Page 59 – Practical Ecommerce

Category

Content Marketing
5 Content Marketing Ideas for May 2021

April 4, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Need content marketing topics for May 2021? How about photography, comic books, the Clubhouse app, springtime, or the very products your business sells?
Shipping & Fulfillment
3PL Founder: ‘I’m in the Exceptions Management Business’

April 2, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Jay Sauceda launched his ecommerce fulfillment company, Sauceda Industries, in 2013 in Austin, Texas. He says packing and shipping products is easy. What's difficult, he stated, is managing unforeseen events. "The shipping business is, essentially, the exceptions management business," he told me.
Platforms & Apps
Ecommerce Product Releases: April 1, 2021

April 1, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Here is a list of product releases and updates for late March from companies that offer services to online merchants. There are updates on cryptocurrency payments, contextual bidding, carbon-neutral shipping, live-stream commerce, headless commerce, and more.
SEO
CommerceCo Recap: SEO Entities vs. Keywords

March 31, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Some search engine optimizers believe “entities” have supplanted keywords as the foundation for organic rankings. But it doesn’t mean that keywords are irrelevant. Within SEO, entities are the people, places, things,
Business
March 2021 Top 10: Our Most Popular Posts

March 31, 2021 • PEC Staff

Since 2005, we've published thousands of articles, podcasts, and webinars to help ecommerce merchants. What follows are the 10 most popular articles that we published in March 2021. Articles from early in the month are more likely to make the list than later ones.
Analytics & Data
Is Marketing Just an Art?

March 30, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Modern commerce marketing can be data-driven and repeatable. At some companies, however, marketing is unplanned and unorganized. This came up during a recent job interview when a candidate said, "Marketing isn't construction work. It is not workmanlike. It is more like art." But is it really?
Social Media
14 Brands on TikTok, for Inspiration

March 29, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Contributor Kaleena Stroud’s recent TikTok articles help merchants produce videos on that platform and drive sales. In addition, following the TikTok tactics of leading brands can generate ideas for your own promotions. Here is a list of top brands on TikTok to inspire your production and marketing.
Customer Retention
Here’s Why Your Ecommerce Subscriptions Aren’t Selling

March 29, 2021 • Armando Roggio

A recurring subscription model is a powerful tool for growth and profit — if you can get subscribers. “A lot of brands install our subscription software and slap a ‘subscribe and ...
Social Media
4 Ways to Drive Product Sales from TikTok

March 28, 2021 • Kaleena Stroud

Social commerce is growing. Facebook tools include Shops, Checkout, Commerce Manager, and Live Shopping. Instagram has those options and more. TikTok is the newest craze. Posting engaging videos to that platform can drive traffic to a website. But can it generate customers, too?
Business
Lessons from Vine Elevate Feat Clothing

March 26, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Having co-founded Feat Socks in 2015, Taylor Offer hired Aly Raisman, the gymnast, to design and promote a custom sock. It generated $500,000 in revenue. Influencer marketing was clearly effective, and Offer wanted more. "I started looking at the kids that got famous from Vine, the short-video app."
Amazon & Marketplaces
Walmart Expands Marketplace, Challenging Amazon

March 25, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

Walmart’s U.S. ecommerce sales in the last quarter of 2020 increased by 69 percent year-over-year while its total sales grew only 7.3 percent. The message is clear: future growth will depend on ecommerce.
Marketing & Advertising
Using Clubhouse to Promote a Business

March 24, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Clubhouse, the invitation-only audio discussion app, launched in April 2020. It has since garnered about 2 million active weekly users. The app's fleeting nature and live-conference format force its content to be instructional, not promotional. Tactics such as advertising or sponsoring influencers either are not an option on Clubhouse or are not usually effective.
Local Business
Bike Retailer Solves a Pandemic-driven Problem

March 23, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Lots of consumers wanted to get outside when the pandemic hit last year. Among the beneficiaries was Erik's Bike Shop, a Minnesota-based retailer, which experienced a massive increase in web traffic and customer service requests — phone calls, emails, and chats. The staff was overwhelmed.
Checkout Tactics
4 Pricing Strategies to Increase Average Order Values

March 22, 2021 • Pamela Hazelton

Price isn’t everything, especially for quality and niche products. When boosting average order values, take things up a notch by focusing on the overall value of each product. That, coupled with stellar service, can provide a much better return on investment.
Business
16 Podcasts for Entrepreneurs and Innovators

March 22, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Podcasts can provide entrepreneurs with expert advice and practical strategies to launch, manage, and grow a brand. Here is a list of podcasts for entrepreneurs and innovators. There are shows that provide skills, such as growing an audience and managing a team.
Business
Do Consumers Care about Green Commerce?

