Challenge 4: Remaining Competitive in Online Business

In the fourth quarter of 2019, U.S. e-commerce sales were up 16.4% for the year from the same quarter in 2018. As if that weren’t impressive enough, U.S. retail e-commerce jumped a whopping 37.0% in 2020 from Q1 to Q2! To say that the online revolution has arrived would almost be an understatement.  With the arrival of quarantine procedures and social distancing, e-commerce has never been stronger.

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As a business owner, this is great news! Or it should be (if you are ready for it!). Remaining competitive online is one of the greatest concerns voiced by new and established business owners alike in 2020. With so many opportunities for customers to engage online, how can you be certain you have what it takes to win your customer over?

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The answer is easy:  If your website is now the cornerstone of your business, make sure you have the very best website possible. In the days of brick and mortar, you would be doing everything possible to get the best piece of real estate, with the most desirable spaces, and first class appeal at every angle so that customers walk in, feel impressed, and (hopefully) continue to come back.

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The same goes for your website.  When you transition to creating an e-commerce storefront for your business, or optimize your existing storefront, staying competitive online is ruled by the same principles:

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1. Ensuring you have a beautiful website that properly presents your brand and is easy to navigate

2. Being able to clearly market your product and pull the customer through the sales pipeline

3. Creating a simple and intuitive customer experience so that carts are not abandoned, sales are closed and customer loyalty is established

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When you make it as easy as possible on your customer, you have won the battle. In our opinion, remaining competitive simply means doing something the very best.  There are a variety of ways to do something the best. You can have the highest quality product, or the most competitively priced product or the fastest delivery time in your area - OR, you can have the best online customer experience. Your website can be one of the ways you establish your company as the best at what they do.

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We’ve seen the success stories again and again (have you seen our portfolio page?).  Our clients are driven, motivated, and successful - and you can be too.

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Worried about how you’ll manage all the growth you're about to receive from your gorgeous new e-commerce store front?  We’ve got a few ideas for you in our next post Balancing Your Company’s Quality and Growth.

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