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5 Top-Tips to keep mCommerce running smoothly this Christmas

Peer1Hosting
December04/ 2015

In the run up to Christmas, retailers are under increasing pressure as the intensity of brand campaigns grows in order to capitalise on consumption during the holiday season. There are a number of issues that businesses need to be on top of, in order to maintain the high quality of interactions they have with their customers.

  • Hosting

This is often one of the last things that retailers consider, after website design and payment infrastructure. However it really is one of the most fundamental aspects, especially for an mCommerce site. Consider the amount of traffic when a brand’s Xmas advert goes live for example; will the site be able to cope with the influx of customers?

  • Aesthetics

So you’ve got customers flocking to your mobile site after seeing your new Christmas ad campaign. But you haven’t thought about how your mobile site represents your brand, worst still you have an mCommerce site which is basic and clunky. Frankly speaking, at that point, you can say “good-bye” to your customers. With mobile traffic now accounting for a large chunk of customers, what does a cheap-looking, bad-performing site say about your business?

  • Shopping cart

Now you’ve managed to get your customers onto your mobile site, and even managed to get them interested enough to purchase something. However, in order to do so, they have to enter card details, submit their address, remember online banking PIN numbers; all while on their mobile and potentially in a public place. Not ideal. PayPal, Google Wallet, one-click payments; these are all established technologies, yet you would be surprised at the number of mCommerce operations that don’t use them. Don’t be that business.

  • Omnichannel

One of the biggest trends that mCommerce is offering is the ability to shop in real life using your mobile. Stores now offer delivery of products you’ve seen and bought in store. Fancy that jacket but already have too many bags to carry? Using your mobile, your can scan the barcode, pay online and have it delivered to your home. mCommerce facilitates easier purchasing – so make sure your organisations can streamline this process, not make it harder

  • Security

And last but by no means least, the elephant in the room of any mCommerce operation: Security. Do you have the necessary physical and digital systems in place to protect your customer data? Many of the features above, such as one-click payments, can help with this, and in turn make customers feel more secure. This is the most important element; if customers don’t feel safe giving you their details then you have little hope of growing the mobile channel of your business.

 

 

Black Friday, Christmas, Sell

Selling via an online marketplace at Christmas

Adrien Nussenbaum
November04/ 2015

For retailers large and small, the run-up to Christmas is generally the busiest time of the year. For smaller sellers, one of the best ways to maximise sales at Christmas is to sell your products via an online marketplace. A specialised marketplace offers more qualified traffic than Amazon Marketplace or eBay and provides a major opportunity for sellers to increase sales and turnover.

This is true all year round, but especially so during holiday season, where most retailers will be gearing up for Black Friday (now a global phenomenon) and Christmas promotions and may well be looking to incorporate their online marketplace sellers in these promotions. So what’s the best way for sellers to get the best return from their online marketplace listing during this period?

Collaborate with the marketplace operator. A retailer will plan its Christmas and Black Friday promotions well in advance so it should be fairly straight forward for a third-party seller to be able to tap into that. Any good online marketplace should provide each small retail business that sells on it with an account manager, so communication can be regular throughout the year.

But this becomes especially important now, as it allows the third-party seller to learn what the retailer has planned and how the seller can work with those plans. It might be that that the retailer is unable to offer a certain product and requires its marketplace sellers to not only cover that shortfall, but also wants to include them in any seasonal promotional offers.

Tailor your offers with those of the retailer. Even if there is not the opportunity to become directly involved in the seasonal promotion, then there is no reason at all that the third-party seller cannot look at what the retailer is promoting and tailor their own offers accordingly. One reason that so many major retailers are turning to an online marketplace is to ensure complementarity and long tail. So if an electrical retailer is running a major sales promotion on TVs, then a third-party seller could highlight its own complimentary products, whether that’s DVDs, comfy sofa cushions or even TV snacks.

Seasonalise your photography and copy. Part of tailoring your offering with the retailer will mean adjusting your product descriptions and perhaps the photography too. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) principals should absolutely still be applied to listing products on an online marketplace, so at Christmas the seller should not only mention the product’s brand but also make sure it is tagged as a ‘gift for him’ or ‘gift for her’ – this is how many people search.

