E-commerce refers to activities such as purchasing and selling that take place via the internet. The various sorts of commerce include B2B, B2C, C2C (consumer to consumer), and C2B (business to business) (consumer to business). An e-commerce platform is a software application that allows both sides, the vendor and the customer, to come together and perform their respective functions. 

Essentially, a consumer should be able to utilize an e-commerce platform to discover products, browse through them using a shopping cart, and then complete the transaction.

Related: Increase Website Traffic

What are the types of e-commerce?

E-commerce business transactions can happen in many ways. Particularly as business-to-business (B2B), business-to-consumer (B2C), consumer-to-consumer (C2C) or consumer-to-business (C2B).

In consumer-to-consumer (C2C) e-commerce, buyers and sellers transact online for the exchange of goods, services, and information. In most cases, these transactions are carried out via a third party, which offers a web-based platform for them.

eBay and Craigslist are two well-known C2C platforms that use auctions and classified ads to connect buyers and sellers. It may also be dubbed C2B2C — customer to customer — because eBay is a business.

It is a form of e-commerce in which consumers offer their goods and services for sale to businesses who bid and purchase them online. This is known as C2B e-commerce. This is the polar opposite of the conventional B2C business paradigm.

A B2A transaction is one in which a company transacts with the government or public administration online. It’s no secret that many parts of government are dependent on e-services or products in some form or another. These can be provided online by businesses. As e-government capabilities have been developed, B2A services have risen significantly in recent years.

A C2A transaction is one in which an individual consumer transacts online with the government or public administration. People regularly employ electronic means in the following fields even if the government rarely buys their products or services from them.

See also: What is SEO?

What are the most successful e-commerce sites?

There are a number of popular e-commerce leaders in the Philippines already, but they are all chasing one dominant leader. Existing firms and newcomers still have to contend with Lazada, the dominant player in Philippine e-commerce and a leader in Southeast Asia’s e-commerce, despite the market’s expanding size as well as scope.

Galleon.ph, Metrodeal, Globe Online Shop, Carousell Philippines, Carousell Philippines, and lastly Shopee Philippines are also popular e-commerce websites in the Philippines.

See also: What is SEM?

What makes an e-commerce website successful?

Here are some important tips in creating a successful e-commerce website:

Try to keep things as straightforward as possible.

The customer must be able to see the buying path immediately. Be sure to consider whether or not a new design element will enhance or hinder the buyer’s experience before introducing it to the page. Start with a straightforward landing page. Add more conversion-inducing components as you gain a better understanding of your target audience’s habits and preferences over time.

The goal of conversion is to make the customer happy.

A positive user experience enhances the enjoyment of connecting with your brand. Great user experience increases this pleasure. Design blunders, on the other hand, sap motivation. Once the original design is complete, go through and thoroughly check each page. Examine your store’s conversion rates to see where friction might be removed or delight added.

Having a unique store gives you an advantage over the competition.

Your business’s identity is a valuable tool for connecting emotionally with your target audience and converting them into enthusiastic brand evangelists. Most customers (four out of five) are more likely to recommend their long-time favorite brand. Making your online purchasing experience stand out will help you establish your business as a long-time favorite among customers.

Always put the user’s experience first.

Prices that are both attractive and competitive are still crucial, but if the overall user experience is clumsy, so is the effectiveness of these strategies. Priority one should be given to achieving a high level of website usability and performance. Afterwards, concentrate on further graphic design components.

Adopt a flat design approach.

As of today, flat design is considered a “classic” style for the web. And it’s not without reason. For this, take note of these important principles for a good flat design prompt:

  • A simple organizational structure helps to expedite the processing of new information.
  • Iconography that emphasizes movement and adaptability.
  • Making use of well-known patterns makes it easier to grasp the affordances of new things.

All of these aspects contribute to a positive shopping experience.

Make your mark on the world.

Year after year, the ecommerce market becomes more crowded and competitive. With the right branding, iconography, website features, and on-site experience, you can set yourself apart from the competition.

When creating a website, keep conversion rates in mind.

Use data to back up your design assumptions. Perform usability studies with a focus group or look at the customer lifecycle and browsing behaviors if you’re revamping. Find out as much as you can about your audience’s browsing patterns, then use that information in your design. To be effective, your online store’s design must be appealing to your intended audience as well as pleasing to your own aesthetic sensibilities.

Don’t just tell, show.

Great e-commerce sites use imagery to guide their customers through the buying process. To find out more, it’s important to consider all of the different elements at play. Conversions can be sped up with the use of tooltips and service texts. A design that necessitates a lengthy explanation for each new step is not appropriate for your company.

Your clients do not want to be bothered.

