A brick-and-mortar business of twenty years ago could have looked at the internet and felt it wasn’t all that relevant to them. The internet was younger and eCommerce had barely begun.
In the third decade of the century, though, every business should at least consider how an increased online presence could affect trade. For the vast majority, regardless of their industry, a dedicated website would increase brand awareness, expand their market and boost revenue.
But by how much? What can businesses do onlinethat will achieve the results they’re after?
How to increase customer engagement by going online
The data about eCommerce indicates a steady rise in the percentage of sales completed through the internet[1]. For the hospitality and restaurant industry, this means hotel bookings and food delivery ordersare increasingly completed through apps and websites. For retail, this means online sales are becoming more and more necessary.
The raw figure for 2021 in the US shows that 19% of all commerce was completed online. This translates to a total figure of $871.03 billion, and a $90 billion increase from 2020. No business sneers at a sales boost of 19%, and the idea that 1/5th of all commerce is now completed online shows how dependent both traders and consumers are on the internet.
However, limiting our thinking to basic sales figures may not provide the full picture of how online presence boosts businesses. Going beyond Google or social media for an online presence does more than simply providing a further sales channel.
A website demonstrates a greater degree of professionalism, ambition, and a modern mindset. It allows customers to engage with the business anytime of day through blogs and media and ensures basic information is accessible. Retail businesses can then sell 24/7, while restaurants can ensure menus are fully visible at all times.
An online business never closes, and businesses with websites grow between 15-50% more relative to similar enterprises that aren’t online[2].
How to increase website traffic
Armed with knowledge like this, businesses with established websites are constantly looking to improve their digital marketing and grow their online store. They create content with blog posts, conduct keyword research, and carefully design their landing pages to keep viewers interested.
But why do blogs make a difference? They don’t make sales, and yet they can drive huge amounts of traffic to your website. With the right page, title and content, marketing can be done in a whole new way, ensuring organic searches for related products lead people to your website.
Producing regular, wide-ranging content for your website can be every bit as valuable as email marketing. When thinking about how to increase your website ranking on Google, having more content, with the right keywords can improve your response from Google analytics.
Naturally, it’s also important to ensure that you complete all the basic requirements for creating an online presence. Join Google Business, make sure you’re available on Google Maps and work on your Google Review score. Once all of this is completed, you can gain credibility by showing your score on your website, and your website will be visible when users look at you on Google Maps.
You’ll also need to test how the website runs on different kinds of devices. If your website runs smoothly on a desktop but not on a mobile device, then mobile users won’t bother spending much time struggling to navigate on a maladapted webpage. Test on mobiles, tablets, and desktops until you’re confident every page works on every kind of device to optimize your site.
Referring to your website on social networks will guarantee that anyone who searches for your business online will see your website. With all of this done, you’ll know how to increase customer engagement. Users will see pages of content, plenty of detail about the products and services you offer, and have more to look at; this all translates into more sales.