Visuals are just as important as the copy in an online marketplace list and while it is unrealistic to re-do your entire product photography, adding a festive element to some of your biggest sellers could be a worthwhile exercise in terms of getting noticed.

Ensure you are ready to cope with additional demand. A retailer may well conduct its own seller performance review before Christmas or Black Friday, as it is important for them to identify any sellers at risk and help them to improve their performance. But third-party sellers can help themselves by being pro-active about this and ensuring they are ready to meet the additional demand.

Delivering good service is not only important for the overall reputation of the retailer, but the online marketplace sellers that consistently deliver good service are the ones that the retailer will want to highlight and include as part of their own promotions. Christmas and Black Friday are such important times in the retail calendar, that being included in a retailer’s promotion could make a significant difference to that small retail business’ turnover that year.

Analysis, Digital Marketing, Engage, Engagement, Entrepeneurs, eSeller Guides, Facts & Figures, Marketing, Promote, social media management, YOU!

How to Build your Talent Brand with Content Marketing

Martina Mercer
September15/ 2015

There are a vast number of businesses who use talent brand in order to promote their business as an attractive way to work. If you’re looking to attract new talent to your business in this way, content marketing can help you to connect with potential candidates.

In order to outline the ways in which recruiters can use content marketing to build their talent brand, Lucas Blake have created an infographic using key information from recent LinkedIn research.

The first step to building your talent brand with content marketing is to identify your target audience. Once you know who your content is being made for, you can tailor it for maximum impact.

When it comes to creating content to suit your audience, there are a wide variety of different types to choose from. Content has come a long way, rather than limiting yourself to articles and blog posts, you can now create engaging, consumable and sharable rich media content such as video, infographics and photos.

Whatever content you decide to create, you need to ensure that it’s authentic, reflects your company’s unique culture and values, as well as providing advice and insights to your target audience.

In order for this content to reach potential candidates, you need to know where, when and how to publish it. Below are some of the best social media platforms for distributing and promoting your published content:

LinkedIn

* For: Business updates and links to published content (articles and rich media)

* Peak Times: 7-9am 5-6pm

* Frequency: Start with 2-3 times/ week. Work up to once per day

Facebook

* For: Updates and links to published content (visual rich media)

* Peak Times: 6-8am 1-4pm

* Start with 2-3 times/ week. Work up to once per day

Twitter

* For: Short updates and links to published content

* Peak Times: 1-3pm

* Frequency: 2-5 times per day

Youtube

* For: Video (featuring your business, employees or customers)

* Peak Times: 12-1pm

* Frequency: 2 a month or more

Google+

* For: Links to published content (articles and rich media)

* Peak Times: 9-11am

* Frequency: A few times a week to once a day

It’s important to remember when sharing content on social media profiles that you remain responsive. If someone comments or asks a question, maintain the engagement by replying to them. You can also ask your employees to share your content, as they are an extension of your brand and your best advocates. If you are looking to reach a wider audience you may also want to consider sponsoring your content.

In order to measure the success of your content efforts, you need to monitor three specific factors. Firstly, keep track of your follower growth (are the numbers of followers on your social media profiles increasing). Secondly, monitor the impressions on your content (how many followers are seeing your content?). Finally, measure engagement with your content (keep track of likes, comments, shares to see how users engage with your content).

We hope that this actionable advice has inspired you to start using content marketing to boost you talent brand and attract new talent to your business. For more information, please see: www.lucas-blake.com/

LB - Content Marketing

Digital Marketing, Entrepeneurs, eSeller Guides, Grow, News

Advice for Small Businesses on Technology, Funding and Profitability

Martina Mercer
August31/ 2015

To celebrate the launch of Small Business Advice Week (31st August – 6th September), new research has revealed the top three advice topics sought by small business owners in the UK:

1.Technology
2.Profitability
3.Funding

The research, of 250 small business owners, identified the top 3 sought advice topics that small business owners felt would help them to continue to grow and have a competitive edge over their larger competitors. Nearly a quarter of small businesses (24%) felt that advice on technology would give them a competitive advantage over similar companies and more importantly save them money on processes, long term.

Assistance with profit margins came a close second, with 1 in 5 (20%) small businesses seeking advice to ensure they can improve their profitability as their business continues to grow. Identifying additional funding followed third, as more small businesses seek advice on getting capital essential for continued business growth.

