Janie Bartlett entered the world of online retail four months ago. Her brand, My Best Friend Is A Bag, designs and manufactures a range of stylish, practical leather bags for busy working women. Being a relatively new company with no existing brand equity to draw on, Janie prioritises her marketing and PR strategies in order to drive traffic to her online store. Standing out among larger, more established brands is a constant challenge. Her digital strategy involves Facebook and Pinterest, and she is about to incorporate Twitter and blogging to broaden the company’s social media coverage.
When every dollar spent matters, it can be difficult to prioritise marketing strategies.
But Janie emphasises the importance of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) for any online retail store. She also says that a successful eCommerce website should have an uncluttered layout and include sufficient information and visual content to allow customers to make informed decisions, as well as easy-to-find contact details. Her top five tips for small businesses looking to start selling online are:
- Design your website to optimise SEO
- Keep it simple and don’t over-clutter each page
- Ensure your copy for each product is well-written and informative, with added images to show the features and benefits of your products
- Make it easy to buy
- Make it easy for customers to contact you and reply ASAP!
