Customer Retention Tactics: How to Keep Customers (Happy)
Businesses today all face the challenge of holding onto customers in a fiercely competitive online world. With so many options just a click away, shoppers can easily switch to a rival offering a better deal or experience. If you run a small online business, it’s natural to focus on getting new customers — but the real value often lies in keeping the ones you already have. Customer retention is all about keeping your customers coming back for more. As we’ll discover, it can cost five to 25 times more to win a new customer than to keep one. The stats show that loyal customers tend to spend more, too. Learning how to build satisfaction and loyalty could be just what your business needs to get ahead. What is customer retention? It’s never easy — finding new customers. But whatever kind of business you run, it’s nearly always cheaper and easier to hold onto the customers you’ve already got than it is to go chasing after new ones. Simply put, customer retention is about building lasting relationships with people who keep coming back. It means keeping your existing customers happy and engaged so they stick with you over time. Why? Because happy customers are more likely to stay loyal, spend more, and recommend your business to others. The most underrated marketing tactic out there isn’t getting new customers — it’s keeping the ones you’ve already won. It works both ways: loyalty drives retention, and the stronger your retention, the more loyal your customers become. Every lost customer is like losing two: the one who left, and the one they might have recommended. Customer retention is something you can measure. By tracking things like customer lifetime value, repeat purchase rates, and churn, you can better understand your customers and spot where your business could improve. Two key metrics to keep in mind: ✅ Customer Retention Rate (CRR): the percentage of customers who stay with you. ✅ Customer Churn Rate (CCR): the percentage who leave. A high CRR means your customers are happy. A high CCR? Time to dig deeper. But we’ll come back to those later. Why customer retention matters Depending what your business does (and who you ask) it can cost anywhere from 5 to 25 times more to bring in a new customer than it does to keep an existing one. Loyal customers save you money, spend more over time, and help grow your brand through word-of-mouth. According to OutBound Engine they’re: 5x times more likely to make a repeat purchase, 4x times more likely to recommend the brand to family and friends, and 7x times more likely to try new products or services. That’s especially important online, where you don’t have the benefit of face-to-face interaction. Building trust takes time, and keeping customers becomes even more important. The lower your churn rate, the healthier your business. Just a small increase in customer loyalty can have a big impact on your bottom line. Returning customers spend 67% more over time than first-time customers, while acquiring a new customer can be five to 25 times more expensive than retaining an existing one, according to Forbes. 92% of consumers believe that recommendations they’ve received from friends and family have more impact than advertising. Added to that, those customers who are loyal to your brand are also 1.9x more likely to defend it against criticism! Having said this, the stats will depend on the industry you’re in. Statista reports that media and professional services businesses are much more successful when it comes to customer retention CRR (84%) than, for example, travel and hospitality industries (55%). In short, here’s what strong customer retention gives you: ✅Increased profits: Repeat customers tend to spend more, more often. ✅Decreased acquisition costs: Less money wasted on chasing new leads. ✅Improved brand reputation: Loyal customers are your best advocates. ✅Improved customer lifetime value: Happy customers stick around and add lasting value. Luckily, there are plenty of tactics small online businesses can use to keep customers coming back for more. Stick around: 12 customer retention tactics to make customers stay 1. Add personal touches that surprise and delight The best way to keep customers is to go above and beyond. A thank-you note, a cheeky extra in the package, or a tailored message based on past purchases — it all adds up. It’s about creating little moments that make customers feel noticed, valued and happy to come back. 2. Build loyalty with rewards and perks Loyalty programs are a classic for good reason. Offer discounts, early access, or exclusive treats for repeat shoppers. A simple points system can do the job — people love feeling like insiders. A common method is a points system, where customers earn points for every purchase or interaction. They can trade these points for rewards such as discounts, early access to sales, free shipping, or tiered rewards that encourage spending more. 72% of global shoppers feel loyal to at least one brand, and 84% are more likely to stay with one that offers rewards. In the UK, 65% say they’re more likely to buy again if loyalty points are on offer. So it pays to say thanks. 3. Streamline the buying process Making buying as easy as possible is key to boosting sales and keeping customers coming back. When browsing and checkout flow smoothly, customers are less likely to abandon their cart. A simple, secure payment process leaves customers feeling satisfied and valued, which builds trust. Positive experiences turn into loyalty, and loyal customers often spread the word — increasing sales. 4. Be mobile ready Over half of internet searches now happen on phones. The slice is even bigger when it comes to shopping purchases. Google prefers mobile, too, giving better search rank to pages that have been optimised for smartphones. So while the mobile experience is important to all website owners, it’s an absolute must if you have an online business. See also: Why You Need a Mobile-Friendly Website (and How to Get One) 5. Engage
How Can I Make an E-commerce Website?