Online shopping and discovering new products should be simple. Provide each visitor with a clear path to buy by using navigation bars, a simple information architecture, and strategically positioned call-to-action buttons. Reduce the cognitive load at each stage of the purchasing process to enhance conversion.

Find out what your customers think by asking them directly.

With so many ecommerce best practices available on the internet, it’s easy to try them all out. However, having more isn’t always a good thing. Not all strategies are effective for all retailers. Instead of following conventional wisdom, business owners should base their design decisions on first-hand client feedback and data. That way, you’ll be able to design an experience that stands out from the crowd and encourages them to stick with your business.

Related: SEO vs SEM: What is the difference?

How can I improve my ecommerce website?

If you already got an ecommerce site, these are some ways you can step-up your website’s performance:

Improve the visibility of the page on Google

You’ll get better results if you can get your page to rank well in Google. However, I’m telling clients less and less often to be concerned about SEO. If you have a well-known brand or create engaging content that gets shared, Google will take note.

As a result of Google’s algorithm updates, good content and useful websites can be rewarded without a lot of optimization work on their part. If you want your website to rank well in search engines, you only need to focus on making it fast and user-friendly on all platforms, including mobile ones.

To date, the most critical factor in SEO has been the authority of your domain. To what extent have other websites or social media platforms linked to or mentioned you as a source of information? And getting influencers to talk about you boils down to good old-fashioned public relations.

The following are the most important aspects to pay attention to:

  • If you’re using keywords, keep in mind that Google also recognizes synonyms, so make sure you describe your offering clearly. Simply put, if you write for humans, you’ll be successful.
  • User experience refers to the ease with which a user may navigate a page on any device.
  • Remember to include 160-character meta descriptions in your website’s search engine results, as this is what users will see (SERPs). The Click Through Rate is the percentage of people who choose to click on your result after seeing it in their search results (CTR).

To gain an advantage over your competitors, enhance your click-through rate (CTR), and increase sales, you must use this search engine result snippet. Google normally takes the first paragraph of the product page as a meta description if you don’t give one, however this may not convey important information.

Make use of top-notch photos.

A photograph helps a customer visualize owning a product, which increases sales. Photographs that are well-done show the item’s finer details, are consistent, and most importantly, are motivational.

In many cases, taking your own photos is the better option because the product’s photography from the maker isn’t usually that good. Ideally, your product pages should feature images of both the product’s model and the packaging.

When the subject matter is large, include something in the frame to set the scene. For example, Bellroy’s tiny wallets display British pounds inside.

One-of-a-kind things and used products should be photographed so that customers know exactly what they’re buying.

The cost and buy button should be highlighted.

There should be a buy button near the top of the page, just under price, which should be below the product title. Due to the fact that this is customary, everyone is familiar with it.

The buy button should be the most obvious call to action, regardless of the design.

A single sentence in small type just beneath the buy button, highlighting major selling points like free shipping, a two-year warranty, or quick delivery, is something I like to use. In this way, the customer is given one last boost of confidence and encouragement before committing to the purchase.

Information about delivery, returns, and refunds should be included.

Delivery, returns, and refund information must be clearly displayed on the product page. Use tabs or an accordion style instead of summarizing (but be sure to include links to more thorough information pages).

Display a list of available times for this event.

Stock availability should be displayed as early as possible to prevent customers from becoming disappointed. This includes making it clear on the product pages which options are available. To avoid upsetting clients who have to navigate through multiple alternatives before selecting a size, you should do this. Otherwise, you may discover the item is out of stock.

Demonstrate a shortage.

You can utilize this to your advantage by showing customers when you’re running low on a certain item’s stock. Then, when the inventory is down to, say, “just three left,” display a warning saying such. This is a terrific method to get people to buy now rather than wait till they have more money to spend (or never).

Other suggestions include having an online counter display when orders must be placed in order to receive them the following day or on the same day if they are for next-day delivery. This creates a sense of urgency as well.

Provide testimonials from others

Before making a purchase from you, customers would want some proof that you’re legit. This is best accomplished through the use of “social proof.” Here are a few examples:

Recent media coverage. Rather than displaying the entire page, just the logos should be displayed.

  • A large and active online community. Show off your Instagram following if you have one.
  • Your merchandise is being used by others on Instagram, according to your customers.
  • We’ve seen… A-listers spotted with your products.
  • A system of formal and automatic evaluation, such as Yotpo or Trustpilot.
  • Customer testimonials the old-fashioned way.
  • After the product images and description, this is usually the next thing we include on the website. It gives customers peace of mind after they’ve identified the perfect item and removes all roadblocks to purchase.

Showcase Related Products

It’s possible this isn’t the best thing for the consumer, in which case you should make sure there are other options available to them.

