From rising product costs to rocketing sales, one thing is clear: recent history has changed the e-commerce industry for the best and the worst.
On the one hand, global online sales have never been higher, hitting $4.9 trillion in 2021. On the other, pandemic-induced cost rises are tipped to increase the price of goods by 1.5% in 2023. 💸
As the world of e-commerce continues to evolve, adjusting your e-commerce marketing strategy will be essential to your ability to scale fast while keeping your margins intact.
But with all the cost changes and uncertainty, how do you execute efficiently to get the best possible results from your e-commerce marketing strategy?
We’ll explore the current challenges shaping e-commerce marketing and how they can impact your e-commerce marketing strategy this year. We’ll also dive into proven tactics to help get your marketing campaigns ready to win in 2022.
The scoop on e-commerce marketing
- What can we expect for e-commerce marketing in 2022?
- The top 3 challenges shaping the online selling market
- A keep-it-simple guide to profitable e-commerce marketing in 2022
- The road to triumph in e-commerce marketing
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What can we expect for e-commerce marketing in 2022?
Not too long ago, e-commerce marketing looked a lot like launching some Google Shopping ads and hoping for the best.😅
But in 2022, e-commerce marketing is far more complex.
In recent years, marketing and advertising channels have increased in saturation and pricing.
Today, it’s not uncommon for the typical e-commerce marketing strategy to encompass multiple channels and methods including:
- Pay-per-click ads (PPC)
- Influencer campaigns
- Public Relations
- Affiliate marketing
- Social media
Of course, this list goes on. So you might be wondering, what are the best methods moving forward?
The truth is, no one can answer that for sure. To really gauge how e-commerce marketing will evolve from now through Q4, you’ll need to zoom out and assess the larger paradigm shifts shaping the world of online shopping.
The top 3 challenges shaping the online selling market
In the new decade, one of the best ways to win at e-commerce marketing is to understand the bigger problems that will inevitably impact your business (looking at you, global supply chain 🙄).
Let’s break down some of the key challenges you may face when executing your marketing this year.
#1. The consumer privacy wars are raging ⚔️
The fight for consumer privacy is intensifying. Online shoppers are gaining more rights to opt out of marketing goldmines like cookies and data sharing.
Take Apple’s iOS 14.5 release for example. The App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature released with that update requires apps to ask for permission to follow users’ movements or Europe’s blanket equivalent, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Moving forward, brands will need to find creative ways to gather intel on prospects and customers so they can personalize their campaigns. Because while consumers don’t always love sharing their personal data, research shows they do love a personalized shopping experience.
No matter how you go about it, aim to ensure that your marketing campaigns add so much value, saying ‘yes’ to your cookies is a no-brainer for shoppers.
#2. Ad costs are on the rise 📈
Gone are the days of cheap clicks and sales through PPC.
On Amazon US, prices jumped from $0.88 in January 2020 to $1.20 just six months later in June.
The pay-to-play nature of much of e-commerce marketing means you’ll need adequate capital to run, test, and optimize your campaigns for long-term success.
But any real advantage over the competition will come down to how well you can turn newly acquired customers into recurring orders to increase their lifetime value and get more ROI on your campaigns.
#3. Competition (and how you respond to it) is a game changer
Competition is an underestimated yet highly influential factor that can help or hinder the success of your e-commerce marketing.
If your keywords, marketing channels, or niche is saturated with competing sellers, you’ll have a much harder time getting noticed by potential shoppers.
If you’re in a high-competition area, you may need to put in extra time researching and adjusting your ad targeting in order to stand out, drive clicks, and secure more conversions.
Take time to pinpoint any marketing channels and formats where you can get more ROI out of your marketing budget.
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A keep-it-simple guide to profitable e-commerce marketing in 2022
Most of the time, all that stands between you and better marketing conversions is the right tools, a little know-how, and a dash of creativity.
Let’s explore some steps to take to help up the ante in your marketing campaigns and get your brand noticed.
State your brand’s beliefs
When you think of Dove’s Real Beauty campaign or Nike’s Just Do It messaging, you immediately know exactly what these brands stand for.
The past few years have been rife with social and economic changes and today’s shoppers want to purchase from brands that have a meaningful mission. In fact, according to the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer Report, customers are 4.5X more likely to buy if a brand addresses human rights.
Don’t be afraid to share your brand’s mission and values to spark emotion and action among your audience. Done well, you’ll be able to build a tribe of like-minded shoppers who will remain loyal to your brand.
For example, if your products are made sustainably, be sure to include this information in your messaging.
Keep it authentic on social
When it comes to the future of e-commerce marketing, the human-to-human connection cannot be overstated. And a great place to get connecting with your target audience is of course, social media.
In 2020, global sales from social media were estimated at $560 billion and are set to reach $2.9 trillion by 2026. To make the most of this trend, stay consistent and authentic in your social media interactions.
Everyone loves a trustworthy brand, but this is even more true if you’re targeting Gen Z shoppers. As Robert Befumo, Head of E-commerce Strategy at Parkfield Commerce put it:
“To really gain the acceptance of teenagers and consumers in their 20s, brands’ activity on social media needs to be genuine. As soon as it looks forced, you will lose that group. You need to have a true understanding of the audience and speak their language.”