E-commerce is all about building online spaces where products can be offered to customers, 24/7. This article is written with the small business owner or solopreneur in mind. With platforms like Online Store Builder, launching a professional online store has never been easier. No need for a big budget or a dedicated IT team to get started — just click, drag, and sell. We’ll guide you through everything step by step, from choosing the right platform and domain name to setting up product listings, payment options, and shipping. We’ll also explore design, user experience, and simple SEO tips to help attract customers and keep them coming back. Why sell online? The UK is the third-largest e-commerce market in the world today. That’s right — third: ahead of Japan, ahead of Germany, and behind only the US and China. Online business in the UK is valued at a staggering $195 billion (around £160 billion) in terms of business-to-customer (B2C) revenue. Online retail now accounts for 36% of the UK retail market in total. Impressive stuff. To make sense of the numbers, nearly 65 million of us in the UK have internet access, of which over 50 million can be counted as online shoppers. Britain leads Europe in terms of spending per e-shopper, averaging at £4,115 spent online each year. Mobile shopping plays a big part in it. According to SellersCommerce, most online shopping transactions (63%) are made on mobile devices (or tablets) these days, with nearly half of those being made via apps. Cards are used for 52% of payments, while digital wallets cover 28%. Surprisingly, the UK also ranks very highly when it comes to future potential. E-commerce is growing, but still has plenty of room to grow further. In short, there’s never been a better time to start your own online store. The future of retail: online or bust? All this stands in stark contrast to the realities of the high street. Physical shops continue to struggle as more and more customers choose the comfort of shopping from their sofas. Over 28,000 shops have closed since 2010, and this trend has only accelerated in recent years. Fact is, commerce hasn’t gone away. It’s just somewhere else. Staying relevant means embracing change. Moving online opens up a world of opportunities and gives retailers access to a larger, ever-growing market. It’s about meeting customers where they are, and increasingly, that’s online — and on mobile. 10 Reasons to Take Your Business Online ✓ Eyes on your brand Getting your store online gives you the chance to show off your brand and products to people all over the world. The wider the reach, the more chance you’ve got to grow your customer base and get noticed. The more people see your brand, the more likely it is they’ll remember it when they’re ready to buy. ✓ Lower overheads Forget the rent, utility bills, and physical stock storage. Running an online store means fewer costs, so you can put that money where it matters — growing your business. Without the need for a physical storefront, you can reinvest those savings into better customer service, improved marketing, or expanding your product range. ✓ Scalability, Flexibility Running an online shop means you can manage things from anywhere with an internet connection. Want to expand? Easy. Need to scale back? No problem. You can adjust as you go, whether it’s adding new products, expanding your marketing, or just working with what works best. ✓ Be open 24/7 (if you like!) With an online shop, you’re open 24/7. Customers can browse and buy when it suits them, making it easier to boost your sales without lifting a finger. Plus, you can cater to different time zones, so you’re not limited by traditional business hours. ✓ Smarter marketing Paid online ads are often cheaper and more effective than traditional advertising. Same goes for email campaigns. The idea is to keep it targeted, so you reach the right people at the right time. Content marketing helps you share your message with a wider audience without breaking the bank. Using SEO techniques makes it easier to get noticed on search engines and draw in more customers over time. ✓ Mobile ready More of us are shopping on mobile devices than ever before. Having an online store optimised for mobile means customers can browse, compare, and buy on the go. ✓ Improved stock control With built-in inventory management on many e-commerce platforms, tracking stock and handling orders is easier. You can keep a close eye on stock levels, reorder in time, and avoid the stress of running low on popular items. ✓ Build customer relationships Running your store online lets you connect directly with customers. You can chat with them, get feedback, and offer a personalised service, without the middleman. This makes it easier to create loyal customers who feel heard and valued. ✓ Customer insights Online stores can tap into a wealth of data on customer habits, likes, and shopping patterns. Use this info to fine-tune your marketing, improve the shopping experience, and make informed decisions for your business. Free tools like Google Analytics can help you adjust strategy. ✓ Global reach You’re not restricted by location when you run an online store. You can start selling across the UK, expand to Europe, or even take your products global if that’s where you want to go. The whole online world is your marketplace. What’s the difference between e-commerce and an online store? E-commerce and online shops or stores are essentially the same thing — websites where buying and selling take place. The difference might come down to context. For smaller, more local setups, “online store” feels a bit more down to earth; bigger international businesses are more often referred to as “e-commerce”. As we’ll explore, e-commerce giants use advanced platforms that let them manage inventory, handle thousands of customised orders, and operate at scale. Keeping this running often requires dedicated IT teams. But you
