 hours on their website. Due to the short duration, Nykaa opted to use social media marketing to gain traction and was successful with their 1,100+ likes.

What we love: The reel showed all the different products that are available on sale. Additionally, the short and catchy caption instantly brings our attention to the sale.

Aachho

Credit: Aachho Facebook Ads

Aachho used Facebook Ads to promote their flash sale, informing customers that the sale has been extended for more time.

What we love: The ad clearly states the products available on sale, including the price of the product, and a sale end date.

How To Write Flash Sale Email + Free Template To Use

We recommend sending out three flash sale emails in each of the three different phases to ensure maximum reach.

Notice Phase

This is the stage where your first email informing about the sale is sent out to the target customers. It includes details like the date, duration, the product(s) on sale, and the discount that will be offered. Ideally, it should be sent two days before the sale starts.

Launch Phase

In this stage, an email notifying the customer that the sale has kicked off. The message is short and enticing enough to get the customers to participate in the sale. It includes promotions, product(s) on sale, and duration.

Last Call Phase

This flash sale email is aimed at creating a sense of urgency among the customers and kicking off their impulse buying behavior. The email informs them that the sale is ending in a few hours and, thus, is sent 4 to 6 hours before the close of the sale. The email should contain promotions, the sale closing date/time and the products on sale, and a link to purchase.

Here are some free templates for you to use in your flash sales.

Flash Sales Email Template #1: Notice Phase

Subject: Flash Sale Alert | 50% off selected items

Headline: Free shipping on orders above [insert amount]

Body:

FLASH SALE

50% OFF*

Snag your favorite [insert item names like clothes].

The sale kicks off at [insert time and date] for only a day.

[Any other information like an exchange, returns, code, etc.]

[Button that says “Shop Sale”]

*On selected items only

Flash Sales Email Template #2: Launch Phase

Subject: WE ARE LIVE | FLASH SALE

Headline: Free shipping on orders above [insert amount]

Body:

WE ARE LIVE!

FLASH SALE

50% OFF*

[Picture of product]

Get your hands on your favorite items before they run out.

Sale ends in [insert last date/hour of sale]

[Button that says “Shop Sale NOW”]

[Any other information like an exchange, returns, code, etc.]

*On selected items only

Flash Sales Email Template #3: Last Call Phase

Subject: Clock is Ticking | Extra 10% off

Headline: Free shipping on orders above [insert amount]

Body:

Extra 10% OF*

Flash Sale

[Picture of product]

With only 4 hours to go, let’s make things interesting.

Offering 10% off on top of 50% off.

[Any other information like an exchange, returns, code, etc.]

[Button that says “Shop Sale NOW”]

*On selected items only

Best Practices Of Flash Sales

1. Use Popups to Attract More Customers

Social media and email marketing are excellent and proven ways to increase visibility about flash sales. However, it is also essential to convert your existing E-commerce website traffic into flash deal customers.

Use promotional pop-ups on your website to announce your flash sale campaign, which will direct your existing customers to your sales page. It will create visibility and drive better sales. We recommend using a countdown timer to build urgency or words like “limited-time, hurry, limited stocks, etc.

2. Segment Potential Buyers

There are a wide range of customers you can target with online sales. However, in flash sales, you should segment and target your potential customers in the below two categories:

Targeting your loyal customers with a flash sale

Offer exclusive flash sales to your loyal customers only, to appreciate their association with your brand.
Broadcast emails do not work well for flash sales targeted toward loyal customers. Use different communication styles and personalise them for the customers.
Identify your inactive customers and run flash sale campaigns to make them purchase your product(s).
You can also convert your customers who abandon their carts with flash sale emails to ensure they click the checkout button.

Targeting new customers with a flash sale

Display Inventory countdown on products that are under sale. Showcasing the number of products left nudges the customers’ buying impulse and influences their decision to have the product right away.
Run Google and Meta Ads for your flash sales. Use the exact keywords related to your flash sale products to trigger limited-time ads for selected customers.

3. Highlight The Difference From Regular Sales

Why should your customers buy a product(s) from you now rather than at a future sale? It is important to highlight the difference between a flash sale and a regular sale. You can use bigger discounts or limited stocks as a pulling out to establish urgency among your target customers.

