The pandemic has significantly changed the e-commerce industry, redefining the approach to sales. For many companies, the online channel is the only chance to stay on the surface, which is associated with increased interest in online shopping. How to adapt the sales process to the current global situation and consumer needs?
Take advantage of marketing automation
Lead generation is the first process that takes place in the sales funnel. It requires the cooperation of several departments, including marketing, sales, and customer service. Marketing automation relieves employees of everyday, tedious tasks and allows them to focus on other important activities that have a direct impact on sales growth. Marketing automation allows, among others, for planning, creating and optimising campaigns, consumer data management, audience activity tracking, user segmentation and sending personalised emails and push notifications. Ever increasing competition determines a new approach to sales, and therefore the use of innovative solutions. Hence, the marketing automation tool should become the basis of marketing strategy in any company, regardless of its size.
Extend the scope of customer acquisition
While regular and loyal customers are responsible for most of the company’s revenue, one should not forget about acquiring new ones. In the face of the pandemic, it is worth devoting more energy to this process and taking care of acquiring new markets. How to achieve it? First of all, it is necessary to define a persona, i.e., an ideal customer who will be most interested in the offer. Campaigns must be created on the basis of perfect knowledge of customers – their expectations, needs, tastes, or preferences. Based on the profiles, you’ll be able to accurately target your ad, match its context to your company’s assets, customise your ad , and choose the most converting ad channels. With marketing automation tools, it is also possible to analyse media for their effectiveness – it may turn out that some channels are not as effective as we thought.
Re-engage inactive customers
Even if a customer is satisfied with the purchase in our online store, this does not mean that they will not try out the products of the competition. It is a good idea to refresh your contact with a customer again, especially since they’ve shown interest in the offer once. In this case, drip marketing campaigns will work perfectly. This is a form of automation used in email marketing and push notifications. It involves developing a set of messages and scheduling their distribution over a given time frame. Everything is done automatically – the moment of advertising transmission depends on the trigger. For example, you can send a series of reminder messages about the last order, then – about the benefits of re-purchases, and finally trigger the FOMO effect, i.e., inform customers that the promotion is limited in time. In this way, we gain the opportunity to communicate the message gradually, adapting the strategy to the specific behaviour of the audience.
Upselling – extra sales
Upselling is one of the strategies to increase the value of the shopping cart. It involves encouraging the customer to purchase a higher-value product, yet before closing the transaction. The substitute of the selected product should, for example, have better parameters or technical properties, and thus a higher price. Then there is a chance that the potential customer will be interested in the new product and change their choice. However, upselling carries certain risks. Since the transaction is not closed yet, the user can give up the purchase. However, abandoned carts can be rescued. In this case, the marketing automation tool will also prove to be the best solution.
Diversify your sources of income
The pandemic may also encourage the testing of new selling opportunities, thereby compensating for losses incurred in one of the brand’s activities. Diversification comes down to making the product range and sources of income varied or giving up a certain group of products. It can refer to both extending the assortment without going beyond the sector, and focusing on other activities, while maintaining current technologies. It is worth following the competition on an ongoing basis – it may turn out that there are now more companies offering the same products on the market. Diversification can contribute to gaining independence from one target group and increasing the company’s competitiveness.
Sell longer contracts
Nowadays, consumers also show financial instability, so it is worth offering them longer contracts on favourable terms and conditions. This approach brings benefits to both brands and customers who will not have to worry about higher prices of services that they are willing to buy and are used to. This will apply to both new and existing customers. A good strategy is to offer a longer contract at a lower price or a month free of charge for services. There is a good chance that customers will appreciate this gesture, sort of identifying with their favourite brand.
