5 Ecommerce Tips and Solutions to Attract More Customers in 2021

There are many factors that feed into the success of a modern Ecommerce brand, and the list just keeps on growing as the industry becomes more competitive every year. Now that Ecommerce has skyrocketed around the world because of the pandemic, the industry is both a lucrative and a dangerous playing field for many. On the one hand, you stand to gain more by driving sales through digital marketing and other solutions, but on the other you can get pushed aside by more aggressive brands.

All in all, your key focus should be on attracting new customers this year and retaining as many of your loyal customers as possible. To do this, you should look beyond an occasional discount and a couple of promotions – you should implement more compelling and powerful incentives to run a successful online business. Let’s take a look at the five Ecommerce tips and solutions that will allow you to attract more customers in 2021.

Enable store or location pick-ups

Ecommerce is primarily loved by customers for the sole fact that they can order products online without having to pick them up. But that paradigm has changed in the new normal. Customers are increasingly abandoning their shopping carts because of the long shipping and delivery times caused by the pandemic and global instability. However, you can use this to your advantage by simply offering in-store or location-specific pickups.

Instead of losing a customer because your supply chain is backed up on orders and is experiencing bottlenecks, you can offer your customers a same-day pickup if they are in the area or near one of your warehouses or stores. You can also meet your customer halfway, and let them choose a location where they can meet a currier or one of your delivery people to get their hands on the products faster. It’s these quality-of-life features that will get people to complete their order and come to your online store in the new normal.

Build a branded Ecommerce app

Nowadays, people want convenience, consistency, and comfort in their shopping journey. Given the fact that more and more people are shopping online, they want a more personalized experience and a way to browse products in a more efficient and straightforward way. At the base of all this if customer effort, which you should strive to reduce as much as possible.

While there are many ways to reduce customer effort on your website, the best way to do it is to invest in your own branded app. Ecommerce apps are extremely popular nowadays, and they can help you achieve numerous goals. With a simple branded app, you can integrate your brand into the daily life of your customer, collect invaluable user data, reduce customer effort, and create more personalized shopping experiences.

Allow customers to pay later

One of the biggest trends that has been revolutionizing online commerce is the buy now pay later trend. In the modern, oversaturated online market, the brands that stand out from the rest are the ones that offer payment flexibility and allow customers to pay on their own terms. In extremely competitive markets like Australia, for example, the buy now pay later trend has been booming in recent years.

To dominate markets like Sydney or Melbourne, Ecommerce leaders need to leverage the buy now pay later platforms like humm to attract new customers and incentivize existing ones to come back for a new purchase. That said, no matter the market you’re operating in, it’s important to provide this type of payment flexibility that allows your customers to get what they want right now, but have the option of paying for it when they can actually afford it.

Create an omni-channel sales experience

Another powerful trend that has been dominating in Australia, the US, and across Europe is the omni-channel experience. Nowadays, people want and need to buy products on their own terms, and that means placing an order wherever they feel like it. You can no longer force a customer to buy something on your site if they want to place an order via chat on Instagram or if they want to shoot you an email.

Some customers want to give you a call, and some may even want to shoot you a good old SMS. This is your opportunity to better connect with your customers through numerous online touchpoints. Be sure to open up numerous sales channels across the online realm to capture every lead and facilitate omni-channel sales for your online audience.

Bank in on the Mcommerce trend

Speaking of capitalizing on various sales channels, keep in mind that mobile commerce is on the rise across the globe. By the end of 2021, it’s expected that as much as 72.9% of all Ecommerce will go through mobile devices, which is a golden opportunity for your brand to capitalize on a booming target demographic.

Aside from creating your own app, it’s also important to completely optimize your website for mobile browsing and shopping. Make sure to simplify the shopping journey and incentivize mobile users to make a purchase by displaying trust badges, because Mcommerce is still very much reliant on security and ease of use on mobile devices.

Wrapping up

Ecommerce seems to always be growing and expanding, and that can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how you reach the latest trends. Implementing these solutions into your growth strategy will allow you to attract more customers in 2021, but also inspire the existing ones to come back and make another purchase.

• Emma Worden is a digital marketer and blogger from Sydney. After getting a marketing degree, she started working with Australian startups on business and marketing development. Worden writes for many industry-related online publications and is an executive editor at Bizzmark Blog and a guest lecturer at Melbourne University. Interested in marketing, startups and the latest business trends? Follow her on Twitter.