How Your E-commerce Platform Plays A Key Role In Flash Sales

The most dreaded and, unfortunately, common flash sale failure is when your E-commerce website crashes. It will bring your sale to a complete halt when customers cannot visit your site to purchase or view your products. This problem is not limited to only small-scale businesses, as it can happen to large brands too.

What is the solution? First, generate a forecast on the traffic expected using the behavior response to the marketing campaigns. Once these expectations are set, you can take the necessary steps to meet the increased demand and prevent crashes.

Some of the steps you can take are:

Load testing your website
Evaluating Extra server capacity
Adding an ability to scale up on demand

In some cases, you might also consider switching your E-commerce platform. We recommend Kartify, a highly-scalable and conversion-optimised E-commerce platform that caters to businesses of all sizes.

Essentials such as website building, product listing, sales and inventory tracking, payment processing, marketing & analytics are built into the Kartify platform. It means you don’t have to juggle multiple platforms to manage your store and can handle it all with one centralised hub.

Want to know more about Kartify, contact our E-commerce experts today!

Conclusion: Turn Your Flash Sale Strategy Into A Revenue Engine

A flash sale can turn into a huge success with increased customers, brand awareness, and revenue. Or it can turn unsuccessful, causing customer disappointment and a decrease in profits. But you can make it successful with strategic pre-planning, preparations, marketing, and flawless execution.

Want to run a successful flash sale? We can help. A Flipkart group company, ANS Commerce is a full-stack E-commerce growth partner that can help you plan and run your flash sales, from marketing campaigns and inventory to customer service.
To know more, book a free consulting session with us today!

Omnichannel vs. Multichannel: What is the difference?

In today’s Competitive E-commerce market, consumers have high expectations for their shopping experience. They expect it to be fully personalized, quick, responsive, and location-agnostic. And businesses that offer such a seamless customer experience end up being successful.

Now in a discussion about shopping experiences, it’s hard not to mention the terms “omnichannel” and “multichannel.” After all, they are two powerful retail strategies that revolve around offering a consistent shopping experience across various channels. Even though these two terms are often used interchangeably by most people, they operate on different principles and serve divergent purposes.

In this post, we will explore the differences between Omnichannel and Multichannel strategies including their benefits, working, and popular examples.

What is Multichannel Retail?

It is a retail business model where you sell products through more than one channel. The channels could be digital like a website, marketplaces, or physical like a brick-and-mortar store.

However, these channels are not integrated with each other. In other words, even though every individual channel supports the main business, data synchronization across channels is minimal or nonexistent. This also means your customers need to visit that specific channel to assimilate key information like availability and price.

How Does Multichannel Retail Work?

For the sake of simplicity and to better understand this concept, let us consider a hypothetical situation where you plan to sell on your own website and through a marketplace. These are the main steps involved in setting up a multichannel retail strategy for these two channels –

Step 1: Create and upload the product data on your own website

First and foremost, create your products on the E-commerce platform which is managing your website. Enrich it by adding multiple images, detailed product descriptions, prices, stock availability, and variations if any. Let us consider this as your primary database and the main source of truth for your inventory.

Step 2: Format the product data and push it to the marketplace

The data format supported by the E-commerce platform might not be supported by the marketplace. This means you cannot export the data from your primary repository to the marketplace easily or there cannot be a two-way synchronization between the two platforms. So you need to import the raw product data from your primary database, optimize it to suit the marketplace’s data format, and then finally export it to the marketplace’s database.

Step 3: Manage incoming orders on the marketplace

Your primary database will be automatically updated in case a user places an order directly from your website. However, if the user places the order on the marketplace, you must first receive the order, match it to the correct product on your primary database (whose stock gets updated), ship the product, and share the tracking information back to the marketplace. Put simply, there is no seamless integration between the two platforms. As you start selling in more and more channels, you will find fulfilling orders extremely time-consuming and costly due to non-synchronized data.

What are the Benefits of Multichannel Retail?

Despite the lack of integration between different channels, there are certain advantages offered by a multichannel retail strategy over a single-channel strategy. They are –

1) Better sales and revenue

By adopting a multichannel retail strategy, you not only reach a wider customer base but also be able to target different customer segments and demographics.

For instance, using an E-commerce website or app, you can attract Gen Z and tech-savvy customers who enjoy the convenience of online shopping. On the other hand, by having a physical store, you can attract the older generation who prefer the tactile experience of shopping in-store and seeking personalized assistance.

