In our busy and bustling online world, you want fans, customers, and prospects to be able to find your company, and ultimately purchase your products. However, it can be tough to gain visibility in today’s noisy ecosystem.
Most ecommerce businesses bet on paid advertising, email marketing, and social media to boost traffic and sales. These channels are essential, but they’re not complete without the content that fuels them.
Publishing relevant content that provides value to your audience helps you connect with them, ultimately making your marketing efforts more effective. Here are 5 different ways you can use content to boost your ecommerce marketing strategy.
1. Turn to video
It’s no secret that people love watching videos. After all, videos provide a great deal of content in a short amount of time compared with text.
Today, video accounts for 74% of all online traffic, according to a report from Kleiner Perkins Partners. And, according to Recode, videos on Facebook are watched for roughly 100 million hours each day.
When it comes to marketing ecommerce businesses, there are certain types of videos that resonate. Here are three types to try:
- Product videos – According to econsultancy, 96% of today’s consumers find videos helpful when making an online purchase. A product video gives you the opportunity to show your product in action, painting a helpful picture for your audience.
- How-to videos – Searches with the keyword “how to” on YouTube are growing 70% year over year, according to Search Engine Land. It’s obvious why– internet users frequently search for videos to help them find the best products or complete tasks.
- Emotional videos – When you’re able to reach someone’s emotional core, you have a better chance of compelling them to buy your products. That’s why videos with a deliberate goal to stir emotions perform so well.
2. Create custom images
Ecommerce businesses sell products, and promoting these products via images is especially important. Whether you are promoting products, launching a campaign, or looking for attention on social media, great images are your best bet.
The thing is, you have to create images that connect with your audience and serve your brand. That often means creating custom images, rather than relying on placeholder stock photos.
These custom images can be used all over the web– from your email marketing efforts to your blog posts, to your landing pages, to your social media sites.
For example, we love the images that On, a running shoe retailer, uses in their emails. The images are sharp, crisp, compelling, and particular to On.
3. Leverage user-generated content (UGC)
When it comes down to it, people trust other people more than they trust brands or advertisements– 71% of consumers feel that reviews by other customers make them more comfortable making a purchase decision, while 82% of consumers find user-generated reviews extremely valuable.
User-generated content (UGC), offers you the opportunity to leverage what your audience is already saying. Exploring UGC helps to increase engagement with your audience, gain an understanding of your customers, and help with your SEO efforts.
Let’s have a look into various types of user generated content you can harness for your ecommerce business.
- Product ratings and reviews – Product ratings and reviews work as social proof. Reviews create a sense of trust which boosts customer’s confidence. Customer reviews with user-generated photos allow shoppers to connect on a personal level and imagine themselves using your product.
- Questions and answers: A questions and answers on your product pages can add immense value. Having an option to ask questions enable visitors to ask for any missing info and your published answers will not only serve the visitor who asked for it but all your future visitors.
- Social media posts: For an ecommerce business, social media is a very efficient channel for engagement. If you don’t have an active audience already on social media, your UGC campaign may not take off on its own.
Pro tip: If your audience isn’t creating content on their own, you can encourage them to share their thoughts about your products on social media. Some ecommerce retailers provide a coupon code or or blog feature in exchange for an honest review.
4. Create blog posts for your audience
While video content is a trending topic, written content still plays a big role in ecommerce marketing strategies.
After all, the written word allows for nuance and elaboration. Plus, the ability to communicate detailed information at a pace determined by the readers makes written content a natural fit for instructional materials.
If you have a blog, ensure it is hosted on your website or ecommerce site for the best SEO benefit.
For example, Monica Vinader, a jewelry retailer, provides written content via Monica’s World, a blog filled with articles about founder Monica, her travels, and the products.
5. Try out interactive tools
Interactive content is a great way to engage your audience. It gives you an opportunity for interaction so that existing and prospective customers can get to know you better.
That’s why many ecommerce shops are offering social media contests, as well as polls and surveys.
Campaign Monitor recently created an Email Marketing Scorecard that allows marketers to see how healthy their email marketing program is. Not only can quiz takers gain actionable insights, but they also engage with the brand.
Similarly, Sephora offers Virtual Artist, an interactive mobile app that lets users try on different makeup looks and learn from tutorials.
Wrap up
We’ve shared 5 different ways you can use content to boost your ecommerce marketing strategy. Remember, content works best when it’s highly relevant and targeted for your consumers so try different types and formats and see what works best for different channels. When you find what works, do more of it.