![]() | |
![]() | |
![]() |
Ecommerce Information |
|
![]() |
6 Steps to Attracting Black Customers Online
by Jamila White, "The E-Commerce Diva" In the rush to keep up with technology, many African-American business owners are so busy trying to add the latest bells and whistles to their Web sites, get to the top of the search engines, and learn the latest database technology that they often forget this simple fact: people do business with other *people*, not computers. Understanding the importance of relationships is key to attracting African-American buyers online. Here are a few practical tips to getting Black customers to buy more from your Website. Step 1: Make a personal connection... put a face on it. Adding photos of realistic-looking people to your Web site will increase your sales. Photos jump out from a page, so even if someone just skims over the words, the photo will create a lasting impression. If you don't have photos of your actual employees or customers, use stock photography. Here are a few of my favorite sources for photos: o FotoSearch: http://www.fotosearch.com o Getty: http://www.gettyimages.com o Corbis: http://www.corbis.com Royalty-free images start at around $19-35 per image and are much less expensive than rights-managed images. If you have a bigger budget, you can purchase CDs with entire collections of African American stock photographs and illustrations. Step 2: Establish trust. When you walk into an establishment, you usually can tell right away if you feel comfortable doing business there. You can see if the place is clean and well maintained, brightly lit, and whether someone friendly is available to greet and help you. On the Internet, your Web site has to do all the talking and all the handholding. If this is a potential customer's firstvisit to your Web site, they may be uncertain if you're a legitimate business and if they can trust you. There are a number of ways to alleviate these fears and give your customers peace of mind. First, provide full contact information -- including a telephone number -- on your Web site. Second, show a picture of your location and employees, if applicable. Third, if you are a member of any professional organizations, such as the Better Business Bureau and/or professional trade organizations, this is a great time to display your membership logos. Most importantly, display quotes and testimonials for your current happy customers to show how what great quality products and service your company provides. Step 3: Use the "word of mouth" network. From the griots of Africa to barbershops and hair salons to the chat rooms on BlackPlanet.com, at the center of African American culture is the oral tradition. Use this ready-made network to your advantage, and give people the tools to tell their friends and colleagues about your products. A greatway to do this is with an instant "Tell a Friend" button on your Web site. Constant Contact (see Step #6) includes this service as part of it's e-newsletter management program. Step 4: Network with other Black Web sites. One way to jump-start the flow of traffic to your Web site is by recruiting customers from other high-traffic sites. You can buy ad space on a well-trafficked site that also attracts a high percentage of your target market. A cheaper alternative is to swap ads with a business that offers products or service that complement, but don't compete with, your own offering. For example, if you offer Web site design, look for someone who offers Web site hosting or network services. This strategy can work both with ads on a Web site, but don't overlook swapping ads in each business' promotional e-mail newsletter. (NOTE: Do *not* swap customer databases or lists of email addresses unless you have specific permission from your customers to do so.) Step 5: Give your customers a reason to act now. How many times have you visited a Web site and thought to yourself: "What a great product! I'd like to buy it, but I think I'll come back later." Did you actually go back and buy it? Perhaps not. Help your customers make their decision today: make them an offer they can't refuse. For example, use promotions like "limited time only", "this week only", "act today and take $10 off," etc. Step 6: Keep in touch. Remember, it's about relationships. Did you know that customers who buy online usually do so on the fourth to eighth visit to your Web site, and not the first visit? So you'll need to come up with a strategy to get them back to your Web site a second, third, and fourth time. The easiest, simplest, and cheapest method, hands down, is an e-mail list. It isn't enough just to collect e-mail addresses on your Web site and at your vending events -- you have to actually *write* and *send* messages to the list! Strive to get your newsletter out at least twice a month, but if you're just getting started, do quarterly, then build up to monthly, and then build up to every other week. Here are a few e-mail list services I like: o Aweber: http://www.aweber.com/?203887 o Constant Contact: http://www.roving.com o YahooGroups (free): http://www.yahoogroups.com Essentially, what successful online marketing boils down to, regardless of ethnicity, is relationships, relationships, relationships. Find meaningfulways to connect with your customers, and they will not only reward you with their loyalty, but they'll be happy to spread the word about your Web site as well. © Copyright 2004 Jamila White. All rights reserved. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jamila White, "The E-Commerce Diva", is an Internet Strategist, WebDesigner, and E-Commerce instructor in the Washington D.C. area. For a FREE subscription to her "Sell More Online" e-newsletter, go to http://www.ecommercediva.com. [NOTE: You are welcome to "reprint" this article online as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the "about the author" info at the end and the copyright notice), and you send a copy of your reprint to info@jamilawhite.com.]