As you can see, you are essentially tapping into new markets and attracting different sets of customers who prefer specific channels. This broader reach automatically translates to more sales opportunities and revenue for your business.

2) Enhanced brand visibility

When you have a presence across multiple channels, you automatically increase the visibility of your brand. Potential customers are more likely to recognize and remember your brand when they encounter it in different touchpoints, such as physical stores, marketplaces, and E-commerce websites.

This recognition, in turn, will instill a sense of familiarity among these prospects, making them more comfortable and reassured while considering a purchase from your brand.

Also, having a presence in multiple channels gives you an opportunity to reinforce your brand messaging and USP on different platforms.

3) Improved data collection

Multi-channel retail offers more opportunities to gather information about your customers. You not only have the possibility to collect more information but also the ability to use them more effectively.

For instance, imagine you are selling in-store only. A shopper who visits your store might not be too keen to provide a lot of information about them. And also, there is only so much information that a sales rep can collect from a customer.

However, if you have an online store as well, you will be able to easily collect key information about the customer such as their mobile number, email address, preferred products, etc. You can use this information to share personalized discounts and offers that they can redeem in either of the two channels.

What is Omnichannel Retail?

Omnichannel retail is a retail model where you sell across multiple channels that are closely integrated. There is seamless data synchronization between different channels, ensuring that the customer has the same information irrespective of the touchpoint they use to access your store. More importantly, a successful omnichannel retail ensures that your customers’ interactions across different channels feel like it’s part of one seamless channel.

How Does Omnichannel Retail Work?

The whole concept of omnichannel retail revolves around data communication between different channels. On that basic note, let us understand the different steps involved in omnichannel retail:

Step 1: Select the right channels to include in your omnichannel model

Start by identifying the ideal channels through which your customers can purchase from you. Stepping into your customers’ shoes will help you identify the most convenient touchpoints for them to interact with your brand.

Find out the pitfalls and potential cracks in each of those channels. More importantly, ensure that the goals of each of those touchpoints align with your overall business goals. And yes, you can always branch off into new channels as you grow your customer base.

Typical channels include – physical stores, E-commerce websites, mobile apps, marketplaces, and social media marketing channels like Facebook and Instagram.

Step 2: Create an omnichannel strategy

Develop a comprehensive plan that encompasses all touchpoints and outlines how you will engage with customers at each touchpoint and at what stage of their journey. The goal of this step is to align your sales, marketing, and customer service efforts across channels to create a unified and consistent brand experience for customers. Your strategy could focus on synchronized promotions, personalized customer support, and so on.

Step 3: Plan your inventory

The next step is to have a clear understanding of your inventory. Centralize your inventory data and ensure it is synchronized across all your identified selling channels. The goal of this step is to provide accurate product information to customers irrespective of how they reach you. Information could include product availability, pricing, and delivery options. Include your sales, operations, and logistics teams while planning your inventory so that every team’s concerns related to inventory management are addressed.

Step 4: Connect the channels for seamless data flow

Once you have selected the channels and created an omnichannel strategy, the next step is to integrate them to allow high-quality data to flow across them in real-time. The key here is “real-time”. The integration has to be achieved in such a way that when a customer interacts on one channel, their actions and preferences should be reflected immediately across all other channels.

This will enable you to offer personalized recommendations, consistent pricing, accurate inventory visibility, and a unified shopping cart across channels. You will need the right tech stack and APIs connecting different systems to achieve a successful integration between channels.

Step 5: Collect data

Collecting data in your omnichannel retail model enables you to identify where customers are in their customer journey in a particular channel, how engaged they are, and what you can do to further nurture the relationship. Implement robust analytics tools and systems to capture, organize, and analyze this data effectively. The insights gained from data analysis will help you refine your omnichannel strategy and drive business growth.

What are the benefits of Omnichannel Retail?

Since omnichannel retail also revolves around multiple channels, it offers all the benefits offered by multi-channel retail. Apart from that, here are some additional advantages offered by it –

1) Fully optimized operations

Omnichannel retail optimizes your operations, resulting in increased efficiency and productivity. For instance, by integrating different channels, you get a holistic view of inventory and orders, enabling you to accurately track product availability, avoid stockouts, and fulfill customer orders more efficiently.

Additionally, you can implement techniques like ship-from-store and click-and-collect by utilizing your brick-and-mortar stores as fulfillment centers. This will improve order fulfillment speed and reduce shipping costs.

