If you are reading this, then you are probably struggling with your retail business. It is common for retail startups to enter the industry and set up shop without sufficient planning, causing them to fail within their first year in business. The main problem is that entrepreneurs tend to underestimate the intricacy of selling and overlook the important factors for success, including a good location, promotional strategies, competitive research, and an online extension.
To maximize your revenue as a retailer, remember that you need to optimize your system from the inside out. Find ways to establish more channels of promotion and aim to help your target market find you. You must also optimize your critical business processes for maximum efficiency.
Below are some of the tools that will help you maximize your profits from your retail business:
#1. VendHQ
Managing your inventory is a time-consuming process that requires much planning. Simply put, you do not just buy in stock, organize the shelves, and expect to rake in profits once you open your store doors. You need to manage your pricing, product imports, and various areas of your wholesale operations to establish a sustainable business model.
VendHQ is a comprehensive POS platform that will help you oversee every facet of inventory management. One of the first things you will notice is the level of organization present in the app’s interface, allowing you to gain a better handle on your critical business processes. When it comes to inventory management, you can access all related tasks by going to the Products section where you can easily manage your entire product catalog—from bulk product imports to product categorization. Remember that you can also use automation for certain inventory tasks such as stock orders to save time and reduce error.
Aside from inventory management, VendHQ is packed with other features that will help you manage your retail business. Take advantage of the history and reporting tools to make better decisions in the future. You may also manage your e-commerce channel to have total control of your retail business all in one place.
#2. GetResponse
Marketing is another aspect of your retail business that demands your attention. In the digital age, businesses are entering the online market to reach more people and make the buying process a lot easier for them. The premise sounds simple, but it involves a combination of complex processes such as content development, e-commerce platform integration, and email marketing.
Although GetResponse is primarily an email marketing platform, it is packed with features that will help you manage the principal areas of e-commerce management. It offers a drag-and-drop editor that allows you to manage campaign workflows. By understanding the user’s behavior, you can specify automated actions that will help provide a seamless experience for your users. For example, you can set a remarketing email to send automatically whenever users abandon their shopping carts, which happens quite a lot in online selling.
Lastly, GetResponse has one of the most comprehensive toolsets for email marketing. You can quickly build beautiful emails, opt-in forms, and landing pages with a live preview. So to improve your content strategy over time, you can take advantage of the A/B testing tool to figure out the best layout for maximum conversions.
#3. Yotpo
It is clear that developing an online store for your retail business is a fundamental growth strategy today. However, trust is not so easily obtained, especially in the presence of hundreds or thousands of different brands in the online marketplace. To improve the online audience’s trust and secure more conversions, one of the best things you can do is to start leveraging User-Generated Content or UGC.
According to statistics, about 59% of millennials base their online purchasing decisions on UGC such as product reviews, customer feedback, online ratings, and peer recommendations. You can use a tool like Yotpo to give your customers a voice and start generating UGC for your brand. One of its main features is the Mail After Purchase or MAP tool, which sends a review form to your customers whenever they complete a purchase. Yotpo also offers onsite widgets that show off ratings from past customers to increase the confidence of new visitors.
To empower the feedback of your previous buyers, Yotpo offers badges that help the audience identify your verified buyers. Apart from reviews and ratings, social media uploads from other users are also great examples of UGC. A good strategy would be to host a social media contest to encourage users to upload their content for your brand.
#4. Uservoice
One part of your retail business that you should never neglect is customer service. Granted, there will always be flukes, and it is impossible for companies to maintain a perfect track record in the long run. That said, you need a robust customer service platform like Uservoice to stay ahead of your client inquiries and requests.
One of Uservoice’s key features is Instant Answers, which helps you develop an organized library of useful articles for your audience. Just be sure to offer clear instructions on how they can resolve their problems quickly and don’t skimp on details. Uservoice also includes all the essentials such as an email support platform and performance reporting.
#5. Cooperatize
The internet is filled with opportunities to expand and build up your authority. However, aside from creating brilliant content, you must also optimize distribution channels that will help you reach more people. Cooperatize is an online platform that will help you leverage the online reach of established influencers to spread your brand’s message.
The process is simple: you look for qualified publishers that are “in touch” with your target market, offer to buy a sponsored post from them, and track the performance of your campaigns. Just make sure to look for an authoritative publisher that your target audience trusts. After all, you are essentially borrowing some of their credibility to make a strong case for your brand.
Finally, one of the most impressive things about Cooperatize is the ease of use. If you are looking for publishers, you will be taken to a questionnaire-like page that will show you every step of the way. After answering all of the questions, you can give your campaign a name and start working on your sponsored post.
Conclusion
There is no way for a conventional business to grow without relying on the internet. One way or another, you need to leverage the internet to reach more audience, build your brand’s image, and close more sales for your retail business. Hopefully, the tactics above helped you gain traction and set a new direction for success.
