In 2023, the e-commerce market in the United States, for the first time in history, "broke through" the trillion-dollar turnover mark, Comscore experts have calculated. The growth amounted to at least 20 percent compared to the previous reporting period. The development of e-commerce is a long-term trend that has already noticeably reshaped the sales market. It has opened up almost limitless opportunities for progressive check growth for manufacturers and distributors. For marketers, however, it has brought new challenges and forced them to reconsider classic approaches to product promotion. What strategy will maximize checks and profits? Says MIKHRINISO NIGMATULLINA, Strategic Marketing, E-commerce, and business development expert whose portfolio includes VistaPrint (Depositphotos) and P&G.
E-commerce is a unique process because the sector is constantly growing and changing dynamically. Marketers need to follow trends and reinvent their own strategies and tools constantly, each time looking for the one true, effective approach that will help the product "take off" in the conditions set.
Mikhriniso Nigmatullina's biography includes notable successes in P&G and VistaPrint (Depositphotos) on the US market. The first case was the launch of two niche brands and a project to optimize e-commerce processes. In the second case, it was about attracting new clients in the largest market for the company - the American market.
As a result, her client's sales grew 300% in a few months. "Creating and maintaining strategic partnerships with clients in the pharmaceutical industry brought an overall increase in sales of 38% and up to 25% in key categories. My banner ad campaign on Facebook and Instagram increased user engagement and brought twice as many visitors to the online pharmacy. Also, my efforts led to creating a budget forecasting system, by which future overspending and limitations could be dynamically calculated," recalls the expert.
According to Mikhriniso's observations, the following factors have the most noticeable impact on sales in the e-commerce segment today:
Orientation towards digital technologies and online platforms. According to the expert, it is important for marketers to use Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tools to attract traffic; social media to increase audience; paid online advertising to increase brand visibility, and opinion leader marketing to establish trust;
Remember to track return on investment (ROI). This metric helps to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategy and adjust it in time;
Effective customer engagement in e-commerce is only possible with content personalization and deep analytics. A marketer needs to have a good understanding of the market layout and the potential of competitors in a particular niche. This knowledge will help make a unique selling proposition (USP) to the customer, closing their needs better than the competitor's offer. One should remember to adapt to the cultural specifics of a particular region. Customers in different countries have different needs depending on the environment where they live and work;
Omnichannelization is an important aspect. E-commerce should provide high-quality interaction with the customer on all available platforms. And using a CRM system optimizes consumer interaction, creating a personalized and engaging experience.
Separately, it's worth considering that e-commerce is always part of a more global user interaction process. Product promotion strategy in e-commerce must be considered in collaboration with the overall B2C (Business to Clients) business development strategy. Images should be of high quality, search functions should be convenient and utilitarian, and social proof of product value is mandatory (reviews, friendly delivery options, and focus on customer comfort at all product interaction stages).
According to Nigmatullina, the main features of the strategy developed by a marketer should be, firstly, a systematic and integrated approach. As communication channels, the expert advises to involve equally:
- E-mail;
- Social networks (Facebook, Instagram);
- Website and product applications.
Cross-platform interaction combines various digital channels and attracts more traffic, among which is the target audience, for which the marketer creates attractive and engaging content.
Secondly, she urges betting on personalized offers. "To help the marketer - artificial intelligence and advanced analytics will allow you to offer a product that is ideal for a particular client. The better you understand the requests and translate them into a product, the more loyal your customers will be, and the more long-term relationships they will want to build with you," explains the marketer.
Last but not least, an equally important element for adoption is innovation. "I am constantly following the latest trends and technologies in the industry and integrating them into sales strategies. This approach not only allows me to stay one step ahead of the competition but also create unique and memorable campaigns. This is how I started to attract key marketing agencies in the U.S. to the company's product, which allowed me to increase the growth of the customer base and the introduction of a loyalty program to increase the growth of repeat purchases of customers," explains Nigmatullina. In addition, the expert recommends paying attention to the analysis of data and trends, market research, tracking consumer behavior, prompt adaptation of marketing strategy to rapidly changing conditions, and searching for new points of growth.
