How to start an online store and ensure its success?

Have you been running an online store for a long time, but still collecting too few orders? Or maybe you are just planning to enter the market, but want to be sure that you will start “with a bang”? Regardless of the motivation, it is worth knowing ways to attract more customers to your online store. Good selling is not a matter of luck at all, at least usually. Those who consistently work for their success, while taking care of the consistency and thoughtful nature of their actions, are much more successful. This is all the more important as nowadays there are more and more e-shops, and therefore the competition is growing. Getting started trading online is often a matter of just a few clicks, but success is much more difficult.

Below you will find proven ideas on how to start your online store. Of course, the best results will be achieved by combining at least several promotion methods. Also, don’t forget the basics – no advertisement will help you stand out if your store page is non-functional or you are unable to offer the right level of customer service. Then you can only generate more traffic on it, but it will not translate into the number of transactions. Take care of the construction of the store itself, its appearance and clear layout. Try to display your products in the best possible way (lots of photos, extensive descriptions, etc.). Think about what makes your offer different and focus on promoting this feature.

First: SEO

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is activities focused on website optimization in accordance with the requirements of search engines, especially Google. Thanks to them, your website is displayed higher in the search results, which means that more people find it. Optimization gives long-term results, although it takes a long time to notice them. That is why it is worth taking care of it in the first place – after all, you think about your store in long-term terms, right? Theoretically, this is a free form of advertising – all you need to do is constantly work on optimizing your website to start showing better results. In practice, however, effective actions require knowledge, time and dedication. Therefore, work on SEO usually comes down to employing a specialist in this field or using the services of an agency.

Optimizing a website according to SEO principles includes many factors. It can be divided into two groups. On-site activities are carried out directly on the website and rely on its appropriate preparation – in accordance with the requirements of the search engine algorithms. This means adapting the entire structure of the website and its content. The most important on-site activities include:
– supplementing missing content – mainly product descriptions,
– elimination of duplicate content ,
– content saturation with key phrases,
– appropriate selection of the content structure – length, headings, paragraphs, attributes,
– supplementing meta data,
 – the use of internal linking,
– adapting the website to display on different devices (responsiveness),
– code optimization and ordering.

All these factors affect the visibility of the website, although there are of course many more of them. In addition, off-site activities, consisting primarily of building a database of links leading to the website, help in positioning. When carrying out all activities related to positioning, remember to use only good practices. This is important, and the updates of the algorithms have already cut traffic on pages that were building separate areas too aggressively – e.g. link profile.

Second: Google Ads

Systematic and continuous activities within SEO will allow you to climb up in the search results systematically – as long as they are carried out correctly. However, if you operate in a competitive industry, it is very possible that you will never make it to the top. There is, however, a shortcut. Thanks to Google Ads, and specifically sponsored links in the search engine, your website can appear at the very top of the list of search results. Experience shows that such advertising can be very effective if used correctly. This is a very simple answer to the question of how to start an online store quickly and efficiently.

Google Ads is in fact a very extensive tool available for both small and large companies and used successfully by them. Payments are made only for clicking on an advertisement, which is a very favorable settlement model from the entrepreneur’s point of view. However, this requires very precise configuration of the settings. Proper selection of parameters can bring large profits at low costs. Sponsored links are unobtrusive and the average user is not associated with bothersome advertising, and the ability to precisely define criteria for who the sponsored content is to be displayed affects the effectiveness of this solution.

Google Ads is also the possibility of using the so-called image advertising. It is very effective if you don’t know how to start an online store that no one knows. It is a method that works best in increasing brand recognition and building its image. It consists in displaying your store’s banners on various websites that provide Google with advertising space. You can decide for yourself on which pages your ad will appear, which will increase its effectiveness.

Remarketing advertising looks very similar. This is a great tool for those stores that have a significant amount of so-called abandoned carts (the customer adds products to the cart but does not complete the transaction) or experience other types of conversion problems. Your store banners are then displayed to customers who have already visited it. You can decide that the displayed content should be dynamic, i.e. tailored to a specific user. Then he will see the items he has previously viewed and possibly other related articles. Such advertising can be very effective!

Third: social media

Presence in social media is nowadays a duty of every company – especially an online store. Profiles on popular websites work like constant advertising. The possibilities of their use are very wide. Through regular, interesting posts you can systematically increase your audience and influence their engagement. By also engaging in replying to comments, you help potential customers to feel and strengthen the bond with your brand. It is a unique way of two-way communication with recipients. So you can also get feedback on your actions – find out what you like and what you don’t. In this way, you can also receive a ready-made hint on how to start your online store.

In addition, the most popular social networking sites allow the use of paid ads that allow you to reach a much wider audience. This is primarily about Facebook or Instagram, which offer advertisers a wide range of opportunities and often also satisfying results. However, it is worth using the advertising potential of all platforms on which you operate.

Speaking of which – when it comes to activities in social media, it is not worth limiting yourself. Most companies run Facebook, but they don’t try to appear on other platforms. This is a big mistake because this is where your customers are often! Social media is a way to reach them directly – especially if your target is a younger clientele. Check what YouTube can offer you (you also launch YT campaigns via the Google Ads panel), TikTok or Pinterest – it is very possible that thanks to your activity in these portals you will gain more customers.

Regularity, diligence and matching content to the potential recipient are the most important rules of operation in social media. You need to know who you are “broadcasting” to, show interest and be original. Posts thrown out of duty, ill-considered and simply boring, will certainly not bring the expected results, and may even work the opposite of what you would like.

Fourth: company blog

A company blog is the most important tool for content marketing, i.e. content marketing. It is considered one of the most important and effective methods to stand out on the web. Content marketing has a lot to do with SEO – by publishing high-quality content saturated with the right keywords, you can significantly improve your site’s position on Google. At the same time, it can attract and interest the client. So it is a great method for anyone who wants to know how to start an online store.

What is it about? Content marketing is based on publishing valuable, useful, interesting and original content (the form is also important). It is true that it is not only about texts (you can also publish, for example, videos, infographics, podcasts and many others), but a company blog is one of the simplest forms of content marketing. All you need to do is think about what your customers are interested in or remember what questions they ask about your offer the most and turn this information into blog articles. It is worth ensuring that they are as substantive and comprehensive as possible. Put yourself in the role of an expert and it will help you build a positive image of the store. Write more about your products, their functions, ways of use, key features, and maybe even how and what they are made of. Thanks to this, you will arouse much more interest and trust.

A company blog can be run independently, although most companies decide to hire professionals – a content marketing agency, SEO agency or copywriter. A specialist can use the information you provide to him that will help create unique content. At the same time, however, it will ensure that the whole thing has an optimal form and style, is linguistically correct and presented in an attractive way. It will also take care of the use of keywords in accordance with SEO requirements.

Fifth: email marketing

E-mail marketing is now often relegated to the background, although not so long ago it was the main form of advertising for entrepreneurs who wondered how to start an online store. Today it is rather a supplement, but it is still not worth giving up. By building your own database of e-mail contacts, you become independent from the operation of social networking sites (e.g. in the event of a failure, hacker attack or other factors that will prevent you from using your account), and you also gain an additional channel of communication with customers. It is worth encouraging you to subscribe to the newsletter, e.g. by offering a small discount on the order. You can remind by e-mail about promotions or sales, inform about new products and any changes taking place in the store. Thanks to mailing, you do not let your customers forget about your store and motivate them to visit your website.

Importantly, the cost of email marketing is low. The preparation of the content and graphic design of the message can be commissioned to specialists or prepared by yourself. Tools for sending messages are inexpensive – there is even a lack of functional free programs on the market if the recipient base is not large.

How to run modern, effective e-mail marketing? First, don’t forget about form. Make it inviting, attractive and consistent with the image of your store. Use CTA (Call to Action) to encourage going to the site. Second, think about personalization. Let the customer choose what kind of information he wants to receive, what product groups he is interested in, etc. It greatly increases the effectiveness of the messages sent!

Sixth: discounts, promotions, loyalty program

How to start an online store in terms of the number of purchases and visits to the website? One thing is certain – nothing motivates you to buy more than a price reduction. Sometimes it’s hard to break to offer a promotion in a store that is barely spinning, but believe – it’s worth it. Promotions should be frequent and varied. It is best if they appear at least once a month and you incorporate them in some way in your business model. There are plenty of ideas for effective actions of this type!

You can, for example, every week, on a selected day of the week (or on a weekend, for example), lower the prices of products belonging to a specific department or group. The promotion will be even more effective if the discounts are tailored to the needs of users and related to current events. There are also stores where promotions are valid daily and their scope changes once a week. Example? An internet drugstore that runs weekly promotions on four selected cosmetic brands. The alternative to discounts are promotions such as “two for the price of one” or “buy the product and get the other half price” or “free delivery”. These types of treatments are very effective in encouraging shopping, and they encourage you to visit the store more often or subscribe to the newsletter.

