4 Ways to Increase Online Sales in 2022

With almost 4 million Shopify eCommerce stores currently operating worldwide, vying for customers’ attention and amplifying your brand presence has become increasingly challenging. If you want to run a successful eCommerce store and increase online sales, you’ll need the right tips and tricks to attract customers, get them to spend more on your products and come back to buy more. 

How can you capture your target audience’s attention and ensure you retain their interest? In this guide, you’ll learn more about the best practices to improve online sales for your eCommerce store.

1. Drive Online Sales by Using Customer Reviews and Testimonials 

Customers seek out well-loved and well-trusted products that other buyers have advocated for more than products that have received less-than-stellar reviews. Reviews are important for every eCommerce store, as they feature real-life use cases and resonate better with customers. These reviews may be left on Yelp, Google My Business or social media platforms.

To ensure that feedback being left is positive, always go the extra mile to delight customers at every stage of the buying journey. For example, make your eCommerce store easy to navigate, create a chatbot function that they can always use if they need assistance, and create a pleasant checkout experience. These little additions will go a long way to earn you the positive feedback you desire. 

Of course, don’t forget to ask customers to leave feedback to increase online sales. You don’t have to solicit positive feedback directly (and you shouldn’t because honest customer reviews are important for buyers to make their own buying decisions). What you can do is make it easier for customers to leave feedback — your checkout page can prompt them to write a review, or if customers write a positive email to you about your products, ask if they can leave a review on your eCommerce store! There are many ways to do this without making your customers feel obliged.

Another way to increase online sales is to create customer testimonials. Compared to asking for reviews, you will have more control over this process. You can get customers to record video testimonials, especially regular customers who’ve always left glowing feedback. 

2. Increase Online Sales by Leveraging the Scarcity Principle 

The Scarcity Principle is a fantastic method to accelerate online sales for eCommerce stores and can be implemented in simple and quick ways. 

What is the Scarcity Principle, and how can you use it to drive online sales for your eCommerce store? According to Investopedia, the Scarcity Principle is the price relationship between dynamic supply and demand. Based on this principle, marketers frequently create artificial scarcity to generate more demand. This is especially useful for eCommerce stores, as it is easier than ever to create limited-time online sales and urge customers to buy products quickly. 

An example of using the Scarcity Principle to increase online sales for your eCommerce store is to indicate that stocks are “Running Out Fast” or that there are “Only 5 Left in Stock”. Naturally, customers will feel urged to speed up their buying decisions and act fast, so they won’t miss out on having the item. 

Another great way to invoke the Scarcity Principle is to have flash sales. Whether you want to clear out excess stock to make space for new items or attract customers during your limited-time sale, flash sales can significantly boost online sales for your eCommerce store. Make sure you implement some form of a timer, so customers can see time running out and feel compelled to make a purchase. 

3. Improve Online Sales with a Loyalty Program and Email List

Customer retention is crucial to the success of your store. A Harvard Business School study published in 2000 reported that improving customer retention rates by 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%. 

The most important long-term strategy to ramp up online sales is to build your own customer base with a loyalty program and email list for your eCommerce store. 

A well-crafted loyalty program can increase online sales on an eCommerce store dramatically. It involves determining what benefits loyal customers get every time they shop in your eCommerce store. You can offer discounts when they hit a minimum purchase amount, or access to VIP-only sales events. It is important to have a sense of exclusivity so that your customers will be incentivized to sign up for the program as loyalty members. This will undoubtedly increase online sales once you establish a solid regular customer base.

Building an email list for your eCommerce store is equally important to drive online sales. Each time a customer makes a purchase, prompt them to sign up for your email list. This enables you to send out email blasts and newsletters to reach previous customers who are already familiar with your brand as they’ve bought items from your eCommerce store before. 

4. Using a Business Intelligence Tool to Increase Online Sales for Your eCommerce Store

While there are ways to improve online sales for your eCommerce store, the progress is often long and drawn out. If you’re looking to increase online sales as quickly as possible, you may consider trying one of the many tools or extensions available for Shopify stores.

Which tool should you choose when there are so many to choose from? We recommend Koala Inspector, which gives you data-driven insights to succeed against competitors. The tool can be installed completely free of charge on the Google Chrome Web Store and allows you to spy on your eCommerce store competitors. With functionality including Shopify theme detection, app detection, ad campaign detection and product lists, you’ll be able to find out what competitors are doing to get ahead. 

Conclusion 

There are many methods to increase online sales for your eCommerce store, and combining both short-term and long-term tactics is key. When adopted with the right business intelligence tool, these methods can set you up for success in the long run.