Market research for eCommerce businesses is the initial point of departure to increasing brand awareness, optimizing search engine visibility, boosting sales, and gaining long-term customer loyalty.
The main types of market research that an eCommerce business must tackle include the following: SEO keyword research, competitor analysis, and understanding consumer behavior to develop appropriate buyer personas.
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To understand each and every one of these important research methods, we should dive into them more and explain the specifics and importance of each, for they are fundamental to achieving quality eCommerce business content marketing.
How To Conduct Market Research for eCommerce Businesses
There are several different types of research to look into when creating content for an eCommerce business, that will in the long run serve your business in a positive way moving forward.
Here are the different types of market research for eCommerce businesses that should be conducted:
Know Your Customers
Without customers, there will be no one to invest in your product or services and keep your eCommerce business afloat. Successful marketing isn’t about merely creating a product and introducing it to the masses, but rather about narrowing down your marketing efforts towards a specific target audience that would want what you’re offering.
Buyer personas are key knowledge that is necessary for any business to have because without knowing your customer, and what they want, you won’t be able to attract them with your product, nor with who you are as a business. The only way to achieve that is if you meet every aspect of what they’re looking for.
In the marketing world, the best way to learn that is through focus groups, online surveys, and interviews, in order to discover a consumer behavioral pattern.
It’s a social experiment of sorts that gives you an understanding of this individual consumer’s unique psychology, such as what problems they have, what solutions your product can provide, and what the best approach would be to communicate that information to them.
| RELATED: Why You Need Buyer Personas
Conduct SEO Keyword Research
Without a shadow of a doubt, keywords are fundamental for any business that wants to be noticed, especially when it comes down to conducting market research for eCommerce businesses.
SEO keyword research is one of the most effective inbound marketing tools for eCommerce strategies for business marketing because it leaves a verbal trail which, if used correctly, will increase the chances of a consumer finding your website, vlog, or social media post.
It’s about understanding the habitual vocabulary of the specific audience you know would want to buy your product and perpetuating those universal terms in your posts. That way, when consumers look up the word or phrase in their search engine of choice, they’re more likely to find your business rather than your competitors’ business.
One more thing that we find relevant to mention is how you can actually take a more interactive approach through email marketing, which is the perfect marketing vessel to put SEO strategies into action.
You can include SEO keywords in email marketing for eCommerce businesses in the form of small scripted texts. You can also utilize a subject line with a keyword that immediately compels the reader to click and view your brand’s new offers, products, or even video content to teach them how to use said product.
In addition to that, email marketing for eCommerce businesses is also utilized to keep customers in the know about the changes they’ve made to certain aspects of their business that they’ve complained about. By responding with an email that basically says ‘We heard you’’, then you automatically achieve credibility.
Carry Out a Competitor Analysis
Competitor analysis is a strategy utilized by all businesses to study their competitors’ products, prices, websites, and social media.
It is one of the most imperative forms of market research for eCommerce business strategies. The reason for doing it is to get an understanding of your competitors’ weaknesses and how you can turn their weaknesses into your strengths, as well as how you can apply their strengths into your business – without being a copycat, needless to say.
All these implementations will give brands the competitive edge they need to compete in their respective markets, and introduce influential eCommerce strategies for business marketing.
The results and reactions obtained from this research can also be applied to email marketing for eCommerce businesses, where they can spread the word to their customers about their stand out products, prices and other features that differ from other brands.
Monitor Social Media Behavior
With a proper social media inbound marketing strategy in place, whether for Instagram, Twitter, or any other social media platform, you will be able to visit all the pages that your ideal customer would be visiting, particularly pages of brands that are linked to the same industry as you.
You must then study the comment sections or what brands are getting the biggest followings to learn more about the consumers’ specific likings when it comes to your sector. You then need to capitalize on all that information to create surveys, launch email marketing campaigns, or post video content that appeals to their individual nature.
This skill would indeed show the mark of a great eCommerce network marketing business.