In addition to regular or cyclical promotions, you can also use discount codes as a thank you for loyalty – e.g. a 10% discount on the next purchase for everyone who subscribes to the newsletter and makes purchases for a certain amount. Another method is cashback – e.g. 10% of the order value stored in the customer’s account, which can be used as a discount on subsequent purchases. Such discounts should have an appropriately selected expiry date so that they can be used safely.

Online stores also eagerly use other forms of loyalty programs. For example, you can promise your customers a gift with the fifth order or create a points system that can be exchanged for discounts or rewards. The well-known clothing chain H&M thus encourages you to sign up for the Customer Club. People participating in the program, after spending a certain amount, receive a discount coupon of 10%. Collecting a certain number of points during the year gives Premium status, and in it some privileges – e.g. early access to sales, limited contests and a guarantee of free deliveries and returns of each order.

I am addressing the issue of loyalty programs as if out of duty. Personally, I do not believe in their operation. They are usually used by customers who would use our services anyway. In addition, we have to invest in their promotion in anyway, the advertising budget, so the question of whether it is not better to target new customers remains open. Probably the reasonableness of a given loyalty program depends on many factors, so you have to test a given solution yourself. There are no ready answers.

Seventh: cross-selling and up-selling

If you are not offering your customers similar or complementary products related to what they are watching or selecting, you are making a serious mistake. Cross-selling and up-selling are very simple techniques that allow you to significantly increase your sales. The customer added sports shoes to the cart? Offer him socks made of breathable yarn. Are you buying a smartphones? He should see a window with the recommended accessories – e.g. a protective case, wireless headphoness or a power bank. This type of play is called cross-selling.

Up-selling may also work for some online stores, although it is more often used in services. The customer chose a smartphones with 128 GB memory? Ask if he really would prefer the richer version of 256 GB, selecting for example “pay only … dollars” or, for example, “choose a higher variant and get a 10% discount”. Simple? Oh yes, but also extremely effective.

Eighth: analysis

You can implement all of the above methods and still not achieve the desired success. Therefore, try never to act blindly. Constantly analyzing your own actions, as well as watching what the competition is doing, is an extremely important component of success. You won’t correct anything if you don’t measure it first. With analytics, you can instantly see what’s working and what’s not – and then adapt your steps accordingly. Follow the above advice and you will quickly forget about difficult times and you will no longer search for information on how to start your online store!

Did you know that as many as 73% of Internet users in the world shop online? This result is 11 percentage points higher than in 2019. This is largely due to the pandemic, which in a way forced consumers to use online channels. Many of them, once tried, stayed longer. There is no wonder – online shopping is becoming more convenient and safer than visiting crowded shopping malls.

That’s why now is the best time to start your online store, especially since the e-commerce market is not saturated yet. However, in order for everything to function as expected, you need to know how to handle it in practice. Calmly. Although it may seem like a challenge at first – especially if you haven’t had much contact with the digital world – all you need is a bit of determination and an open mind to learn the basics and … learn how to run an online store.

How to set up an e-shop?

Before you start running an e-shop, you have to … set it up. What do you need to start? These are the elements that must be taken care of.

A. Business plan
The concept is absolutely fundamental. You need to know what you want to sell, to whom and in what model. For example, the e-shop, which is an extension of the stationary activity, will look different, and the dropshipping model will function differently (when the e-shop does not deal with the physical distribution of goods, and after completing the transaction, it transfers the order to the warehouse that is responsible for sending it to the customer).

At this stage, it is also worth developing:
– brand name – and check if it is already taken in the domain registry. Remember: short domains are the catchy ones. So it’s worth taking this into account when planning your store name. It must be easy for customers to remember;
– visual identification system – and therefore the logotype, fonts and colors to be associated with the brand. This information will come in handy when creating the landing page layout.

Of course, you should also define the budget that can be allocated to start an e-shop. It is worth being aware that the greater the number of products distributed and the more customers you plan to serve, the more advanced (and more expensive) technological solutions will become justified and needed.

B. Logistics
Before an online store starts to appear, it is necessary to specify exactly what the purchasing process will look like. Take care of:

– adequate stocks of products to be distributed,
– a place for their storage (you may need to rent a warehouse),
– completing business formalities (if necessary, setting up a business and a bank account to which payments from customers will flow),
– agreeing on the rules of cooperation with contractors,
– selecting payment methods made available to customers,
– selecting delivery methods.

At the beginning, you may be able to handle the e-shop on your own – especially since the first months will be a time of investment, and the time for profits is yet to come.

C. Technical facilities
These are all issues related to setting up an e-shop from the “digital” side. In this area, tasks such as:

– buying a domain, and therefore the address of an online store – it is also worth investing in related addresses to redirect from them to your e-store,
– selection of an e-commerce platform – you can choose from open-source WooCommerce platforms and a convenient (especially at the beginning) SaaS model, in which you buy a service package that suits your needs,
– choosing a hosting server (when the store is based on an open source platform, not on the SaaS model),
– ordering the design and implementation of an e-shop – so that its appearance is unique for the brand and legible for the customer, and the mechanics are intuitive and helpful to the buyer and you as the seller. It is best to entrust the task of preparing the layout and implementation to specialists who will make sure that everything works as expected.

D. Preparation of products
When your e-shop is ready, it’s time to fill it with products. So you will need:

– content – both on the website’s home page and category pages, as well as product descriptions,
– good product photos.

Do you sell goods from external producers? If so, you probably received promotional material from them. And while the use of product photos will be a good idea, when it comes to content … it is worth thinking about introducing unique ones as soon as possible. Why? Because copies from the manufacturer’s website can potentially reduce the SEO value of your website. And this will translate into poorer visibility and poorer positioning results.

Finally, you should also take care of legal issues – it will be necessary to draw up the store regulations. The e-shop will process customer data, therefore a safe management procedure must be developed. At this stage, it is worth consulting a lawyer or using the help of an e-shop operator. If you choose an e-commerce platform in the SaaS model, you can usually count on support and a rich package of tips in this regard.

Ready? Then you can start your shop.

How to run an e-shop?

Running an online store after fulfilling the basic obligations described above requires constant work to provide customers with the most comfortable shopping conditions. Remember that along with the demand for e-commerce services, their supply also grows. Therefore, to beat the competition, you simply have to be better than it.

What will influence the quality of customer service and the popularity of the website? There are also many elements to take care of.

A. Efficient current customer service
It is important that orders are sent to him at the agreed time, and the flow of information about the status of each of them – transparent. And in this regard, it is worth supporting yourself with appropriate software. It will largely automate the process of handling each order and, as a result, avoid mistakes and delays.

Efficient customer service also means quick response to incoming inquiries. This process can also be partially automated, e.g. with a chabot that will answer frequently asked questions.

B. Treating Customers Fairly
Reliability and honesty are features that are extremely appreciated by modern consumers. What to do to be seen in a positive light? First of all, it is very important to inform customers about the features of the offered products and their properties – promising stars from heaven will result in disappointing the buyer and a negative review.

Secondly, the way you deal with customer objections, complaints and returns is important. If there is any mistake on your part in the handling process, do not hesitate to apologize personally and offer the buyer, for example, a discount on subsequent purchases or a shopping voucher. This will erase any negative impression and build the image of the e-store.

C. Joining the Opinion Network
When looking for information about a given e-shop, customers very often refer to portals with opinions. Positive reviews in such a place strengthen the credibility of a given website and serve as “social proof” – the more there are, the greater the trust of new customers.

That is why it is worth encouraging customers to leave reviews on review portals – this can be done through mailing. For issuing a short review, it is worth offering the client an additional bonus, e.g. a discount code to be used during the next visit.

D. Brand
Remember that customers are more and more often prompted to buy not so much by the product itself as by what it communicates or what values are behind a given brand. You can shape it freely.

Marketing is important, that is, get noticed!

Good customer service that leads to more and more positive reviews is just one side of the coin. The second is the promotion of the website on the Web. Remember: your online store is not the only one on the web, but one of many. Therefore, you need to increase its visibility. Necessarily as part of a coherent marketing strategy, but implemented through several channels. What can you do to strengthen its position in search results on the one hand and increase conversion on the other?

Website optimization for SEO

Optimization and positioning of the website is the first important issue that should be taken care of. If you think about your business in long-term terms, then this issue is definitely worth looking at. In this aspect, elements such as:

– optimization of the website code and mechanisms of its operation – so that the website opens quickly, works without delays and barriers,
– content optimization and meta-content – again, let’s remind you about the unique content of products, but above all about the content on the category and subcategory pages, written in accordance with the SEO principles (including headings, keywords, bullets, and above all substantively!),
– website responsiveness – and therefore the possibility of using it also on mobiles devices,
– good User Experience, i.e. a convenient store service mechanism that guides the customer through the entire purchasing process and … will make the user stay longer on the website,
– URL optimization – so that they contain keywords adequate to each of the categories and subcategories.