MORE RESOURCES: The Trouble With Luxury E-Commerce The Business of Fashion UPS Is Uniquely Positioned To Capitalize On E-Commerce Tailwinds & Drive Revenue Growth, Analyst Says Yahoo Finance How To Use Pinterest For Ecommerce Search Engine Journal Internal linking for ecommerce: The ultimate guide Search Engine Land 17 Most Valuable E-Commerce Companies in the World Yahoo Finance 12 new Google Analytics 4 ecommerce dimensions and metrics Search Engine Land Amazon and Alibaba lead in cross-border ecommerce Digital Commerce 360 Why small business now counts more than ever on B2B ecommerce Digital Commerce 360 Maersk goes greener on European ecommerce delivery Digital Commerce 360 Italy seizes large-scale fake ecommerce websites Digital Commerce 360 How ChatGPT Drives Ecommerce Conversions Practical Ecommerce Becoming Indispensable: Transitioning from e-Commerce to L-Commerce The Financial Express Ecommerce Product Releases: February 1, 2023 Practical Ecommerce China’s e-commerce sector sees at least 89 platforms go under in 2022 South China Morning Post The future of B2C ecommerce - ThePaypers The Paypers How To Create A WordPress Ecommerce Website Search Engine Journal 3 ways to build brand loyalty through e-commerce Retail Customer Experience First Steps to Sustainable Ecommerce Practical Ecommerce Why it's a great time to launch an ecommerce business The CEO Magazine Charts: U.S. Retail Ecommerce Sales Q3 2022 Practical Ecommerce How to grow your eCommerce business during a recession Elite Business Magazine How to maximize your ecommerce campaigns with Performance Max Search Engine Land Scaling eCommerce Should Not Crash eCommerce; SMBs Need a Platform That Grows With Them Yahoo Finance TikTok's E-Commerce Management Structure Undercuts Claims of ... The Information Why do you need gorgeous product photos for your e-commerce website? Business Insider Africa FedEx scales back Sunday deliveries again as ecommerce wanes Digital Commerce 360 Retail and eCommerce news from the week beginning 9 January ... Enterprise Times As Headwinds Mount, Lifetime Value will Become Ecommerce’s ... Retail TouchPoints 7 E-commerce trends to look out for in 2023 Alibaba.com How Everyday Fraudsters Pose a Threat to Ecommerce Retail TouchPoints NEXUS Automotive International Creates Ecommerce Business Unit AftermarketNews.com (AMN) How Brands Can Ready E-Commerce for 2023 With AI Total Retail EDITORIAL Why ecommerce must now become a socially-engaging ... InternetRetailing The Digital Marketing Tools Independent Grocers Need to Drive E ... Progressive Grocer Got the message? Retail panelists dish on changes in ... Furniture Today Retail and eCommerce news from the week beginning 2 January ... Enterprise Times Road to India@100: A new era in e-commerce Business Today Budget 2023: Promoting Indigenous Manufacturing Tops ... Outlook Startup Grocery e-commerce sales jumped 2.4% in December Supermarket News GeM, ONDC, AA framework driving e-commerce in India: Economic Survey The New Indian Express 3 ways how ONDC is democratising eCommerce space in the country The Financial Express Consumer E-Commerce Spending Could Be Weak in 2023; Time to ... The Motley Fool Top-performing e-commerce category revealed Business Plus Amazon India offers 50% referral fee waiver for e-commerce businesses Business Standard Shopify invests in US-based e-commerce analytics aggregator ... BetaKit - Canadian Startup News Need to return an Amazon purchase? The ecommerce giant has doubled its return options. Yahoo Finance MaterialsXchange launches e-commerce platform for building ... woodworkingnetwork.com What is Shopify? The ecommerce website builder explained Expert Reviews |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
RELATED ARTICLES
What is SSL (the little padlock)? SSL ("Secured Socket Layer") is a protocol used to encrypt the communication between the user's browser and the web server. When SSL is active, a "little padlock" appears on the user's browser, usually in the status line at the bottom (at the top for Mac/Safari users. Web Users Crave Familiarity The sad truth is, general Web users would love it if all our sites looked like Amazon.com. Free Competition Analysis for E-Commerce Startup For anyone who has completed research regarding e-commerce, there are some common catch phrases that we all come across. 'Competition Analysis' is one of those catch phrases. Is Your Website Credit Card Friendly? In my last column I discussed the process of credit card enabling your brick-and-mortar business. I pointed out that research has shown that accepting credit cards can help increase revenue and enhance cash flow. Increasing E-Commerce Website Sales: A Guide for the Online Newbie Because of this encouraging surge in activity, many individuals are now interested in becoming e-commerce merchants. To profit from your online business, you must first produce a unique website that will intrigue visitors and interest them in your items. Expand Your Local Business Through the Internet To obtain more local customers for your business, consider expanding your local business through the Internet. Here