Launching an online store has never been easier, with the help of user-friendly eCommerce platforms such as Shopify. However, just because you are able to open a store doesn’t mean anyone will actually be able to find your products and buy them.
Success in eCommerce is often dependent on how well you can promote your products and get your name out there, which means you need a foolproof Shopify marketing plan that can help you build a customer base and grow your brand.
The problem with digital marketing is that there are dozens of different tactics and hacks floating around out there that can lead you astray, wasting your time and money. Rather than chase a hundred different ideas, you need to narrow your focus on a handful of proven marketing techniques that will actually yield results.
If you want to grow your business you have to go with what works, and execute efficiently.
The following growth strategies are based around the most reliable avenues of eCommerce digital marketing, and will help you grow your Shopify store effectively.
How to Grow Your Shopify Store Properly
While it might be tempting to implement every fresh new marketing strategy you come across in order to build your brand and increase traffic and sales to your Shopify website, this is not only time-consuming but in most cases ineffective as well.
A simple and effective marketing strategy will help users connect with your brand, which will result in more traffic and sales, as well as greater brand awareness.
In order to find consistent success, you need to consolidate your marketing tactics and follow a more narrow path that is focused on tried and true methods of growth. While this may seem less glamorous than jumping on board with the latest trends and marketing masterclasses, it’s ultimately what will get you the best results, especially in the long term.
Here at Genius eCommerce® we have a solid 3 lane approach to Shopify marketing that includes comprehensive eCommerce SEO, agile pay-per-click advertising, and social media management that is based on building an active shopper base.
Let’s dissect each of these 3 areas of eCommerce marketing to better understand why they are so important to focus on and how they
Shopify SEO: The Backbone of Your Growth Plan
For many store owners, search engine optimization remains an enigma. What keywords to focus on, what kinds of content to create, what site improvements to make. It can all seem a little daunting.
You will even read articles that say things like Shopify isn’t good for SEO or that you need certain special plugins, or that you need to follow this one special technique that some marketer invented last month.
Needless to say, the majority of all of this information is wrong. In fact, SEO is still the kind when it comes to eCommerce digital marketing, and should comprise the backbone of any full-scale Shopify marketing strategy.
The reason for this is that nothing can quite compare to organic traffic and sales. When users are searching for a specific product and your website pops up, that’s incredibly powerful. You could make the argument that nothing else in the world of marketing compares to those top spots in Google at the moment.
Simply from a brand awareness standpoint, SEO carries incredible weight. The more your website and branding appear in Google search results, the more recognized you will become within your niche. This can be accomplished through careful implementation of certain on-page optimizations, keyword research, and a solid linking strategy.
Despite all of the zany SEO trends that are out there, the truth is that the same timeless techniques are what will provide you with the growth you’re looking for. Here are the general guidelines you will want to follow:
- Perform comprehensive keyword research that takes into account your industry, your competitors, search intent, user shopping behavior, and your specific products.
- Develop a content strategy based on these keywords. This means adding the keywords to relevant pages on your website, into optimized blog articles, and in meta titles and descriptions as well.
- Make sure your navigational hierarchy, categories, and links all make sense. Users should be able to easily navigate your Shopify store in order to find what they are looking for.
- Optimize for speed and efficiency throughout your site. While page speed isn’t everything, a slow website can lead to more bounces, which Google may take as a sign that your website doesn’t offer a polished experience.
- Provide value that extends beyond your products. Your website should be informative, offering tips, behind-the-scenes information on your brand, giveaways and contests, how-tos, and more. You want to be the go-to authority online for your products and perhaps even your niche entirely.
- Formulate a backlinking strategy. This is difficult without the weight of a skilled Shopify SEO agency behind you, but ideally you will want to connect with other websites in your niche and reach out to them for backlinks. You will also want to get listed in local business directories and other 3rd party websites. This is what will help raise your domain authority.
- Keep tabs on your growth and be agile in your approach to SEO. BE willing to prune content, add value to underperforming pages, create proper 301 redirects when removing or changing pages, and address server errors and other issues as they arise in Google Search Console.
Obviously, pulling all of this off without the help of a dedicated team of Shopify marketing professionals is a tall order, which is why we recommend hiring a capable agency to help you manage your SEO for you. Even if you have a marketing background, eCommerce SEO is not something that can be managed by one person alone, nor is it something that should be addressed without a carefully crafted strategy in place.
Scaling With Smart Shopify PPC
Of all of the different marketing activities you are bound to perform for your online store, PPC is the most likely to generate quick results.