You have a very wide range of advertising tools to choose from. What to use? The most popular solutions are:

– Google Ads- including sponsored links that will appear in shopping suggestions after the user enters specific queries or product ads – that is, those mini photos with products and prices that you sometimes see next to or above the search results,
– remarketing advertising – banners displayed to recipients on various websites (both on the Google advertising network and, for example, on Facebook), referring to the products they saw during the previous visit to your store,
– advertising in social media – you can use, for example, various forms of promotion available on Facebook.

Also, do not forget about acquiring leads for the newsletter – it can become a good tool that will allow you to be in constant contact with customers and make them come back to your store from time to time. To subscribe to the newsletter, it is worth giving a benefit in the form of a discount code or free shipping at the entrance.

Image-building activities

It is good for your online store to have a fan page on Facebook and profiles on other social media relevant to your target group. For example, a shop with beauty or fashion products may appear on Instagram, and a shop operating on the B2B market, e.g. with spare parts for professional gastronomic devices – on LinkedIn.

Articles published on valuable external websites with linking to the e-shop can also be a good idea about the image and SEO potential. Larger online stores also increasingly cooperate with influencers. It’s also a good way to increase interest.

A lot of everything? On the one hand, yes, but on the other … in many cases you can use the help of experts. Professional support will allow you to automate many processes, including marketing ones, and thus – leave a lot of time for the development of your business.

Idea for an online store

At the beginning, an important note: the e-commerce market is very large, so it is worth finding a business niche in which you feel a specialist or… in which you want to delve into. Getting to know the products you will be trading well is absolutely essential. However, you may be wondering what to choose.

Basically, apart from being an expert in what field you are, you can choose between two paths:

A. choose a niche that is not very popular, but has development potential for the coming years
It is a solution that can bring you success in the long term. However, you need to be aware that at the beginning you have to expect small reach and a small number of customers. However, with a properly conducted marketing strategy, you can expect a gradual increase in interest.

If the niche you choose is not popular at the moment, there is a chance that you will be one of the pioneers and that your store will become one of the most important in the industry in the future. However, you must be mindful of the risks – the market is not predictable and trends can suddenly reverse (as shown well by the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020). Therefore, you need to be prepared for this and have a “plan B”.

B. choose a popular e-commerce branch
So, start selling products that are willingly bought on the Internet. The idea for an online store does not have to be fancy. On the contrary – most often it is worth doing what … others do. In this case, with effective advertising, you can start earning good income faster. However, with high competition, it will be more difficult for you to break out – so at the very beginning you may have to invest more in promotion. You will also need to find elements that will make your offer competitive. Something that will make you stand out from dozens or hundreds of stores offering similar products.

What could it be? E.g:
– more competitive prices,
– offering goods of brands so far unknown on the market,
– unusual branding,
– additional services, such as product personalization.

Of course, everything depends on the specific specialization of the e-shop. One thing is certain: going this way, you have to find something that will make your brand stand out and make it more attractive in the eyes of the customer.

What is best selling on the internet?

What products are the most popular on the Internet? What do people buy online? The answer to this question is provided by research, e.g. the E-commerce report prepared by the Paraphrase-Online.com Team. It shows that the most popular product categories that were bought online are:

– clothing, accessories and accessories – the fashion industry is popular with over 2/3 buyers,
– footwear – they are bought by about 60% of people who make purchases over the Internet,
– books, films and CDs,
– cosmetics and perfumes,
– RTV and household appliances,
– cinema / theater tickets,
– Sportswear,
– pharmaceutical products, including dietary supplements,
– GSM mobiles devices and accessories,
– children’s goods and toys,
– travel services.

It is therefore worth navigating in these areas of the e-commerce world if you want to find your place in the internet reality. But be careful! To break through in them, you have to look at them from a different, fresh perspective. Otherwise, you may have a problem “carving out a piece of cake” for yourself.

So how can you narrow down the scope of goods in the context of the above categories? There are many possibilities. For example, you can offer:

– plus size clothes of well-known European brands – there are more and more customers who are interested in larger sizes, and at the same time there are no stores that would offer a wide selection,
– cosmetics of producers not available in stationary sales – e.g. from the Far East (however, take into account the fact that there are quite a lot of stores offering recently very fashionable Korean products!
– ecological children’s toys – although this niche is already quite full, the “eco” trend seems to be becoming wider and wider, so there are quite a lot of people who would like to buy this type of products,
– a specific category of electronic devices – e.g. fashionable drones, electric scooters or VR equipment.

As you can see, specialization can be the real key to success. It is enough to search for an unusual area in a popular niche and offer your audience something completely new!

Is the best selling always the best choice?

What is the most popular is – as you already know – both an opportunity and a threat in the world of e-commerce. The most important thing is to find, on the one hand, an area where you can offer customers something new, and on the other – something that will respond to their needs. Remember: at the beginning you don’t have to aim very high, with huge ranges and large sales volume. You can also achieve good income by operating on a smaller scale. So your business may revolve around less popular goods, but those that have a specific audience. What could be a good idea?

Online handicraft store
Do you have a hobby in the field of handicrafts? Maybe you, for example, crochet or are passionate about decoupage or creating DIY decorations? What if you start selling them online in your store. Setting up a small e-shop, e.g. on a SaaS platform, does not require many formalities or high costs. If you also invest in advertising on social networks and prepare properly optimized content, you have a chance to stand out!

Online store with articles for disinfection
… as well as other products that are useful in the context of the current coronavirus pandemic. Although this is a topic that is popular periodically, it still seems like a good time to offer something new to customers. We are still eager to buy designer masks (which have become part of styling), as well as disinfectants that do not irritate the hands.

Online store with pet food
It is a market niche that is currently developing very dynamically, mainly due to the growing interest in a healthy diet of animals. Dog owners are looking for ecological, well-balanced meals for dogs and cats, made of the highest quality ingredients. If you have access to such products, you have a chance to attract a large group of customers.

Store with ecological accessories
Living in harmony with nature and making ecological choices is a trend that is currently rising. It can be expected to “float” for the next few, if not more years. Therefore, it is worth considering setting up a store that will offer accessories that leave a small carbon footprint. Example? Metal or paper straws, disposable plates and cutlery made of biodegradable materials, linen shopping bags, reusable nets for fruit and vegetables … you can multiply this way indefinitely. You can easily attract a large group of customers for this type of accessories.

Barber shop
The fashion for well-groomed male stubble and visits to barbers began a few years ago. Today, more and more men are looking for professional beard care products, so … it’s worth offering them. A store that specializes in the distribution of pomades and beard oils, as well as classic razors and other vintage shaving accessories, may attract the attention of the market!

Educational toy store
Science in a modern version? It is the one carried out by play that arouses curiosesity about the world. Do you subscribe to this statement? It is like many parents! They are looking for interesting and inspiring toys that will allow their children to broaden their horizons. Do you want to help them with this? If so, think about looking for interesting educational toys and selling them. Such a store can have great potential!

Seasonal products – a good idea for an online store?

Some of the goods that are offered in online stores are willingly bought only at certain times of the year. Good example? Oh, even air conditioners and fans. The demand for them begins just before the hot summer comes and ends with the first cool evenings. So is it profitable to create an e-shop that would sell only such devices? Not completely. However, you can supplement the basic assortment of the store with such seasonal products and carry out positioning on related phrases. You can also choose several groups of seasonal products, popular in different months of the year, and change the main sales profile depending on the demand for individual goods. In such a business model, however, you need to use your own warehouse and, most often, be ready that some of the goods will remain there until the next high season.

Are you missing an idea of what to sell? Check out dropshipping!

If you are still not sure which direction your e-commerce business should take, look for inspiration … in wholesalers that specialize in dropshipping. It is a ready-made solution for those who are looking for quick solutions.

How exactly does dropshipping work? In this business model, your store acts a bit like a “sales representative” of a wholesaler. More precisely, your task is to sell products that are in the assortment of the selected contractor and then transfer the order for execution. Therefore, you only deal with the e-shop promotion process, customer acquisition and customer service. However, all logistics issues rest with your business partner. It is he who takes care of the continuous supply of goods to the warehouse, as well as its shipment to the end customer.

The dropshipping model is becoming more and more popular because those running this type of e-shops:
– operate under their own brand, which means that the wholesaler sends products to the end customer, stating the company that took the order as the sender,
– can be opened with great ease – you can even find ready-made packages that you just need to configure and start working,
– they give great freedom of action and investment without having to deal with all logistic challenges.

This, of course, does not mean that the income from such a business is effortless.

Regardless of the model in which you run your online store and with what assortment, the key to success is ensuring its high visibility and good reputation. Proposal? A good idea of what to sell online is only one side of the coin. The second is how you will run and promote your business. In this regard, it is worth using the help of experts. They will take care of about:

– SEO optimization of your e-store,
– planning a coherent and well-thought-out promotional campaign in appropriately selected channels (e.g. remarketing, advertising in social media, e-mail marketing, etc.),
– building a positive image of the website.

