Learning ways to grow your retail business with digital marketing is a must today. According to Statista, global eCommerce sales reached 5.8 trillion US dollars in 2023 and are expected to grow at 39% over the coming years, surpassing 8 trillion US dollars by 2027.
However, with a small budget, you must wonder whether you should give digital marketing a shot. Compared to traditional forms of marketing, such as radio, TV, or print ads, digital marketing for retail can cost less and be more efficient in planning, executing, and updating.
You can also track the effectiveness of your strategies and understand what types of digital retail marketing work better for your target audience. Read on to learn more about how to grow your retail businesses digitally on a small budget.
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Key Retail Businesses Trends and Statistics in 2024
The success of the e-commerce or Retail industry is growing due to various factors, such as the growing popularity of smartphones, rising affluence, and reasonably priced data plans.
According to Emarketers, US retail sales are expected to reach $7.450 trillion in 2024, up 2.8% year over year. Physical retail accounts for 83.7% of those sales, but eCommerce sales are rising at a higher rate, 8.2% versus 1.8%.
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Ways to Grow Your Retail Business Digitally in a Small Budget
Growing your retail business with eCommerce marketing on a small budget is not a huge task when you implement the right digital business marketing strategy and hire experienced people to execute those strategies. Using digital marketing in retail industry can boost your growth and potential.
Let’s discuss the top 7 ways to grow your business online with a small amount:
Create Mobile Friendly Website
As per Similar Web, 77.77% of web traffic is generated from mobile in India and about 74% of users revisit the website if it is mobile-friendly. It is crucial for a retail business to design a mobile-friendly website that is attractive, engaging, and simple to use.
According to Statista, mobile website traffic will increase by an estimated 12% by 2027. This has grown with the adoption of the 4G network and remote working jobs.
Moreover, a mobile-friendly website helps attract more traffic, reduce bounce rates, and increase conversion rates without requiring a high budget for complex development or separate mobile apps.
Utilize Social Media Platforms
To explain it further, a person spends 5.7 years on social media. The global number of social media users has reached 4.9 billion and is expected to grow to 5.85 billion by 2027.
These statistics highlight the need for reach and using it as a potential for an effective social media strategy for marketers. Moreover, these social media users are on more than 6-7 social media platforms, which allows marketers to use a multi-platform approach to grow their business with social media marketing plans.
Add Website Blogs
Adding a blog to your website is another way to attract potential customers and build trust among existing customers without exceeding budget. Consider it as a content digital marketing for your retail business:
- Write engaging blog posts on trending topics related to your products.
- Provide tips, guides, or insights on complex topics.
- Optimize with relevant keywords to appear higher in Google search results.
- Add high-quality images and videos to educate your target audience.
- Respond to comments or queries to build and maintain a strong community.
Apart from the above points, post blogs on trending or related topics regularly to maintain your website’s traffic and ranking on Google. According to Orbit Media, bloggers or websites that publish 2-6 times weekly have a 50% chance to gain strong results.
Focus on Video Marketing
About 91% of businesses use video marketing to engage audiences and drive business growth. It indicates that adopting video digital marketing for retail businesses helps capture a broad audience across various platforms, even with a limited budget.
You can create simple, short, engaging videos showcasing your products and their tutorials with good lighting, clear sound, and helpful content. However, it is better to have a short video as longer videos tend to bore viewers.
As per HubSpot, about 30% of marketers have started creating shorter videos as it holds the top spot for engagement rates.
Use Influencer Marketing
Influencer digital marketing for retail is a powerful way for small retailers to gain a wider audience and credibility.
As per Influencer Marketing 2023: Benchmark Report, this marketing industry has been growing since the recent decade. It has grown into a $21.1 billion industry, increasing 29% from $16.4 billion the previous year.
Moreover, you can partner with micro-influencers who have smaller but highly engaged followings related to your retail business within your budget. Offer them samples or discounts or create collaborative content like social media reels, posts, or shoutouts to grow your business with digital retail marketing.
Utilize Email Marketing
Email marketing is a cost-effective method for developing relationships and driving retail sales. It helps you to link directly with potential and existing customers.
According to Forbes, there are about 4.48 billion email users, which will increase to 4.73 billion globally by 2026, proving that email still has potential as a business marketing channel.
Moreover, 64% of small business owners use email marketing to reach their customers. It helps small businesses to personalize messages and automate campaigns to compete with larger firms.
Let’s take an example of email marketing:
You can send welcome emails when customers sign up and visit your website for a purchase. Share discount codes or promotional messages tailored to the customer’s search history or taste. It can be done via email, SMS, or push notification.
Optimize Website for Search Engine
Make your website search engine friendly to appear higher in results when users are looking for the goods or services you provide.
Google and Bing are well-known search engines where your potential clients are most likely to look for products and services like yours. To increase your traffic within the budget, follow the below tips for search engine optimization for digital business marketing:
- Identify relevant keywords to target your audience.
- Integrate these keywords naturally into your website content.
- Make sure your website loads quickly and has clear navigation.
However, SEO is an ongoing process. Even a small improvement can bring leads and attract new customers. Also, avoid copying other sites’ methods as they may or may not work for your online business website.
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Benefits of Growing Retail Business Online
There are various benefits of growing with digital marketing for retail & e-commerce businesses that can significantly enhance your growth potential. Let’s dive into some of them below:
High Visibility
High internet visibility makes it easy for potential customers to find your retail store. It all comes down to ranking well in search engine results when customers look for goods or services you provide. You can attain this visibility using various techniques, including search engine optimization (SEO), claiming your Google My Business listing, and targeted advertising.
Products Availability
Product availability enables you to connect with clients who may not be able to visit your store. This expanded reach increases potential sales, allowing you to reach a bigger market and grow your clients. Additionally, you can display a wider range of your inventory online, giving customers more options and drawing in clients.
Promotional Display
Owning a digital retail marketing business allows for more efficient promotion management, offering greater freedom in online presentation. This enables you to tailor promotions to your brand, boosting sales of specific products. Through gifts, discounts, or group buys, effective promotional displays can convert hesitant buyers and drive more traffic to your website, benefiting online retailers significantly.
Audience Growth
The Internet can reach a wide audience both domestically and globally. Therefore, having an online store is beneficial for attracting more clients. Customers can now make purchases from your business without being physically present in the area. If you have an online store, your customers can purchase from their own homes.
Lower Operating Costs
An online store usually has lower initial expenses than an offline business. Additionally, you may save money on payroll, staff, and other regular expenses like electricity and rent as your business will be done digitally and its supporting systems can be automated. These savings might be put toward growing your website, which helps expand your product line faster.
Wrapping Up
Growing digital marketing for retail businesses on a small budget is easy to achieve with the right ways and methods.
We hope the above-explained cost-effective digital marketing tips for commercial businesses will enhance your visibility and reach, help build strong customer relationships, and increase sales.
Implement these strategies to see essential growth in your retail business without breaking the bank. If you are still unsure about launching an online store or about digital business marketing and its estimated cost, connect with our eCommerce digital marketers for expert guidance.
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