How to Start an Online Business (Without Any Money)
Your imagination is your most valuable asset when it comes to starting an online business. It’s all about that great idea. You don’t need money in the bank or a computer science degree to make it happen. A spark of genius can ignite an empire. Starting strong begins with the essentials: buying a domain, building a website, setting up a custom email address. These steps lay the foundation. Once you’ve set your target, your time and energy become your first investment. One of the best things about doing business online is the flexibility — you control the model, the hours, and everything in between. You’re the boss. If you’re looking for a quicker way to win customers, selling through existing marketplaces gives you access to an instant audience. And if managing stock and storage isn’t your thing, a model like dropshipping lets you run a shop without ever handling the products. Easier said than done? Fair enough — there will be a few bumps along the way. The competition’s fierce. And once you’ve decided to launch your business, there’s also the small matter of registration, taxes, and keeping things above board. Let’s get into it! #1 Choose your business model Think about the core of your business: the product or service you’ll offer. What are you passionate about? What skills and expertise do you possess? Consider the size of your venture: is this going to be a hustle on the side, or a full-time commitment? When it comes to no-to-low cost online business ideas, here are just some of the models to choose from: ☐ Wholesale (Bulk Distribution) Wholesale is all about buying products in bulk from manufacturers or distributors, then selling direct to other stores. This could be clothing and apparel, electronics and accessories, food and drink… you name it. Success as a wholesaler depends on one very expensive thing, however: space. You’ll also need time to build a reputation before expanding into bulk distribution. So, when it comes to ideas for starting an online business from zero, wholesale might be more of a medium-long term model to aim for. Luckily, there are easier ways to get started. ☐ Dropshipping (Inventory-less Retail) If you’d prefer to avoid managing inventory and shipping — or if space is tight — then dropshipping could be the best option for you. Here’s the idea: when a customer places an order, it’s shipped directly from the supplier to them. Imagine running an online clothing store. With dropshipping, you can partner with manufacturers to send items straight from the factory to your customers, saving storage space and cutting out the logistical headache. Dropshipping has a lower barrier to entry than wholesale due to the lack of upfront inventory and storage space costs. Profit margins tend to be lower, as you’re essentially paying the supplier to handle all the fulfillment. But it’s a great place to start. ☐ Reselling Reselling is about buying products, new or used, and selling them on at a higher price. While the word might conjure up images of selling second-hand goods on eBay, the majority of online shops are essentially resellers. The reselling model is especially common on major online marketplace platforms. For example, you might purchase popular mobile phones from major retailers and resell them at a higher price. The key difference between resellers and dropshippers is that resellers hold stock, even if only in small quantities. ‘Arbitrage’ is another sort of reselling where sellers set out to profit from price differences between markets. While it can work for some, it’s important to keep everything above board! ☐ Private Label Going private label is way to build brand identity without the hassle and expense of manufacturing products from scratch. Essentially, you partner with a manufacturer who produces a generic product, which you then customise with your own branding. You can offer unique products under your own name, even if you don’t have the resources to create them yourself. ☐ Handmade Goods and Custom Products Artisans and craftspeople have long put their skills to work selling handmade goods online. This might includes unique jewellery, clothing, furniture, art, and more. You can add personalisation options for a special touch. A popular subcategory is Print on Demand (POD), where you sell custom items like t-shirts or mugs made especially to order. ☐ Digital Products This category encompasses a wide range of products, including eBooks, software, digital art, and more. Creating and selling digital products can be a cost-effective way to reach a global audience. Say you’re the author of a series of eBooks, for instance. You could sell your titles on platforms like Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, Apple