Many of our small business clients have recently pivoted to eCommerce in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. By shifting to or enhancing online sales, they have created revenue streams that provide immediate relief and are scalable in the long term. Once online, the next question is how to get the message out to your customers that you are open for business.

Here’s How to Start Marketing

We’ll start with our top three tips for marketing your new eCommerce site.

1. Pick the top 1 – 2 social media channels you feel most confident and capable of using. Then, use them well. This means posting consistently, being authentic, and communicating clearly. 
2. Make a clear connection between your eCommerce website and your social media channels. Not only should the technical integrations work together, but the messaging and visual identity should be the same. 
3. Use social media not just to “hard sell” your products but use your profiles to communicate helpfully. Posts that share relevant updates, provide information, answer questions, address pain points, and provide relief (joy, humor, distractions, etc.) are all helpful. 

Be sure you’re not just adding to the “noise” or posting to social media just to be posting. With that in mind, set your goals.

Set Goals for Marketing

The overarching goal of social media marketing usually boils down to driving sales and traffic to the website. However, it’s important to understand that each social media post should have a micro-goal. Before creating a post, complete this sentence:

“If someone sees this post, I want them to know _________ and then take this action _________.”

Next, ask yourself if that post is customer-centric. Is this something your customer wants to know or needs to know? Have you anticipated their pain points? Have you made it easy for them to do what you want?

While each post does not have to be perfectly polished, there are some bare basics you want to be sure to include:

• A line or two of copy that “speaks” clearly, is genuine/authentic, and is grammatically correct.
• A relevant link (ideally to the specific product or information being referenced in the post)
• An image that reflects your brand and the content of the post (noting original photos and short videos tend to have higher engagement)

Further tweaks should be made depending on which platform you’re using.

Adjust for Different Social Media Platforms

Always default to how much time and energy you can devote to your social media marketing as a small business owner. However, you will see a higher return on your investment if you make minor adjustments to your content for each platform.

Facebook

Facebook is geared more towards news and entertainment and is one of the platforms’ highest website traffic drivers. Focus here on sharing a variety of content, keeping business updates current, and content conversational.

Instagram

Instagram is much more visual and sees more success with more unique and aesthetically pleasing photography. It’s not a high-traffic driver, but it is wonderful for brand awareness. Use this platform to help your customers know what your products and services look like.

Twitter

Twitter is a fast-moving newsfeed, so you can use it to get updates out quickly. Need to update curbside pickup directions urgently? Twitter would be a great way to share that news quickly. Be sure to provide a link to the place on your website where followers can get more information.

Pinterest

Pinterest is similar to Instagram in that it is very visual. With optimal SEO power, this platform should be used to inspire your audience. Content produced for Pinterest is relatively “evergreen,” so you’ll find it valuable to pay closer attention to what you post here.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is an excellent platform for sharing business updates and industry-related news. It is much more formal and professional, so the content should reflect those tones.

TikTok

Taking the internet by storm is the short, personal video broadcasting platform TikTok. Popular with younger generations, this channel allows businesses to get creative and have some fun. TikTok has also helped businesses capitalize on influencers. And, if you’re not sure where to find those influencers, resources like InfluenceGrid can help you.

Google Business & Yelp

Don’t forget you should also keep your Google Business listing, Yelp profile, and other directory listing sites up to date. These are critical for ensuring that anyone searching for your products or services sees up-to-date information in the search results. Google, in particular, will first pull information from their listing. Be sure to update your website URL, business hours, and services.

Frequency of Communication

Even when we’re not in the middle of a pandemic, a popular question is, “How often should I post?” There isn’t a magic number, but it doesn’t have to be a mystery! As a general guide, we recommend posting on social media once per day. Because times are a little uncertain, this number could easily shift up or down by a few posts. 

It’s essential to note that consistency is critical. It’s much better to commit to 3 – 4 posts per week than posting a lot but at infrequent intervals. And there are some really easy ways to ensure you get the most return on those posts.

Utilize Metrics in Marketing

Look to your social media metrics to help you make more informed decisions about your content. High engagement trends indicate your audience likes what they see and may want more of it. Lower engagement trends might indicate you are not posting enough or sharing the “wrong” kind of content. Also, pay attention to the days and times your audience is online. You might just be missing them, so with a slight adjustment, you can be more effective. 

Are you stressed at the thought of even just 3 – 4 posts per week? Did you discover your audience is wide awake at 2 am while you’ve been in bed for hours? A scheduling tool like Buffer will help you solve those dilemmas.

Hire a Professional

How do you tackle marketing your new eCommerce site? Reach out to an industry expert. For the sake of a couple of hours of consultation, you’ll save yourself hours (days!) of unnecessary stress. Many marketing agencies will offer various affordable and customized options to meet your needs. They can do everything from pointing you in the right direction to taking your social media marketing off your plate.