Small Business Advice Week was created to champion small businesses, who are the backbone to the UK economy. There are a variety of events throughout the week whereby industry experts will communicate with small business owners via the media, social media and online events to provide thorough advice in areas it is most sought.

According to the recent research, 18% of small business owners trust advice given to them by the business peers, however only 6% have a mentor from whom to ask advice. The aim of Small Business Advice Week is to offer a platform for two-way conversation, allowing those without a mentor access to vital information for prosperous growth in their markets.

This year, Small Business Advice Week has partnered with Royal Mail, Santander, Eventbrite and Simply Business, all of whom are planning a series of topical discussions and social media activity. Plus each will be working with local radio and TV broadcasters, providing top tips and advice online whilst also providing essential first-hand, real-life experience from other small business owners who have seen successful growth over recent years.

James Godfrey, coordinator of Small Business Advice Week comments:

“Small Business Advice week, for over a decade, has provided owners of businesses across the regions in the UK, a unique way of obtaining advice and have access to key influential entrepreneurs they would not normally be able to reach. The research has proved that SMEs are actively looking for advice, but with such a large number not having access to a mentor, this communication, over the 7 days, could be vital as the only source of effective advice available to them. We are excited to be working with such huge partners this year, who have worked hard to create topical, factual and heavily advice led content that we are keen to begin sharing with small businesses all over the UK”.

Small Business Advice Week launches on 31st August 2015. Business owners are encouraged to take part in the conversation on Social Media by following the hashtag #SBAW or visiting www.smallbusinessadviceweek.co.uk.

mCommerce

What this Ecommerce Platform Learnt about the Shift to Mobile Shopping: Hoodies, Tablets & Mobilegeddon

Philip Rooke
August24/ 2015

As a print-on-demand, e-commerce merchandising platform we have been spending a lot of time focusing on the mobile-optimisation of our site. Part of this process has been a review of the mobile shopping habits of our customers across Europe. During the last quarter of 2014 and the first quarter of this year we monitored activity on our platform. The results from this review are not necessarily what we expected in terms of what people buy, when they buy it and what they will pay. This is what we learned:

The eCommerce platform shift to mobile

Mobile sales across our international markets show that people are not just browsing via mobile anymore but they are buying too. During a mobile visit, the probability that a product will be added to the shopping bag is twice more likely than during a visit via PC. Compared to a traditional purchase via a desktop, the likelihood of a mobile purchase in the evening is a quarter higher and it’s twice as likely in the mornings.  Our data revealed some interesting stats about shoppers across Europe: the British are more likely than the French or Germans to shop via their mobile. Our data shows that 30% of sales from the UK come via a mobile device compared to Germany (25%) or France (17%).

Pricier items can make up a bigger share of mobile shopping pie 

A smaller screen is supposed to mean a smaller basket size. The theory is that if consumers can’t see the product very well, they won’t want to risk a big purchase. Now, it may be because it was the winter, but we found that during Q4 2104 and Q1 2015our mobile shoppers were buying a lot of hoodies, which are one of our more expensive items.  Regardless of the weather, this is not something we would expect to see. For us, hoodies are a more expensive choice compared to t-shirts, or long-sleeved shirts and we see solid sales of them via a PC. Surprisingly, as a share of the mobile sales, they have a bigger slice of the pie. They are the third most common purchase on mobiles across Europe, after premium and standard t-shirts, which are cheaper items.  So perhaps the smaller screen price threshold is less of problem than was previously thought? Of course, optimising your site for mobile could mean that shoppers are more prepared to buy premium items and there might now be fewer concerns around mobile shopping security too. 

When is mobile shopping happening? Early in the week & evenings in the UK 

Our review also shows that there seem to be distinct mobile shopping patterns in the UK. For example: The beginning of the week is busier than the end with buyers across Europe, with the British more likely to shop on a Tuesday! Four out of 10 visitors access the site via their mobile at the weekend (compared to a third during the week). The British and Germans do their shopping via tablet in the evening; 20% of all our tablet orders in the UK are made between 6.00pm and midnight. However, in Germany, 50% of visitors to the site in the early morning (between 7 and 8am) are from phones and 38% between midnight and 6am.

