In recent years, we’ve witnessed the rise of the e-commerce industry. Many entrepreneurs have seen the benefits of utilizing e-commerce platforms and selling products or services online. On the other side of the spectrum, consumers have realized the value of buying products or hiring services from online businesses. E-commerce has further intensified amidst the COVID-19 crisis due to the pandemic restrictions.
For this reason, many brick-and-mortar stores have considered transitioning to click-and-mortar stores. They don’t necessarily want to give up their physical stores. Nor do they want to take the plunge into e-commerce completely. They still want to maintain their local stores while having business websites. Their goal is to reach out to as many customers as possible to market their business online.
When it comes to promoting your business and selling products or services online, digital marketing is the key. That said, here’s how to market your click-and-mortar store online:
1. Update your website for product or service promotion
As a click-and-mortar store, you must have a business website. Sure, you may use social media or other e-commerce platforms to conduct your business online. However, it makes a world of difference if you have your own site. Why? It will serve as your online store, where you’ll boost your brand, promote your products or services, and engage with your customers. That’s why you must update your website to ensure its overall aesthetics and functionality. Ultimately, the goal is to provide customers with an excellent user experience (UX) on your website.
2. Employ an SEO campaign for online presence
If you have transitioned to a click-and-mortar business and created your website, be sure to implement a search engine optimization (SEO) campaign. The SEO process entails producing relevant content, creating links, and optimizing your website. The goal is to boost your online visibility and website traffic. It happens when your web pages and content pieces appear first on the search engine results pages (SERP). Therefore, it isn’t enough to update your site; you must also boost its online presence.
3. Implement PPC advertising for site traffic
The SEO campaign falls under search engine marketing (SEM). It’s best for an organic search as a way of reaching out to your target customers. But if it doesn’t work for your click-and-mortar business, consider implementing pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. The PPC process entails creating ads and bidding for their placements on SERP. Unlike SEO, it’s a form of paid search. It means that you must pay for successful clicks. In the end, these clicks can translate into a boost on your website traffic.
4. Resort to email marketing for customer outreach
If you’re looking to connect with customers online, start using emails. In fact, emails have long been proven beneficial in business and marketing. While employees use them for business communication, digital marketers utilize emails to reach out to customers. For one, you can set regular customers updates about your business and the products or services you offer. However, be sure to carry out research to have a list of qualified leads. From there, you can send these prospects promotional emails.
5. Harness the power of content marketing for customer engagement
There are some reasons content is king in the digital world. For the most part, content pieces resonate well with people searching online. Whether valuable articles, striking photos, or compelling videos, they can catch people’s attention and keep them hooked. They can go as far as enticing these people and persuading them to buy products or services. For instance, you can take images of your products and hire an e-commerce image editing service. From there, you can publish these attractive photos on your blog, website, and social media to entice your target customers.
6. Have social media management for lead generation and customer connection
Digital marketing strategies won’t be complete without social media management. It’s now easy to see almost all businesses having social media pages, whether on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube. This idea applies to click-and-mortar stores as well. Take advantage of these channels to reach out to a diverse audience and potential customers. You can also engage with these customers and build good relationships with them. From there, be sure to promote your products or services. That’s where social media marketing comes into the picture.
At this point, you now know what it takes to market your click-and-mortar store online. Consider the digital marketing strategies recommended above — website, search engine, email, content, and social media marketing. All these can kick your business up a notch by earning more and more customers and boosting your profits. Ultimately, you’ll be surprised at how your click-and-mortar store can make your business flourish and succeed in time.