Books, or through your own website. Just be sure to use Digital Rights Management to deter any unauthorised copying and sharing. ☐ Subscription Services (Physical) Offering products on a subscription basis has the potential to bring in a steady stream of revenue. Subscription boxes filled with curated physical products, such as beauty samples, gourmet snacks, or hobby-related items, offer customers the excitement of receiving new surprises regularly. One popular example might be subscription cooking packs and spices. ☐ Affiliate Marketing Affiliate marketing is a performance-based way to earn, where you make commission promoting other people’s products or services. Typically, you’ll earn a little for each sale made through unique referral links. The key is to focus on products or services that align with your audience’s interests and needs. Affiliate marketing can bring significant earning potential for popular bloggers and vloggers, Youtubers and social media influencers — which brings us nicely to the next category… ☐ Freelance Creative Freelance creative work lets you turn your skills into a flexible way to earn. Set your own rates, choose your hours, and work on your terms. Whether through a freelance platform or your own website, a good portfolio can show off your best work and happy clients. Creative freelance services might include: ✓ Graphic design✓ Illustration✓ Photography✓
7 Reasons Why SSL Certificates are Essential for Websites
We’ve all seen that little padlock icon when shopping online — sat reassuringly close to the web address. As we’ll discover, this symbol offers much more than just a sense of safety. SSL Certificates play a huge role in protecting our personal data on the net. They help all kinds of website owners to build a trustworthy and credible online presence. And if your plan is to sell products or services online, there are few better ways to tell customers: I mean business. How the web learned to protect itself Cast your mind back to the early days of the internet, if you can — Windows 95 booting up on a chunky CRT monitor, 56k modem chirping down your only telephone line. The mid-1990s marked the first time many of us ever sent an email across the world. Perhaps it was the first time you added an item to your digital basket and paid for it online. Oh, how we marvelled at our new global connectivity. Yet, there was one major snag: online security. Or rather, the lack of it. The problem lay in how browsers and servers very casually moved our data around. For the most part, it was all exchanged in simple plain text. Like an open book. Sensitive data was out there to be picked up by anyone with ill intentions. Imagine scribbling credit card numbers on a napkin every time you go to buy a coffee. Everyone wants to keep their data safe. For the internet to become a place where people could shop, share, and interact with confidence, there had to be a better way to protect the information passing through. What was needed was a kind of secure courier service — a private envelope that could be signed, sealed, delivered. This is where SSL Certificates come in. What do SSL Certificates do? SSL Certificates are a clever way to protect user information and defend against hackers. The initials stand for Secure Sockets Layer, though don’t let that put you off. In a nutshell, SSL is there to establish a trusted and secure link between your browser and the website you’re on. Like two people meeting for the first time, browsers and servers want to say “Hello” and have a good handshake. But your browser is rightly suspicious when meeting new people. It needs to know strangers really are who they say they are. It asks: “Can I see some ID, please?” With that, it’s then up to the server to come up with the credentials: its SSL Certificate. If the details check out with the browser (both valid and in date) then it forms the beginnings of a trustworthy relationship. SSL Certificates are like passports, in this sense. Crucially, each SSL Certificate is issued and regulated by a third party, known as a Certificate Authority (CA). It’s the job of a CA to check that a website is indeed owned by the entity that claims it, ensuring, for example, that an online shop is connected to a real company. In fact, 96.3% of all SSL certificates online are issued by just 9 Certificate Authorities. There are more than 2.5 million SSL Certificates on the internet, according to BuildWith, which empower security for the majority of the top million most-visited websites out there. Approximately 4% of traffic the moves across Google Search is encrypted, ensuring a secure experience for users. HTTP vs., HTTPS Have you ever noticed how some URLs start with “http:” while others start with “https”? The S stands for “secure” and this goes to show that the website has its own SSL. Most browsers actually hide that part of the address these days, instead opting for some variation on the little padlock icon. Just be sure the padlock is displayed within the browser’s interface — an image of a padlock on a webpage is no guarantee of security. Like this: Encryption SSL Certificates make use of sophisticated keys and algorithms to encrypt data. That is to say: scrambling up the information so that it can be safely unscrambled again later. The level of sophistication can be described in “bits”. As a reference, a sheet hidden with 128-bit encryption would take the most powerful supercomputer billions of years to decode. 