Biggest Mistakes Online Sellers Make

Mihai-Alexandru Cristea 09/04/2020 | 14:20

Gone are those days when we need to hit the busy streets, bear with the heavy traffic just to be able to buy what we need in stores and supermarkets. Today, the way that people spend their money has changed dramatically. They no longer spend more on car fuel just to be able to shop. Instead, the shopping is done at the touch of a button or clicking the “add to cart” option. And, thus the rise of online sellers, who also aim to provide the products and services that people often look for when trying to shop online. 

 

If you are among these online sellers who are competing for attention from your target audience, make sure that you do not commit any of the following mistakes. But, if you do, find ways to rectify it right away. 

Providing inaccurate product descriptions

Getting careless when writing your product descriptions can certainly cost you money. In fact, Amazon has been known to suspend online businesses that provide wrong product descriptions to their customers.  When selling any kind of product on Amazon, do not forget that you have a lot of competitors. If buyers notice that your product descriptions are inaccurate, some words are misspelled, or wrong adjectives have been used, you run the risk of receiving many customer complaints. Not to mention negative feedback and rating from your irate customers. If errors like these continue over time, Amazon could get your business suspended. You have to prepare yourself to file an Amazon appeal so you could get your business back to normal operation. Otherwise, you could lose your business and all your chances of becoming a successful online entrepreneur on Amazon. 

Ignoring the importance of a strategic plan.

A strategic plan is crucial to any business. If you are looking to sell online, know that you will have a plethora of competitors and not having a strategic plan may easily lead your business to have difficulty staying afloat amidst competition. When planning for a strategic plan, make sure that you know exactly where you can possibly find most of your target customers or clients. Do they spend most of their time on social media platforms? Do they frequently visit online news sites? What kind of blogs would they love to visit? 

Not being consistent.

Some online sellers also fail to become consistent in their planned marketing tactics. Part of their marketing tactics is to constantly visit their Facebook account and regularly update it with the latest information about their products and services. However, some online entrepreneurs find their daily duties too overwhelming to have enough time to work on their social media accounts. If your business is still starting, you have to create a schedule and stick to it. Your schedule should take into consideration the time when your target customers will most likely visit their online accounts too. Remember that failing to stay consistent can make your business easily lose potential customers. In this fast-changing world that we are currently living in, online information quickly becomes outdated because every second another new one always comes up.

Not taking advantage of SEO.

Taking advantage of SEO will largely help your site rank higher in the search engine results. When your site religiously adheres to the rules of SEO, chances are high that you will not have difficulty obtaining organic search results for your potential customers. One of the ways to help your site rank higher is to constantly publish well-written and highly informative content to your blog site. Search engines would love to rank sites that always have fresh content. However, when publishing content, see to it that it uses the right set of keywords. The same thing should be done when writing product descriptions.  

Not using the right e-commerce platform.

Every online seller should know that an e-Commerce platform can definitely make or break one’s online business. It greatly determines how your products will be showcased to your customers online. The e-Commerce platform you use will also play a huge role in attracting more potential buyers to your site. The right platform will also dictate your capability to scale your business over a period of time. In other words, choosing the right e-Commerce platform is very important. You have to consider first what kind of products you plan to sell and how you plan to expand your business over time. It is also necessary to consider how much time you want to spend when it comes to taking control of your website. Do not forget to consider how much budget you want to set aside for the control, development and maintenance of your e-Commerce site. 

Not taking the time to understand your target audience.

Remember that having your own e-Commerce site and your own products to sell are not enough guarantee that you will start sailing your way to success. You also need to completely understand your audience so that you can be sure what is it that really makes them tick. You have to conduct thorough research for you to be able to identify if the network of audience you have in your mind actually has a need for your product. Going deep dive into what your customer needs and wants will also help you become more aware as to what type of language you should use to ensure that they will understand your blog posts, product descriptions and all those stuff that you post online about your product. Gaining a better understanding about your audience will also help you come up with an effective marketing strategy that focuses on your customer’s satisfaction. 

The world of online selling can be filled with challenges. It takes a lot of patience, determination and grit to be able to wade through the many obstacles that online entrepreneurs have to go through on a daily basis. However, with your passion for learning more about how to grow your online selling business, chances are high that you can hit your goals. It may not be sooner, but the important thing is that you enjoy every step of your journey. Aim high, but always keep your eyes on your competitors for they could topple you anytime. 

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