The Value of Your Website
U.S. Online retail spending (eCommerce) grew 16.9% in 2013 to $263.3 Billion. On total, U.S. (non-eCommerce) retail spending grew 3.5% [eMarketer, April 10, 2014]. eCommerce has captured almost 6% of the total retail volume and expected to reach nearly 10% by 2017. Equally of note, mCommerce (mobile commerce; smartphone and tablet) is exhibiting growth rates (year-on-year) approaching 25%! The question is no longer ‘will eCommerce be a sustainable retail growth model?’, but rather, how do I catch and ride with the digital retail evolution?!
Your website is potentially the most important professional tool you have. Whether you are an artist or a doctor, a small café, company of thousands or a non-profit organization, in most cases your site is the first experience any potential customer, donor, employee, or vendor will have with your brand. If your website content spans across social media, mobile devices, and other network-enabled media, you have even greater opportunity to directly reach diverse segments of consumers.
Creating an experience that resonates with those who visit your site is essential to your online survival - not to mention the overall performance of your enterprise - so it stands to reason that your website become a natural extension of your operating strategy. It's important that you have access to the tools (directly or indirectly) to update, manage, edit, and administer it on a timely basis.
Digging Deeper
To better understand the recent movement in mobile commerce activity, we look to a recent study which has provided some interesting insights ("2014 Mobile Path-to-Purchase" - xAd / Telemetrics / Nielsen, June 3, 2014):
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Mobile is an everday tool: "42% of shoppers say mobile is the most important media for their decision" (43% of shoppers prefer laptop or desktop)
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More than half of mobile activity leads to conversion
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1 in 5 retail users who viewed a mobile ad took action, mostly visiting the advertised site
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Mobile users are typically 25 to 44, making between $50K to $100K in Household Income
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60% of mobile users still have a decision to make when accessing information on their device
You have the ability to influence purchasing decisions!
Social Media
-Forbes, “What the Emerging Billion Social Media-First Consumers Mean for Business" – Sept 28, 2014
Social Media...
Companies are finding that social media is a great way to build and nurture a community online. What once was thought of as a way to push a message and agenda has now become an opportunity to have a conversation. Marketers are finding that when they become a part of the discussion and start focusing on the community, rather than themselves, they make more headway.
It's a Strategy...
Although it's taken some time for us to figure it out, social media has become an integral part of the greater Marketing team. It's no longer just an add-on that we ask the intern to manage without any pay. As a part of the greater marketing effort, the social media strategy is (or should be) aligned with the SEO strategy, the branding strategy, the blogging/content strategy, the advertising strategy, etc
Get Engaged!
It's time for you to participate in the conversation and talk about things your community wants to discuss, rather than just your own agenda. In a connected world leaders must know how to assess the opportunities and risks of digital on their business. Pŭye Analytical can be your guide through this maze of information and options.