2) More convenience

In omnichannel retail, customers can easily switch between channels, view their shopping history, and have access to their saved preferences and payment information on any channel, making the overall process more convenient.

Also, omnichannel retail enables you to provide personalized recommendations to customers based on their preferences across different channels. This again enhances convenience by presenting customers with relevant products, offers, and discounts, saving them time and effort in finding items that align with their interests and preferences.

3) Competitive advantage

Despite the advantages offered by the omnichannel strategy, not many businesses in India have embraced it. This means, if you embrace omnichannel retail, you will have a huge competitive advantage over others.

After all, in this competitive retail landscape, it takes more than a good discount to convince customers to choose you over your competitors. By adopting omnichannel retail, you are effectively showcasing your brand’s commitment to meeting customer expectations and keeping your operations customer-centric.

4) Inventory Optimization

In omnichannel retail, you need not maintain separate inventory for each channel; you have a centralized inventory pool that you can access from any medium. It enables you to allocate inventory more dynamically based on demand and channel performance.

For instance, if the online channel consistently generates higher conversion rates compared to physical stores, you can allocate more inventory to the online store. Such dynamic allocation helps reduce excess inventory storage and improve overall inventory turnover.

Omnichannel vs Multichannel: What is the difference?

The difference between Omnichannel and Multichannel

From the information conveyed so far in this blog, you would have deduced that omnichannel strategy is an extension of a multichannel strategy as both use multiple channels to reach customers. However, the similarities end there. There are certain key differences between the two when it comes to purpose, execution, and user experience. Here are they –

Focus

In the case of multichannel retail, the focus is always on the product. The goal is to ensure that your product is available everywhere so that it follows your customers. On the other hand, the focus of omnichannel commerce is the customer. Its primary goal is to grab the attention of the customer using a variety of channels so that they will ultimately purchase from you.

Execution

In omnichannel retail, the operations of different channels work in tandem. This means you will get a single view of the customers and products across all the channels. However, in multichannel retail, the operations of different channels are disconnected. As a result, you will get multiple views of customers and products.

Experience

The experience that customers face in multichannel retail is often disjointed and fragmented. There is a lack of consistency in branding, pricing, and even customer service. However, in omnichannel retail, customers get a seamless and integrated experience where they encounter consistent branding, messaging, and personalized interactions, resulting in a great customer experience.

Multichannel and omnichannel examples

Here are some popular brands that have embraced multichannel and omnichannel retail strategies –

Lenskart

Type: Omnichannel retail

Channels present: Website, mobile app, physical store, social media, and marketplaces like Amazon and Flipkart.

Lenskart is an Indian optical retail business with thousands of physical stores established across India. They also sell via a dedicated website, mobile app, and on marketplaces like Flipkart and Amazon. Lenskart is one of the few brands in India where customers can seamlessly transition between different channels and complete their purchase in their preferred one. For example, the customer can visit a store to try a product, place the order on their mobile app, and get the product delivered either at the store or at their doorsteps.

Bluestone

Type: Omnichannel retail

Channels present: Website, app, social media platforms, and physical store.

This jewelry brand has successfully adopted omnichannel retail by integrating its website, physical store, and mobile app. For instance, you can start your jewelry exploration online, browse the collections, and even customize your designs. Once you have made your selections, you have the option to visit the nearest physical store to view the chosen designs in person, get assistance, and finalize your purchases. The inventory is synchronized between the online and offline channels to ensure availability and consistency.

Fabindia

Type: Multichannel retail

Channels present: Website, app, social media platforms, and physical store.

Fabindia is another popular Indian brand that has become synonymous with ethnic wear and traditional handicrafts. They have a presence across multiple channels like a physical store, an E-commerce site, and a mobile app. Customers can place orders on any of these platforms but there is no direct integration between them. Nevertheless, their presence in multiple channels has increased their brand visibility and improved accessibility to their products.

D-Mart

Type: Multichannel retail

Channels present: Website, app, social media platforms, and physical store.

D-Mart, one of India’s largest supermarket chains, has effectively built a multichannel retail presence by combining its physical store network with online initiatives. With a strong focus on customer convenience, D-Mart has opened numerous physical stores across cities. Customers can visit these stores to access a wide range of products. In addition to physical stores, D-Mart has ventured into the online space by launching an online website and a mobile app where customers can conveniently browse products, place orders, and opt for home delivery

Omnichannel vs Multichannel: How to choose?

