Last Updated on May 30, 2019 by Numinix Developer
Every ecommerce store owner wants to attract buyers or customers who are ready to open their wallet and hit the “buy” button. These visitors find you by typing in specific keywords into the search engines and once they locate the product, they move through the checkout process and complete the sale.
In a perfect world, every visitor would be ready to buy, but this is not the case. Many visitors are casually looking or even browsing to determine whether or not they want a product. Some are further along in the buying cycle and they know what product they want to buy, but need to comparison shop before they pull the trigger.
Your site will receive visitors with varying intentions. Searchers will type keywords into Google and tailor their search to their specific stage in the buying cycle. For example, if a potential customer is looking for sneakers, they might type “sneakers” into Google. When they realize they desire a specific type of sneaker, they may search for “black sneakers”. As they continue, they may determine their favorite brand is Skechers, so their final search phrase could look like, “Skechers black sneakers” or “buy Skechers black sneakers.” Savvy shoppers may even search for a specific model number.
Cater to visitors who hail from all stages of search. Many webmasters focus only on the customers who are ready to buy and forget about those who are merely browsing. The browsing customers will NOT buy immediately, but there still exists a hidden opportunity to pre-sell.
How to Pre-Sell
Your website is full of products designed to sell to the customers ready to buy. But the rest of your site is prime real estate to attract those who are not ready to buy, but have some sort of interest in your product. Why is it important to target these people? Because when they are ready to buy, they will come to you.
Here are some effective pre-sell strategies:
Newsletter subscription – A customer not ready to buy may offer his email address to sign up for a newsletter. Pump the newsletter as a free resource for helpful tips and tricks or education for your industry.
Unique product descriptions – Differentiate your store from the competition by writing unique product descriptions. Make them compelling and paint a story while featuring the benefits.
Focus on benefits – Throughout the site’s content, focus on the benefits the customer will receive. Make the website about THEM, not about your desire to make a sale.
Educational Resources – Establish your store as a leader in the industry by compiling an article or content database that lists topics your customers will value.
Social Media – Add links to your social profiles. When a potential customer “likes” your Facebook Page, you establish a line of communication that may result in a future purchase. See Numinix’s Social Networking Page for some cool modules to help your customers access your social media sites directly from your website.
Content – Product displays are good, but displays surrounded by great content are better. Write small snippets of marketing copy (product selection, quality, value, brand recognition) above category pages, on the about us page and also on the home page. This copy will help potential customers remember your store.
Pre-selling is centered on helping a potential customer remember you, so when they are ready to buy, they will come to you. Make that initial form of contact, whether an optin, a display of valuable resources, or the chance to connect via social media. The more you can keep them connected to your brand, the better your chance of reclaiming the sale.