JD Duarte

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7 suggestions to keep your eCommerce business smooth

From huge organizations to community shops and even entrepreneurs working from home, eCommerce continues to be an important channel for keeping an organization’s revenue streams moving in the right direction. In particular for smaller merchants, eCommerce is the principle method for keeping a business afloat these days.

Since your clients don’t always necessarily live in the same area as the business, it becomes more of a challenge to understand their likes and dislikes, as well as to find them – no matter where they are – to deliver value. Successful businessman and entrepreneur from Costa Rica Jose Duarte shares seven methods to ensure the eCommerce business will continue to move forward.

Technology doesn’t need to be an obstacle. There exist a number of tools today – like drag-and-drop sales funnels that include built-in shopping carts – that remove all of the guesswork. Explains Duarte, “Become familiar with your options and decide which is right for you. This is fundamental to overcoming the technology hurdle and virtually everything today is available in a plug-and-play version.”

With so many choices, it can sometimes be difficult for consumers to know where to turn. Building trust among customers is a guarantee that the business will succeed. Build a rapport with consumers, through email newsletters, blogs and other social media options, to stand out from the rest and to also understand what the customer wants.

While entrepreneurs and business owners would love to offer their products or services to everyone, this is not only unrealistic, it’s virtually impossible. “It’s important to select a market segment and target your activity to this group,” asserts Duarte. “Make sure you understand who your segment is, but keep in mind that this can, and will, change as the business grows. Always keep your finger on the pulse of the entire consumer market so you can make adjustments accordingly.”

People love a deal and get excited when products or services are bundled together. Create promotions and sales opportunities that combine two or more offerings in order to stand out from the competition.

Don’t focus too much on just one product. Be flexible and offer a variety that can appeal to more than one market. This can only be achieved by thorough research and market analysis, but that effort will pay off in the long run.

Creating a sales funnel can go a long way toward increasing sales. Allow the consumer to start with a free or inexpensive offer and then include additional items that build value not just to the company, but to the consumer, as well. This sales funnel can work all the way through the purchase process, including after the sale is made when, for example, a one-time offer can be presented.

Always make sure the goods or services can be delivered quickly. States Duarte, “We live in a world that expects instant gratification. When a consumer makes a purchase online, he or she wants to know that delivery will be made in just a couple of days, not weeks. The sooner you can deliver, the happier the consumer will be and this will lead to more sales, more frequently.”

The primary concern any internet business owner needs to comprehend is metrics. Understand the cost of customer acquistion and the average cart value to gauge how effective sales programs are. Ultimately, the company that spends the least to acquire customers wins the competition.