Both omnichannel and multichannel retail have their own positives and negatives. And the above examples are proof that retailers have achieved success irrespective of which model they chose. However, there are certain types of businesses that will face better success by picking one of these models. Let’s understand more about it.

When should you choose multichannel?

If you are someone who would like to reach more customers quickly, multichannel retail is a great choice. All you have to do is list your products in as many channels as possible, advertise them, and start reaping the benefits in the form of increased sales and revenue.

It is also a great choice for those who want results without spending too much money and time building an elaborate omnichannel retail model. However, you might still need the right tech stack to establish and manage your multi-channel operations.

In short, you must pick multichannel retail if you have limited resources or your business is in the early stages of establishing a presence.

When should you choose omnichannel?

Since omnichannel retail has multichannel retail as its foundation, you must first have a streamlined and optimized approach toward your multichannel operations. Only then will you be able to successfully implement an omnichannel strategy.

Also, developing omnichannel retail is not easy, both in terms of investment and effort. You must pick this model only if your business has sufficient in-house resources and the right tech solutions to manage it.

In summary, you must pick omnichannel retail if you are an established business with adequate resources and already have a strong multi-channel presence.

Multichannel vs omnichannel retail: Wrap-up

While multichannel marketing is still important in expanding your brand’s reach, the benefits offered by an integrated and coordinated omnichannel strategy are profound. However, successfully implementing and managing them across multiple channels takes work and will demand a lot of time from you.
Alternatively, you can partner with ANS Commerce which is India’s leading E-commerce service provider offering end-to-end solutions to scale your business. ANS Commerce can successfully set up both multichannel and omnichannel retail for your brand so that you can stay competitive in the industry. To know more, book a demo now.

Best E-commerce Tools To Improve Sales And Profitability

So you’ve just set up an amazing E-commerce store. You’ve created a stunning website, your inventory is all set, and you are ready for sales to roll in. However, so far, your results have been quite underwhelming.

We’re not surprised.

Getting an E-commerce store up and running is only half the battle won. You need to efficiently manage it to improve sales and profitability. And that’s where E-commerce Tools come in.

It doesn’t matter whether you’ve set up a small online store selling a single product or a massive E-commerce marketplace selling almost everything under the roof, you need the help of these tools to drive growth and revenue.

In this article, we will go through some of the top E-commerce tools and plug-ins that you can adopt to improve your sales and profitability.

What Are E-commerce Tools, And Why Are They Important?

E-commerce Tools are softwares like apps, plug-ins and platforms that you can use to manage and automate your online store operations. These tools can handle anything from inventory management to customer relationships, enabling you and your team to focus on more strategic and mission-critical tasks. By improving the overall efficiency of your store and keeping operational costs down, these tools considerably improve your margins.

An E-commerce tool is used by businesses because it –

Streamlines store operations
Automates lead generation and customer acquisition activities
Optimizes ad campaigns
Manages inventory without errors
Enhances customer experience

With that basic introduction, let us go through some of the best tools you can use to manage different aspects of your online store.

Tools For Streamlining Online Store Operations

Here’s the harsh reality – If you do not streamline your store operations, you may never be able to scale your business. You will not be able to handle increasing order volumes, manage a growing product catalog, or expand into new markets. Most importantly, non-streamlined operations can result in inconsistencies and delays in various aspects of your business, all of which can impact the customer experience.

And this is why you need a dedicated tool for streamlining your online store operations. It forms the backbone of your digital processes and profoundly impacts your sales and profitability.

Kartify: E-commerce Hosting Platform

Kartify is an end-to-end E-commerce platform that offers everything you need to run your online store. Essentials such as website building, product listing, sales and inventory tracking, payment processing, marketing & analytics are built into the Kartify platform. It means you don’t have to juggle multiple platforms to manage your store and can handle it all with one centralized hub. With its ability to handle over 1 Million concurrent users, Kartify is highly scalable, making it a great choice for large E-commerce brands launching and expanding in India.

Some of the key features of Kartify include:

Plug & Play Integrations: Kartify can be integrated with 80+ third-party tools such as Payment Gateways, Marketing Automation tools, SMS & Email providers, and Order Management Systems, making it easier to manage all aspects of your E-commerce business.

