Real-world data shows the most crucial sources of traffic for e-commerce websites

E-commerce/online retail is a booming sector. But because the latest marketing techniques change so rapidly, it can be tricky to keep up with the latest trends whilst also keeping your feet on the ground. Datareportal's 2023 global overview shows that search engines and social networks are the 2 biggest sources for self-reported online brand research. But how are users navigating to e-commerce websites?

B2C top traffic sources

Hubspot's 2022 user survey, compiled by 400+ users, primarily of B2C audiences, demonstrates a mixed bag in terms of traffic attribution. The biggest question mark is a sizable chunk of 22% direct traffic, which could include: 'Dark' social (untrackable social shares) Bookmarked traffic Direct links from pdfs, shared documents, or other non-trackable sources But interestingly, after direct, we see…

Social commerce trends to create seamless e-commerce experiences directly in social channels your customers love

One of the things that has always fascinated me about social media is the way it continues to adapt and evolve to changing consumer trends. Over the last 20 years we’ve seen a progressive shift from simple, text-based updates, to increasingly visual and ephemeral content, championed by app-based platforms like Instagram and Snapchat, and at the same time, social commerce has flourished. Whilst newer entrants such as TikTok have taken this trend even further, there have also been innovations in one-to-one communication seen in the development of messenger apps such as WeChat, WhatsApp and Messenger (the latter both owned by Facebook):  It’s been interesting to see how some of these trends have converged to drive innovation in social media…

E-commerce conversion rate and lead generation landing page stats for desktop and mobile devices for benchmarking averages across different industries

As you will know, conversion rates are often used as a KPI to review the effectiveness of e-commerce sites. Naturally, all site managers and owners want to know the benchmarks - "how do our conversion rates compare?". As consumer and business confidence falls, it's more important than ever to audit and optimize your marketing success metrics. In this post, I have compiled different free industry sources focusing on retail e-commerce conversion. At the end of this article, we also feature an analysis of landing page lead generation conversion rates by industry sector towards the end of the post. We keep this compilation updated as new conversion data is published in 2023.

E-commerce conversion funnel

This funnel-based view of the conversion process is a useful starting point since as well as the typical average basket…

Introducing P.R.I.C.E. - a tool to review differentiation and integration of E-commerce omnichannel marketing

There is an enormous, and potentially bewildering, range of possibilities and options available to retailers to differentiate themselves from their competitors in a multichannel world.

Why a multichannel marketing framework is needed

Selection and prioritization of investment in online retail can be a huge challenge, and so to help, when reviewing multichannel strategy with clients I have developed a framework to help based around five key factors: Price Range Information Convenience Experience Those five key factors, in varying priorities, define what is important for your customers in a multichannel retail experience. Together they describe your differentiation from your competitors in a multichannel world. [si_blog_banner_cta] In brief, the elements of P.R.I.C.E are Price - As everyone knows, prices online are transparent prices, and having a competitive price position is an essential part of your positioning, that said, it's not the only…

Create a co-ordinated 'always-on' digital marketing strategy for the whole customer lifecycle to boost conversions and retention

It's no secret that engaging your customers is crucial to achieving continued sales, and it's also well known that it is usually far easier and costs less to get repeat business from existing customers than it is to acquire new ones from scratch. Customer relationship management (CRM) is well established as a process to try to achieve this, but this customer lifecycle 'relationship' begins with the first contact with the customer (when they are still a contact or prospect). We believe that the best way for a company or brand to build relationships is through a planned always-on marketing approach of integrated communications across multiple digital channels. To enable this, we're fortunate today to have many martech options for marketing automation, so we can create a co-ordinated contact strategy to engage audiences through: …

E-commerce 2022: The latest data and forecasts for all things online retail growth

It's interesting to look back at e-commerce growth over the last few years and think forward to the future of this industry. As demonstrated by these charts from Statistica, the overall percentage of e-commerce retail sales in the US shot up in Quarter 2 of 2020, accounting for 16% of sales in the US in Q2 2020. The market share of e-commerce within US retail sales now looks to be settling around 13-14% between Q3 2020 - Q2 2021. This constitutes a much larger share than previously to the pandemic, showing that some of the rapid changes to buyer behavior have remained, and we expect to see that continue. Equally, we have watched the overall percentage of e-commerce retail sales in the UK…

Discover our framework to plan, manage, and optimize your brand positioning strategy in the era of omnichannel consumer branded goods

In its best form, a brand positioning strategy for a company unifies all customer-facing comms and marketing activities. It highlights who the target audience is, and why they need your product (and how you're going to make sure they know that). More importantly, in today's age of digitalization, with Debenhams and Arcadia Group being bought by online giants Asos and Boohoo, and now GAP planning to close stores in UK, France, and Italy as part of their European review, positioning your brand online is more important than ever. That's where RACE comes in - a dedicated marketing structure your brand can use to integrate your customers' experiences of your brand,…

A case study focusing on eBay marketing strategy: The facts, figures, and strategy behind their highest quarterly revenue yet

This case study summarizes the strategic approach used by eBay to take advantage of increased consumer adoption of the Internet. In this article I'll be summarizing eBay's objectives, strategy and proposition and key risks. Ebay marketing strategy updates will be added at the top of the case study.

2021 eBay marketing strategy update: E-commerce giant records highest quarterly revenue Q1 2021

Ebay has had a fascinating year. The quarterly revenue chart below depicts both highs and lows for this company in the last 12 months. Plunging to a low revenue of US $2,129 million in quarter 1 of 2020, the company then rocketed to it's highest recorded quarterly revenue of US $3,023 in quarter 1 of 2021.…

When was the last time you adapted your e-commerce digital marketing strategy? Is it a static, unchanged marketing plan, or an agile, practical marketing funnel?

Smart Insights offers invaluable e-commerce digital marketing strategy solutions for online businesses of all shapes and sizes. It's no exaggeration that we have transformed members' businesses with our strategy and planning solutions. One of our most popular resources is the RACE Framework, a marketing funnel centered around customer lifecycles. Applicable to just about every marketing industry (across B2B, B2C, and D2C), the RACE Framework focuses on your customers' experiences of your marketing activities. Naturally, this focus is vital for those selling online, which is why we recommend the RACE Framework in particular for e-commerce digital marketing strategy planning. The RACE Framework is popular with so many members because it offers a streamlined, data-driven approach to marketing strategy planning which centers all around the customer journey. RACE funnel users…

What do the latest retail marketing trends mean for your e-commerce marketing strategy?

The biggest takeaway from our 2021 retail e-commerce marketing trends is that, with increasingly complex customer journeys in 2021, retailers need an e-commerce marketing strategy that integrates customer experiences. Customer lifecycle marketing is more necessary than ever, as consumers increasingly use multiple channels along their path to purchase. Therefore, to ensure you build a strong e-commerce marketing strategy to both reach and convert your customers, you need to consider the whole customer journey. We have marketing training and tools to refresh your omnichannel approach to e-commerce marketing strategy. Our popular RACE Framework structures your strategy across the customer journey process of plan, reach, act, convert, and engage. You can find out more about these resources and how to apply them to your e-commerce marketing strategy throughout this article. The…