New businesses are using online methods to boost sales during difficult financial conditions according to online specialists Piper Digital Marketing (PiperDM).
PiperDM managing director Dena Dillon said online sales are booming as big name bricks-and-mortar retailers are posting the worst results in decades.
Two clients, Melbourne fashion boutiques Habbot Studios and Cable Melbourne, have used the agency to bypass stockists and drive their own sales online, she said. “It’s not as simple as if you build it, they will come, but if you know a few tricks you can still achieve the dream.”
Methods used to drive sales included targeting influential fashion bloggers, running Facebook competitions and offering incentives like free shipping. Habbot Studios has since achieved a 385 percent increase in sales and a 642 percent increase in traffic to its website.
The agency has released a set of tips to follow to break into the lucrative e-commerce space, including making the online customer feel comfortable by relieving fears and doubts, cross selling with bigger brands, and promoting sale items and special offers.
Dillon said that embracing new media, like Facebook and blogging, is important to leverage your online business community and bring in new customers.
She stated that online shopping should be embraced by businesses as a medium in driving sales.
“People often make the mistake of thinking shoppers make decisions about online purchasing based on price but that is not the case,” Dillon said. “In fact a recent survey showed the more educated and affluent a person, the more likely they were to shop online.”