Take this opportunity to get into the minds of your shoppers and gather data you can use to improve your marketing.
For example, you could try polls, Q&A sessions, and comment mining as a way to dive deeper into the current conversations customers are having around your products and tap into key messaging gems to help boost your marketing conversions.
Invest in paid ads
As powerful as organic search can be, it takes time to see results.
By supplementing organic search engine optimization (SEO) strategy with pay-per-click and influencer ads, you’ll be able to accelerate your marketing momentum in time for peak shopping days.
Here are some steps to help get you started:
- Research the social media channels your target customer likes to spend time on and the types of ads that do well on that platform.
- Create ad campaigns for every stage of the buyer’s journey. Make them eye-catching and engaging by using scroll-stopping imagery and benefit-driven copy that presents a clear solution to the shopper’s problem.
- Repurpose the content created on your social media and integrate it with any organically sourced user-generated content to increase engagement across channels.
- Invest in marketplace ads. If you sell on a marketplace, it may also be a good idea to invest in ads on that platform to help increase your brand and product exposure.
Uplevel your email marketing 📧
With the price of paid ads on the rise, your success with e-commerce marketing depends on your ability to diversify and optimize your marketing channels.
That’s where email marketing can be a genuine game-changer.
With more than 4.2 billion daily users and a $42 average return on investment for every $1 spent, email remains one of the best ways to reach existing customers, warm up leads, and close sales.
But with so many options and approaches, it can be tough to know where to start.
To get off on the right foot, focus your email marketing on the following tasks:
- Research your competitors’ offers and find ways to exceed their perceived value.
- Craft nurture campaigns for every stage in your buyer’s journey.
- Create email funnels that segment your list as they opt into or out of your campaigns. For example, splitting a list by those who purchased and those who didn’t.
- Create automated sequences to welcome, nurture, and ascend each subscriber.
- Launch engagement campaigns to reconnect with passive subscribers.
- Create an email marketing calendar to prepare content and deals for key events in advance.
💡Pro tip: If creating and executing marketing plans for your store isn’t your strong point or you simply don’t have the time, don’t fret. Partner with an e-commerce marketing agency that understands the tactics and strategies needed to win in this changing market.
Prep for peak personalization in your e-commerce marketing
You already know personalization is a powerful way to grab shoppers’ attention and optimize the customer experience. But if you’ve been putting off the decision to jump into better personalization tactics or even omnichannel acceleration, now could be a great time to pull the trigger.
For example, you could use marketing personalization tools to:
- Make timely product recommendations
- Share relevant offers
- Send reminders for reordering
- And so much more
No matter which approaches you take, be sure to use personalization solutions intentionally. The goal is to execute helpful tasks that inspire action. Not big-brother your shoppers into distrusting your brand.
Use e-commerce marketing tools to automate your processes
No matter what marketing task you’ve got on your plate, there’s probably a solution that can do the heavy lifting for you. 🔧
Automating your marketing tasks with the right e-commerce tech stack can improve your efficiency, increase accuracy, and deliver better ROI on your budget.
Here’s a quick roundup of some of the top tools to help build campaigns that drive consistent results, in less time.
Yotpo
Yotpo offers a tool suite designed to help you grow your store with things like reviews, referral schemes, and visual marketing. You can even craft an SMS marketing strategy to target shoppers with personalized notes for high-converting mobile campaigns. You can get started on Yotpo for free but for pro features, prices begin at $19 per month.
Drip
Drip allows you to build visual workflows for your email and SMS campaigns. Its automations and integrations allow you to go hands-free on marketing communication, without losing the personal touch. You can get started with Drip’s 14-day free trial, after which prices begin at $19 per month.
Klaviyo
Klaviyo is a marketing automation platform known for its next-level email funnel-building and list segmentation features. You can also build text message campaigns to keep leads warm, boost conversions, and grow your customer base. You can get up to 250 contacts and 500 emails for free. For more services, you can get pricing estimates above these limits on the Klaviyo website.
Use e-commerce funding to build a marketing budget safety net
You’ve probably already got a marketing budget in place. But with a chaotic supply chain and rising ad costs, you may find yourself under increasing reallocated resources.
Flexible e-commerce funding can help you keep your marketing on track, while also keeping pace with changes in shipping fees, storage costs, and ad prices.
Depending on your business strategy, two potential funding sources to consider are:
- Daily Advance: This solution lets you bypass rigid marketplace payouts and get early access to your store’s sales.
- Working Capital: You’ll be assigned a line of credit you can use up to a certain limit. Repayment amounts are based on the amount of capital you use.
The road to triumph in e-commerce marketing
If you have big plans for 2022, the right e-commerce marketing strategy can definitely help you achieve them. So gather your data, optimize your campaigns, diversify your channels, and leverage marketing technologies to help boost your conversions.
Before you know it, you’ll have a multi-faceted e-commerce marketing strategy that swoops shoppers into your store and makes them never want to leave.
If you need additional capital to fuel your 2022 marketing efforts, don’t hesitate to reach out. We know how easy it can be for growth plans and cash flow to become misaligned. Our team can help you find the right funding solution to get your growth plans and e-commerce marketing strategy back in sync.
Don’t let 2022 pass you by. Get ahead of the game with fast and flexible e-commerce funding.
