WOW! That’s just one of the words that can be used to describe this past year. 2015 was a blast and we only expect 2016 to be an even more exciting time for you and us. This year we expanded the reach of our tools to over 110,000 merchants. That’s a lot of eCommerce businesses using our marketing platform to grow their business :). You’re making our vision to empower small businesses a reality, and we thank you for that!
You decide to take in our content and hopefully implement the tips to help your business reach new heights. If you were not able to take in all the great content we created this year, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.
These 11 blog posts were shared and seen by tens of thousands of eCommerce professionals in 2015. Now that the holiday rush is over, make sure to take some time to jot down a note or two from each post so that 2016 becomes the year of fruitful success. Enjoy!
#11: 17 Homepage Mistakes to Avoid (and How to Fix Them)
People form first impressions of other people in just one tenth of a second. Pretty quick, right? With that in mind, creating the right homepage is a must – or else you’ll just lose out on converting any of your visitors. That’d be a shame.
What’s in the post?
- Examples of the good and the bad of homepages
- Suggestions for going mobile
- Improving conversion rates
- How to write effectively
If you want your homepage to work as a high-converting landing page, then be sure to check out the post. Then make the necessary changes to your homepage to decrease bounce rates, increase click-through rates, and sell more.
Read >> 17 Homepage Mistakes to Avoid (and How to Fix Them)
# 10: 8 eCommerce Design Trends for 2016 to Ignite the Selling Potential of Your Store
Design trends are always changing! Design trends that were leading to high conversion rates in 2013 are no longer in style, and some of the different elements that were hot at the start of 2015 are no longer relevant when it comes to successful web design for eCommerce. With that in mind, this guest post from Template Monster seeks to point you in the right direction in 2016.
What’s in the post?
- 8 examples of design trends that will rise to the top in 2016
- Examples of sites already implementing and growing with the right web design
- Links to awesome eCommerce themes
If you see that no one is clicking through your homepage and everyone is leaving after a few seconds, give this post a read!
Read >> 8 eCommerce Design Trends for 2016 to Ignite the Selling Potential of Your Store
#9: 5 Free Google SEO Tools Plus Best Practices
SEO…it’s like the values you were taught by your parents as a child: something so basic that it should never be forgotten and by following through on it, you will be a better person. The same goes for SEO and your website. SEO is not dead and those eCommerce brands that are rocking at SEO, are the same ones growing at a ridiculous rate!
What’s in the post?
- Adwords Keyword Planner
- Google Trends
- Incognito Window
- Webmaster Tools
- Google Analytics
If you are not on appearing on the first page of Google for your relevant keywords, take a look at this post. Google Analytics, Keyword Planner, and Webmaster Tools can do more than you think for your business! Even, I’ll be reading this post again!
Read >> 5 Free Google SEO Tools Plus Best Practices
#8: 9 Facebook Mistakes You Can’t Keep Making (and How To Fix Them)
Facebook is still the number one social media platform for not only traffic, but also for converting visitors into purchasers. As such, making sure that you are maximizing your marketing efforts on Facebook are key. In this post we analyzed what practices are killing pages (and how to fix that).
What’s in the post?
- How to get more out of the images you post
- How often you should post
- How to engage fans
If you are selling on Facebook or want to generate more sales from your Facebook fans, then this is one of the top posts on the web to help you do that. I can almost guarantee that you will be excited from your Facebook page if you follow through on these tips.
Read >> 9 Facebook Mistakes You Can’t Keep Making (and How To Fix Them)
#7: 62 Free Tools for eCommerce Shop Owners
Who doesn’t want to be more productive and organized? That’s what I thought. More productivity means more time with friends and family, or more time creating a new product! To be more productive and organized, you need to have the right mindset and the right tools. This list is the right tools – for free.
What’s in the post?
- Business operations tools
- Email tools and providers
- Competitor research tools
- Customer Support
- Productivity tools
- Social media tools
If you want to spend more time on more important tasks while running your business like a pro (without the high costs), check out these tools. I guarantee you’ll find a few new toys for work.
