#2 Products, Variants, Categories
Welcome back to our Out of the Jungle: Product series! We hope you enjoyed the first volume and hope you’ll like the second instalment even better. In today’s article we’re going to look at the hidden power of your product portfolio and introduce some failproof tactics and strategies to help you optimize it.
Products, Variants, Categories
Knowing your product portfolio inside and out is at the core of running a successful business. Customers will keep returning if you’re offering consistently high quality products that are always in demand and which they find interesting, so it shouldn’t come as any surprise that tracking products should be an important part of your business model — and why you should never underestimate its influence when it comes to holding onto valued customers.
We cannot understate the importance of your past performance in terms of understanding your business results and planning further steps. It’s like reading a road map — in order to know where you’re going (or want to go), you have to know where you’ve been. An important data analysis principle for you to keep in mind is granularity. Try to get as granular as possible with your data, especially when it comes to your product variants and categories.
Consider the ABC analysis — check your product data (profits, number of orders) and divide your products accordingly into three different segments (Group A, B and C) based on their relative value and number of units sold.
This allows you to split your inventory management efforts and focus efforts on the products that are most important. Items in Group A have a greater financial impact but are less predictable and thus need more attention than products in Group C, which have lower value, but more predictable, consistent sales.
Product-Market Segment
It may sound a bit simplistic, but your product is the most important part of your business. You are building everything else around this and it’s likely something that you’re very passionate about. Simply put, without a product, you have no business. However, you also have to keep in mind that from a customer’s perspective they’re not just buying a product, they are buying a solution. For instance, people may be looking for a camera, but what they’re really looking for is a way to capture their memories. Always keep in mind that you are solving problems for customers or otherwise providing something of value.
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Finding the right niche (product-market segment) is also very important. Having products that fit the needs for a very specific group of customers is a great way to ensure loyalty and makes marketing much easier, as you will be targeting only one specific type of customer. What are the criteria for capturing a great niche?
- Somewhere you can add value
- Passionate customers
- Quality manufacturers
- Feasibility of storage
- Workability of transport
- Acceptable profit margins
You have to make sure that your product will solve a customer problem, stand out from the crowd and makes sense from a business standpoint. Not an easy task, but covering these bases will go a long way to secure your eCommerce success.
Quality Over Quantity
Product quality is imperative for the reputation of your business. Without a quality product, no one will buy from you. Additionally, you risk customers generating negative word-of-mouth, which in such a connected world of Internet and social media is a surefire way to kill your business. As an online entrepreneur, especially a small one starting out or a medium one trying to expand, you need to sell a quality product that will separate you from the rest of the pack.
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You likely won’t have the scale of Amazon and Walmart when it comes to offering competitive prices. Therefore, you must differentiate yourself with quality products that solve a specific customer problem. On the Internet, customers can’t touch / feel / smell your product or service. But there are certain tactics you can use to trick people’s brains into “feeling the quality”.
- Show attention to detail (handcrafted, homemade, custom-made products)
- Offer progressiveness (state-of-the art, leading edge, modern products)
- Give it luxury appeal (premium, deluxe, elite, VIP products)
But don’t show your whole hand all at once! You can either state that people in the “good ol’ days” took more pride in the quality of the details, or that the latest is better than the previous. No matter which way you go for, you can combine it with the third tactic: give it a luxury appeal. Doesn’t “premium custom-made” or “the latest, deluxe edition” sound attractive? And when combined with flawless product photography, it will make it all the more irresistible!
Product Presentation
Since your customers do not have the opportunity to view the product in person before buying, having high-quality photos will go a long way in terms of convincing them to buy. Photos are the first thing your users will see and this is a valuable opportunity to showcase your products.
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Visual appeal reflects your brand image and will create a powerful and lasting first impression, setting a tipping point as to whether customers will continue browsing and eventually make a purchase. Make sure you capitalize on this by putting quality photos on your website. How do you create pictures that will engage people and convert them into buyers?
- Use a quality camera, a tripod, and an appropriate lighting
- Use an enticing product environment
- Show the product in usage
- Show product in alternative views / in details (or ad an ability to zoom in)
- Do a bit of editing (for brightness, contrast, etc.)
- Ensure product photos are consistent
Product images not only testify to the quality of your product, but also serve as windows into your eCommerce store, contributing to both transparency and trust. Keep in mind, it’s important to include both product-only images (clean-cut, white background) as well as in-context photos (to show your product being used in its intended environment).
Videos are also a great way to demonstrate your products and catch the attention of people on your website. This is especially useful for products that are difficult to use or for which it is difficult to show their full usage in photos. For instance, unboxing videos on Youtube are becoming a larger part of customer research. Encourage your users to share their own unboxing videos as well (perhaps as part of a contest) or you can get influencers to participate as well.
Did you know? 71% of customers think that videos explain products better.
Descriptions and Navigation
Product descriptions are another important communication touchpoint with your customers. After all, this is where they are getting the bulk of the information related to your product. If you don’t have a great product description, you can be sure that your conversions will suffer.
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People have short attention spans. Aim to be concise and to-the-point when it comes to describing your product’s benefits and don’t waste people’s time with long, rambling product descriptions. Highlight the most important features, and make sure you don’t leave out anything. Put features in large, distinguishable bullet points that allow users to read them quickly and digest important information easily. Here are some things to keep in mind when writing your product descriptions.
- Tailor your descriptions according to your buyer persona
- Ensure that your product descriptions are comprehensive
- Make your product description scannable
- Don’t just describe products, sell the solution
- Be as concise as possible
We hope you liked this post! Feel free to share your tips and tricks with us in the comment section below. And as always, stay tuned! The next volume of the Out of the Jungle: Product series, Part #3 Brands & Suppliers, is coming in a month. :-)
