4 E-Commerce Business Principles That’ll Skyrocket Sales
Increasing e-commerce business is on every CMO’s or business owner’s mind. How can you drive more sales? Simple. Keep four fundamental principles at the forefront of your marketing efforts! In this post, we’ll discuss what an e-commerce business is, the four types of e-commerce, the four e-commerce business principles, and how you can use them to skyrocket your sales. It’s essential to focus on the customer at all times. Keep your buyer persona(s) at the front of your mind when determining the best approach.
What Is An E-commerce Business?
An e-commerce business is simply an electronic business or a business that allows individuals to purchase products or services through the internet. Several brick-and-mortar stores operate e-commerce stores as well, while others work solely through e-commerce. Just about anything you can think of can be purchased online today.
The Four Types Of E-Commerce
Most people think there are only three types of e-commerce, but in truth, there are four types. Let’s look at the business models and examples of each type:
- Business to Business (B2B): A marketing agency operates under a business-to-business or B2B business model.
- Business to Consumer (B2C): This is the most common business model. Any purchase you make through an online retail store is a business-to-consumer transaction.
- Consumer to Consumer (C2C): Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, eBay, and Offerup are all examples of consumers selling to consumers.
- Consumer to Business (C2B): Affiliate marketing and services like Fiverr and Upwork would fall under consumer-to-business transactions.
Market Projections and Data
The future of e-commerce is looking brighter than ever. To help guide your strategy, consider these data points found within current research:
| Category | Data Point / Projection |
|---|---|
| Global Retail Sales (2023) | Close to $6.8 trillion |
| Mobile E-commerce Share | Projected to make up to 63% of total sales |
| Primary Mode of Payment (Philippines, 2019) | Cash (51.3%) |
The 4 E-Commerce Marketing Principles
These four principles are the basic foundation for improving your e-commerce business. Ultimately, when you use each principle appropriately, you will see your sales increase.
1. Trust
Trust is a significant barrier to overcome for a first-time buyer. You can build trust with your audience through content marketing, influencer marketing, and user-generated content (UGC), as well as social media. Showcasing your reviews and testimonials on your website and throughout your social media marketing is a highly effective way to build this foundation.
2. Price
A lot of sellers worry about whether or not their pricing is too high for their consumers. The answer is price doesn’t matter as much as how you position the need and the benefits of the product. If you don’t want buyers to focus on price, you need to focus on the value. Does your product or service save time? Does it provide a lifestyle your consumer wants?
3. Scarcity
If there is only so much of your product or service to go around, it can make it even more enticing. If you run an e-commerce store, add quantity to your items to create a sense of exclusivity.
4. Urgency
When used appropriately, urgency works alongside scarcity to improve your e-commerce business and push the consumer toward a purchase decision.
The 4 Ps of Marketing Mix in E-commerce
Mastering the 4Ps of ecommerce paid media is essential for a successful online business. These elements determine your luck at the high-stakes table of e-commerce:
- Product: Your product is fundamental; even the most amazing marketing campaigns can’t compensate for a broken product or lack of product-market fit.
- Price: Focus on positioning the value rather than just the cost.
- Place: This determines where your products reside and how they are accessed.
- Promotion: Get this right, and you’ll create a loyal fanbase that you can count on for repeat orders and customer advocacy.
The Four Pillars: The Backbone of E-Commerce
A cohesive Customer Experience across all pillars must be exercised for a system to thrive. These pillars include:
- Domain: Your Domain can be your website (online store, a market place), a physical location, or even a person.
- Marketing: This pillar includes email, social media, influencer marketing, SEO, and sales/marketing funnels. Creating value through a well-crafted sales funnel gives you credibility and increases trust.
- Payment: This includes cash, mobile, credit/debit card payments, digital wallets, bank transfers, and crypto payments.
- Logistics: Successful e-commerce companies understand very well the role that distribution plays in their customer-based strategies.
Strategies to Succeed in the E-Commerce Empire
Understanding market trends and constantly innovating are fundamental aspects of business growth. Consider these approaches:
- Mobile-optimizing shopping environments: Companies who have app-based and mobile-optimizing shopping environments have more chances of succeeding.
- Customer-centric strategies: One of the reasons for success is outstanding customer service, dedicated to preventing and addressing customer problems.
- Highly unique marketing strategies per channel: Shopper’s paths start on Instagram, Pinterest, and Amazon just as much as Google.
- Efficient distribution: Manage the supply and demand resourcefully to ensure deliveries are quick and accurate.
- Research and development: Analyze your own data and identify trends from your current consumers before creating your marketing strategies.