It’s not even all that difficult to see a decent return with eCommerce PPC if you know a little about targeting and how to write convincing sales copy. The trick is maximizing your budget and using PPC ads to actually scale and grow your business.
Creating an ad strategy that is cost-effective and that truly represents your brand can be somewhat challenging. This smart approach to PPC requires a deeper understanding of your target audience, better-worded ads, and a more dynamic strategy overall that makes use of all of the different tools that platforms such as Google and Amazon have to offer.
The trick with getting the most out of PPC isn’t often in the ads themselves, but in the angle you take with the entire campaign, as well as the finer targeting details. A skilled digital marketing agency that understands your audience and industry will be able to create a more nuanced campaign that can help stretch your budget, get more conversions, and even improve your brand appeal.
Looking at your ad campaign as simply a way to generate traffic is too short-sighted. PPC can be used as a powerful growth tool in the right hands, but there’s more to it than simply spending more money or adjusting your targeting. You may need the help of a professional team of PPC experts that specialize in eCommerce to see the kind of results you want.
Launching an eCommerce Social Media Strategy
Your Shopify marketing efforts shouldn’t end with just SEO and PPC. Though it can seem daunting at first, social media offers an incredible opportunity to grow your business, through increased customer loyalty, brand awareness, traffic, and sales.
Millions of users are on social media. It’s your job to connect with them and help them find the products they are searching for. A smart social media plan can help make this happen.
The key here is to find a marketing company that knows the difference between ordinary social media management and eCommerce social media marketing services. Everyday management might seem beneficial when in fact for most businesses it’s just a waste of money and doesn’t actually move the needle when it comes to producing actionable results.
You could opt to spend money on certain social media platforms but this is always necessary. You should use paid advertising to supplement your marketing efforts, not as a strategy all its own. You still need that organic engagement in order to build a strong and dedicated audience.
If you want to properly grow your Shopify store, you need to utilize the power of social media marketing, which extends beyond mere Facebook ads and influencer marketing. You need a sound eCommerce-centric strategy that builds your accounts and pushes authority to your online store. This way you will be able to start increasing your organic presence while creating digital assets for your brand, which is ultimately one of the best reasons to be on social media in the first place.
Which social media platforms should you be focusing on, however?
Although there are quite a few viable candidates out there, with new platforms popping up every year, there are only a select few that you will want to set your sights on for eCommerce purposes specifically. Typically, these include Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. If you operate an online store, these are the three platforms you need to be on.
Compared to the clear benefits of SEO and PPC, you might be wondering why social media is worth using at all. Is it actually worth incorporating into your digital marketing campaign?
- Social media is the best way to communicate your brand online. Oftentimes users will trust an Instagram page more than they will an actual website or online store.
- Users associate active social media accounts with authority, trustworthiness, and legitimacy. A lack of a social media presence is a red flag for some people.
- Social media puts a human face on your brand and business. You can use these platforms to easily connect with your customers and build relationships.
- Social media opens up alternative sales channels.
- Platforms like Instagram and Pinterest can help you spot trends and adjust your content strategy accordingly.
- Social media can be used as a growth monitoring tool. Without getting bogged down in vanity metrics like follower counts and impressions, these platforms can help you easily see how much engagement you are getting, the overall sentiment toward your products and brand, interest levels in certain products, and are a reliable place to ask for feedback from your audience.
At this point, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be using social media if you are trying to grow your Shopify eCommerce business. The right approach is necessary, of course, because ordinary social media management is unlikely to get you anywhere significant. A talented marketing agency that appreciates the value of social media and the right techniques to use for growth, will be able to make a difference for your store.
The Ultimate Shopify Marketing Solution
Your eCommerce business needs to be carefully cultivated in order to scale the way you want it to. No matter what your specific goals are, this still means that your marketing tactics need to be created thoughtfully, with reliable methods that are proven to work.
To create marketing strategies of this caliber, you need to be aware of all of the latest eCommerce trends, you need to be adept at all of the different marketing tools that are available, in-depth knowledge of Shopify is a must, and you need to have a workable system in your pocket that gets verifiable results.
We cover all of those key points and more. Genius eCommerce® is about developing powerful growth strategies for eCommerce businesses, using full-scale SEO campaigns, agile PPC plans, and social media marketing as well.
If this sounds like what you need in order to get your Shopify marketing plan on track, give us a call at 888.982.8269. Our team of eCommerce experts will work closely with you to develop a strategy that is customized to your industry, brand, and audience. We don’t do cookie-cutter here, and you can’t afford to go with such a pat solution if you want to grow your business and increase sales. Give us a call today and unlock the full potential of your Shopify website.