So why are these results important?

For some online retailers Google’s search rules changes earlier this year created mobilegeddon, as they fell off the radar. But mobile sales are expected to rise to nearly 50% of all transactions in the coming years and our review shows that the shift to mobile is happening across Europe, with very rapid rises in both mobile browsing and purchasing. Regular reviews of sales and mobile usage are therefore an increasingly important part of any ecommerce company’s strategy for success. At Spreadshirt we have spent the last couple of years optimising our platform for mobile use, introducing a new check-out and a smartphone-optimised marketplace. As a result, in some cases over 50% of our traffic now comes from mobile. We’ve also seen a tripling of mobile sales since optimisation.

Mobile-readiness is just one of the many things a modern customer demands, but we discovered it can have a big impact on sales. Our mobile shopping trend review has helped us focus the shift to mobile shopping and some of the unexpected changes this has produced. Hoodies, tablets and mobilegeddon are just the beginning. We’re very interested to see how our customers’ mobile shopping habits develop.

Author: Philip Rooke, CEO of Spreadshirt. Follow him on Twitter @PhilipRooke

You can find more articles on mobile marketing and beacon technology at this beacon marketing blog

 

Analysis, Customer Care, Customer Opinion, Digital Marketing, Engage, eSeller Guides, Facts & Figures, Latest News, Loyalty, research, Retain

Customer Reviews: Why are they Important and How to Get Them

Martina Mercer
August03/ 2015

Salesforce Canada has recently put together this infographic, showing how to gain quality reviews for your company online.

Customer reviews online are key to growing revenue. Companies with the highest customer loyalty typically grow revenues at more than twice the rate of their competitors.

A study of 200 of the Fortune 500 firms across 40 industries found a 1 per cent improvement in customer satisfaction led to an increase in the firm’s value of approximately $275 million.

The typical business only hears from 4 per cent of its dissatisfied customers. And while 80 per cent of companies rate their customer service as superior, only 8 per cent of customers feel the same.

For every one complaint, an estimated 26 remain silent. Well, not exactly silent. A customer may not file a complaint with a company, but they may spread word of a bad experience to friends and family. The worse the experience, the more people they tell. On average, consumers tell 15 people about their good customer service experiences, and 24 people about their bad experiences. Another survey of 3,600 consumers, located in the U.S. and Canada, revealed that 79 per cent of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.

Click To Enlarge

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Via Salesforce

Digital Marketing, Entrepeneurs, Global, Latest News, mCommerce, News, Outsourcing

Creative Industries Contribute £8.8m to UK Economy

Martina Mercer
July24/ 2015

The creative industries contribute £8.8m per hour to the UK economy, making it one of the most rapidly growing sectors of the global financial system.

Throughout history, creative professions have been viewed as secondary by society; perhaps spiritually fulfilling, but considered less worthy than industry, commerce, medicine and law. With the creative industries contributing almost £77bn to the UK economy in 2014 alone, it is perhaps time that we re- appraised the value of this lucrative, but previously maligned sector.

A recent study conducted by online freelance marketplace, PeoplePerHour, has revealed that the creative economy is growing at a tremendous rate, and now makes up 6.5-7% of global output. While 1 in 10 people currently work within the creative industries, this figure is likely to rise to 1 in 8 people within the next five years, with a compound annual growth rate of 2.3% over the last decade and a half.

According to John Howkins, author and speaker on Creative Industries, ‘America exports more value in terms of copyright, than food, soft drinks, cars, computers and planes, and Britain’s fashion industry employs more people and makes more money than its steel or car industries’. Given the industrial heartland that originally forged Britain’s and America’s places on the global economic stage, this is a phenomenal reversal, exhibiting both the prowess and potential of the creative professions.

The rapid and recent rise of the creative economy can be viewed as being powered by three key factors: the decline of traditional industry; the advent of digital technology and the means of reaching a global market that it provides; and the growth in the number of people able to attain a high degree of education. The combination of these three factors have proven particularly beneficial to UK creatives – the status of English as a global lingua franca means that there is an increased demand for those with impeccable English language skills, particularly among the emerging economies of the Far East. With Advertising and Marketing, including writing, being the second most highly demanded creative skill set, British creative professionals are ideally positioned to maximise the potential of this growing sector.