So if you already have an idea of what niche to operate in, it’s time to implement it, and then … promote and patiently wait for the results.

Many people decide to operate in the area of e-commerce, and the number of online stores is growing. However, you must be aware that strong competition also means that only the best will survive on the market. Although a good idea for a business in the virtual world is the foundation, you also need to know how to set up an e-store and how to run it. This is a serious challenge and it means a lot of work. However, if you put in enough effort (and invest your energy the right way), you’ll find a way to generate long-term and stable income.

What do you need to run an online store?

The online store is unequal to the online store. You have to be aware of this. What does this mean in practice? It’s just that the functioning mechanisms of this business are largely dependent on this:

– what do you sell,
– on what scale do you operate,
– how do you advertise?
– what is the UX of your website like,
– whether you sell only in your country or on the international market,
– do you store the offered goods yourself or do you use the dropshipping model.

However, no matter how your online store works, you need a few basic components. It will not work without them. What exactly are we talking about?

Domain

It is the name of your store, and at the same time the address that customers must reach to be able to use your services. Choose it wisely – so that it is unique, easy to remember, and at the same time related to the industry in which you operate. Contrary to appearances … it’s not as easy as it seems. This is because in almost every market niche there are a large number of online stores. Therefore, you cannot afford to follow the “obvious” path, because there are already others on it.

How to solve this problem? For example, you might think about starting your store on a non-standard domain. Alternative and unusual endings can become a characteristic part of your brand name, but they can also slightly reduce the credibility of the domain in the eyes of the recipient. You can also reach for an expressive and “flashy” word that may not seem related to the area in which you operate, but at the same time will allow you to create a strong brand.

E-commerce software

Every online store works on the basis of it. It is a kind of “machine”, which is responsible both for presenting goods on the website and for handling the ordering process. Thanks to the use of an appropriate e-commerce platform, your customers can:

– adding a product to the basket,
– placing and confirming an order,
– making the payment and selecting the form of sending the goods.

All this information reaches you in real time, and you can react efficiently and set the logistics process in motion.

Here, too, you have a choice of several solutions. The two most popular are open-source platforms and SaaS software. The first one is suitable for intermediate users who want to have full control over the functioning of the store, and at the same time are not afraid of investments related to the configuration and implementation of the system.

The second model, based on SaaS platforms, is a good solution for beginners. Following this path, you don’t have to worry about complicated configuration or the need to invest in hosting. You will get everything in the subscription package. However, such a system is less flexible – you will not adjust it perfectly to your business model, and when you stop paying for services, you will lose access to the e-store.

Which solution to choose? Both have their advantages and disadvantages. If you have no experience at all, SaaS platforms seem to be a better course of action, as they reduce the number of implementation tasks to a minimum. However, if you want to run a larger store and need a more advanced system – take a closer look at the possibilities offered by advanced software.

Products

The obvious obviousness? Apparently so, but you have to choose the model of running a warehouse for goods. Modern e-shops usually operate in two ways.

The first is to run your own product warehouse. This is a solution that you will reach for, for example, when the e-shop is an extension of your stationary activity. It also works well if you are the manufacturer of the items you offer and sell them in small quantities. In such cases, a small home warehouse that you can handle yourself is usually enough.

But what when the number of processed orders begins to increase? Then you can either hire a larger team to handle parcel shipping, or think about the fulfillment model, i.e. renting a warehouse with service that will take care of the logistics of shipping goods. You deliver products to it and supervise their flow, but the rest of the tasks rests with your contractor from the logistics industry.

The second, typically outsourcing solution is becoming more and more popular. However, you need to carefully select the subcontractor – so as not to lose control over the efficiency of sending parcels. Remember: today, the time when the shipment will be made is one of the main competitive advantages. The sooner the better!

The second solution is to run a shop in the dropshipping model. This solution is chosen by beginners in the world of e-commerce, as well as those who want to treat the e-shop as an additional source of income. How it’s working? You take care of the technical facilities of the e-shop (the page where you can order products), as well as activities related to marketing and customer service. On the other hand, you transfer orders to a wholesaler, which fulfills them with its own resources. So you de facto act like a “sales department”, but you are not physically involved in sourcing, storing or shipping products. It is a faster, cheaper and easier to implement solution. However, it should be remembered that in this business model you can count on a lower percentage of the revenues generated than when using your own warehouse.

Staff to handle

For starters, if you run a small online store in the dropshipping model, and this activity is the most important element of your professional work, you can handle the service yourself. Especially in the first few months, when you take your first steps in the world of e-commerce, this may be enough. And over time, when your website begins to gain popularity, you will be able to think about expanding your team.

However, it must be remembered that the appropriate number of employees is a guarantee of efficient customer service. You will need them, e.g. to handle customer inquiries about specific products, order fulfillment status, as well as accept any returns and complaints. Remember: some of these tasks will help a well-planned IT system that uses artificial intelligence. For example, chatbots can be a support, as well as the automation of e-mail messages sent to customers (the latter solution is provided by most e-commerce platforms).

With your own warehouse, you will also need a team for picking, packing, shipping and shipping. So measure your intentions and hire as many people as you really need. Efficient customer service at all stages is extremely important. Mistakes when sending orders or long delays in their implementation will be a clear signal to the customer that a high standard of service should be sought … from others.

Payment acceptance system

In theory, it would be enough to provide the customer with the account number to which he would make a transfer for the ordered goods. Exactly, in theory. While about 10 years ago such a solution would have “passed”, today – not necessarily. It is simply not very comfortable, and at the same time slows down the payment accounting process.

Think for yourself: how do you pay for goods ordered online? You probably prefer simple and quick methods, such as Pay Pala or Google Pay. Your customers too!

But be careful! Fast electronic payments are not all payment methods that should be implemented in your e-store. Remember that:

– there is a large group of customers who are skeptical about online shopping. They may only want to pay for the goods upon receipt, and therefore in the “cash on delivery” option. It should also be made available, in agreement with the courier company or postal operator,
– if your e-shop sells quite expensive products, it is worth giving buyers the option to purchase them in installments or by using the deferred payment option.

How to choose the best payment system for your e-shop? Take a closer look at all available options and check both the scope of service and the commissions charged by transaction websites. The lower they are, the more favorable prices you can offer your customers.

Ensuring efficient shipment of products

As with the payment method, your customers will expect flexibility when it comes to shipping method. The modern market gives it, and you, as a seller, can cooperate not only with courier companies, but also with those that deliver goods to collection points. The latter solution becomes more popular from year to year – it is often cheaper for the customer, and at the same time more convenient. By using it, you do not have to wait at home for the courier, and the package can be picked up at any time.

For you, as a seller, this will mean establishing business relationships with several suppliers. When executing large quantities of orders, you can negotiate its terms and get more favorable rates. This is another way to make your offer more attractive to buyers, for example by offering them free shipping.

How does the online store work in the dropshipping model?

The elements described above are key for a store that operates in a traditional model with its own warehouse. But what if you decide to operate in dropshipping mode? Then the functioning of the e-shop looks a bit different.

Your duties as an e-shop operator focus on:
– customer acquisition,
– providing them with a platform on which they can make a purchase,
– order handling in terms of communication with the customer and the warehouse of the warehouse.

On the part of the wholesaler, there are obligations related to the handling of the entire logistics process – i.e. with completing the order, packing it, addressing it and sending it to the buyer.

If the customer returns the products, you are again responsible for direct contact with the buyer and for sending information to the warehouse about the returned products and further steps in customer service.

In this model, the scope of your duties focuses mainly on sales.

What to do to make the e-shop work well and be popular?

The very opening of an e-shop is only the first step in a long process. You should be fully aware of this. Your store will be one of tens, hundreds or even thousands in the industry. Therefore, you need to provide it with adequate visibility and build customer trust. What elements to pay attention to in this context?

Service quality is essential
The features that influence positive opinions about your store are, first of all, the efficiency of communication with the customer and the speed of delivery. The more effectively you inform buyers about the status of their order, the greater the chance for full satisfaction with the established cooperation.

That is why it is so important to use solutions that automate the process of basic communication with the client. E-stores that opt for transparent messages tend to be perceived as more credible and customers are more likely to trust them again.

Attractive terms of cooperation
Offer your customers more than your competition. What? For example, free shipping when placing an order for a certain amount. If you develop good cooperation rules, e.g. with a courier broker, you will not incur high costs for it, and the client will perceive your offer as more attractive. You can also extend the statutory time limit for returning products – provided the product range you trade allows it.

Skillful advertising and SEO activities
Without a good advertising campaign, your offer will disappear among hundreds of others. Therefore, it is worth taking care of optimizing the e-store itself for the purposes of positioning (e.g. website responsiveness, speed of its response to online inquiries, as well as the quality of content present in the e-store), as well as the use of advertising tools are important. Which and how? There are many possibilities. However, well-targeted Google Ads are the most effective, as well as campaigns on social media.