March 21, 2021 • Charles Nicholls

Covid-19 has shone a light on the next big crisis: the environment. Younger consumers are especially sensitive about global warming and the world they are inheriting. Does it affect the way they shop? What can merchants do to make their operations greener?
Business
Drop Party Thrives with Turnkey Product Design, Testing

March 19, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Marco Marandiz is a musician turned software engineer turned product designer. He's worked for Capital One, HomeAway, and a failed startup. But it was consulting for ecommerce companies with unsold inventory that sparked his idea for Drop Party.
Conversion
Will AI for Ecommerce Go Mainstream in 2021?

March 18, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Buzzwords such as "personalization" and "artificial intelligence" have been around ecommerce for years. But could 2021 be the year these technologies go mainstream? Some industry participants believe so.
Email & Text Marketing
Email Conversion Guide, Part 2: Creating the Template

March 18, 2021 • Carolyn Nye

An ecommerce email template consists of multiple elements that impact clicks and purchases. This is the second installment of a 3-part series on factors that influence conversions from email marketing. "Part 1: Database Cleanup," we published last month.
Google Ads
CommerceCo Recap: Google Ads Smart Bidding Explained

March 17, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Google Ads Smart Bidding uses machine learning to optimize performance and streamline account management. Done well, Smart Bidding should lead to improved results as your campaigns (small or large) tap into Google's insights about the folks who use its search engine and advertising network and what makes a successful ad.
Business > Merchant Voice
The benefits of a thriving consumer forum

March 16, 2021 • Richard Stubbings

An ecommerce website can have content other than products for sale. Consider a forum, for example. What makes a good forum? In my experience, it is where participants can ask questions and receive relevant answers within a few hours, no longer.
Schools & Resources
11 New Ecommerce Books for Spring 2021

March 16, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Here’s a batch of new ecommerce books for your spring reading list. There are titles on branding, social media marketing, cross-border selling, podcasting, customer experience, transacting on Amazon and Shopify, and selling your business.
Business
Retailers, Brands, Manufacturers Are Converging in 2021

March 15, 2021 • Armando Roggio

The distinction between direct-to-consumer ecommerce and traditional retailing has been vanishing for years. But in a post-pandemic 2021, the convergence could be accelerating.
Platforms & Apps
Ecommerce Product Releases: March 15, 2021

March 15, 2021 • Sig Ueland

Here is a list of product releases and updates for mid-March from companies that offer services to online merchants. There are updates on Amazon advertising, shipping rates, live-streaming, drone deliveries, fraud mitigation, and chatbots.
Code
You Can’t Solve Accessibility with 1 Line of Code

March 14, 2021 • Joseph C. Dolson

Accessibility overlays are third-party web scripts that alter the user experience. Providers of overlays sometimes claim that installing their script will prevent lawsuits in the U.S. under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Let me be blunt: these products will not protect you from lawsuits or necessarily help visitors with accessibility needs.
Business
Show-stopper Wedding Rings Drive Manly Bands

March 12, 2021 • Eric Bandholz

Shopping in-store for wedding rings does not appeal to all men. That was an insight of Johnathan Ruggiero and his wife Michelle when they founded Manly Bands, a direct-to-consumer online wedding-ring company, in 2016. The second insight was the rings had to be unique — really unique — to compete against established jewelers.
Cross-border Selling
Ecommerce in the Middle East: Covid Uptick

March 11, 2021 • Marcia Kaplan

Many countries in the Middle East have immature digital infrastructures and inefficient logistics. But a few have relatively young and affluent populations that are eager to utilize ecommerce despite the problems. This article will focus on three of the richer countries.
Marketing & Advertising
CommerceCo Recap: Podcast Endorsements Drive Traffic, Sales

March 10, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Audio advertising can take many forms, but at least one industry leader thinks companies should aim for host endorsements for the best return on investment.
Technical SEO
SEO: 10 FAQs for Internal Links

March 9, 2021 • Jill Kocher Brown

Internal links benefit search engine optimization. But knowing how to use them and understanding their value is not always clear. What follows are 10 frequently asked questions for internal-link management for SEO.
Social Media
Will Social Commerce Disrupt Retail in U.S., Europe?

March 8, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Social commerce in China combines content, chat, live streaming, and sharing with in-app retail purchases, obliterating the distinctions between social media networks and online stores. China's style of ecommerce is so successful it has the potential to disrupt retail in the U.S. and Europe.