256-bit is better than that. But the really smart thing is that there are two different keys involved. When you send data, it’s locked using a public key. And when it gets to where it’s going, it’s unlocked with the private key. Nobody has access to both keys. Therefore, nobody can take a direct sneak peak, no matter how hard they try. Key elements of SSL Certificates SSL certificates rely on a system of trust established by Certificate Authorities (CAs). Root certificates, acting like the CA’s ID, are at the top and validate the CA’s legitimacy. You can identify them by matching “Issued to” and “Issued by” fields. Intermediate certificates act as intermediaries between the highly secure root certificate and your website’s SSL certificate. Every SSL certificate has at least one to create a chain of trust. A PFX file is a special format that combines your private key and SSL certificate. This is only necessary if you want to use the same certificate on multiple servers. When you create an SSL certificate, a unique code called a private key is generated on your server. This key is essential for installation and must be kept confidential. If it’s lost, a new SSL certificate will be required. From SSL to TSL Just as the internet has developed over the years, so have SSL Certificates. Over time, SSL became what is (technically) known as “Transport Layer Security” or TLS — but most people stick with the original expression when speaking broadly about these security tools. Almost two-thirds of sites support the latest TLS 1.3 protocol. The importance of SSL Certificates has only grown. Whether you’re running a small online shop or a big corporate platform, writing a blog
The Top Trending Inventory-Free Products to Sell Online 2024
The UK online marketplace continues to boom — there’s no time like now to start your own online business. But with so many different ways to sell, it can get a bit overwhelming. For most startup e-tailers, the biggest challenge will be finding the space to store the goods on offer. Where to begin? Luckily, there’s a smart way around that: going stock free. Yep – you can kick off a successful an online venture without turning your home into a warehouse. No faffing about with inventory management means you’re free to focus on doing what you do best — delivering fantastic service to your customers, building loyalty, and (fingers crossed) raking in a tidy profit. In this article, we’ll have a look at ways to suss out hot, trending products to sell with no or low inventory. How to start an inventory-free online store Launching an online business, it goes without saying, is almost always easier and more affordable than setting up a physical shop. User-friendly platforms like Website Builder and Managed WordPress make getting a professional website online a breeze. It’s a doddle to find and buy a great domain name, too. Alternatively (or at the same time) you can sell on the established marketplaces like Amazon, Etsy, eBay, or even Facebook Marketplace. Competition is fierce, but each offers insights into top trending products on that platform, helping you tap into current market demands. With trending data (and a bit of intuition) you’ll be able to stay ahead of the curve and find the items most likely to find buyers. Choose a low or no inventory business model The great thing about e-commerce is that you can start a business without shelling out for hefty rent and utilities. Grow at your own pace while getting the hang of things — no stressing over storage constraints. There are various low-or-no inventory models to choose from. Each has its own pros and cons. Picking the right one will come down to your interests, talents, and resources. You don’t need to be a market guru or web dev to find success. Here’s a breakdown of the main options: Dropshipping: The classic stock-free model. In dropshipping, you’re a storefront without the inventory: you list your products for sale, and when a customer makes an order, then forward that to a supplier, who ships the product direct to the customer. The supplier manages storage, packing, and shipping entirely. Fulfillment: A fulfillment centre is a facility that stores, packs, and ships products on your behalf. Unlike dropshipping, you’ll essentially buy the stock upfront and have it kept at the fulfillment centre for storage for you. As orders come in, they handle packing and shipping. Amazon’s Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is a well-known example, but there are lots out there. Of course, both dropshipping and fulfillment come with lower profit margins due to the fees charged by suppliers. Fees are generally higher when dropshipping, as the supplier carries the inventory risk, and they’d be stuck with any unsold products. Handmade: Crafting unique, handmade items with care and attention to detail – putting quality over quantity, and perhaps even telling a story about an items creation or origin. This is what handmade selling is about. There’s crossover with the next category… Custom Made-to-Order: Creating unique products based on customer specifications. That might include handmade, as above, or perhaps items like bespoke