To this should be added activities related to inbound marketing, e.g. obtaining leads, running a newsletter related to a company blog or a fanpage on FB or Instagram. There are plenty of possibilities. However, it is important that the campaign is conducted consistently and that it is aimed at achieving specific business goals.

Remember: promotional activities are an indispensable and PERMANENT element of running an online store. Marketing tools are your foundation in communicating with customers – current, past and potential. The more you invest in well-run ad campaigns, the higher ROI you can expect. However, you have to remember that you have to wait for really good results – this is understandable, because a potential customer has to go through the entire marketing funnel to make the final purchase decision.

The Internet is the most promising sales channel – there is no doubt about it. Regardless of the field in which you operate, the ability to reach the customer without locations restrictions gives you a huge competitive advantage. It is worth using it – especially since setting up an e-shop today is simpler than a few years ago.

But be careful! If you think it will become like the snap of a finger… well. It’s not that good. To move from idea to implementation and then successfully build your market position, you need to know how to do it step by step. So see what you need to open a well-functioning online store.

Step 1: refine the business concept

Before getting into the technical details of your own e-shop, you need to go through some basic business tasks. They are the foundation of your investment. Remember: when setting up an e-shop, you invest in the long term. Therefore, you have to be prepared that the development of your business will not happen from month to month, and you will have to wait for the results.

So the question is: how to start? It depends on several factors. Consider: should an online store be a way to develop a stationary business or is it the first step you take on the market? If you already deal with the production and distribution of certain goods via stationary channels, you probably already have appropriate mechanisms developed, including with transport and storage of products, as well as marketing facilities. You already have a customer base and you know who your solutions are addressed to.

However, if you start completely from scratch – the first step is to find an industry. Start with in-depth research. Check what is the economic situation at the moment and consider in what area you are an expert or you can quickly become one. There are two approaches to this topic: either targeting a niche or building an exclusive brand, or vice versa – relying on proven and common material goods.

Also, remember that you have to decide whether you will sell goods under your logo (e.g. by cooperating with the manufacturer to create your own brand) or redistribute it.

It is equally important to ensure a suitable place for running an e-shop. While at the beginning, with small orders, you can manage by storing products, e.g. in a home garage, over time you will need professional storage space.

You can also decide to work in the dropshipping model, which means that you will work with the supplier of products, and you will only deal with the entire sales process until the order is finalized. This solution is good for completely novice entrepreneurs, but of course it also has its downsides, such as limited impact on the shipping process or checking the quality of products.

So, as you can see, if you are a complete beginner, you need to start by developing the business foundation. When they are ready and you know:
– What do you sell,
– to whom your products should go,
– what are your “processing capacities”,
– what budget do you have to start with,

you can start setting up an online store from the technical side.

Step 2: branding

If you already run a stationary business and have developed a brand recognizable by customers, the best solution is to promote it also as part of e-commerce activities. Remember, however, that if your market niche is highly competitive, an expressive, easy-to-associate brand may be one of the factors that will affect your business success. So developing a good branding strategy right from the start is the best you can do. Changing the name later can be time-consuming, costly and, above all, risky.

How to create a good brand? Before you start:
– precisely define the group of customers to which your products will go – assess their needs, expectations, problems, challenges,
– indicate the key values with which your store (and products) is to be associated – which will be more important: prestige and very high quality of products, or maybe their designer character?

Once you know how you want to communicate with the market, you can go to the next step: choose the brand name and its visual identification system.

Especially in the latter aspect, it is worth using the help of professional graphic designers and web designers – they can perform this order on their own or as part of cooperation in designing the e-store layout. It all depends on how you want to “put it up”.

At this stage – when you develop a store brand – it is also worth buying a website domain. Remember that you have at your disposal not only com domains, but also .eu or .co.uk, but also many unusual ones. Nevertheless – these 3 mentioned just now give you more credibility. If you have the option, choosing a domain:
– buy a few “endings” of the address at once – you can then redirect them to the correct store (yours!),
– avoid dashes and other elements in the domain name that may make it difficult for the user to enter the address “by finger”,
– remember that the domain name itself has no impact on positioning – it should be easy to remember and of course be associated with a given business.

Step 3: choosing a platform

At this stage, a very important decision awaits you – which technology will be used in your e-shop. You can go several ways.

A. Commissioning experts to develop your store “from scratch” – it is the safest solution, which at the same time can be fully adjusted to your business needs. However, you must remember that the costs of creating a dedicated platform can be high (and unnecessary), and the time to prepare the website can be very long. That is why this solution is chosen by investors who can afford a one-off spend from several dozen or even several hundred thousand dollars.
B. Take advantage of the e-commerce platform.

When choosing an online store platform, be guided primarily by how large-scale you plan to operate – also in the perspective of many years. Also consider your budget.

When it comes to e-commerce platforms, you have two basic types of services: subscription platforms and open source platforms. How are they different?

Open Source Platforms
This is software that you must install on your own server. They are suitable for people who care about high independence, the ability to adjust the e-store to specific expectations, and above all for medium and large-scale stores. Running them may require previous e-commerce experience or technical support (especially at the beginning).

Usually the platform itself is available for download free of charge, but its operation and extension of the store’s functionality may require investment in paid plugins. It must also be remembered that it will be necessary to implement it on the server and integrate the selected graphic layout with it (own or selected from the available ready-made templates).

Open-source platforms:
– provide the possibility of a very wide “customization”,
– they are friendly for the positioning of online stores,
– they have enormous technical support – especially the users themselves, who are constantly developing this technology

When you choose one of them, you will experience additional costs of implementation, hosting, administration, as well as challenges related to adapting the platform to legal requirements (including developing store regulations).

If you choose an open source platform, you will also need to purchase hosting at this stage. The hosting server should:
– be well secured – so that it is not vulnerable to attacks, and that your clients’ data is safe,
– be adapted to the requirements of the e-commerce platform that you have chosen,
– provide you with sufficiently fast data transfer.

You can choose from shared, inexpensive and suitable for small stores, and dedicated servers – more expensive, but also easier to configure individually. They are suitable for larger and more advanced e-shops.

When choosing an open source platform, you also have a greater impact on the appearance of your e-store. So you can implement it on a template prepared by a computer graphic – so that it fits best into your brand’s visual identity system. You can also take a look at the ready-made templates that are already available.

Subscription platforms (SaaS)
Subscription platforms usually operate in the SaaS model, i.e. Software as a Service. This includes such platforms as Shoper, Shopify or Shoplo. On them you get access to the software in the form of an accessible panel – and this is what your e-shop is based on. In their case, there is no need to “upload” the store to your own server – you use a ready-made system. Fees for using the platform in the SaaS model are charged in the form of a subscription – e.g. monthly or annual, and you, depending on your needs, can choose a specific scope of services and possibilities offered by the website. The costs of such a solution range from several hundred to several thousand dollars per year.

Who are the subscription platforms for? Primarily for beginners who want to run a small-scale online store, especially in the dropshipping model. The use of this solution is the simplest, but it poses many limitations – related to e.g. with limited functionality or the need to choose one of the ready-made graphic templates. Some SaaS platforms are also not perfect in terms of positioning online stores and are burdened with various barriers.

If you are in doubt as to which e-commerce platform to choose, get advice from experts. Analyze your business model with them so as not to make a mistake. Changing the platform later can be costly and time consuming.

Note: Your online store should be responsive. This means that it should be displayed in a fully functional way on various devices – both on computers as well as on tablets and smartphoness. Sales via mobiles channels are also growing very dynamically, so you cannot afford to lose customers from this source!

Step 4: e-shop integration with ERP

Although this is not a necessary requirement, it is worth considering integrating the online store software with the one that controls warehouse resources. Why? The reason is very simple: if it turns out that a customer orders a product that you do not have in stock, you will face trouble. This single situation can happen. However, if such problems become widespread, you will quickly lose your reputation, and with it – your customers.

That is why the best solution is to use the option of integrating the online store with the ERP system. The immediate flow of information will eliminate the possibility of a mistake and make your task easier.

Step 5: selection of payment methods and their integration with the e-shop

In order for customers to be willing to shop in your e-shop, you need to give them the ability to conveniently pay for goods. Of course, a standard bank transfer is not enough. That is why you must decide on a convenient, yet safe and easy-to-use payment method. There are many trading platforms to choose from. When choosing, consider both available payment methods, as well as commissions and other fees, and flexibility in accessing funds.

Step 6: choosing the delivery methods for the products

This is a matter that you need to take care of primarily in the model in which you handle the shipping of goods yourself. If you have decided to dropshipping, your contractor has probably specified the shipping methods.

However, if not, make sure your customers receive convenient forms of receiving products – apart from courier services, pay attention to the increasingly popular options for delivering goods to points, e.g. shops or parcel machines. On the other hand, however, remember that the more options there are for a customer, the greater the logistical challenge. Therefore, it is worth keeping the golden mean.