Built-in Performance Marketing: Kartify comes loaded with multiple marketing tools and automation. The platform also offers an intuitive analytics and reports feature that gives you a 360-degree view of your sales and traffic.

Design beautiful storefronts: With Kartify, you can build a responsive E-commerce website in minutes thanks to easily customizable templates. Modify the templates to your liking and add branding elements with great ease. From user flows and layouts to menu and filter options, you have complete control over the look and feel of your store.

Promotions and Offers: Conveniently manage your promotions, offers, and discount strategies within the platform. Instantly create multiple offers such as B1G1 offers, category discounts, and order discounts and share them with customers

Hassle Free Returns: Simplify your returns management with Kartify thanks to the in-built workflows and approval management system. Manage pickup updates and refunds with the help of integrations with other platforms.

Omnifriendly: It’s an omni-enabled platform, meaning you can seamlessly sell across multiple channels without having to invest in multiple platforms.

The Kartify E-commerce platform is highly secure, adhering to ISO/IEC 27001:2013 security standards. It is carefully designed to the taste of the Indian audience and offers many India-specific features like login with OTP, automatic pincode & city detection, GST Invoicing, and more.

Wondering how to choose the right E-commerce platform for your business? We have created a comprehensive checklist for you. Download the checklist here.

Inventory management Platforms

Inventory management is crucial for E-commerce businesses. It typically comprises tracking inventory levels, ensuring adequate stock counts, managing fulfillment, and coordinating with suppliers. If not done right, it can present several hassles for your business. For instance, the risk of stockouts or overstocking is quite common in inventory management.

To counter those issues, you need a robust inventory management platform that can perform accurate demand forecasting and offer real-time visibility into your stock levels. These platforms also ensure that your inventory is synchronized across different channels.

Here are two popular inventory management platforms for E-commerce businesses:

Unicommerce

Unicommerce is a cloud-based inventory management software that offers real-time visibility into your stock levels. Besides inventory management, it optimizes and automates your order fulfillment processes and warehouse management activities. Some of the key features offered by this tool includes SKU-level product bundling, order routing, and easy stock routing.

Zoho Inventory

This home-grown inventory management software from the tech giant Zoho offers a rich feature set to take care of your every inventory need. Right from handling your GST billing to overseeing your warehouses, it is the only tool you need to efficiently manage your inventory operations. Some of the noteworthy features of this platform includes:

Accurate stock tracking with barcode scanning and RFID system
Instantly convert your sales order into invoices
Generate real-time carrier rate and shipping labels
Synchronize sales and inventory across multiple warehouses
Receive low stock alert with reorder point

Must Read: 11 Smart Ways To Reduce Shipping Cost

Payment Services

These E-commerce applications play an important role in simplifying and streamlining the payment process for your online store. They are the digital payment software that helps you accept online payments from your customers. Since customers have different payment preferences, using a payment service provider allows you to offer a variety of payment options to your customers. Here are a few payment services widely used in India.

PayTM

PayTM is arguably one of the biggest names in the Indian financial space. It is also an able partner for E-commerce businesses looking for a convenient and secure payment solution. By integrating with PayTM, your customers can pay you through various methods like credit cards, debit cards, net banking, and their proprietary wallet. Paytm’s extensive user base and brand recognition contribute to increased customer trust and higher conversion rates for your store.

Razorpay

Razorpay payment gateway is built specifically for E-commerce businesses. It facilitates online payments for both online and offline businesses. With Razorpay, you can receive payments through credit cards, debit cards, net banking, wallets, and UPI payments, all through the E-Commerce plug-in. The best part is the application allows customers to make payments directly on your website without being redirected elsewhere.

E-commerce Applications For Faster Checkout

Lengthy and complicated checkout processes can lead to cart abandonment. Customers may get frustrated or lose interest if they encounter multiple form fields, mandatory account creation, or a complex payment process. By optimizing the checkout flow for speed and simplicity, you can reduce cart abandonment rates and increase conversion rates. Here are the E-commerce apps and plug-ins you can use for faster checkout.

Nimbbl

Nimbbl brings together all the popular payment gateways under one unified dashboard so that you can manage your payment operations more efficiently. The tool supports popular payment options such as Buy Now Pay Later and UPI through a single API. Nimbbl is also known for its one-click checkout option that drastically reduces checkout abandonment.