Here are a few tips on how to showcase complementary items:

  • “Other customers also liked…”
  • “Complementary products and opportunities for upselling”
  • “Other items in this range.”

Never direct a tourist in the wrong direction. Offering appropriate recommendations at the conclusion of your product pages will enhance traffic to your website. To help the consumer find what they want, as well as perhaps increasing your Average Order Value (AOV), implement this strategy (AOV).

How can I improve the product on my website?

If you just need or want to  improve certain parts or products on your website, here are some tips for you:

Make Product URLs That Customers Can Understand

The repair is simple, but the impact on your website’s users is enormous. You should not allow URLs like this to be generated on your product pages:

www.reallylongurl.com/products/838374hfjdkdisjjdmdmdskjfuf76d.html

Make your URLs as simple and straightforward as possible, like this:

http://www.shorturl.com/products/NiceAndNeat.html

Links to your products are more easily shared when the URLs are short and understandable. This also helps with SEO. They also make it simpler to manage your website, as each link’s destination can be seen easily.

Users will have an easier time navigating your site if your product page URLs are more meaningful. Customers will appreciate the ability to quickly switch between two product models with slightly different model numbers by just editing the URL in their browser. Then consumers wouldn’t have to go back to the main product page to find what they want.

It’s easy to shorten your URLs with WordPress and Joomla! plugins, so do your homework and choose one you like.

Product Descriptions Should Be Accurate

When setting up an online business, one of the worst mistakes you can do is to include product descriptions that aren’t very detailed. An even bigger blunder is to disclose inaccurate information.

Make a point of going over every single one of your products and coming up with a unique description for it. Making your website stand out from the crowd is easy when you use unique descriptions. It also demonstrates that you have put some thought into your online store. This may entail a little extra effort, but the end result will be a product page that appears to have been professionally designed.

Try to be as specific as possible when naming your products. Every product on your website should be clearly labeled so that customers can differentiate one from another if you’re selling numerous models or many distinct products in the same general category.

Finally, bear in mind that products undergo continuous improvement and development.. Check to see if you’re still selling the same goods as advertised on your website. This will reduce the likelihood of a buyer purchasing a product that doesn’t match the description they read in their search results. As a result, customers often dislike it when product descriptions become out of date.

Add more specifics and specifics

Adding thorough specifications or various images of your products from perspectives that consumers will find useful are excellent ways to draw visitors to your site. These should absolutely be done as a matter of course. Make a list of what you would like to know before buying each item based on your website’s descriptions and images, and go from there.

As a large brand’s reseller, you may include links to videos and product details that the manufacturer has made public. There are certain people who place a high value on watching a video demonstration of the product in operation or having access to a comprehensive diagram.

Include the weight and dimensions of your goods in your product page to provide your customers even more information. Providing that information may enhance your sales because it gives customers peace of mind that they are purchasing the correct item and simplifies shipping requirements. The better you can serve your customers, the more information and details you can supply.

Think about how well your website will work with other platforms.

Even though we hear it all the time, it’s worth repeating: your website’s design must take mobile users into consideration. Smartphones and tablets are, by far, the most popular ways for people to access the internet. You must make your online store mobile-friendly if you want to attract customers.

You must have a seamless user experience across all platforms while logging in, viewing products, and checking out. Users’ mobile operating systems, whether Apple’s iOS or Google’s Android, have no bearing on whether or not a website will show and perform appropriately.

We’re not advocating that you narrow your marketing efforts to mobile consumers alone. A desktop PC and a laptop-friendly website are a must. As a result, you need to ensure that your online business is compatible with all of the most widely used browsers on those operating systems.

Your online store must appear attractive and function effectively no matter how users approach your site if you want to reach the largest possible audience.

Maximize Your Online Presence via Social Media

The use of social media as a marketing strategy is highly effective. The best aspect is that you may use it as a free marketing platform. Using social media is an excellent way for users to stay in touch. Your consumers will readily use social media to contact you if you make your online presence engaging.

Use social media to promote your promotions and draw attention to your merchandise. If you use creativity and a call-to-action approach, you can make all of these communications more effective for your business.

The quicker you can answer a customer’s question or comment on your items on social media, the more likely it is that you will develop a relationship with them that extends far beyond a single transaction.

Ginee, Your Tool for E-commerce Success

Ginee Philippines may prove to be an invaluable asset in the course of your online company activities. You can manage all of your stores from a single dashboard because they have partnered with well-known digital marketplaces.

You may be able to handle issues across all of your sites in a single operation despite the ERP system’s advantages.

Make use of Ginee’s advantages to improve the results of your marketing campaigns. According to their preferences, users can choose whether or not their postings are automatically copied after a particular period of time has elapsed. So what are you waiting for? Sign-up for Ginee Philippines today!