Online shopping has become very attractive for consumers – it is more convenient, it saves time, and sometime you spend less. Many retailers are now online and one of their best strategies to attract a larger audience and increase their sales is through social media. But not every company or business can afford a social media marketing department, so it’s now essential for every seller to learn a few basic skills in the field.
Your social media presence alone won’t be enough to increase the sales. How you use it and what strategies you will implement will be the major factor. So, below you will find practical tips on how to boost online sales with social media.
Use hashtags
Don’t be afraid to use hashtags! They will help your potential customers to find you. Use a variety of hashtags, including popular ones like #sale, #holidaysale, #discount, #shopping, and so on. Besides these generic options, come up with more distinctive ones, describing your particular business, product or service. Once you’ve found the balance, use these same hashtags across all social media platforms. This strategy also works with automated software solutions for social media management such as hootsuite.com
Offer coupons
Today’s customer tries to be a smart one, so you need to be smarter, too. People are looking for sales and discounts, so offer them discount coupons. You will attract more potential customers when you let them know the coupon code is only available to those who follow you on Twitter or “like” your Facebook page. Don’t be afraid you could lose your profit – use small discounts up to 10 percent. This way you will draw in more customers and increase the number of your followers.
Flash sales
One of the common strategies of successful online retailers such as Amazon, is offering limited-time sales. Customers always want to shop during flash sales, as they create a feeling of urgency. There are a few flash sale websites from where you can borrow some ideas, such as MyHabit and RueLaLa.
Announce your flash sale a month before it actually starts, or simply don’t mention a particular date for it. Customers will be in a way forced to check your feeds several times a day.