Juspay

Juspay is a fully customizable end-to-end solution that takes care of all the payment needs of your E-commerce store. It connects you with over 100 payment aggregators /payment gateways to process your online payments. With Juspay, you can also create Express Checkout functionality for your store. It uses an intelligent routing system that efficiently routes transactions based on success rates, the health of the payment gateway, and business logic.

Gokwik

Gokwik is a platform for solving problems related to shopping experiences with a slant toward reducing the RTO rate for your E-commerce business. It also improves your order delivery rates with the help of smart features like automated address correction, intelligent order confirmation, and communication optimizer. Gokwik also provides a 360° dashboard view with real-time order data for you to make quick decisions regarding order processing.

Order Management Platforms

Order management, shipping, and RTO platform together form the backbone of your E-commerce operations. While order management tools take care of your entire order lifecycle, the shipping tools automate different shipping processes by integrating with shipping carriers. RTO (Return to Origin) platforms handle reverse logistics and returns.

These platforms are necessary for the proper functioning of an E-commerce store today. They ensure that the products reach the customers on time while ensuring great customer experience and complete transparency in all the operations involved after a customer places an order. Gokwik and Clickpost are the two most popular platforms that fall under this category.

Must Read: What is Return-to-Origin and How Can You Reduce It?

Clickpost

It is a logistics platform that specializes in providing end-to-end shipping solutions for E-commerce businesses. Some of the key services offered by Clickpost include multi-carrier shipping, returns management, and COD reconciliation. The platform is integrated with over 350+ shipping carriers so that you do not have to worry about the logistics and last-mile delivery of your orders.

EasyEcom

EasyEcom is an AI-powered Order Management System that lets you manage and track your inventory in real time. As the platform integrates with popular E-commerce hosting providers, marketplaces, and ERPs, it is the preferred choice for growing brands. Apart from order management, EasyEcom App also allows payment, shipments and invoices in multiple currencies and locations.

E-commerce Applications To Boost Customer Acquisition and Retention

Customer acquisition and retention are two important goals of any E-commerce business. However, the task of generating leads, converting them into customers, keeping them engaged, and nurturing long-term relationships is not easy.

With intense competition in the E-commerce space, customers are always on the lookout for alternatives and will jump at the first chance to switch to your competitors. That’s why you need E-commerce Tools that specializes in customer acquisition and retention activities.

Kartapult For Performance Marketing

Unlike traditional marketing, performance marketing focuses on measurable outcomes and tangible results. You need to measure the impact of your paid ad campaigns and clearly understand which campaign to scale at what cost. Constant experimentation and thorough analysis are essential to identify the strategies that work for you. At the same time, performance marketing can be costly, and that’s why using an E-commerce tool like Kartapult is essential.

Kartapult is a leading performance marketing platform that maximizes your revenue and improves your ROAS by optimizing your online advertising efforts. It integrates all the advertising channels such as Facebook ads, Instagram Ads and Google ads into one platform so that you have a unified view of your marketing activities. It also ensures that the entire Ad Management process is automated, be it targeting audiences or optimizing budgets.

With Kartapult you can

Automatically adjust your advertising budgets based on ad performance
Create high performance audience list with industry and funnel specific audience cohort
Create and launch all types of ads in bulk using Ads Manager
Use ROAS Analysis to make precision optimization to your ad campaigns
Get insights into your overall bid performance both at funnel and channel level
Adjust strategies in real-time to maximize ROI by tracking daily averages
Make informed decision with data insights and intelligent recommendations
Generate comprehensive reports that capture marketing performance across channels
Get a unified dashboard for managing and analyzing ad performance across channels

Buffer For Social Media Marketing

Having a consistent social media presence is important to increase your online store’s visibility. Buffer can simplify this process for you with its easy-to-use social media management platform. You can schedule social media content in advance for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, making it an ideal E-commerce tool.

Besides helping you automate your social media publishing, Buffer also helps you keep a close eye on impressions and engagement data of your social media posts.

Must Read: Best E-commerce Marketing Strategies (+ With Examples)

Email Marketing Platforms

Email marketing enables E-commerce brands to directly communicate with their customers in a personalized way. Email Marketing platforms let you deliver targeted messages that can engage your audience and convert them to customers. From drip campaigns to new product launch emails or abandoned cart reminders you can build, send and track your marketing emails using these tools. Two of the most popular email marketing platforms for E-commerce businesses are Mailchimp, Netcore and MoEngage.