Step 7: Add Products

Many e-commerce platforms allow integration with wholesalers and automatic updating of product data. However, if you sell your own assortment, you have to describe it “by hand” in the store. When adding products to ready-made subpage templates, it is worth taking care of two key issues: on the one hand, the attractiveness of the presentation of the product range for the client, and on the other – the fulfillment of SEO requirements.

Therefore, both a good and unique description as well as attractive product photos count. If you sell an assortment of other manufacturers, you can usually get ready-made materials. If you distribute your own products, have professional product photos taken.

In the content area, make sure that:
– were written in the language of benefits – so that they presented not only the advantages of the products, but their translation into the customer’s needs,
– were written in a style adapted to the characteristics of the potential client,
– are in line with SEO requirements – care should be taken, inter alia, o the use of appropriate keywords, headings and bullets. You should also take care of entering metadata and generating friendly URLs.

Step 8: Marketing

Once your store is up and running and you start serving customers, it’s time to increase its visibility to customers, and thus – its popularity. In order to promote your e-store, you can take a number of activities – from paid links, PPC advertising, through social media activities, to positioning your online store and using inbound marketing tools.

It is also good to think about a blog in an online store, which will strengthen the potential of positioning and the image of the website. As you can see, the recipe for setting up your own online store is a methodical step-by-step operation based on a well-thought-out strategy. This is the best way to achieve long-term business success.

The e-commerce industry is developing dynamically, and the number of people who decide to buy online is growing every year, and the pandemic has only accelerated this process. Clothing and accessories are among the goods that we buy most often on the Web. This is good news for you, but you also need to remember that along with the demand to buy outfits online, so does the supply. That is why it is so important – apart from an interesting, unique offer, good prices or well-thought-out brand building – an effective advertisement for an online store with clothes.

Advertising of an online clothes store – what does it consist of?

The world of on-line advertising is extremely vast. That is why there is a lot of tools waiting for you with which you can promote yourself. What can you choose from? The key solutions are:

… And therefore advertising conducted mainly in the Internet search engine. If you are not on Google, you do not exist. If you want to increase your reach quickly, you can invest in advertising on this site. Its key aspect is the so-called sponsored links, i.e. those displayed to recipients above the organic search results, at the very top of the page.

But that’s not all. The Google advertising platform also gives you the possibility of conducting campaigns on external portals – a link to your website will appear there in the form of a clickable banner.
A hellishly effective form of advertising clothes is also Google Shopping – a tool that gives you the opportunity to run product campaigns directly on the search engine page. When the customer enters the name of the product you have in your assortment, your store’s offer – with a photo of the product – will be displayed directly to him, along with the price. It therefore increases the likelihood of conversion.

Advertising of the online store with clothes in social media

Fashion is a topic that arouses wide interest among Internet users. That is why it is worth reaching them, for example, through promotion on Facebook or Instagram. First of all, use the basic and free promotion tools – run your store profiles in key social media and present interesting styles there. You can also actively contribute to groups related to fashion topics. This way, you will increase your organic ranges step by step.

Paid advertising tools offer equally many interesting options – in social media, just like in Google, you can precisely define the target audience and the purpose of advertising. Regardless of whether you want to increase the visibility and awareness of your brand, or support a specific promotional campaign and increase conversion – you can choose the form of communication that will bring the best results – e.g. remarketing.

Content marketing

Content marketing will work especially in the context of image advertising and website positioning, but also as a supplement to other promotional channels. For example, by running a blog on your e-shop’s website, you can present your own valuable content on social media profiles, and at the same time support long-tail positioning. But that’s not all. It is also worth remembering about sponsored articles – posted on fashion portals will allow you not only to build valuable links with references to your e-store, but also increase the visibility of your offer.

SEO

Activities related to increasing “organic” visibility in search engines are a complement to classic advertising campaigns and one of the key elements of effective e-store promotion on the Web. In this context, it is worth taking care of the optimization of the online store for search engines – i.e. supplement it with valuable descriptions of categories, subcategories and, if possible, the products themselves, or build a strong link profile and optimize images.

Effective advertising of an online clothes store, i.e. what?

Just learning about the tools with which you can promote yourself on the Web is only the first step towards making your online clothing store advertising a real success. It is important both where and how you run the campaign.

It is worth remembering that:

Clearly define the target group to which the advertising message will be directed. It will depend on what clothes you offer – e.g. women’s or men’s, youth-style or rather business-style. It is worth outlining specific customer personas so as to personalize the messages prepared for them.

Clearly define the purpose of the conducted advertising campaign – the ultimate one is, of course, the improvement of sales results, but … the marketing funnel is much longer. Therefore, image-building campaigns that build brand awareness or aimed at acquiring leads also work well – e.g. in order to be able to run a mailing campaign later.

Configure ads correctly – although advertising panels on Google or Facebook seem quite easy to use, in fact an inexperienced user may set the campaign parameters incorrectly, and as a result – waste the communication potential. The subsequent optimization of the campaign is extremely important in order to invest money as effectively as possible.

Observe the results of ongoing promotional activities on an ongoing basis – monitoring with the use of analytical tools will allow for possible corrections or drawing conclusions for the next campaign.

This article, of course, only generally answers your question about the preferred forms of advertising for an online clothes store. However, take a look around our blog – you will find here a lot of inspiration and knowledge on various areas of marketing that will allow you to make an informed decision.

What to look for when choosing shared hosting?

Shared hosting is the most popular form of using a server that allows you to create your website at low cost. In this case, the resources we use are shared with other users within one very efficient server. This keeps prices affordable. The server is fully administered by the hosting company, and users can conveniently use all functions via an easy-to-use panel.

If you are creating your own website for the first time, shared hosting will probably be the most suitable for you – it allows you to create a corporate website, portfolio, blog or medium-sized online store. Unless you develop complex solutions that require custom solutions, or host sites visited by hundreds of thousands of users a day, most likely shared hosting will be right for you.

When analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of individual hosting services, it is worth noting that there is no one best solution for everyone. For a photographer who wants to put all his photos and videos online, the most important aspect may be the available disk space, while an entrepreneur who runs a small business and just wants to create his “business card” online does not want to pay for unused gigabytes, while would like to use more e-mail accounts. A solution recommended by your friend may not work for you. For this reason, I cannot answer the question of which hosting is the best. Instead, we indicate issues that should always be checked before choosing.

Uptime – time trouble-free operation

This term stands for uptime, which is simply the reliability of hosting. When you set up a website, you want it to be always available. Imagine that you are starting a long-planned promotion in your online store or providing potential customers with links to your portfolio … and due to server failure the website is currently unavailable. There is no doubt that even if the breakdown is short, it can mean very serious financial losses for the entrepreneur.

Until a few years ago, interruptions in the operation of servers were commonplace, which is why the best providers introduced the concept of uptime to stand out from the competition. This value is expressed as a percentage and is often referred to as SLA. For example, an uptime / SLA of 99% means that servers are running smoothly 99% of the time. Currently, reputable hosting companies already offer uptime / SLA usually at the level of 99.7 – 99.9%. However, we do not always find this information at all – in some cases, hosting service providers are confident in the reliability of the technologies offered and prepared to pay compensation in rare emergencies.

Disk space available

One of the most important factors that we should pay attention to when choosing hosting is also the available disk space – the amount of space on the server that we will have to store all kinds of files necessary for the functioning of the website.

In case you already have your website and just want to transfer it to another server, you can easily see how much disk space you used. There should be no problem accessing historical data. However, it will be more difficult to assess your needs if you are just setting up your first website.

Remember that the place is taken by:
– website template files and software – PHP, HTML, JavaScript scripts – WordPress installation without template and plugins is 50-60 MB, PrestaShop software for creating online stores – 70-80 MB;
– graphic files, photos, videos. – a typical photo from a smartphones is 1.5 – 6 MB – due to the thumbnails, this number should be multiplied by two, a 10-minute video in the quality of 480 pixels may take up to 150 MB.
– databases – they will contain all the content that you publish on your website in text form, for example blog entries, as well as data on the configuration of themes or plugins.
– e-mail accounts – remember that each message takes up space on your server. This applies to both sent and received messages as well as unsolicited correspondence from the SPAM folder. Especially in a situation where you massively send and receive large amounts of e-mails from customers or you have many mailboxes, this can translate into a large consumption of disk space.
– logs and own backups – can also take up additional disk space.

Data transfer

In addition to the space for your files on disks, also pay attention to the available transfer. This is information from which we will find out what amounts of data we can download and send to the server each month. This number includes all page views by both users and bots.

In this case, too, it may be difficult to estimate future needs if we cannot rely on past information. However, there are sites that allow you to ‘weigh’ existing websites in this respect, such as tools.pingdom.com. For example, you can check a competitor’s page and try to estimate your needs by multiplying the page’s “weight” by the number of views per month.

Some hosting companies offer unlimited bandwidth with no limit. However, remember that such unlimited hosting applies only to websites and materials that are on these websites. Usually, in the regulations, you will find provisions that prohibit the abuse of unlimited transfer.

