Staying at home is fundamental to slowing the spread of COVID-19 and, with many businesses physically closed as their staff works remotely from home, the internet has become even more of an essential. It’s the best way to safely shop for groceries, order takeaway, buy clothes, send gifts and essentials to family and friends, and support charities and local businesses.
Many businesses that previously predominantly traded offline are having to pivot to ecommerce, and established ecommerce stores are seeing increased competition and demand. Here are some tips from our website development and ecommerce marketing team on how to make sure your website is ready to do business.
Expand Browser Compatibility
Many websites are developed with limited browser capability, either because it was considered unnecessary or as a cost-saving measure. However, with everyone doing their shopping online – and likely to stay that way for at least the next few months – it’s essential that customers can actually access your ecommerce store.
This means testing your website across a wide range of devices, browsers and screen sizes – or having our website development team do it for you. This will prevent frustrating issues like buttons not working, pages not fitting to screen sizes or even failure to connect to the website – all issues that will send your customers to your competition.
Make Your Website as Accessible as Possible
It makes sense to increase the accessibility of your website if you want to get the most web traffic, but many businesses are unsure if their site is as accessible as it could be. One way to improve this is to implement measures that make your site usable for people with disabilities. These users often go unconsidered during web development and, as a result, around 98% of all websites fail to meet requirements set out by the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act). Sure, we’re in Australia and not the USA, but these are actually great guidelines that anyone can consider during website development or if you want to increase your web traffic.
Another great resource to consider is the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), which gives international recommendations, standards and best practices for how websites and web services can expand to include this important demographic.
Sounds like a lot to have on your plate at this time? No problem! There are also some great tools you can use to make your website more accessible with minimal hassle. This includes accessiBe, which delivers one line of code in JavaScript that you can apply to your website. It runs an AI algorithm that aligns your site with ADA best practices in an impressive 48 hours. This allows blind users using screen-readers to access and navigate your website, and allows people with motor function disabilities to easily navigate using the tab key.
Expanded Delivery Options
With the rise in demand for ecommerce and businesses pivoting to ecommerce services comes a rise in demand for shipping services. I’m sure we’ve all already experienced shipping delays we’re just not used to!
This can be frustrating for consumers, especially if you are supplying essential goods, food, masks and disinfectants, but it’s a concern for every ecommerce website at this point. One way to manage this new challenge is to implement new delivery options.
Apart from partnering with more shipping providers, you can also experiment with physical distancing deliveries that are suited to your business. For example, bakeries can take orders online, by phone and WhatsApp, with a single staff member taking the order directly to a customer’s car when they arrive and providing a sanitised payment device. This curb-side pickup method is very effective for takeaway and fresh food deliveries.
Adjust your PPC and Organic Search Content
Over the last months and weeks, Google has seen a significant and understandable drop in PPC – but that doesn’t mean PPC shouldn’t be part of your ecommerce marketing strategy. Instead, you need to pivot to meet new customer demands.
Start by using Google Analytics to see where the queries about your brand, products, services and industry lie. You can do this yourself or ask our search team to help you out. Once you have this information, start tailoring your PPC strategy to meet this demand. Maybe you run a clothing shop that now sells PPE masks. Maybe you are a distillery that is now making hand sanitiser. Whatever you are doing now, chances are it wasn’t a focus when you put your digital marketing strategy in place originally, so make sure it pivots with you so people can see what you are offering that’s relevant to their needs.
You can back up your new PPC strategy with strong organic content. This is a great way to tell people what you are doing to meet their daily challenges as an ecommerce store. People have turned to the Internet and social media as their primary source of facts and information, so make sure you are there with answers and solutions regarding your products and services.
Let Us Help Your Business to Adjust to the New Normal
The novel coronavirus is looking like a long-term issue that will likely bring lasting change to how we work and live. Transitioning a brand and business through this time can be overwhelming – but there is help and support available. Let our digital marketing team, who offers comprehensive services for all things online, from web development and PPC to organic SEO and social media management, help you navigate a path forward. We’re here to help you succeed in the new normal and overcome the challenges of COVID-19 through effective ecommerce marketing. Contact us today.
When clients work with me, they get exactly what they want - no-nonsense, authentic digital marketing that works! With my industry experience, eye for detail, and a team that goes the extra mile, every client gets the personalised, expert treatment they deserve. Let’s get you online – and growing!