are some ways of doing so. Online Consumers - What Are They Complaining About? For many businesses, e-commerce represents a tremendous method for generating revenues. To maximize the profit potential, you need to keep an eye on issues that drive your prospects nuts. Accepting Credit Cards For Your Online Business Did you know that one of the best ways to increase sales for any online or offline business is to offer your customers the convenience of paying by credit card? As a merchant, you have several options available when it comes to becoming part of the credit card acceptance and processing chain. Here's a quick guide to get you thinking. Accepting Credit Card Payments Online Being able to accept credit cards and other online payments is crucial to the success of your business and profits. Your customers are more likely to buy from you if you offer them a secure and convenient way to order goods and services online at your site. Evaluating Vendors of Ecommerce Fulfillment Services Once your website has secured an order, you have to fulfill it. While the fulfillment of digital goods is usually handled online, the delivery of physical goods is handled in a "brick-and-mortar" world. Choosing on Order Fulfillment Service When your eCommerce business grows to the point where you can no longer package and ship the orders yourself, it's time to begin outsourcing your order fulfillment. Although all order fulfillment centers offer the same basic services, their individual methods and costs will help you choose one over the other. Grow your Business with Emarketplace - Part III Increase Company ProductivityAfter years of hard work, finally your business started to pick up. You are selling more products then ever! You have lined up a good number of suppliers and buyers. E-marketplaces from Sellers Perspective What is an E-marketplace anyway?E-marketplace is a business to business web based venue, where buyers and sellers meet online, generate business leads and conduct business transactions. The e-marketplace features are tailored in a manner so that a large numbers of buyers and suppliers can be serviced as a community. Credit Card Processing - 7 Things You Need to Know Before Opening an Online Merchant Account When considering opening an online merchant account to accept credit card orders, there are a lot of things you need to keep in mind. The best thing to do is learn all about credit card processing before you open your online merchant account so you can handle everything from the beginning rather than having to go back and make many changes. Database: The Secret of Success BENEFITS OF A DATABASEBy maintaining your list as a database, you can segment in many ways for targeting. Targeting improves the productivity of your offers. How To Accept Credit Cards Online Anyone with an online business, whether for auctions,services, or virtually any type of product, has asked thesame question at some time during their quest to createthe ultimate online business - "How do I accept creditcards?"Since over 90% of all transactions on the Internetinvolve customers paying by credit card, acceptingplastic money rates a must for almost any business.The problem for most small online business ownersinvolves the high cost of setting up and maintaining acredit card merchant account. 10 Second Internet Person, sound familiar? Some people do not understand the Internet idea of online commerce, but then again some people do not understand themselves either. To fully understand Internet Commerce you really only need to monitor your "clicking habits" for a few days to see where you are going and what if anything you are buying. Creating The Perfect Ecommerce Website If you're thinking of jumping on the bandwagon and going into business with your own ecommerce website, you'd do well to look at a few examples before you start. Finding out what a good ecommerce website looks like will help you know what to include - and what to avoid - when you start to set up one of your own. E-commerce: Is It Right for You? The birth of the Internet and the mass availability of personal Computers in the late 80's changed peoples life forever, Everyone now has had the potential to be their own boss whether you are mother at home looking after your children or a manual laborer there are opportunities in abundance . Just a search on Google for business opportunities will bring up more offers than your parents would have had in their whole life. Six Components Of A Good E-Commerce Site Businesses, which are still sitting on sidelines and not doing business on the Internet, should think seriously about their position! If you are one of them, chances are there, that you have to pay dearly for your indecision as you might lose significant market share to your more proactive competitors in a very short period of time.Apart from the fact that e-commerce is growing at the rate of more than 25 percent a year, the use of online features can bring efficiency to virtually every aspect of business process, be it supply chain management or customer support management. ![]() |
home | site map |
© 2006 |