In the last three years, there has been a ten-fold increase in sales exported from the UK to the Far East. From the United Arab Emirates to Qatar, eight of the top ten importers of UK creative industries in 2014 were in the Far East, adding an impressive £17.3bn to the UK economy. Many of those employed worked on an individual freelance basis, using modern technology and sales platforms, such as PeoplePerHour, to access the global market. The most highly demanded skills were those of design, writing, web development and business support.

Creativity and innovation are fundamentally interwoven in the new economy; they are a driver of significant growth, and outperform all other sectors of the economy in the UK. With the creative industries only set to grow, it is beyond time that they received the recognition that they deserve.

The full report can be found here: blog.peopleperhour.com/The-Rise-Of-The-Creative-Economy

 

Digital Marketing, Latest News, Payments, research, social media management, Web Design, YOU!

Male to Female Salary Gap Exposed at 9% in Digital Industry

Martina Mercer
July20/ 2015

A new study by digital recruitment agency, The Candidate, has revealed that men are paid on average 9% more than women across a variety of roles in the thriving digital industry.

Data generated for the business’ Women in Digital report shows that although the salary gap in digital is lower than the national average of 9.4%, women are still underpaid, with 44% of men falling within the £21,000-£30,000 bracket, and 43% of women earning less than £20,000.

The research showed that 80% of the top salaries in digital go to men rather than women, with only 18 out of 150 digital agencies in the North headed up by a female.

Interestingly, men demanded a 17% higher salary than women, despite only actually receiving 9% more. Women are now being urged to request higher salaries upon entering jobs in an effort to help close the gap.

Brian Matthews, managing partner at The Candidate said: “Our report was designed to indicate some of the core issues facing the digital industry right now, in order to provide a comprehensive overview of the sector.

“Gender equality and offering women the same opportunities as men when it comes to job roles and salaries is something that every business should be striving towards. The wage gap within the digital industry is closing and whilst, at 9%, it is 0.4% less than the national average, there is still a way to go until gender equality is reached”.

“More positively, although the report showed that more men are paid in a higher salary bracket, an attributing factor to this is the rise in women moving into the digital industry on entry level salaries. This is extremely promising – the rise of women entering the sector can only be a positive step.”

The report also looks at how women are breaking the glass ceiling in the traditionally male-dominated industry; as well as taking a closer look at the extent of the male/female divide within the industry and research into flexible working hours and benefit policies.

To see the full report, visit The Candidate’s website.

Featured, Latest News, Launch, Payments, YOU!

Co-op Foods Becomes the Largest UK Retailer to Launch Apple Pay

Martina Mercer
July16/ 2015

The Co-operative Food has launched Apple Pay in all stores, making them the largest UK retailer to offer the newest payment technology.

All shoppers with an iPhone 6/6S or Apple Watch can now pay securely with their device at the till using the long-awaited payment system that uses the contactless technology already implemented in all Co-op Food stores.

The new payment system dubbed as the ‘future of retail’ has landed in the UK a year after its launch in the United States and further extends the ever growing capabilities of the smartphone.

Consumer research commissioned by the Co-op shows that shoppers predict the death of the wallet in 2020, as 65% believe their phone will be all they need to pay for daily goods. A further third of Brits surveyed admitted they thought that paying with their phone was safer than carrying a wallet.

Amanda Jennings, Customer Director at The Co-operative Foods, says; “As a convenience retailer, it’s important for us to be pioneers of quicker and easier payment methods so that our savvy shoppers have the best possible experience.

“We’ve already seen how contactless payments have become second nature to our customers, and the ease of Apple Pay is perfectly aligned with how we want our customer’s to shop – the £20 limit also suits our average shopper’s basket spend, so we welcome the new payment method.”

Global, Grow, Internationalisation, Web Traffic, YOU!

Why Traditional Broadcasters are Buying up YouTube’s Multi-Channel Networks

Martina Mercer
July15/ 2015

What do Zoella, Minecraft, Ed Sheeran and political documentaries have in common? They all have their own YouTube channels that are part of the Multi-Channel Networks owned by traditional media groups including RTL, Warner Music, Disney and Discovery. Over the past three years, the biggest of these Multi-Channel Networks (MCNs) have been snapped up for sums ranging from $200m to up to nearly $1bn, mainly by the larger media groups. Now this land grab is all-but over, leaving some major players with the option of acquiring and consolidating smaller MCNs or building their own, according to the latest research by Ampere Analysis.

