Email Marketing | Email Marketing for eCommerce | Page 8 of 8

How do you market a pet business?

Posted on November 27, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

As an e-commerce business owner you’ve probably learnt a lot about the everyday struggles, advantages and disadvantages of certain marketing techniques, but have you gained any insight into marketing a niche business? Like many niche businesses, pet e-commerce websites have their own set of marketing strategies, content techniques and a range of business decisions that have the ability to benefit and grow their business. That being said, since there are never enough hours in the day, we’ve crafted a few helpful suggestions to help you with marketing your pet business.

Review and update your webpage

When was the last time that you scrolled through your website and refreshed the information available on it? Sometimes a simply rewrite of your biography, a couple new photos and an update to your personal information will go a long way in attracting new, prospective customers.

Review your marketing strategy

Creating an effective marketing strategy for a pet business doesn’t need to be a tedious task… all it takes is a little imagination, a few set-in-stone goals and the attitude to see it through. Start by figuring out a few achievable goals to focus your energy on. Next, figure out how to reach your ideal audience — maybe you’re not on the right social media network? Lastly, figure out your business strengths and focus on how you can use them to capitalize the revenue of your pet business.

Pre-schedule your social media posts

Social media has the power to reach a vast group of people in a very short period of time. So, it would be silly not to utilizate as many platforms as you can manage when you’re marketing a niche business. Promote your business using a combination of memes, videos, pictures, quotes and customized texts that promote sales or special offers. Then pre-schedule it to ensure that you keep an active presence online without allowing social media to take over your probably already busy business schedule.

Encourage customer reviews

Testimonials have the ability to skyrocket the success of any e-commerce business. When pet parents are deciding where they want to make their purchases, they will often read customer reviews to find out more about a product or service. Since trust is one of the most important factors, especially for a pet service provider, a glowing review on your webpage or social media channels will really help potential customers find their way to your online shopping cart checkout.

Try sending newsletters

Email marketing is one of the best ways to use your marketing budget. Sending out newsletters allows you to promote new products and sales, stay in touch with your customers and offer your supporters special, exclusive promotions. Regular, bi-monthly newsletters that are well-written, catchy and concise will show your customers that you’re dedicated to providing them great service.

If you need help with any of the marketing techniques above, it’s best to contact a professional that can get you started on your marketing journey.

Do you have any other questions about marketing a niche business? Let us know all about it in the comments section below.

Email marketing strategies for boutique hotels

Posted on November 13, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

Many boutique hotels engage with their customers by direct messaging them before, during or after their stay. Although this tactic possesses its own list of benefits, it does not leverage the same edge as email marketing.

Possessing email marketing strategies are incredibly advantageous for boutique hotels to reach out to both new and existing clients. Considering smartphones are a part of most people’s day-to-day lives, often checking emails are as well. Here, we’ll explain why e-mail marketing should be a major part of your customer engagement strategy.

Why is it valuable for boutique hotels?

For starters, many potential customers are hesitant about giving their phone numbers to online booking sites out of the fear of being constantly bombarded with ongoing promos. Ironically enough, people are usually okay with giving out their emails, because they tend to be less invasive than a phone call or text message. By taking advantage of email marketing, your company has the power to kickstart a consumer relationship with potential or existing guests without worrying about scaring them away. They will simply respond or open the email when they have some extra time.

Emails encourage engagement

Once a customer decides to book a stay at your boutique hotel, you should begin by immediately reaching out with a message about their trip itinerary. This helps to build loyalty with your guests.

Yet, sometimes you need to be strategic when it comes to sending emails. If someone books their accommodation months in advance, perhaps a simple “thank you for booking with us” would suffice as your immediate email. This can then be followed by a reminder email about a week before they visit and another email about two days prior as a helpful reminder. On the other hand, if a guest books only a week in advance, you may want to send them a more detailed email listing any details that they may need to know before their stay. Most customers appreciate it and will often wait for an emailed confirmation to appear in their inbox.

Personalizing your email marketing

It’s really important to stand out. For smaller hotels, that could be as simple as personalizing your emails. The best way to utilize your email marketing strategy is by using old data that you’ve collected through prior email marketing campaigns. This allows you to collect information about the approximate age, sex and location that your guests are traveling from. This data has the ability to tell you lots about your customer demographic and how you can change up your emails to better entice them.

For example, if you notice that a lot of women are booking with your hotel, perhaps including a promotional code for your spa services would be an added offer that guests would enjoy finding in their inbox.

Your collected data should also be able to tell you if people are staying at your boutique hotel with their families or if they come on business.

How to get started

Often boutique hotels hire professionals outside of their hospitality management team to handle the development of their email marketing strategies. For many, this frees up their time so that they can dedicate it to another aspect of the business.

How do you manage your email marketing? Tell us in the comments section below.

Do brick and mortar businesses need a digital marketing strategy?

Posted on August 7, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

If you’re a retailer that prefers the more traditional selling approach that brick and mortar businesses have to offer, you may still find that you need a digital marketing strategy to get your business noticed. Although you offer your customers a more personable face-to-face interaction, when it comes to doing business, it is difficult to complete with your web-based counterparts. While ecommerce businesses make it their job to become noticed on the web in order to receive any sales at all, brick and mortar businesses can also leverage the benefits of digital marketing to their advantage

What is a brick and mortar business?

