How to Increase Online Sales
It’s so important that potential customers can find your business online. From improving your business website to social media marketing, here are some tips to help your business stand out, be noticed and ultimately to increase online sales.
1. Website Development
A business website is vital and is where you need to start! It still amazes me how many small businesses don’t have a website yet! Word of mouth and repeat business are fantastic, but you absolutely must be online so you can be there when potential new customers search for your product/service.
Google receives over 99,000 searches per second every day! You need to get online and optimise your site so you can be visible in those searches.
2. Website Maintenance
If you have a business website, don’t just let it stagnate. A website needs to be maintained regularly to make sure it is secure and functioning correctly. Your web developer or hosting company should provide this service for you and it is really important that you keep on top of it.
As well as the technical maintenance, you also need to update your content regularly. Write blog posts or news articles and publish customer reviews. Google likes active websites so you must keep your content fresh and up-to-date if you don’t want your web traffic to suffer.
3. Monitor Web Traffic
You need to monitor your website traffic to understand if you are reaching potential customers. You also need to know where they are coming from and if your website is engaging with your audience.
Google Analytics is a brilliant tool to do this. If you haven’t set up a Google Analytics account already, you should definitely do so! You can use it to:
- See how many visitors you get to your website every day
- See which pages are most popular
- See how engaged your web visitors are with your content
- Find out where your traffic is coming from (Google search, Facebook, Twitter etc)
4. SEO
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation. It is a complicated process which helps you move up the rankings on search engines including Google. If you are talking to a web developer or content writer about your business website, then you should ensure you ask them about SEO.
SEO involves working with keywords, link building, image optimisation and other elements to make your website search engine friendly. It is a big part of what we do. Our websites are always provided with optimised content and we also show you how to maintain your SEO going forwards if you prefer to manage it yourself.
If you already have a business website but you’re struggling to get web traffic, get in touch. We can provide a SEO audit for you to help you understand the reasons why.
5. Social Media Marketing
Social Media is another essential marketing tool which you need to be using regularly. How often do you see an advert on Facebook when you’re browsing which leads you to buy something? If you’re anything like me, it’s a regular occurrence and I often have to guess what the postman is delivering next!
You must have a business page on Google and Facebook as a minimum. LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest are also very useful tools which can all help to increase your brand awareness and online sales.
What Next?
I know all of this can seem a bit daunting when all you want to do is get on with running your business, but it is very important. There are many things you can do to increase your web traffic but they all take a little time, so if you are thinking about Christmas sales, you really need to look at this as soon as possible.
If you need a new website, help with creating engaging web content, assistance with SEO, or you’d like help with your marketing, give us a call or send us an email. We can take it all off your hands or we can help you to make sense of it all.