furniture, jewellery, gifts, you name it. This all takes skill and craftsmanship, but the rewards can be sweet both when it comes to customer loyalty and profit. Low-Inventory Reselling: Unlike traditional retail with huge amounts of inventory, the aim of a low-inventory reseller is to keep minimal stock through selective, high-demand products. Success will depend on identifying profitable deals and staying on top of market trends. Used Items: While not entirely stock-free, selling used items can be done with a small, rotating inventory rather than large quantities. Private Label: Going ‘Private label’ is all about rebranding products that have been manufactured by others. You’re putting your stamp on someone else’s work: customising goods with your own branding, packaging, labels. One example might be purchasing shampoo or perfume from a manufacturer, repackaging it (legally and with permission from the manufacturer!) for a healthy profit. Subscription Services: Think of subscription services as a monthly treat box delivered to a doorstep. Customers pay a recurring fee to receive regular products or services. This steady income stream can be really profitable for entrepreneurs who can offer value and great customer service. Digital Products: If you can share your knowledge or creativity with the world, digital products are your ticket. From e-books and online courses to software and artwork, there’s digital products for all. Storage shouldn’t be an issue, as your space is limited to hard disks, the cloud, or perhaps a Virtual Private Server (VPS). See also: How to Start an Online Business (Without Any Money) Top Trending Products to Sell Online Tech EssentialsTech essentials have become integral to modern lifestyles — devices made for our convenience and connectivity. The UK market for phone accessories alone is worth around £5.27 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow to £7 billion by 2030, with an annual increase of 3.6%. For a business model with low or no stock, offering personalised and made-to-order tech essentials is one way to stand out. Think phone cases, mouse mats, custom laptop sleeves, personalised headphones, and even bespoke laptop stands. Beauty and Wellness Beauty and wellness products are always in high demand. The UK beauty and wellness industry estimated to be worth £39.04 billion and expected to keep growing 2% or so each year. As a dropshipping/fulfillment option, evergreen products include moisturisers and serums, shampoos and styling products, foundations and lipsticks. Social media platforms like TikTok are great for spotting (or even starting) the latest beauty trends. Home and Living Homeware and kitchen products are ideal for side hustlers looking to tap into a practical and stylish niche. Items like stylish kitchenware, including
60 Days ’til Christmas: Get Business Ready for the Festive Season
As the calendar inches closer to December, businesses brace for the most hectic time of the year: the festive season. ‘Tis the time for gift-giving, carol-singing and — for online companies — Christmas offers a golden opportunity for shining brighter than the major rivals. With this in mind, let’s unwrap a few festive tips for getting the most out of the build up to Christmas this year. Christmas Comes Early Santa seems to show up just that little bit earlier each and every year. Once a mere three-or-four week window of December, the Christmas shop is now a multi-month affair. One reason for this has been the rise of so-called “Mega Sale Days”. In the US, Black Friday and Cyber Weekend kickstart a shopping frenzy on the Friday and Monday after Thanksgiving. Black Friday has gained a lot of headway on this side of the pond now, too, and particularly when it comes to online retail. The dying embers of Guy Fawkes Night might be an even earlier cue for the Christmas countdown in the UK. We’re certainly eager to get a head start when it comes to finding our ideal gifts. According to Statista’s 2022 UK Christmas Shopping data, over half of UK adults said they would begin their Christmas shop before the 1st of December, while 16% said they would be done by that date already. Many of us start even earlier. Retail sales for October have grown every year since 2017, while RCS UK data suggests that 40% of British consumers now begin their Christmas shopping in October — long before the Halloween pumpkins have been rolled away. And the slice for online shopping only keeps growing: £30 billion in online Christmas sales last year compared to £52 billion in bricks and mortar. Scrooge The cost of living crisis is likely to pinch this Christmas. Don’t let that dampen your spirits, but do consider it in your sales and marketing strategy. Last December, 79% of consumers said they aimed to buy fewer gifts, while 73% stated they were searching for cheaper alternatives. This year, 45% of UK adults have said they plan to cut their holiday spending, according to The Retail Times. That amounts to about £13 billion in total. 