Read >> 62 Free Tools for eCommerce Shop Owners
#6: 12 Proven Ways to Increase Sales Today (and Not Break the Bank)
Whenever deciding whether or not a new tool or marketing campaign is helping our business grow, we measure the ROI (return on investment). In this post, we put together a list of “sales hacks” to help you grow your sales fast. Their ROI is going to put a smile on your face :).
What’s in the post?
- Email sales tips
- Social media sales hacks
- Changes to make on your site
We’ve done the research and found that if you are willing to do the work, these 12 strategies can all have an above average effect on your sales. Why not give a few of these a shot? The ball’s in your hands.
Read >> 12 Proven Ways to Increase Sales Today (and Not Break the Bank)
#5: The Psychology of Sales: 5 Mind Tricks That Will Help Boost Your Sales
Are you looking for ways to boost your sales? Most businesses jump to creating a new marketing campaign or a new product line. Not bad ideas, but what about your pricing? Have you considered looking into the psychology of sales?
What’s in the post?
- The “Left-Digit” Effect
- Choice Overload
- Anchoring
- Urgency
- Reciprocity
We all want to improve our revenue and profit numbers in 2016. Pricing changes should be your first option, and this is as good of a resource as you’ll find.
Read >> The Psychology of Sales: 5 Mind Tricks That Will Help Boost Your Sales
#4: 14 Top Shopify Apps for Holiday Season Success
Shopify is taking over hosted-sphere of eCommerce! If WordPress is the king of blogging platforms, then Shopify is the king of eCommerce platforms. Having the right apps, regardless of the platform you are on, is crucial. The last thing you want are bugs or to pay for tools that bring half of the results that other tools can bring.
What’s in the post?
- Lead generation
- Email marketing
- Customer service
- Analytics
- Marketing
If you are not happy with the results you are getting from your current haul of apps, we highly recommend reading this post and taking a look at each one of these apps to see if they can be your growth elves in 2016!
Read >> 14 Top Shopify Apps for Holiday Season Success
# 3: 7+ Order Confirmation Emails to Skyrocket Sales
Social media marketing is useful and effective, but it is not email. Email was in 2015 (and will continue in 2016) the top marketing channel (the highest ROI). With that in mind, there is one email that you always send, and it gets opened, yet you might not be doing it right: the order confirmation email.
What’s in the post?
- How to get more reviews
- Grow your social following
- Upsell
- Run a referral program
There is no reason as to why you should not have a call to action in your order confirmation emails. This is not really up for discussion, so take a look at the post, and decide what you want to promote.
Read >> 7+ Order Confirmation Emails to Skyrocket Sales
#2: 20 New Places to Sell Your Products
Cross-promoting is big in social media. You promote something on Facebook and get your followers from other platforms to visit you on Facebook. Here’s a secret: you can do the same thing with your products!
What’s in the post?
- Niche marketplaces
- Tips for success
- Social commerce platforms
If you are looking for a new way to increase the exposure of your brand, then cross-selling products on other platforms, aside from your main website, might be just the thing you need to increase sales by 25% or more!
Read >> 20 New Places to Sell Your Products
#1: How to Take Amazing Product Photos With Your Smartphone
We are visual people – all of us. How many times have you left a site because of average or horrible images? The good news from this post, our most shared blog post of 2015, is that you can take amazing, high-quality images with your smartphone!
What’s in the post?
- Photography basics
- Step-by-step example of how to take great product images
- Useful apps to improve your images
Read >> How to Take Amazing Product Photos With Your Smartphone
Enjoy the posts, and of course, feel free to reach out to us in the comment section of this post or any of the posts you read if you have questions about any of the tips. Happy holidays, and may 2016 be the best year ever!
Ty is a digital marketing enthusiast that can't get enough social media marketing and content marketing. He is the inbound marketing manager at StoreYa where he spends his days searching for the newest social marketing scoop and creating amazingly awesome content. If you’d like to chat with him, feel free to connect with him on any social platform.
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