Mailchimp

Mailchimp is a popular email marketing and automation platform that keeps your customers and prospects engaged through relevant emails. Apart from offering a variety of templates to create your email campaigns, the tool also gives you suggestions for improving your content based on top-performing emails in your industry. It even suggests the best time to send your emails for maximum engagement.

Netcore

Netcore is another popular email automation platform that helps organizations better engage with their customers via personalized emails. It is one of the few email marketing platforms to offer a drag & drop Email Builder and AI- powered insights specifically tailored for E-commerce businesses.

MoEngage

MoEngage is a customer engagement platform that also offers email automation services. You can use this platform to create compelling, contextually relevant emails that align with your customer’s behavior and preferences to boost open rates. You can also engage your customers with interactive emails such as surveys, ratings, feedback requests, and more with Moengage. MoEngage can also trigger emails based on customer lifecycle and send timely alerts such as delivery status, reward points, invoices, etc.

Also Read: What is Conversational Commerce and How To Use It For E-commerce

Referralcandy & Affise For Partnership Marketing

Partnership marketing campaigns like referral and affiliate marketing encourages and incentivizes your existing customers to attract new customers to your online store. Referral marketing is particularly beneficial for E-commerce brands because referrals from friends or family provide social proof and build trust. Similarly links from affiliates eases concerns and increases confidence among customers who are uncertain about buying particular products. They are two of the most cost-effective forms of marketing as you are paying only after you get results.

Referral marketing tools like Referralcandy automates your referral marketing efforts. With Referralcandy, you can send automatic invites and reward customers who have made successful referrals. You can even segment your audience and create a campaign that only enrolls people who sign up via a particular channel.

Affise is another tool that automates and scales your partnership management activities. You can quickly find affiliates and influencers with Affise and also nurture relationships with them. The platform helps you manage campaign budgets, handle payments, track conversion, and a lot more through a personalized dashboard.

Notify Visitors For Customer Engagement & Communication

Customer engagement is the process of building and nurturing relationships with customers through various interactions. Constant engagement is important to build trust, particularly in the E-commerce space.

Notify Visitors is a customer engagement platform that helps create automated campaigns across different channels. It nudges users with relevant messages based on their actions on your website. You can also use the platform to communicate with customers more personally through personalized messages like Push, E-mail, and SMS.

Tools For Enhancing Customer Experience

E-commerce is an intensely competitive space, with thousands of businesses vying for customer attention. Providing exceptional customer experiences is the only way to set yourself apart from your competitors. Since customers are spoilt for choices, they are more likely to choose businesses that prioritize their satisfaction and offer a seamless and enjoyable shopping experience.

There are tools aimed at enhancing various aspects of the customer journey in your store. From personalized recommendations to showcasing reviews for informed decision-making, these E-commerce Tools can create engaging shopping experiences for your customer, ultimately leading to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty. Two such tools are Nosto and Yotpo.

Additional Read: What Is Customer Lifetime Value & How To Calculate It (+ Free Calculator)

Wigzo by Shiprocket for personalization

Wigzo by Shiprocket is a one-stop solution for creating a fully personalized experience for your customers. The platform helps you engage website visitors in real time with intent-based targeting and personalized pop-up messages. You can also create customized user journeys with the help of a simple drag-and-drop builder so that every customer has a different experience and feels that the store is built just for them.

Bazaarvoice for user-generated content and reviews

Bazaarvoice is a retention marketing platform with a focus on User Generated Content. The platform lets you collect authentic customer reviews and display them where they can create maximum impact, such as your product details page (PDP). Apart from this, the platform also lets you showcase a wide variety of user-generated content, including social media posts, ratings, and questions & answers from customers on your website.

Conclusion

The above tools not only enhance your E-commerce operations but also empower you to tap into the immense potential of online selling. Hope this list will help you improve your E-commerce sales and drive profitability.

And in case you need an E-commerce partner to set up your operations and succeed, ANS Commerce can help. As a Filpkart Group Company, we are India’s leading E-commerce enabler.

From providing E-commerce technology solutions to implementing impactful marketing campaigns and seamless warehousing & order fulfillment services, we offer end-to-end support to E-commerce brands launching & expanding their presence in India.
To know more about ANS Commerce, book a demo now.