26% of respondents to the same survey said they’ll set aside less than £300 for all Christmas spending this year. While it’s true the high-end luxury market tends to remain unaffected, inflation is high and most will be hunting for value. It might be a good strategy to put more bang-for-buck in the Christmas cracker. Making the Christmas List Begin by setting your goals and defining what you aim to achieve during this festive period. Whether that’s increasing sales, generating leads, growing a customer base, or boosting brand awareness on the whole. Set the objectives to guide your entire Christmas plan. Keep an eye on Black Friday on November 24th. No longer just an American thing, this day kickstarts the unofficial festive shopping frenzy across much of the world. It can be a good barometer for the upcoming December trends, plus a smart time to offer vouchers and deals valid to the end of the year and beyond. ❝Black Friday can be a good barometer for upcoming December trends, plus a smart time to offer vouchers and deals valid to the end of the year and beyond.❞ It’s not just about keeping up with the holiday rush: this is a great opportunity to build a strategy for long-term customer loyalty and a steady revenue stream year-round. ✓ Establish a roadmap. Early planning and scheduling of core promotions can be a lifesaver during the busy holiday season. This empowers you to free up more of your time without causing any disruption or delay to your core activities. ✓ Create Your Content Calendar. Plan your holiday-themed content, blog posts, and social media updates. This will help you stay organised and ensure a consistent and festive online presence that captivates your audience. ✓ Do your research. Take a peek at what your competitors were doing last year. Analysing their strategies can provide valuable insights and inspiration. You might also wish to take a look at analytics within your online channels, such as Google Analytics. ✓ Money Matters. Prepare a budget that covers all your Christmas expenses, including marketing, additional staff, and stocking up on inventory. Allocate resources wisely to make the most of your festive campaigns. ✓ Work out your product and inventory strategy. Make sure you have the right products in stock to meet the holiday demand. Identify popular seasonal items and ensure you’re well-stocked to meet consumer demand. ✓ Reflect on last year. What worked well? What could have been better? Learning from your own past experiences (a little ‘elf examination) will help you build to success this time around. Oh, and if you don’t have a website already, you might look to put a good domain name on your Christmas list. There’s thousands to choose from. When you’re ready, it’s easy to build an online presence with Website Builder. Christmas Branding A festive branding makeover is more than slapping on a few snowflakes. It’s snow joke: your website needs to breathe the holiday spirit, from product images right down to the copy of product descriptions and promotions. This all works to put customers in the festive mood and shows that your business is current, attentive, ready for business — and ready for Christmas. If you’re looking for a quick and easy way of creating a professional website, there’s no better place to start than with our Website Builder. You’ll easily find the themes to spruce up this Christmas. ✓ Think of creative ways to stand out. Get creative with a welcoming theme with festive spirit. Infuse your website with the warmth and magic of the season through captivating visuals, cheerful colours, and eye-catching graphics. ✓ Showcase your top-selling Christmas products and the best holiday gifts prominently on your website. Tailor your website’s language to
6 trends in e-commerce you need to know
The world of retail is in its biggest transition since the adopting of the barcode scanner over hand-held pricing guns. Even small corner shops are now more likely to use the former, although there will always be a handful of retailers who hold on firmly to tradition. The current transition, the consumer move from physical shopping to virtual shopping, has been underway for a few years now but the mass-growth is now well and truly upon us. E-commerce is no longer a word used by only certain demographics, it is a term understood by 99% of the population. Yet, where e-commerce goes next, is the question thousands of retailers are asking, here are some of our predictions: 1. E-commerce dependance will continue to rise The mass-market for e-commerce is already here, but the economic climate and reluctance for businesses to invest in expensive overheads such as retail space and customer-facing staff, means e-commerce will continue to grow and be more attractive to businesses both new and old. That’s not to say E-commerce should be seen as just a cheap option. Investing in back-end infrastructure and a pleasing customer journey is essential and cutting corners and costs on that invariably also means cutting customers. 2. Seasonal trends will still be applicable While leaving your Christmas shopping until Christmas Eve is probably soon to be assigned to history (although we know there are some online retailers that offer this and the printable / emailable voucher has never been as popular), shopping at Christmas is still going to present a potential bumper windfall for online retailers. In addition, the tradition of the January sale lives on long and strong online so if you are running an ecommerce site, consider December and January a pretty much no go area for personal holiday. 