Mistakes. We all make them. We’ve made plenty of mistakes over the years as online shop owners.
Here’s just a short list of mistakes we’ve made (and this isn’t all-inclusive!):
- Not having a content marketing strategy
- Not following up with our past customers (a huge mistake!)
- Not optimizing our email list
As you can see, we’re not immune to making mistakes and neither are you. With all of that being said, some mistakes are avoidable.
In today’s post, we cover 8 common mistakes online shop owners make and what you can do to prevent it from happening to you.
8 Mistakes Online Shop Owners Make (And What To Do About It!)
1 | Not using the right theme
The right WordPress theme can make or break your business. If you aren’t using the right theme for your business, you could be missing out on major revenue.
How do you know if you’re using the right theme? Consider your goals for your online shop and if your current theme helps you achieve those goals.
Some themes are built to be used as an online shop (ours, for example, are!) but others are geared toward other industries, such as photography, journalism, or hobby blogging.
Your shop should be easy to use and update. If you constantly struggle with your website and getting it to look the right way, it may be time to shop for a new theme.
Browse our theme shop for options for the female entrepreneur. There’s sure to be one that fits your needs!
2 | Not having a strategic marketing plan
If you take your online shop seriously (which we hope you do!), you need to have a strategic marketing plan.
Here are things to keep in mind:
1. Think of where your customers hang out online the most. This could be on social media platforms, online news sites, forums, blogs…wherever! Do the research and find out.
2. Be consistent. Whatever marketing tactics you decide to do, do them consistently. Show up several times a week to Facebook, have an email marketing plan, post to Instagram at least once a day. If you’re just starting out, you may not have the time to be everywhere, so pick the few that your target audience is on the most and focus on those.
3. Have a purpose for everything you do. You need to determine your why for participating on each social platform, every marketing tactic, and every ad you publish. Every post, email, an ad should have a purpose, whether that’s to drive more traffic to your site, inspire people who follow you or sell a product.
4. For every product you have, you should have a plan for how you’re going to market it. List out all of the ways you will promote it, when, and where you will promote it.
Following these tips will help you reach your revenue goals without having to stress too much. Having a plan is so important!
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3 | Not optimizing for search engines
Think of how many things you Google each day, each week, or each month! Hundreds if not thousands, right?
Having great SEO is how you can rank higher in the search results, leading more people to your site organically (also known as free traffic ).
Here are three ways to improve your SEO right now:
1. Blogging: Consistently publishing new content on your website will help search engines find you and rank you higher in the search results. Search engines like to see that websites are constantly getting refreshed with new content and blogging is a great way to add new and fresh content to your site.
2. Use keywords: Keywords should not only be used in your blog posts but on your product descriptions as well. Use keywords naturally in your product descriptions for the best results.
3. Download the Yoast SEO plugin: This plugin makes it so much easier for you to improve your SEO (even if you have no clue what you’re doing) and it’s free! You can check out other plugins we recommend here.
Related post: See our WordPress SEO Basics to help your site show up at the top of the search.
4 | Not optimizing your email list
So many online shop business owners are scared to email their list. They don’t want to seem too obnoxious or annoying, so they end up sending an email here and there and calling it quits.
Here’s the thing: Your email list wants to hear from you. They signed up, whether it be to get a free goodie (check out our free goodies) or they want to hear about product updates.
The key is to not only promote your products but provide value as well. Give them a piece of advice, share something you haven’t shared anywhere else, give a behind-the-scenes look at your business. They will love all of it, and if they don’t they’ll unsubscribe.
Also, be timely with your emails as well. Black Friday is obviously a huge email marketing day, as well as the holidays.
Think of times throughout the year that is important to your customer’s needs (if you sell products to teachers, the end of summer might be a good time to push your promotions) and write those out on the calendar so you can plan ahead.
Related post: Learn how to grow your email list by offering a free challenge with these tips
We hope your online shop isn’t making these 8 mistakes! Check out the full list from @bluchic!Click To Tweet5 | Not selling yourself/your products enough
Not all online shop owners are born salespeople. I would imagine most aren’t, and that’s okay.
But the fact of the matter is, as an online shop owner you need to sell your products and services.
Selling your products doesn’t have to be sleazy. As long as your product is a great product that solves a problem your customers have, there’s nothing to be ashamed of.
You are doing your customers a disservice if you aren’t promoting your product. If they truly do need your product to solve their problem, they need you to sell it to them.
Related post: Learn how you can be absolutely confident your product is going to sell
6 | Not following up with past customers
Your past customers are the people you need to talk to the most. These people already know and love you, otherwise, they wouldn’t have purchased your product in the first place!
Ask them for a testimonial, ask them to become an affiliate, or ask them to recommend your product to someone else that needs it.
You can also get feedback from them on how happy they are with the product and if there’s anything you can do to improve it.
Related post: Learn how to launch a new online shop product to your existing customers!
7 | Not constantly tweaking/trying new things
As online shop owners, we are constantly tweaking and trying new things. It’s all too easy to fall into a rut and do the same things over and over again, but as technology continues to grow and expand, we should all be trying new ways to market our products.
Try something you’ve never done before. You might find out it’s the best new thing to do!
Related post: 5 New Ways to Attract More Customers or Clients
8 | Not realizing that we all make mistakes
As a business owner, you’re bound to make a mistake. Actually, you’re bound to make hundreds, if not thousands of mistakes as your business grows.
We all make mistakes, and we’re all in this together. What matters the most is how you handle it after the fact.
Are you going to get up, dust yourself off, and keep pushing through? Or will you let a tiny, little mistake hold you back from growing your business?
Related post: Check out these tips to help you drive more traffic to your online shop!
Final Thoughts
We’ve made plenty of mistakes as we’ve grown our business but that’s the nature of being a business owner. You aren’t always going to make the right decisions, but what matters most is that you keep going. We’re here for you and we can’t wait to see your online shop blossom!
Looking for the perfect new theme for your online shop? Check out ChicShop, our WordPress theme built for online shop owners!
