The COVID-19 pandemic has surely caused a devastating blow to all of the major economies around the world. It has not only caused business to go bankrupt and shut down, but it has also caused a tremendous amount of disruption across all industries. That being said, one industry in particular has not only survived but instead has thrived because of it – we, of course, are talking about the boost of the ecommerce industry.
According to recent statistics, more than 62% of consumers choose to shop online now more than ever because of the coronavirus pandemic, giving a massive boost to ecommerce sales. And specifically health products have seen a rise in online shopping. But what does this statistic actually tell us?
If you are an e-commerce website, chances are that you have witnessed the boost in your online shop. If you have not, then don’t worry because you are in luck. Read along to know how to boost ecommerce business during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why is online shopping during a pandemic going through the roof?
As soon as the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 as a global pandemic, people around the world lost their minds and started panic buying all kinds of essential items like food, groceries, toilet paper, hand sanitizers, etc. thereby boosting mobile online shopping. This form of panic buying was justified given the unexpected circumstance that people found themselves to be in. But the local brick and mortar stores around the world could not keep up with the rising demand and eventually ran out of stocks.
And when the local shops ran out of stock, we saw a huge boost in online shopping all over the world. Amazon witnessed it’s best ever quarter in history when it comes to sales during the lockdown. The sales jumped more than 40% to over $88 billion dollars. This figure was way more than double their sales during the same quarter last year.
It’s quite plain and simple to understand that people are more open to online shopping during pandemic and get items delivered directly to their home – rather than go out and shop for them amidst the lockdown and the threat of getting infected with the virus.
So how to boost your ecommerce sales during COVID-19 pandemic?
Rethink your product catalogue
If you want to know how to boost ecommerce sales, then the answer to that question is sell the products that are in demand during the pandemic. You cannot expect people to buy items like watches, designer clothes, car accessories, running shoes, jewelry, etc. when they have more essential items to get and save their money for emergency medical expenses. Instead, you can focus on selling items such as masks, sanitizers, food items, home cooking utensils, indoor games, etc. that we can more likely use during the lockdown period all day at home.
Improve your SEO
If you are an e-commerce website, then you just cannot get away with not doing SEO. You need people to find you on Google, and if for some reason you haven’t spent enough resources into improving your SEO, then now is your chance to boost shopping online. It is a good idea to optimise your website for keywords that are trending due to the lockdown such as “work from home essentials”, “home cooking ingredients”, “n95 face masks”, etc to boost online shopping.
This kind of home and kitchen products have online shopping demand. Do a comprehensive keyword research regarding your niche and try to find out what it is that your customers are searching for to boost ecommerce sales. Now is also a good time to create content regarding COVID-19, the lockdown, and the various problems that your customers are facing and try to provide solutions to their problems with the help of your products.
Plan your marketing strategy
It is very essential that you communicate with your customers and website visitors during this time to boost online shops. Businesses and customers alike are experiencing drastic changes in their daily lives, whether it is a major financial change or even a simple change in their routine – you must address it and give them some kind words of encouragement through your marketing campaigns. Recent surveys are pointing out to the fact that customers are finding it quite reassuring when they hear from brands that they know and trust during these tough times. Whether it is sending emails to your customer list saying that you are doing all you can to support them by selling essential commodities or just putting up a banner on your website and addressing the problem. You must make an effort to talk about this issue and boost ecommerce.
ALSO READ: How to be More Productive in Your Amazon Marketing Business
Take advantage of social media
During the lockdown, there is reported to be an 87% increase in social media usage among people all over the world. That number is huge. If you aren’t taking advantage of social media to increase your brand awareness and sell your products through ad placements, then you are missing out on boosting mobile online shopping. If you want to learn how to boost ecommerce sales then it is a great idea to use social media marketing and paid advertisements on Facebook & Instagram to promote your ecommerce products. Social media is perhaps the best way to reach your customers because that is where they use all of their attention during lockdown.
Is the boost of shopping online here to stay?
The changes that have taken place in the world of e-commerce are here to stay for good.
If you want to know how to boost an ecommerce business and how to boost your ecommerce sales, then you cannot miss out on the e-commerce trends during the pandemic. People have gotten used to ordering items from online stores as opposed to buying them from local brick and mortar stores themselves. This change was about to happen inevitably, the coronavirus pandemic simply accelerated this further. Now is the time to put your ecommerce efforts into full-swing. There has never been a better time to take advantage of the sudden surge in online businesses.
