By now, you should be familiar with (if not exhausted by) the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Toilet paper problems aside, reports show a significant increase in the closure of traditional businesses. Instead of dwelling on the damage, pain, and uncertainty, consider moving your business online so you survive and thrive in these tough economic times.
With consumers unable to venture out and visit their favourite shops, having an online presence is more important than ever. Although there has been a drastic shift in people’s spending habits, they’re still going online and buying things that will help them adapt to the new normal. Moving your business online, therefore, can help generate much-needed revenue to keep your operations going.
Using digital technology to launch an online business is a great method to expand your customer base.
Here are some steps to help you convert your offline business to an online one:
#Identify your target market
Identifying and understanding your customers is an essential part of your business and marketing plan. Not everyone is your potential buyer, so it’s important to have a clear understanding of your target market early on.
Identify your target audience and what they want from an online experience.
#Choose your platform
Choose the most appropriate platform for your company, such as a website, an online store, or social networking.
The Best E-Commerce Platforms of 2023
- Squarespace: Best Overall E-Commerce Platform.
- Square Online: Best for Omnichannel Selling.
- Ecwid: Best for Existing Sites.
- Shopify: Best for Drop shipping.
- Wix: Best Drag-and-Drop Editor.
- Weebly: Best Value.
- BigCommerce: Best for Boosting Sales.
- WooCommerce: Best for Versatility.
#Build your online presence:
An online presence can be defined by how easy it is to find a brand or company online. It’s important for building your brand’s reputation, increasing brand awareness, and providing visibility to your products or services when users are searching for related keywords.
Make a website that exudes professionalism and displays your goods and services. Connect with your customers on social media to grow your business.
How to Improve Your Online Presence:
- Build an email list
- Master SEO
- Create value
- Be active online
- Analyze your results
- Adopt new forums
- Have a social media presence
- Make a website
- Produce content
- Personify your brand
- Automate your process
#Establish payment methods
Many businesses struggle not because they can’t generate sales, but because they don’t manage cash. There is nothing more important to the success of your business than your system for managing cash due from sales through your process of billing and collections. You can have lots of customers, but if you don’t collect money from them, you will go out of business.
Provide a variety of payment choices, such as PayPal, credit cards, and other online payment services
#Optimize for search engines:
By optimizing a website for search engines, businesses can ensure that their back cushion products are visible to potential customers who are actively searching for them online.
To increase the visibility of your website on search engines like Google, use keywords and other optimization tactics.
Benefits of SEO:
- More website traffic
- More customers
- Better reputation
- Higher ROI
So whether you want more brand awareness, online visibility, leads, sales, or loyal customers, SEO is your answer.
#Offer excellent customer service
You may have a fantastic product, but if your customer service is unhelpful, unreliable, or just plain hard to get in touch with, folks will hear about it, and you’ll lose customers over it.
Customer service has an impact on both existing customers and potential customers.
Did you know that 68% of consumers would react by telling family and friends about a bad experience by posting it on a social network? And almost 50% of customers claim they would switch to a new brand after just one bad experience!
However, there is great value in ensuring you deliver positive customer service.
The following way to deliver great customer service:
- Know your product
- Maintain a positive attitude
- Creatively problem-solve
- Respond quickly
- Personalize your service
- Help customers help themselves
- Focus support on the customer
- Actively listen
- Keep your word
- Be proactively helpful
#Measure your success
Track website traffic and conversion rates with analytics tools. Use this information to make improvements and grow your online business.
Conclusion
By following these steps to convert an offline business to an online one, you can successfully use digital technology to transition your offline firm to an online one. Good luck!
