So, you have built a personal brand, created a website and have all your items up for sale, yet nobody is buying. It’s frustrating and disheartening. Below are 5 tips on how to encourage customers to buy from your business.
Make it Safe
One of the most important things for people when they are making a purchase is safety. Trustpilot and other platforms reviews make this easy for people to know, but if you are not using them, it can put doubt in people’s minds. Some things you can do to make your customers feel comfortable when ordering online are:
- Use a secure server- PayPal allows people to feel safe
- Always offer a receipt via email
- Offer tracked postage
- Make it easy to contact you if anything is wrong
Create a Sense of Urgency
When you are searching for something to buy, if you see a ‘limited time deal’ sign, you are automatically pushed towards wanting to get it soon. This is what creating a sense of urgency does. Using phrases such as
- Limited time
- Limited quantity remaining
- Offer ends soon
- Order before midnight for an exclusive deal
will subconsciously make people want to buy it. Be sure to stick to any time limits or deals though as otherwise you will be known as unauthentic and will ultimately lose customers.
Offers
As stated above, people love a good offer, this is a different type though. Loyalty cards and other offers are a great way to have people purchasing and coming back for more. Large companies such as McDonald’s offer a ‘free hot drink after purchasing x meals‘. Think of a loyalty offer that would suit you and your clients well, don’t go too big but also don’t offer rubbish, you want it to be captivating but not break the bank. A lot of companies offer a discount after a certain amount of purchases so it doesn’t have to be a freebie. The choice is yours!
Your Competition
Knowing your competition will do wonders for your business, there is always a competitive market when it comes to businesses selling the same kind of items. Have a look around at what other people similar to you are doing, if they are offering something similar to yours at a certain price, go a smidge cheaper, offer better deals, make your item slightly better. The options are endless. Remember the market changes daily though so be sure to check back on your competitors regularly.
Ask the Audience
Once you have got a steady flow of customers it is sometimes hard to draw in new ones. If you are out of ideas, ask your buyers! Put a poll up with options of what they would like to see for sale next, which offers they would like to see, colour options they could choose from. Making the customer feel involved will bring a personal touch to your brand and they will hopefully go away telling all their friends and family about you.
You could also put a competition up for some brand reps, these people get items at a discounted price with the promise to share them on social media or other channels, have them involved with style choices too. Getting second and third opinions from the people actually buying the item will see your business start to soar.
It is always hard to keep a business going, even the biggest companies in the world struggle at times, the aim is to keep on top of the game- then you will see all your hard work pay off!
For more great articles, check out the rest of the site.