Key Findings

  • Over 75% of the MCNs acquired in the last three years were bought by traditional media groups.
  • Our analysis of MCN investments spanning the last three years reveals that the average MCN is worth 10 cents per monthly view. On this basis, an MCN with 1 billion monthly views would be worth $100m. There are 22 MCNs now worth at least this much.
  • Ampere’s analysis shows that the combined value of these 22 MCNs is $6.5bn. Collectively the top 100 MCNs receive 100bn views per month, making them worth nearly $10bn.
  • 42% of all YouTube’s video views in Q1 2015 were on the top 100 MCNs.
  • MCN valuations typically represent multiples of between 25x and 35x of their annual revenues, yet return on investment is good for buyers.
  • Both Dreamworks and Disney have seen the investments they made in MCNs increase in value by more than 240% in just 18 months.
  • The YouTube channel business is now valued at over $20bn.

Monetising Multi-Channel Networks

MCNs build, aggregate and monetise audiences across a variety of OTT video outlets, with the primary one being YouTube. Content is typically available in short clips of up to 20 minutes, with topics ranging from music to beauty and fashion, comedy, cartoons, documentaries and “mockumentaries”, in fact any niche interest or experimental content. Some MCNs create their own material, such as RTL’s StyleHaul and Discovery’s Revision3, while others sell advertising against videos from third-party content creators.

The value of an MCN lies in its audience, similarly to traditional TV channels. The monthly audience and ad impressions any single YouTube channel achieves is typically equivalent to a minor broadcast channel, but when aggregated with other YouTube channels by an MCN to reach billions of viewers, there’s the potential to capture a share of YouTube’s $4.5bn-and-growing annual advertising revenue.  Not to mention access to global viewers in new markets.

Wherever they are located, each monthly view adds an average of $0.10 to the valuation of an MCN. On this basis, there are now 22 MCNs worldwide that would command a purchase price of at least $100m.

Richard Broughton, Research Director, says: “The business model of MCNs is a good fit for many traditional media companies, which understand advertising business models. They are also an extremely effective way for traditional media players to reach a younger audience which is leaving traditional media in droves, as well as to experiment with new programme formats and content types.”

The MCN land grab

Acquisition activity began in earnest in 2012, with early moves by the leading media groups including Discovery Communications’ purchase of Revision3 for $30m, Telegraaf Media Groep’s 70% stake in Zoomin.TV, and Time Warner’s $40m play for Maker Studios.  Today MCNs are owned by groups including RTL, ProSiebenSat.1, Vivendi, Disney, Dreamworks and production company Fremantle.  For these larger players, MCNs have thus far represented good value for money and return on investment.

MCN
The MCN hype bubble

Our analysis suggests that a typical MCN with one billion views per month would be valued at $97m and make approx. $21m in gross revenue per year. YouTube’s entire audience could be valued on this basis at over $20bn.

But after YouTube and channel partner shares of an MCN’s revenue are shared out, the amount an MCN actually gets to keep can be slim – as little as just a tenth of the overall revenue generated by its advertising sales.

Ampere’s research suggests that typical MCN valuations represent a multiple of between 25x and 35x their annual revenues – many times higher than a mature broadcasting business.

In a market with so much M&A activity, we might expect valuations and prices to have spiralled out of proportion, but according to Ampere Analysis, this isn’t currently the case. Richard Broughton, Research Director, says:

“Growth rates for MCNs are huge, and early buyers into the sector have seen their acquisitions triple in value within a few short years. Furthermore, buying an MCN delivers instant global reach, opening up new territories and helping to future-proof businesses in an increasingly unpredictable media sector.

“For those players without a stake in the MCN game, sand is rapidly running through the hourglass. Very few top MCNs remain that don’t now have an affiliation to a major media group. And with no apparent decline in valuations over time, those rare MCNs that are still independent are becoming increasingly expensive. Many media companies are playing a waiting game: the million dollar question now is when to stop waiting and start acting.”

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