The term brick and mortar is used to describe a company that possesses a retail store, factory or warehouse for its operation. Your local bookstore or grocery shop is a perfect example of this. Brick and mortar businesses offer their consumers the opportunity to touch, try out and discuss any concerns they may have with an item prior to making any purchase. These types of businesses also provide consumers with an immediate form of gratification because they do not need to wait for the item to be shipped before they can enjoy it.

Needless to say, even though a business is doing well in physical form that doesn’t mean that with a proper digital marketing plan it couldn’t be doing a whole lot better.

Why does your brick and mortar business need a digital marketing strategy?

With the rise of ecommerce businesses snatching up internet friendly consumers, it is important for brick and mortar businesses to use digital marketing to establish a strategy in order to remain technologically with the times. Many long-time retailers — Sears, Zellers and Kmart — have shut down dozens of store locations due to slow traffic and a decrease in sales.

Whether your company is better suited as a brick and mortar business or you’re resisting the need to embrace e-commerce, you can have the best of both worlds with the proper digital marketing strategy.

In order for brick and mortar businesses to use digital marketing to its fullest potential they will need to:

Build an online community: This will increase your customer base and allow you to offer your product to a much larger demographic.
Find your target audience: Unless you have found a location in a local neighbourhood where everyone uses your product, a digital marketing strategy will allow you to find an online audience that has an interest in the product or service that you are selling.
Engage with your consumers: Although it does not offer the same face-to-face personalization as the traditional brick and mortar business, digital marketing allows you to speak to customers online, comment on their reviews and troubleshoot any problems they are facing without them even needing to step foot in your store.

If you need help getting started with your digital marketing strategy, consult our team of professionals to learn more about what we can do for your business.

Do you prefer to shop in retail stores or online for your products? Tell us about it in the comments section below.

Email Marketing for Your Ecommerce Business

Posted on December 12, 2017September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

Digital marketers are always on the lookout for new, cost-effective ways to connect with customers, but one method that has stood the test of time and that continues to produce results is email marketing. It is a robust tool that enables businesses to acquire, engage, and retain customers. If you are an ecommerce entrepreneur looking to integrate ecommerce email marketing into your broader digital marketing strategy, here are three ways you can do so.

Acquisition Emails

Companies send acquisition emails with the specific purpose of convincing a potential client who has expressed interest in a product to convert. Your email can encourage them to try out your products or include a compelling offer that will entice them to purchase your product, thus increasing your sales.

Here is an example of an ecommerce email marketing email that urges the subscriber to start a free, three-month trial. The email has a clear call-to-action (CTA) and as the customer scrolls down, it outlines the benefits of becoming a paid client, such as receiving personalized music recommendations, getting access to the latest songs from around the world, and more. Since the trial is at no cost to the customer but still allows them to experience the paid service, if they like it, they are likely to convert.

Email Newsletters

Email newsletters are an excellent way for companies to keep subscribers connected to and engaged with their brands. Whether you’re sending out a timely email about a recently-launched product that your customers would be interested in or you’re emailing a helpful list of gift ideas for the holidays, email newsletters keep your customers connected to your brand, which means that you are top of mind when they are ready to purchase.

This Indigo newsletter, for instance, does not directly focused on selling to the customer, but rather provides them with valuable information that will help them pick books as gifts. It provides suggestions based on the personality of the person the subscriber is shopping for, such as thrill seeker, hockey lover, foodie, romantic, etc.

Promotional Emails

Promotional emails can increase conversions by enticing the email recipient to make the purchase. By including a limited-time offer they cannot resist, not only can you increase the likelihood that a potential customer will convert, but you can also encourage customers who have previously purchased your products to order again or try out a new product. In other words, promotional emails help you retain customers, in addition to getting new ones.

Take a look at this ecommerce email marketing example from Origins. It offers the subscriber a coupon code for 20 percent off almost everything that can be used during a short time-frame and features a clear CTA. By creating a sense of urgency, they tap into the client’s fear of missing out.

How does your ecommerce business use email marketing to drive sales? Tell us in the comments section below.

How to Get More Customer Reviews

Posted on December 4, 2017August 23, 2021 by Alex Wilks

Online reviews are an essential marketing component for both brick-and-mortar and ecommerce businesses. Since they provide potential customers with unbiased information about your products and services, online reviews help answer many of their questions and eliminate uncertainty about their intended purchase. Furthermore, in addition to boosting page rankings, reviews also help build customer confidence in your product and brand. However, when it’s their turn to do so, the same customers often fail to leave feedback, and so, businesses find themselves struggling to garner reviews. In today’s blog post, we’ll answer the question of how to get more customer reviews with three easy tips.

Send a Follow-Up Email

Although 70% of online shoppers consult reviews or ratings prior to buying, many of them don’t end up leaving a review, so how do you get them to write you one? By asking! Don’t be afraid to be direct. If you don’t have a physical location and can’t ask customers in person, send them an email a week or two after they have received their order asking them to review the products they just purchased.

Have a Simple Review Submission Process

Keep the review form and process simple, and avoid asking for unnecessary information. For instance, for most businesses, the customer’s name, rating, and review suffice. Some companies also ask for a title or the customer’s location. Only include those fields if they add value to the testimonial. The more straightforward the process, the more likely the customer is to complete it.

Provide an Incentive

Motivate your clients to review your products by offering them an incentive. Whether it’s a coupon code, discount on a future purchase, entry to a contest, or an exclusive sneak-peek of upcoming merchandise, it will provide them with that extra encouragement. Since the client is taking the time and energy to write a testimonial, the incentive can also serve as a token of appreciation.

How do you garner customer reviews? Tell us in the comments section below!

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Category: Email Marketing