How To Boost Your E-Commerce Sales This Summer

It’s no secret that during the end-of-year holiday season, online shopping goes through the roof. For obvious reasons, people are looking for gifts in record numbers and many choose to shop from the comforts of their own homes. It should not be discounted, however, that online shopping is a popular activity all year round. However, for some businesses, a dip in online sales can be expected during the summertime.

Especially if you own a business that traditionally experiences a bit of a slow season each summer, it will be important for you to find ways to boost interest in your company’s online shop. So what can you do to boost your e-commerce sales this summer?

Launch a big old sale!

Is there anything more obvious than discount prices as a source of eliciting customer excitement? When all else fails, simply inform your target audience that the lowest prices in your industry are available through your company’s online store. As Grant Thomas points out on Justuno.com, when your sales are slow, it’s wise to have a sale.

“While many retailers are consistently running some sort of ecommerce promotion on their site, this is more of a year round conversion rate optimization strategy,” he writes, “Running a sale requires lead time, promotion through various sales channels, and a discounting strategy. Set some parameters for your sale. Length, discount amount, what items are sale eligible, and the goal at hand are a few things to consider.”

Run a contest on Facebook.

We’ve seen, firsthand, just how successful Facebook-run contests can be. One of our colleagues recently ran a “Cutest Pet Contest” on his Facebook page only to receive hundreds of entries he would have never otherwise received had he not run the contest. The initiative ended up significantly increasing both his company page’s likes and its overall brand image. Facebook contests are great ways to get people excited about your company, making them more willing to visit its website.

“Summer travels are a natural fit for social media promotions and Facebook contests,” says Casey Kelly-Barton on HostGator.com, “You might offer a prize for the customer who travels the farthest or goes to the most unusual destination this summer while wearing a t-shirt or carrying a water bottle from your store—ask them to post their trip photos with your goods. You can also invite your social media followers to vote on the best photos and award prizes based on their picks.”

Start up a loyalty program.

One of your main objectives, this summer, should be to generate the type of interest in customers that keeps them coming back. Sure, it would be great to boost your summertime sales. But, it would be even better to have that boost in sales continue well into the many months ahead. Start up a loyalty program and encourage visitors of your company website to keep coming back.

According to Thomas, starting a loyalty program puts less stress on obtaining new customers during your slow months and still allows you to drive sales. “I’m no loyalty program expert but I do know that they can be incredibly powerful in driving sales from current customers,” he admits.

Call Canadian POS Corporation at 1-877-748-2884 or email us at info@localhost to learn more about how our e-commerce solution can help you to boost sales this summer!