A Few Quick Tips on Leveraging Sales Channels and Competitive Research

A Few Quick Tips on Leveraging Sales Channels and Competitive Research

As you grow your business online, you will inevitably do some sort of competitive research. 

It is important to get to know who you are competing against in the market and to understand the strengths and weaknesses of their products or services. This is especially essential in eCommerce. Take the eCommerce giant, Amazon.com for example. 

As you probably know, Amazon is one of the biggest online retailers in the world. They have been pioneers in the eCommerce industry, introducing sales and marketing tactics used worldwide.

Amazon integrated online reviews and ratings onto their site, as well as two-day shipping for Prime members. This was ingenious because they could get people to sign up on a recurring subscription for fast shipping while forcing the market to adapt. 

Shipping costs all over the internet have gone down from merchants as a result, too.

In 2001, with the launch of their mobile store, Amazon was able to begin to take advantage of the 77% of people that own a smartphone and will shop online. This growth and adaptation has driven Amazon to the top of the retail world. With so many people now shopping on their phones and using Amazon, it makes sense to list your products there. 

A majority of Americans search Amazon first when shopping online, as well as places like eBay, Etsy, Pinterest, and Facebook.

What does this mean for you?

It means you need to make sure you understand your target audience. Where do they hang out? Where do they do their shopping? 

In many cases, certain sales channels work better with certain types of products. Take Etsy for example, they have a fantastic market for handmade products and crafts. eBay works well with luxury items. You can even list products on Walmart’s site as well. There are a lot of sales channels out there, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. 

Finding what channel has your customers on it can make all the difference. This can be done through finding trends in our market, and seeing where your competition markets. 

If you can decipher what shoppers will want next, you can ride the wave of a trend in your marketing strategy. 

With the majority of younger people and Millennials at the forefront of this digital age, you need to adapt online to meet their needs. This includes website user experience and loading speeds. 

You will also need to include reviews on your page, as most shoppers today will browse around and look at reviews before making the decision to purchase your product or not. 

Review Research and Comment Monitoring

One way to identify the needs and wants of your customers and potential customers through your competition is through their comments. By reading through the comments on their products, you can identify the strengths and weaknesses they hold and improve upon them. 

Monitoring comments gives you a deeper understanding of your customer base, as well as a superior product if done right. Customers often leave comments with reviews that express areas of difficulty with a product or service, as well as parts they love about them.

You will also be able to get a better idea of what is connecting best with your target audience, or what is dying off and can adjust your strategy accordingly. Be curious! You can also do this with your own products or services to improve upon yourself too!