Conduct Analytic Research
Market research for eCommerce businesses should always be utilizing the effective functions of Google Analytics, a site that tracks and supports website traffic.
It is an essential tool for a business because it gives you the opportunity to improve in terms of practicality. If, for example, you’re not seeing enough utilization of your shopping cart, in-depth analytics would prompt you to trim the steps it takes to purchase a product because the procedure might be too long.
This is just one solid example of why having those analytics and constantly keeping tabs on the behavior of your customers when they visit your website is important. When you do notice those problems and actually respond to them with a solution, it’ll show your customers how thoughtful you are and will likewise increase your credibility and their loyalty towards you.
Different Types of eCommerce:
While eCommerce does seem very streamlined in terms of including businesses, services, and clients, the dynamics are almost never the same. To understand this a little bit better, here are the 4 types of eCommerce interactions that make for a different type of eCommerce experience:
B2B eCommerce:
B2B is when an eCommerce business offers their services to another business, whether eCommerce or otherwise.
For example, an online clothing shop could provide another online retailer with stock as part of a consignment agreement, where both businesses agree to a shared percentage of profits made from the partnership.
In the end, B2B eCommerce benefits both businesses, but they will of course both need the proper eCommerce business content marketing strategies to make shoppers and other businesses more aware of this partnership in an effort to generate the desired amount of sales.
Market research for eCommerce businesses pertaining to B2B revolves around doing joint email marketing efforts, utilizing the correct SEO keywords that will attract their target customers.
B2C eCommerce
B2C eCommerce is a trade of services between a consumer and a business. It’s where a business offers a service or product through an online platform for customers, as opposed to B2B eCommerce discussed above.
You could have an online business that sells incredibly delectable baked goods, but with the food industry being so crowded, having a mouthwatering set of items isn’t enough. Such a business would need to understand their target audience’s behaviors as well as that of their competition to better cater for their needs and act accordingly.
With countless baked good businesses flourishing on Instagram, that would definitely be a good place to start.
You can study the styles of your very successful competitors, and find the strengths to leverage and the weaknesses to avoid having.
You would also greatly benefit from studying the activity of their own customers on their pages. Look at what’s written in the comment sections, or check to see what pastries are the best seller to know what’s popularly demanded.
Market research for eCommerce businesses pertaining to B2C revolves around researching the right SEO keywords, analyzing competitors, and understanding buyer persona.
C2C eCommerce
This acronym stands for consumer to consumer. This eCommerce style is mainly found in the world of online thrifting, which has been trending tremendously for the past few years.
To successfully sell items to a consumer, wording is truly everything. If you’re selling an authentic vintage designer shirt for instance, the main SEO keyword should be the label of the brand, and should be included in your description.
This will certainly entice a wide group of consumers to want to purchase it.
Market research for eCommerce businesses pertaining to C2C revolves around knowing what designer labels are the most desired by the masses, and acquiring those labels, as well as incorporating the name into your description.
C2B eCommerce
Consumer to business eCommerce relationships are dynamic, where consumers sell their services to a business. This is commonly found among freelancers who are hired by companies to provide a service that they get paid for.
Platforms, such as LinkedIn are amongst the most popular mediums to hunt down some good freelancers for hire.
It is important that freelancers who are promoting themselves on their profiles use the proper keywords that pertain to their field, so that they can increase their chances of being found by prospective employers.
Freelancers also have the ability to find their potential employers, where the responsibility falls on said employers to use proper keywords when they’re posting a job ad, which will alert freelancers matching all the required skill sets.
Market research for eCommerce businesses pertaining to C2B revolves around using the proper keywords
Final Thoughts
Overall, eCommerce market research is simply the best way to earn the success that any type of eCommerce business desires.
By following key research methods and instrumenting that array of knowledge that you acquire from external and existing sources, you’ll have the trending knowledge to take your business to new heights and gain a trusted following!
We at LetsMarket.it would love to be a part of your rising success story, so why don’t you contact us so that we get something on the books and discuss the bright prospects for your business?
