Building A Brand Strategy for E-commerce

Brand Strategy for E-Commerce: 7 Sample Goals to Help Build a Branding Strategy for your E-commerce Business

It’s easy to spot a Coca-Cola or Nike advertisement from a mile away.

Why are some names so quickly recognized?

The answer is simple: brand recognition.

Companies spend millions of dollars on its development, and thousands more on spreading brand awareness while keeping every ad, image, and message “on brand.” 

According to Alex Lysak, marketing specialist and CEO of ScanTeam, it’s essential to get an expert to help you set out an effective eCommerce branding strategy. If you don’t address all the critical elements that make up your plan’s foundation, you’ve failed before you’ve even begun.

Below, we’ll take a look at some of the goals a branding plan needs to address for E-commerce. We’ll also tell you how to build a brand strategy for E-commerce and which elements you need to include.

Why Do You Need A Brand Strategy for E-commerce?

Have you ever wondered why you need a brand strategy for E-commerce? Here are two of the most important goals that show the importance of branding in eCommerce and what it can do for your online store.

1. Gain Relevant Traffic

Many people look at their ad statistics and get stuck in the numbers. Yes, it’s great that you’ve reached a thousand visitors, and that a few of those clicked on your post, advertisement, or website link. Unfortunately, these are vanity statistics, and they don’t do anything other than make you feel good.

Of the five hundred people who went through to your website or product, what percentage made a purchase? How many additional followers did you gain?

If you can’t determine the value of each visitor, then the overall traffic is irrelevant. However, if you’ve taken the time to build a well-thought-out eCommerce branding strategy, you can get more relevant traffic.

2. Increase Sales

For eCommerce stores, this is one of the most important goals. Without relevant traffic, your business can’t make sales or thrive. However, if potential customers aren’t drawn to your store or brand, they likely won’t spend money on your products.

Did you know that 71% of consumers prefer to buy from names they’re familiar with? If people don’t recognize your brand online or on social media, they’ll scroll right past – even if your product is perfectly suited to your needs.

If you want to stop losing sales to other brands, you need to invest in building an eCommerce brand that people will recognize and come to respect, love, and want to buy from.

The 7 Top Tips on How to Build Your Ecommerce Brand

Now you know why you need to build your eCommerce brand. Next, you need to know how to do it and which elements to include. 

To that end, we’ve assembled the following branding tips for online business owners to create successful strategies. If you address the following elements in your brand strategy for E-commerce, you’ll be well on your way to reaching the goals mentioned above. 

1. Choose Your Brand Voice and Style

Before doing anything else, start by determining the voice and style of your brand. You can’t speak to trendy young adults by using the same language you’d use for 40-something business owners. 

Who are your ideal shoppers? Understanding who your shoppers are and what your place is in regards to reaching them is a critical first step in the web design process for an E-commerce store. Once you’ve figured that out, you can create a brand that will genuinely and appealingly speak to those individuals.

2. Build Customer Relationships

Social media is more than platforms to showcase your brand; this is where you can start building meaningful relationships with your customers or engage in fun (and funny) interactions.

For a great example, Merriam-Webster is probably the king of Twitter comebacks. On the other hand, KLM has allowed flyers to share their experiences with support and lost-and-found services online.

Interacting with your followers and consumers fosters trust and loyalty, and it’s an essential part of any brand strategy for E-commerce businesses.

3. Prioritize Product Quality

It can take months, even years, to build a positive image. Unfortunately, one negative review can ruin it in a matter of seconds. You can’t build a strong image on the back of shoddy goods.

If you want customers to love your eCommerce brand and products, give them a quality product that they won’t regret buying.

4. Create Engaging Content

It isn’t easy to create a successful branded content campaign, especially if you want consumers to engage with your ads and posts. You only have a few seconds to grab someone’s attention, or the potential sale is lost.

You can share videos, showcase your products, and feature client reviews. Try to be consistent in your posting times, and continuously share quality, engaging content that adds value for your visitors.

5. Tell a Story

Who are you? What are the goals, commitments, and charitable values of your business? Successful brands tell stories that their consumers can connect and identify with. If you want to generate more traffic and increase sales, let your brand give customers a reason to choose you.

6. Provide Personalized Experiences

People don’t want to be numbers anymore; consumers demand to be recognized as individuals, and they expect brands to cater to that desire. To that end, you need to provide as personalized an experience as possible to your visitors.

For example, if someone is looking at a particular product, show them similar ones they might be interested in. Use remarketing to remind them about abandoned shopping carts, or send personalized offers and discounts.

Making your customer feel special can go a long way to creating a positive brand image.

7. Partner With Influencers and Other Brands

Many successful eCommerce stores work with high-profile influencers or other brands. If you want to know how to tie up with brands for eCommerce, don’t get caught up looking for companies just like yours. Instead, think outside of the box.

For example, Covergirl and Lucasfilm partnered up to create an exciting Star Wars makeup line. It gave both parties exposure to new markets and resulted in a fruitful partnership.

Keep in mind that, while working with influencers and brands can be a powerful marketing tool, some will try to trick you into giving them free goods. Awareness is good, but “exposure” doesn’t pay the bills.

Too Long, Didn’t Read

If you want to start marketing your E-commerce business successfully, increase your sales, and gain relevant traffic, you need to invest in creating a recognizable brand. A brand strategy is essential to any E-commerce business, and it’s one of the best ways to get consumers interested in what you have to offer.

When building your E-commerce brand strategy, take the time to determine the ideal style and voice for your brand. Keep in mind — it needs to match your target market.

Don’t shy away from interacting with your customers and foster long-lasting relationships that will result in return business and referrals.

Remember, your brand and content need to tell a story, and potential customers need to feel like you’re speaking directly with them. If you want to expand your market, you can even reach out to influencers and work with them to grow brand recognition.

Finally, focus on the quality of your products. No matter how well you market them, bad reviews can quickly ruin a brand’s reputation.

Conclusion

A solid strategy is key to building a successful eCommerce business. If you follow these tips, you’ll be well on your way to building an effective brand for your E-commerce business and increasing your sales.