74.66% of E-Tailers Rely on Content-Based Marketing — Reveals GoodFirms Study
In the modern-day world, netizens are highly active on social media platforms looking for content that serves value-addition.
Reviewing this pattern, eCommerce websites have started making intensive use of content-based marketing as part of their strategies.
Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising, Content Marketing, Social Media Marketing, and Email Marketing rounded up as the top 4 eCommerce Marketing strategies, suggests a new survey from GoodFirms, a research and review platform.
The survey on eCommerce marketing strategies for small businesses revealed that a majority (82.08%) of eCommerce businesses still receive maximum footfalls from pay-per-click advertising.
However, it has also been observed that nearly 3 out of every 4 vendors have favored content marketing. A staggering 67.26% of online vendors showed faith in social media marketing.
The majority of marketers in the industry believe that social media is maturing and has advanced from what it used to be a few years ago. The general belief that only the surface of social media has been scratched and it will evolve in the coming times makes it an exciting prospect to explore further.
Users have turned towards content that is more engaging and informative rather than only pitching to make a purchase. Sharing of insights and addition of value post following a brand online is what has engaged a social media user.
Promotional activities through such educating content have seen a generation of more leads and improvement in conversions.
Many traders still believed that a combination of various marketing techniques is what makes a winning strategy.
“Avoid limiting yourself to just one channel,” said Adrian Cordiner and we quote, “because most effective strategy to drive traffic to your store should begin as a combination of SMM, Content Marketing, Email Marketing, Display Advertising, and PPC Ads.” Adrian is the Director of Digital Rhinos, experts in B2B lead generation & nurturing.
Social Media Marketing Is Shaping the Behavior of Online Shoppers:
98.55% (nearly all) of social media users open at least 4 social accounts a day and spend a lot of time scrolling through various posts.
This behavioral pattern allows marketers to broadcast their content through influencer marketing and ensure high visibility. The better the engagement quality of the content placed by an influencer, the higher will be customer inclination to acquire the associated product.
Yigit Kocak, Inbound Marketing Manager at Prisync, quoted “What I’ve seen the most effective strategy was SMM + Influencer marketing that generated the highest number of sales. Because trust is a very important driving factor for e-commerce businesses and with the help of authoritative bloggers and SMM buzz, we had an ROI of around 20x with that combination.”
Since it’s an age driven by trends, Real-Time Marketing proves to be effective by incorporating significant and once in a lifetime events into their content strategy.
Video and influencer marketing on social media platforms has been influential in garnering views and making an instant connection with the followers. The opportunity presented with this influence is seized through strategic product placement by the celebrity/influencer in explicit posts.
Strategic placement of merchandise by influencers registers the product in the memories of the viewer easily and easy to recall.
Content Marketing Has Emerged as Another Preferred Mode of Marketing:
Consumers have been exhausted with years of sales pitches through different means of advertising whether print or video.
Content marketing has provided a unique approach to reach customers through informative blogs. ‘How to’ Guideposts help customers understand what a certain product or service can do for them.
Instead of selling points, the reader receives information on what ways the product can be used eliminating any doubts they might have regarding the product. This builds transparency between the product and the consumer. The information gained helps the customer go through the decision journey and makes them feel in control while making a purchase.
The information posted through content marketing is easily shareable and thus makes it a highly cost-effective method of advertising.
The AutoAccessoriesGarage.com, have published their publishing research guides in the past one and a half years and realized double the organic traffic and revenue during this period. “Content marketing is a great, affordable way to drive more traffic and boost sales. Customers often know what product they are looking for, but don’t have the inside industry knowledge to make an informed decision about which brand or style of product is best for their needs. That’s where a research guide or buying guide helps.” said Jim Milan, Communications & SEO Manager of the website.
It is evident from the study that promoting products through PPC and email marketing is effective in generating sales.
However, social media and content marketing not only provides an opportunity to build rapport and brand loyalty but also helps in converting a sale by enabling the customer with information about the service itself.
Every eCommerce marketing strategy has its pros and cons. Incorporating all or focusing more on a single mode of marketing might not be feasible for all business sizes.
It is best to implement a combination of multiple strategies that best suits businesses’ requirements. It is best to consult with a digital marketing company to develop a winning strategy for your brand.
GoodFirms surveyed more than 100 specialists from top eCommerce marketing companies.
Read the full survey report:
https://www.goodfirms.co/resources/ecommerce-marketing-strategies
For questions about the survey, contact at nathan@goodfirms.co.
