There is no denying that ecommerce is a ruthlessly competitive business. Same-day delivery, discounts, free shipping and much more, the big giants of ecommerce are leaving no stone unturned to drive many small online retailers and startups to extinction.
With the likes of Amazon, Walmart and eBay dominating the scene for decades, it is the passion to crush the competition and out-of-the-box thinking. That will ensure small ecommerce sites succeed.
Well, fortunately in ecommerce everything boils down to innovation and apt use of technology. Ideas and concept can help small businesses steer ahead of leaders and create a niche in a highly saturated market.
Here are few effective tips for small ecommerce stores that will help you to compete with your industry giants:
Optimize your website navigation
Every reputed ecommerce development company always concentrate on flawless website navigation. Ecommerce navigation should make it effortless for customers to browse through layers of information, find what they want, and get to the product in a few seconds. Understand and analyze shoppers’ behavior pattern. Try to provide a superior online shopping experience.
Don’t be afraid to experiment and explore how users navigate, find and select products. Plan and optimize site navigation to gain strategic advantage.
Improve your website uptime and page load time
Remember, while customers want sites to look good and easy to navigate, they won’t pardon a slow loading ecommerce website. If an ecommerce site is down or slows for even a second, a customer is likely to move to a rival site. There are no second chances.
Customers expect consistent experience irrespective of the multitude of mobile devices. A shopping cart must be available to customers all the time—come what may.
Ensure the Scalability of your ecommerce store
Whether you have one visitor or one million, you need to meet customer demand. You must be able to scale to quickly meet the demands of your customers, regardless of sudden fluctuation.
Be prepared to ramp up and meet high demand. Analyze data in real time. Equally important is the ability to scale down for optimum utilization of resources.
Provide real-time customer service
Offer your customers incomparable customer service throughout the shopping process and even after placing an order. It is important to provide customers with personal advice and comprehensive support.
Stay away from automated and generic support system provided by many ecommerce giants. Extend expert (and real life) support to customers. Always be accessible to customers with an email, office address, phone or social media sites.
Leverage Online Tools to Improve Bottom-line Results
As a startup, you need to create a memorable relationship and win your clients’ hearts. We’ve handpicked tools specifically designed for ecommerce sites to increase sales, attract customers and stay ahead of market leaders.
Security and Fraud Protection Tools
Kount.com
Kount offers innovative ecommerce solutions designed to increase sales and reduce fraud. Its SaaS platform helps online businesses improve bottom-line results. Kount, a single, turnkey fraud solution provides support to some of the leading brands in the world. Merchants can accept orders from more people across the globe like never before. It is easy-to-implement and easy-to-use.
Hostbillapp.com
HostBill helps run hosting & online business all over the world. HostBill supports everything needed to drive your business, right from taking orders to client management. The cost-effective, scalable and feature-rich solution, HostBill helps streamline and automate processes to achieve profitability.
dotDefender
dotDefender provides enterprise-class security against hacking attacks to online ventures, large and small. It helps you achieve Compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS Compliance).
Shipping
ShipStation
This web-based software is designed to help eCommerce retailers’ process, fulfill, and ship orders from the most popular marketplaces and shopping carts using top carriers. ShipStation defies the one-size-fits-all norm and lets you customize your shipping rules and materials as per your need.
ShippingEasy
ShippingEasy app is a unique option for online sellers. Its cloud-based shipping solution offers the most cost-effective USPS postage rates. Also, retailers have the ability to plug in UPS and FedEx accounts, as well as get Real-time tracking information.
Shipwire
Shipwire, an enterprise logistics platform helps lower cost, drive sales, and deliver a great customer experience. You can effortlessly connect with sales channel and expand into emerging channels. Global warehouses allow you to reach more customers faster — at a lower cost.
Inventory Management
TradeGecko
TradeGecko, simple and easy-to-use online inventory management software lets you track and manage stock levels across different warehouses and consignment locations. This all-inclusive software integrates with other online business software to provide comprehensive support.
Brightpearl
Brightpearl lets you stay in control of your orders and inventory. This software automatically updates inventory levels, lets you keep track of inventory across multiple locations, as well as manages multiple price lists.
Customer Service
TeamSupport
This web-based collaborative customer service software makes sure that you address customers; concerns and feedback in the most efficient manner. It is not just a ticketing system, but a collaboration and communication tool between team members and your clients/customers.
PlanPlus Online
Now stay organized and improve your productivity. PlanPlus Online has different versions tailored for your needs. PlanPlus Online Business Edition integrates productivity tools into a comprehensive CRM solution. On the other hand, Planner Edition organizes your calendar, important tasks, and notes.
Website Optimization
KISSmetrics
Whether you’re just a small start-up or a large organization – KISSmetrics is a web analytics package that provides insights on metrics that matter. This tool lets you know which marketing campaigns are working for you and not. You can track the customer conversion process and discover areas where you are losing customers.
Unbounce
Unbounce is an incredible tool to easily create landing pages and test new hypothesis and ideas. It is the easiest way to create, publish & test promotion specific landing pages. You also get access to a suite of best-practice landing page templates.
Moz
With a series of analytic tools, Moz can help perform in-depth research on your site as well as its competitors. Furthermore, it tracks the performance of inbound marketing efforts. Moz also offers free webinars which allow asking questions directly to the Moz team experts.
Wrapping Up
Now that you are ready to initiate and nurture your startup, remember you need to carve your niche and set your own trends. This will allow you to grow and free your site from the shackles of the intimidating ecommerce giants.