3. Buying social will increase The recommendation of a friend or trusted colleague can have a massive impact on whether you buy or don’t buy. The big retailers have long known this and the push post checkout of many retailers to “share your purchase” via your social networks is almost second nature to most of us buying online nowadays. That will only increase as will the number using the high street more as as browsing tool than a shop. Think Argos catalogue of the past, that could soon become the way we treat the physical shopping world, perhaps not even ever buying presents either, but sharing them over the internet (see Web 3.0) 4. The development of personal verification With social networking sites now dominating the way we login to control panels and accounts across the web, the single login system while secure in principle is potentially open to abuse if you stay logged in for example on a publicly located computer. Many systems with automated payment logins and processes would therefore allow a ‘hacked’ account to be used to rack up £s of orders without extra security checks. Already to market Jumio’s NetSwipe hasn’t quite captured the imagination as many had expected, but we think it won’t be too long before banks – and consumers – are insisting on this or similar technology to combat web fraud. 5. Flash sales will drive traffic In the real world retailers call these “fire sales” and you see the High Streets littered with ‘Closing Down’ and ‘ All stock must go’ almost everywhere you go nowadays. That trend is set to move onto the internet. Already, the growth of social shopping sites like GroupOn and LivingSocial have relied heavily on the same mentality to drop prices to all-time lows and drive sales and hopefully traffic back to the retailer sites. Now as brands become more powerful and influential themselves via social media, so they will be looking to use similar tactics to drive traffic to their site alone. 6. Online loyalty programs kick in The success of large scale affiliates offering money-back to customers for click-through purchases such as QuidCo and TopCashback makes it clear that loyalty to brands extends online – especially if there is a financial incentive. Expect this to be become more polished and more targeted by the big names in the next few months. Already the big high street names such as Nectar are evident if not overtly active online, but brands are aware of the importance of customer loyalty and will be exploiting that more and more in tighter economic times.
Keeping it real in the virtual world
Running an online business has many advantages over a traditional bricks and mortar company. A virtual shop front gives you the ability to attract customers from all around the world. You’re not restricted to people passing on the local High Street. Your overheads are typically smaller, and if your product is an online service, you don’t have to worry about manufacturing or shipping costs. But there’s a downside too. If your business only exists as a set of pixels on your customers’ computer screens, how do you prove to them that you’re more substantial? Can you demonstrate your credibility, and can you persuade them that you’re not a here-today-gone-tomorrow company? Create a real world presence Perhaps your online business needs a real-world presence, to build confidence and trust among more sceptical customers. At 123-reg, we’ve decided to try a high-profile route, by advertising on some of London’s buses. But there are plenty of other ways to ground your online company in reality too: Attend trade shows and events. Conferences, industry gatherings and public events are a great way to show the face of your business and meet potential customers. Maybe it’s wedding fayres or perhaps it’s motorshows, but attending the right events can dramatically increase your company profile among your target customers. Open a pop-up shop. A growing trend over the last couple of years, a pop-up shop is where you temporarily take over a retail space, usually for just a few weeks. It gives you a physical presence without having to worry about a long lease. Business campaign group StartUp Britain is currently giving online retailers the chance to sell on the High Street in a pop-up shop. Brand up your car. Driving around in garishly-branded cars is a trend popularised by estate agents. But there’s no denying it can be effective, particularly if you drive a lot for business or tend to use your car in areas where potential customers live. You just have to make sure you’re happy piloting a big, attention-grabbing advert for your company. Offer a collection service to local customers. Many online businesses are run out of small industrial units, large enough to store stock but not suitable as a retail outlet. If you have premises, why not give customers the option to visit to collect their purchases? Simply offering this facility will reassure customers that your business is established and successful. Finally, always ensure you include a bit of background information on your website. At the very least, it’s important to provide full contact details, including a postal address where people can reach you. Additionally, your website’s ‘about us’ section is the ideal place to provide more information about the people behind the company. Have you done anything to make your online business more tangible in the real world? Leave a comment to let us know.