MailChimp
MailChimp, is an email subscription service/tool especially because of the free option it offers to new users. Anything up to 2,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month is completely free of charge. This is a great offer than any small business should take advantage off – straight away!
You can let your subscribers know about new posts by utilized the Feedburner mail function, like I do on my subscribe page, and the rest of the content, like product launches and new offers can easily be sent through MailChimp – to people who signed up for such news in the first place.
LoopFuse
To automate your marketing efforts means to make it easier on yourself and your business, sometimes it means saving a ton of money by not having to go and hire professionals who will do these tasks for you. LoopFuse is a great tool for any business, allow you to do inbound marketing, email marketing and even things like lead capture and nurturing, all from a simple to use and understand dashboard.
This have a Free Plan for 1 user, up to 250 prospects, & 500 emails + up to 1,500 pageviews per month.
Analytics SEO
One of the most sought after tools out there, are the ones that help you track your rankings on search engines and across the web. Analytics SEO is kind enough to offer a free plan to anyone who is interested.
Populr
Populr is a service that offers creation of single pages, which we might otherwise know as landing pages. The ideas is that you can create a page for literally anything and point your domain to it. This would be best used when you are preparing to launch a new product, and through Populr you can create an amazing and professionally looking page that will help people understand everything about what you do and your businesses vision.
Things like analytics and pre-made designs come integrated into the service, and with the free plan you will be able to:
- Unlimited Published Pages
- Point 3 domains at your account
- Drag and Drop Editing
- Sharing
- Collaboration
- Video Recording
- 12MB Document Limit
- Prominent Populr branding
SOCIOPAL
This little wonderful tool will help you create social media accounts in no time, and not only that – but will also help you with setting up your very own website. That of course means that this tool is aimed purely at people who are looking to open their business to the online world
HootSuite
Hootsuite is the ultimate tool for managing multiple social media channels, and I couldn’t recommend it enough to any small or even large business owner as it can take away plenty of load of your daily work life. The tools stands out with features like tracking yourself across multiple social media websites, as well as the ability to schedule posts for days ahead. When you are going away for holidays – it’s not a bad idea to consider scheduling some posts ahead of time, so that you know your followers will still be updated with content even when you’re gone.You will be able to analyize social media traffic that is coming from your social media efforts to further increase the amount of new people you are reaching out to, by having the ability to analyze content that is doing really well across all of the social networking sites.
Other Tips
Create a Content Marketing Strategy Before Starting
Just like a movie studio goes through the preproduction process, an e-commerce business needs a content marketing strategy. Write a list of all the methods you plan on using to reach out to customers, whether it be blog posts, videos or newsletters.
Make it a point to check in with this strategy every week or month, evaluating how the content creation and distribution process is going.Generate an Email Marketing Campaign That’s Automated
Email marketing is the bedrock of effective ecommerce marketing strategies, because it’s still one of the best methods for influencing your customers and convincing them to buy more.Not to mention, consumers are known to open emails, even if they include simple advertisements. Use an email marketing campaign to keep in contact with your customers, send them helpful information and sell your products.
With Social Media, Consider Diversifying Your Platforms
Social media is always a tough sell for ecommerce companies, since it’s tough to figure out which platforms work best in certain markets. There’s a simple solution to this. Diversify, and eventually cut the platforms that don’t work well.It’s just like investing in stocks. You spread out the risk and realize which options are making you the most money. Create Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google Plus pages. Spread your content through these mediums, and use social media analytics tools to understand which ones work best.
Put a Personalization Strategy into Action
Personalization is the best new form of marketing, since no one wants to spend money on faceless companies. The idea is to brand your company along with a person, using one or two people as the “face” of your business.Address people with their names in your emails, send out videos and images of your employees, and show how your products are made
Make Your Own Original Content
Original content like videos, blog posts, audio segments and eBooks help you build your ecommerce site as a knowledge base for those interested in learning more about your market.
Hit it Hard with Contextual Marketing
Contextual marketing has various meanings, but what we mean is using your marketing in formats that connect with your demographics, putting the messages in the right places at the right time.
Implement a Loyalty Program
A solid loyalty program brings people back to your store, and it makes them feel appreciated for spending money on your company. You convince your most loyal customers to spend a little extra money, and they receive a reward for doing so.Automate Your Social Networks
Not all social content needs automation, but you’ll find that planning your social strategy frees up time for other tasks in your business.For example, when you schedule a month of Facebook posts, you no longer have to think about it for the rest of the month.
Test Your Checkout Process
An e-commerce marketing plan without A/B testing is sailing blind, so it’s essential to run tests throughout the entire checkout process. This helps you see where people abandon their carts or find it tough to pay you.
Optimize for the Mobile World
This has nothing to do with creating an app or mobile site. Nowadays your customers crave mobile responsiveness. They don’t want to open a completely different mobile site to see a mobile-friendly interface.Start Targeting Wearable Technology
All the big tech companies are releasing wearable technology like watches and even glasses. How can you connect with these customers who have technology at their hands at all times? These interfaces look different than the average smartphone, so your company needs to adapt.Brand Yourself with Your Own Personal Flavor
Placing a face on your company is one thing, but customers want to hear from the people who run the show. If you hire a few writers or content designers it becomes tough keeping one standard voice.Focus on Local Branding and Marketing
Not all ecommerce marketing plans require this, but if you have a connection with a brick and mortar store you can focus on local branding and marketing. Reach out to customers near your store with geolocation tools and local search engine targeting.Look for Alternative Automated Marketing Techniques
Do you send out birthday or anniversary messages to your customers? What about automated messages when people sign up for your email campaigns or buy a product on your store?Free up your own time, and give your customers a reason to come back with automated email campaigns.
Make How-To Videos for Creating a Connection and Showing Products
YouTube channels are always a fun way to connect with customers, but what about putting a hard focus on how-to tutorials? If you sell something like gardening gear, customers may not know the best ways to use the stuff they buy. Videos bring them back to your store and ensure they feel right about buying from you.Pack Photos Into All of Your Content
People are more likely to click on links and read through content if it includes photos. Stray away from stock photos and consider taking your own professional photos to keep people interested in your content.Turn Your Company into It’s Own Media Outlet
Creating a magazine or TV channel sounds like a stretch, but many companies are taking the jump to share their own original content on various different media outlets.Turn on the Image Boosters With Instagram
Instagram is a closed community for people who love images. If you can take photos of your products, Instagram is perfect for sharing product previews, your items in action and user submitted content.Optimize Your Email Capture Modules
Does your email capture popup area turn customers off? Do you offer a promotion or free eBook for signing up? Using A/B testing to improve your email capture modules and bring in more subscribers.Email Newsletter
The email newsletter is a message that goes out every week or month, an it’s completely un-automated. This is a chance to share unusual content and personal messages.Test to Make Sure You Have the Fewest Amount of Steps for People to Get What They Want
The best way to do this is to have actual customers walk through your checkout process and send you feedback on how fast it was. Could you completely remove a checkout step? Only testing reveals the answer.Free Marketing Options
Landing an article in a big-time magazine takes lots of work, and sometimes money. Why not turn to blogs with huge followings in your market? Just about every business can locate a blog that writes about its products.Even better, if you approach smaller blogs, your submission usually only takes a few minutes.
