CC BY
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УДК 004.02:004.5:004.9
Yusuf N.A. student Samara University scientific adviser: Matveeva Yu. V.
Russia, Samara
5 COMMON MISTAKES OF ECOMMERCE START-UPS
Annotation: Running a business is like climbing a mountain. Sometimes you are on the up-and-up, and other times you hit obstacles that hinder your progress. Like a rock climber, you need the right tools, expertise, and determination to reach the top.
That is why it is important to prepare yourself for success by avoiding common mistakes that other entrepreneurs make on their e-commerce journey.
From choosing the wrong e-commerce platform to not considering user experience, in this blog you'll learn what mistakes to avoid — and how to set yourself up for ecommerce success.
If you have big dreams to grow your e-commerce business, check out these FIVE critical e-commerce mistakes to avoid when selling online.
Key words: platform, customers, convenience of social media usage.
CHOOSING THE WRONG PLATFORM
The biggest e-commerce mistake is choosing the wrong platform to sell on. Just because a platform has the most users, or is the most popular, that does not mean that it is right for you. It is super important to understand your own requirements and your user's needs before you choose a platform for your online store. Here are some of the top e-commerce platforms: 1. Big Commerce - Ideal platform for startups because of its affordable price 2. Woo Commerce - Adds flexibility to your store with the help of additional add-ons and themes 3. Magento - Allows you to select any hosting company of your choice 4. Shopify - Includes marketing tools that help with SEO and social media
IGNORING ANALYTICS
Analytics tools are the most powerful tools for your business. They give you data about your audience - their interests, demographics, and behavior on your store. You can use this data to your advantage for email segmentation campaigns, A/B testing, and for implementing dynamic content for your website. The easiest way to implement analytics is by using Google Analytics to understand your audience and track their behavior in your store. You can also select analytics plugins depending on the e-commerce platform that you are working with.
NO STRONG BRAND MESSAGE OR IDENTITY
While Nike may be known for its shoes, they have put in the work to create a strong brand identity, logo, and message. The Nike "swoosh" is recognized across the world and their tagline "Just Do It" is simple, iconic, and motivating.
Do not make the mistake of thinking that your products are good enough to sell themselves. In order to create a thriving business, you will need to cultivate a strong brand identity that will relatable to your audience and will be conducive to viral brand awareness.
Be Authentic, Be Consistent
If you have done your market research, you should have a solid idea of what your audience is looking for, and what type of language speaks to them. Then it is just a matter of being consistent and unwavering in your messaging.
If your brand represents high quality, trustworthiness, fun, affordability, etc., then these values should be evident in all of your content, branding, and marketing.
Having a strong brand identity increases customer loyalty and increases your potential for widespread brand awareness.
POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE
Customer service includes a lot of different things.
It includes how you respond to user messages through your website. It is how you respond to questions and comments on social media. It is how you address customer's complaints over the phone and via email. You interact with a customer that requires your attention and support.
Poor customer support (including slow response time, showing impatience, not offering refunds, etc.) is the surest way to lose existing customers and hinder getting new ones.
Be There When They Need You
You should be accessible to your users and customers at every step of your sales process — from acquiring information, to checking out, to follow-up. This ensures that they do not have any issues, or if they do, you are able to resolve them quickly and professionally.
If you take forever to respond, rely on automated responses, only send one-word answers, or have a "tough luck" attitude, you will create a long trail of unhappy customers.
Your customers are the lifeblood of your business. Not only is it easier to and more profitable to keep an existing customer, but the likelihood of them sending more business to you is increased when you offer amazing customer service.
NOT FOCUSING ON THE USER EXPERIENCE
Creating a stellar user experience is the best thing you can do for your ecommerce store. Here are various mistakes you might be making that affect the customer's journey negatively: Don't use low-quality images People hate browsing a site that looks unprofessional. Make sure you have good looking images and elements on every single page of your site. Don't be stingy with design. Describe your products well Having a proper description is as important as having high-quality images. 69% of shoppers want to read your product description. Write a complete description mentioning every detail about the product. Include the size, fit, shape, color, and any other information that your users might be looking for. This is also good for SEO. The longer your description is the more keywords you can use. Remember to always focus on the user; do not write descriptions for search engines. Offer free shipping If you are in the ecommerce industry, you know that buyers hate
paying for shipping. capability on an e-commerce store is probably the worst UX mistake you could ever make. Up to 30% of visitors use the website's search box to search for products. On top of that, research shows that visitors using search contribute to 13.8% of annual revenue. This is why site search is important for your e-commerce store. You can stay ahead of the curve by: 1. Using auto-complete feature on your site search. 2. Improve search results page. 3. Make it easy to find the search box. Provide an option to search for products on your store and include filters to help users further refine their search results.
Sources used:
1. https://yourstory.com/mystory/add1a983e5-10-mistakes-e-commerce
2. https://magento.com/blog/small-business/ecommerce-mistakes-to-avoid-whenselling-online
3. Spotify blog/daily business
