How to maximise your online sales

Take your online business to the next level.

In recent years it's become more and more necessary for your business to have a website to ensure your business continues running smoothly, particularly if you were previously largely reliant on a shop or similar location for most of your sales before the Covid pandemic.

You will likely have become more familiar with different aspects of your digital presence, and maybe you feel that it’s now time to stop doing just the basics – it’s time to flourish!

That means it’s time for renewed focus on your online channels and the processes behind the scenes, in order to maximise your sales. Here are some tips to get you started.

Website tips to help increase online sales

Before you start looking for new tools and technologies, it’s important to first ensure your website is designed to maximise your ecommerce potential. Small changes can make a surprisingly big difference:

• Make sure your website clearly shows your opening hours, address and contact details

• Clearly categorise your offerings at the top of the page

• Clearly categorise your offerings at the top of the page

• Don’t be shy about what makes your service unique compared to your competitors

• Include testimonials from happy customers

• Use GIFs instead of images to make your page more dynamic

• Aim for a positive and encouraging tone throughout

• Offer proof that your website is secure

• Clearly display all your cancellation, refund and delivery policies

• Let your customers know how many steps are in the checkout process

There are other things you can do to help gain customer trust, such as including customer reviews.

Next you should ensure that your website is optimised for search engines and that your ads are driving traffic to your site. We go into these digital marketing practices in more detail in our blog, 6 digital marketing tools for SMES.

Once you’ve laid the groundwork, it’s time to start looking at some more advanced ways to improve your processes and drive sales. One way is to invest in customer relationship management (CRM) software.

Using CRM technology for personalisation and cross-selling opportunities

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software helps you better understand your customers by studying their shopping habits and behaviours, finding patterns, and anticipating what information or solutions they might need before they even realise it themselves.

This level of personalisation is the goal of every modern online business, as customers respond positively when presented with targeted solutions and options. This is all possible via CRM software that utilises the cloud to get the most out of your data: once all of your customer data is stored securely in the cloud, the right software can intuitively organise and uncover individual patterns based on past activity. But remember, you must ensure you remain compliant with data protection laws when storing your customers’ details.

The other benefit of CRM is that the better you understand your customers, the better you’ll be at cross-selling them other products. Cross-selling is a very effective way to increase your online sales because existing customers are 60-70% more likely to buy from you than a new prospect (5-20%). By using CRM software, you can make that cross-sell offering as relevant as possible to your customers’ desires.

This saves time, resources and your creative energy by providing an incredibly targeted digital marketing service without you or your employees needing to guide it. Popular CRM software platforms include Salesforce, HubSpot, and Zoho. Each has its own pros and cons, but most will allow you to have a free trial (and start-up tool Taimer is free), so shop around to find which one best fits your needs.

Using these tools will help maximise your online sales performance. If you’re looking for more information on how to create an ecommerce website, visit our blog on building your own online shop.

Want more help and support? Speak to our expert V-Hub Business Advisers, who offer tailored guidance and support on a range of topics.