Hosting speed

The vast majority of users leave the website if it fails to load within a few seconds. Only the most determined wait longer. For this reason, loading speed is fundamental when choosing your hosting.

Slow page loading or problems with displaying some elements will discourage potential elements. For this reason, it is worth paying attention, among others on the type of disks used.

As part of the hosting service, you can meet the following types of disks:
– standard HDD drives – Hard Disc Drive – classic disc drives,
– fast SSD drives – Solid State Drive – semiconductor drives,
– super-fast NVMe SSDs – state-of-the-art drives up to 10 times faster than SDD drives.

And you probably already know which one will be the best choice, right? Yes. It is worth to bet on SSD or SSD NVMe.

In addition, it is worth paying attention to IOPS – this abbreviation stands for the number of operations performed per second. Some hosting plans, despite using SSD (or SSD NVMe) disks, limit the speed of reading and writing to the disk (given in MB / s) or IOPS. It’s worth being careful about that. The same as avoiding companies that have SSDs, but only for some data (e.g. for MySQL databases, while all the rest is on plate, slow HDDs).

When comparing the hosting speed, you cannot forget about parameters such as the number of PHP processes that can be run simultaneously and the available CPU and RAM power. A simple rule applies here – the more, the better. A good minimum is 10 processes, 1 CPU core (1 GHz) and min. 1 GB RAM.

When looking for fast hosting, it is also worth checking what software it is running on (LiteSpeed is faster than nginx, and this one is faster than Apache). It is also worth making sure that your hosting supports the latest available PHP version and the HTTP / 2 protocol – both of these factors affect the speed of your website.

Mail and e-mail accounts

Each hosting service also offers the option of creating company mailboxes with an address in your own domain. It will be a good idea to create a separate mailbox and e-mail address for each of your colleagues / department in the company. For this reason, it is worth checking how many e-mail accounts can be set up as part of the hosting service. It is always worth being able to create additional ones in the future when the company grows and new people are hired.

It will also be a good idea to check what types of spam and phishing protection are in place in your mail service. These should be solutions such as SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records. It is best if they have already been implemented automatically, otherwise you should do it yourself.

Data security – backups and SSL certificate

One final point worth discussing is security issues. Of course, you will have to keep your data safe by taking care of a backup – it can save your site in the event of a breakdown or hack. Most hosting companies provide automatic data backups, but you will need to check how often it is backed up and how long your site backups are kept. Ideally, copies are made at least once a day (every 24 hours) and stored for at least 7 days.

Undoubtedly, an SSL certificate should also be implemented, which enables data encryption by users. This is an absolute must, especially when it comes to online stores. If you do not have it, the user will see a message that the site is unsecured – it will definitely scare potential customers away.

For this reason, it is worth choosing a hosting service that supports a free SSL certificate (e.g. Let’s Encrypt), which in practice is no different from paid certificates offered by many hosting companies and domain providers.

Even a hundred years ago, there were many white spots on the maps of the world. Territories of which only stories circulated – and always second-hand – tempted and enticed. Riches surrounded by nimbus, filled with dangerous “savages” and adventures. Everyone dreamed about getting it – ranging from the mythical Marco Polo to Joseph Conrad, who floated up the Congo River, who later explained to us in the Heart of Darkness the pernicious influence of the original on the human psyche.

It is our nature to develop new areas. New always means progress. And who dares first, has the chance to gain fame, wealth or recognition.

Influencer marketing is still unknown in the area of advertising. Everyone has heard of fabulous collaboration between the brand and celebrity. How much income they bring to the latter, and how everyone over the age of perfumer wants to record movies, shoot focuses and make money from it.

Relax. The purpose of this text is to fill in white spots related to influencer marketing. When it makes sense, how does the brand carry it, what does model cooperation look like, how much does it cost and how to measure it?

What is influencer marketing?                     

The essence of influencer marketing is to use the influence of popular network users (influencers) on decisions made by other people. Repeatedly conducted research clearly shows that the recommendation and information received from the influencer are one of the most important sources of shopping impulse.

Influencers are people running blogs and vlogs, accounts on Instagram or other similar platforms – channels that are distinguished by high viewership. They are usually experts in a given field, sharing knowledge about specific products etc. Although they have a lot in common with the so-called brand ambassadors belong to the group of opinion leaders.

What distinguishes influencers from other network users – apart from the range, of course – is the relatively high trust of recipients. This is due to a simple fact: Internet users treat them as equals. At the same time, they are considered as completely objective persons whose purpose is to present the actual characteristics of a given product, and not to maximize their own profits.

It is worth emphasizing that influencers are not only celebrities. They are also “ordinary” people who – thanks to valuable content posted regularly – managed to build a large audience.

Influencer marketing is very popular – especially due to the results obtained. According to the Influencer Marketing Hub study, as many as 84% of marketers believe that influencer marketing activities are effective. However, for people who are just entering this advertising channel, many topics may be unclear.

Advantages of influencer marketing

The ability to precisely reach the target group
The effectiveness of marketing activities largely depends on reaching the right group of users. Influencers make it easier because their blogs or vlogs are watched by people interested in a specific topic in which your brand can at least indirectly target.

If the target group is women expecting a child or those who have recently welcomed a child in the world, it is easy to find them on a channel dedicated to parenting topics. If you want to reach photography enthusiasts, work with a photographic expert or someone who has created a fascinated community around your photos.

These are examples that arise in the first place and are effective strictly in terms of sales, but of course, cooperation can be much more sophisticated and focused on resonance in perception. I will use my favorite example – cooperation of a well-known car brand with a well-known novel author.

On the Internet, our writer can be successfully called an influencer. For many it is a navigational fear, it is read, heard and discussed. With his novels he opens new threads or even wounds. Still, it offers moderate views, but are strongly expressed. On his social media accounts he often expresses his fascination with motoring – mainly what emotions are behind driving a car. Is a representative of the intelligence and one of the new wave of writers. In a word – it is cultural, and at the same time it is “some”, and in the group of its fans there are (I shoot) 30-50 year olds from larger cities, with higher incomes than average.

And all this is neatly combined with a well-known car brand, automatically earning everything that our writer has built up over the years with his narrative among a group that partly overlaps with the brand’s target. This cooperation was mainly communicated on the Internet and there was a lot of controversy like “but how? writer and advertisement? he sold himself! ” To be honest, I would not be surprised if it turns out that these controversies were also generated by the known car brand, because thanks to this cooperation not only the fans of the brand and the author learned, but also the whole world. Well, we will probably never find out.

Potentially attractive cost of cooperation
Influencer marketing often turns out to be much cheaper than other reach forms of brand promotion. One specific amount cannot be indicated here, because everything is an individual matter. However, several factors determining the price can be mentioned. These include range, cooperation channel, scope of activities, industry. The influencer’s recognition is not without significance.

Usually, the settlement takes the form of a specific rate. Sometimes, however, influencers operate on the basis of affiliate programs or barter exchange. It all depends on the company’s internal policy and the influencer itself.

Greater punching force
The spread of the Internet has led to significant changes on the brand-consumer line. While many years ago all advertising messages were one-sided, a lot has changed in this respect. People want to know who is behind a given message, they want to interact, etc. Therefore, influencer marketing has much more clout and impact than traditional marketing messages. What’s more, product or service recommendations are often not associated by paying viewers as paid, but mere recommendations. Of course, customer awareness is getting better and they are becoming more and more sensitive to unnatural movements by influencers.

Influencer marketing and SEO
Influencer marketing is also worth considering because of the impact on SEO. Cooperation with influencers not only has a positive impact on the brand image and contributes to the promotion of products. A good strategy allows you to get much better positions in search results. Why?

Cooperation with influencers gives you the opportunity to get good quality links leading to e.g. an online store. They come out of blogs or other external websites that enjoy a high reputation and popularity among Internet users. influencer marketing – by the way, can support the positioning of your website or store.

Access to unique content
Influencers create high-quality content in which they present a specific product or brand. These actions are welcome from Google’s point of view, therefore access to unique texts may increase the position in search results and the reputation of the website itself.

The possibility of increasing website traffic
There are quite a lot of opinions about whether website traffic is one of the ranking elements. Either way, the influencer helps in getting traffic by recommending specific products and posting links to the site. Those interested will click and go to the brand page, etc.

Multi-channel
Influensers reach their recipients through various channels. Before starting cooperation, it is worth checking in which advertising environments they operate. Influencers have already learned that, of course – they can be known from one advertising channel, but they cannot afford to stay in that one channel only. Therefore, it is worth establishing cooperation with people who act in many ways.

Involvement
Influencers care about the quality of their content and other formats, taking active part in discussions, respond to comments and are able to defend the brand skillfully in case of crises.

It is worth remembering, however, that the above-mentioned advantages apply to model campaigns with experienced and quality-tested influencers. Each such type of cooperation requires in-depth attention and verification from various angles. The advantages of a given cooperation also depend on our goals, indicators or product matching. The methodology for selecting the appropriate influencers is explained in the relevant chapter.

