Getting those first Shopify store visitors is hard, so I compiled a few ideas you can use, along with free / affordable apps you can use to attract visitors to a brand new store.
More details and app links can be found in this article. Here's a TL;DR:
1. Before you start any marketing efforts, make sure that you can actually make a sale. See if your store is published, open to all audiences and the checkout in it is working. To do so, open your store from Incognito mode and try to make a purchase.
Helpful app: ShopCheck Audit & Benchmark
⭐ 4.8 (4 reviews) 💲 free plan available
2. Take some time to define your target audience. Sure, everyone can like your product, but there's a specific group that will LOVE it - and that's who your marketing activity should be directed at. Think age, gender, locations, hobbies & interests
Helpful app: Shopify Audiences
⭐ 3.7 (3 reviews) 💲 free
3. Make your store easily discoverable by working on Search Engine Optimization. This includes, but is not limited to basic keyword research, adding those keywords to your store pages and images, and, of course, making sure that your store is structured well and loads fast.
Helpful app: Smart SEO
⭐ 4.9 (1,114 reviews) 💲 free plan available
4. Another way to help people discover your business is by setting up profiles for your store on social media. People don't just search on Google, so make sure that they can find your business and your products on their favourite social network (Facebook / Instagram / Twitter / Pinterest) or review website (Trustpilot).
5. Add contact options to build trust. For those who have at least once fallen victim of an eCommerce scam, it's very important to see that they have at least one way of contacting you. So, your store footer should have your phone number, email address, links to social media profiles, and a live chat window or a contact form.
Helpful app: Avada Helpdesk
⭐ 5/5 (397 reviews) 💲 free
6. Another way to built trust is create useful content related to your products. Think blog articles, tweets and videos on anything ranging from product reviews to industry news. While no one knows your product better than you, you can actually outsource content creation to save some time - just make sure that you have a good understanding of where you will publish the content and how it will benefit your business.
7. Get a few customer reviews to display them in your store and across social media. Detailed recount of product use experience can prove that your product is legitimate and it's safe to buy one. You can get reviews from your customers (if you have them already), friends and family who tried the product, or a micro-influencer who works with your target audience.
Helpful app: linkr Influencer Marketing
⭐ 4.2/5 (45 reviews) 💲 starts at $49/month
8. Get referrals from non-competing businesses. Your potential customers love tons of other things. Figure out what these things are, reach out to people who sell them and offer cooperation. You can strike a cross-promotion deal or set up a referral program and share revenue from every customer they help you get
Helpful app: Referral Candy & Affiliate
⭐ 4,9/5 (1,939 reviews) 💲 starts at $59/month
9. Work with communities & groups by interests. The idea is simple - go where your target audience is, learn about their problems, answer their questions, and, where appropriate, recommend your products. If you're feeling ambitious, start your own community.
Helpful app: Community Builder
⭐ 5/5 (2 reviews) 💲 $4,99/month
10. Run paid ads. Prospecting or Traffic ads are shown to a broad audience of people who have never been to your store before (and, at this point, it’s pretty much everyone), but are interested in the products you offer. Sure, the ads aren’t free – you pay a small amount of money every time someone clicks on the ad - but they can be very efficient.
Helpful app: Adwisely | Social & Google ads
⭐ 4,1/5 (386 reviews) 💲 starts at $99/month
Please, let me know if these tips are helpful - and if you'd like to get info on other topics related to eCommerce marketing
