When I think about all the advice out there about selling online for small businesses, I see much of it is geared almost entirely toward the e-commerce space. Online shops, Etsy sellers, and digital entrepreneurs have no shortage of resources and tools available on how to optimize their online stores, manage fulfillment, and advertise to their online customers.
Yet, even with all the attention paid to e-commerce today, actual buyer preferences reveal a surprising fact about small business sales: 92% of all consumer purchases are made from a business that sells goods or services in person.
Local entrepreneurs that operate their business or service customers out of storefronts, studios, service trucks, or in-person transactions make up a huge portion of customers’ commerce choices.
Yet, these kinds of businesses are often left out of the conversation about online sales. Driving in-person transactions from actions taken in the online world is a whole different ball game for small, local businesses that sell in person.
It’s been assumed that, because these types of businesses conduct business largely in person, that an online strategy is secondary. I’d argue, however, that online strategy imperative for small business growth.
In our latest Breakthrough Series webinar “Bridging the Gap Between Digital & Physical,” I discussed why and how businesses that serve customers in person need an even better online to in-person strategy for their sales. Watch the full presentation and check out key takeaways below.
Why Physical Businesses Should Invest in an Online Sales Strategy
Here’s the thing: even if you run a brick-and-mortar store, you are still an online business. Your business is an online business that happens to have consumers who consume your goods and services in person.
Why?
All of your customers already live online. Research shows the overwhelming way that digital experiences impact shopping behavior:
- 81% are using smartphones
- 75% of Americans have purchased something online
- 80% say online posts from their friends have directly influenced their purchasing decisions
If your business doesn’t have a clear way to interact with and influence your potential customers in an online space, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to reach them in a place where they are most active on a daily basis.
In-person businesses need to have an even stronger online experience for their customers than e-commerce shops. Physical businesses haven’t had the satisfaction of simple online transactions—until now.
The Bridge Between Online Interactions and Offline Transactions
Think of your online strategy like it’s a bridge crossing a river.
On one side of the river are all the places your customers are hanging out online: Instagram, Yelp, Facebook, Google, etc. On the other side is your physical business where you sell to or service your customers in person.
Today, small businesses need to create a bridge between the digital world and the in-person business. The bridge between these two worlds is the types of online experiences that you offer to customers.
These online experiences are different than just a website or social post from your business, which are meant to inform customers or reinforce your brand. Online experiences are experiences that drive a customer to take action. Each action should ideally take that customer closer to making a purchase with your business.
Creating this bridge for in-person business requires a different kind of diligence than the e-commerce world. By the nature of their goods and services, physical businesses often can’t just set up an online store or straightforward checkout experience for customers online. When the point of sale is in person, converting an online customer interaction into a physical sale might require multiple steps and touch points.
All of this creates an even bigger barrier for in-person businesses to get online shoppers to physically come into their store or purchase an in-person service. As such, their online experiences need to be well-structured and consistent to maximize customer purchases.
Building a Successful Online Experience
An online experience consists of both the incentive for the customer online (think giveaways, special promotions, ads, brand partnerships, etc.) and the infrastructure around how customers can fulfill these incentives with your business (email sign-ups, landing pages, credit card capture, offer fulfillment. etc). We’ve talked before about how to pick the right online promotions and offers to capture the attention of local shoppers in the digital world.
When it comes to the infrastructure of your online customer interactions, consistency and ease are of utmost importance. The good news is, the Fanbank platform handles this for you as a business owner and ensures you are creating successful online sales experiences by offering four key elements:
- They are fully customized to your business. Each piece of content in your online experience, from an offer ad, to a landing/checkout page, should look the same and part of your business.
- The messaging is consistent across your offer campaign. For example, if you’re running a special promotion for an event like the 4th of July, all of the imagery, language, and details should remain the same across your social channels, ads, and emails.
- They take into account incomplete actions by customers. Online experiences should deepen relationships with customers, even if those customers don’t initially complete a purchase. The best online experiences leverage email communication and regular touch points and follow-up to help nurture your customer lists into in-store buyers.
- They use triggered communications. Online experiences that send an email as soon as a customer provides an email address, reminds them of past interactions, or sends them new promotions keep your business top of mind and give them a reason to buy in store. Back-and-forth communication with customers online is the key to success.
Even if you don’t consider yourself an online business, having a strong digital sales strategy is just as imperative for businesses beyond the e-commerce world. Online experiences offer a direct way to communicate with your potential clients and bring new shoppers into your store from online interactions.
Additional Resources:
- How Your Small Businesses Can Build and Engage Your Customer List to Grow Sales
- Giving Small Business the Price Personalization Advantage
Learn how to automate the digital experience for your customers with Fanbank’s online platform for small business.
Interested in becoming a Fanbank member? Email us at Join@fanbank.com. See what current members are saying about their Fanbank experience: reviews.fanbank.com.