Disadvantages of influencer marketing

No control over the influencer’s image
A problem that has more than once manifested itself with all its might. By linking a brand to a person, you have very limited influence on how you manage your next days, weeks or months of life. Unfortunately, influencers are also people – they have their weaknesses and passions, and sometimes they make mistakes that affect not only their image, but also the image of their business partners. The easiest way to illustrate this is with specific examples.

The latest – and at the same time the most spectacular example – is a celebrity. By creating her own brand, she wanted to associate it with her popularity. The brand was supposed to sew and offer high quality products.

Unfortunately, some fans and customers noticed that the shirts probably came from China and came out of the production line of the company that offers the same shirts (without prints), for a few or several dollars. Never mind the price, but the brand and the celebrity provided information misleading consumers.

Unfortunately – despite the vast experience in communicating with their fans – there was also no sign in managing this crisis. As reported by virtual media:

After disclosing this information, the website removed the information that the clothes were sewn on their own. The celebrity has blocked fans from commenting on all their Instagram accounts. The internet is full of comments criticizing the blogger. Disgruntled fans wrote that they felt cheated because the influencer was building the brand from the beginning on independent sewing and premium quality (clothes prices were also translated).

This example shows how brand dependence on influencer and influencer marketing itself can actually bury it. In addition, it is also worth noting that social media love charismatic personalities – in some sense borderline. The pressure to still be “some” means that even the most experienced influencer can simply swim.

Costs
In the case of small influencers, the costs of cooperation are usually time spent and shipping products or small fees.

However, cooperation with the largest influencers means considerable costs. This is not just because the influencer’s “gage” is large. Such cooperation only makes sense when it is long-term. If we already pay 100 or even 300 thousand dollars for a given cooperation, then it would be a shame not to consume the image in as many ways as possible. Thus, we also need to invest in a sensible photo session in a stylish antholog with a view, for example, on Facebook banners or in display or outdoor advertising. You should also record a few or a dozen or so video materials with a view to advertising on Youtube or Facebook, or even television (which powerfully pushes up costs). Therefore, if a given brand decides to enter into a long-term contract with a given influencer, then usually the said fee can constitute only between ⅓ and ⅕ the actual costs of preparing such a campaign. Remember that this is not only a financial investment, but also absorbing human resources within a given company. Your employees’ time also costs, as does pushing other projects to the side track.

That is why – as a rule – the largest combine with the largest. First, they want to strengthen their “brandies” with strong names that somehow correlate with the image they are building. Secondly, they can simply afford it capital. Thirdly – unfortunately – GREAT companies very rarely have everything counted from A to Z – as a result, they allow themselves to wide and reachable cooperation, which is not necessarily well targeted, but at the same time build universal recognition. Something for something.

Measurability of actions

Measurability is a relatively big problem in influencer marketing. And not because it is impossible to implement, but because many times influencer marketing specialists lack skills in analytical tools. This is a very underrated area among marketing professionals. They often leave analytics in the area of e-commerce and performance campaigns. Thus, they have a big problem showing the effectiveness of their actions.

That is why it is so important to understand at least the basic functions in Google Analytics that will prove or negate the effectiveness of some advertising channels. Tracking traffic inside your site will also help you find places where, for example, a surprisingly large outflow of users occurs. In general, even basic analytics can significantly improve not only our marketing messages, but also typically UX issues.

Regardless of whether the cooperation takes place on a blog, Instagram, Facebook, ticker course or anywhere else – make sure that once the given creator links to e.g. a product card, he uses the link you have defined. You can extend it with the name of a given campaign and a specific source. The best tool to do this for free is Campaign URL Builder from a good Google uncle.

By using this tool you will be sure that by analyzing a given campaign in Google Analytics you will not escape any user from a given link.

However, there are places with limited linking options. Then a certain analytical method is to add to the movie e.g. a rebate code, which will be communicated only on this channel. This is not a perfect method and many times marketers do not want to create a dozen or several dozen discount codes for one campaign. Nevertheless, better than nothing.

Why measure at all?

Example
John, known in the book industry under the nickname “cardboard”, is designed to boost sales of the new book. His greatest friend Tom once had a spectacular success selling 100 instances of the steam cleaner on Instagram. The said Tom suggested John this path and he was already beginning to rub his hands.

He sent 20 books to industry instagram accounts and blogs and then waited for results. After two weeks, he recorded a total of 200 book purchases. Because he did not carry out other advertising activities, he decided that this happened thanks to Tom’s divine intervention and advertising on Insta. Sounds logical.

But John was not tempted to give his creators a dedicated link and he doesn’t know what analytics is.

Meanwhile, in the headquarters of the publishing house that published the book, a newsletter was sent in the same period, which went to those interested in news. In the case of this book, it was linked to John’s store, of which he was completely unaware.

What’s more, the publishing house took care of the analytics of its mailing and knows that over 700 people found their way to John’s store, only from this link.

At the next opportunity, John will be convinced that this time it would be good to send books to the same influencers and after the fact he would wonder … why this time it did not work out. It didn’t work out, because it didn’t work out the first time, which it just doesn’t know about.

Aggregates or individual cooperation?

A few years ago, several agencies – aggregates – were created to group influencers under their wings. Some of them were founded by the creators themselves, who wanted to professionalize relations between the brand and creator on the one hand, and partly monopolize access to some reach accounts on the other, which would dictate rates.

Like everything, cooperation with an influencer agency has pros and cons. The organization of work is definitely a plus. You complete the brief, set goals, industry and budget. In return, you can get an estimate of the ranges, creators proposed for cooperation and even a strategy of action with the preferred message that correlates with the given message.

Agencies of this type have taught the brand that it is worth leaving creators a lot of freedom in their actions. They are the ones who know their community best and know what will resonate well among their fans. The problem of influencer marketing for a long time was the instrumental treatment of creators by brandy. They were given a rigid framework of cooperation to blend in with corporate standards. It was a mistake which, fortunately, is not often repeated nowadays.

However, the downside of the agency is that of course you have to pay extra for these services. Commissions depend on the budget and, of course, the higher the amounts, the smaller their percentage share. It is also often the case that, apart from a given agency, you cannot collaborate with a given creator. However, if you have a choice – which option should you choose?

It all depends on the goals – the wider the campaign, the more justified the decision to lead it through an agency that coordinates all emissions, messages and selects the right people for your project. Then your function will be reduced to the role of coordinator. It’s convenient, but also more expensive.

However, if you want to run a “more intimate” action – in terms of coverage or budget – then choose a more economical version, in which you leave everything – from signing the contracts to setting publication dates and their subsequent verification.

Terms of Cooperation
A separate category is what terms of cooperation both parties to a given agreement can agree to. The last thing you can afford is any understatements and areas for interpretation under a given contract.

When it comes to settling accounts with influencers, we usually come across two forms:
A. Barter – in exchange for sending products or using services, a given creator shares his opinion / review on a given topic. This is of course a favorable form of settlement for the brand from a financial point of view. Such accounts are usually interested in smaller influencers or medium-sized ones operating on topics priced by advertisers below. Repeatedly, cooperation for barter means less control over the message, form and content because it is not bound by a contract. This, of course, has its pros and cons. Such cooperation takes place much faster and is freer because you do not have to consult it with lawyers, wait for contract signatures by the boss, etc. The creator usually also has much greater freedom in expressing the view on a given product or service, which may be good, but sometimes problematic.
B. Salary – the other often accepted form of settlement (no surprise there) is regular financial compensation for reviewing or reviewing a given product or service. This form is usually tightened by contractual provisions.

Of course, it also happens that in the case of cooperation we are dealing with a mix of both of the above – i.e. barter / financial cooperation. Influencer marketing is quite flexible in this context.

What is worth remembering in the contract from a brand perspective?
– If the creator also prepares the material for use in YOUR advertising channels, then list all possible fields of exploitation. Do not leave room for interpretation, but name them all separately.
– Include in the contract the schedule and individual cut-off dates for the next stages of the campaign.
– Specify the amounts.
– Specify exactly what the creator undertakes to do in a given collaboration.
– You can specify in the contract even a specific link to appear in the posts or materials related to the campaign. However, remember that such technical things can easily be set outside the contract.

What is worth remembering in the contract from the perspective of the creator?
– Specify whether the brand can freely manipulate the given movie or any other format you are preparing (this is about using quotes, cutting scenes from movies, etc.).
– The issue of using materials created by the creator in brand advertising materials.
– Specify exactly what the brand undertakes under the cooperation (e.g. delivery of the product, accompanying materials, descriptions, etc.).
– Brand consent to add cooperation information.

Summary

It’s time to finish this extensive entry. I hope that you have clarified the issues related to influencer marketing a bit and set out with this knowledge to hunt your first creators. If you have any questions, feel free to write and give me a maximum of 48 hours to respond.

Not every blog is the same, because the light, entertainment content promoted by popular influencers is different from those posted on store, company or expert blogs. In the first case, bloggers and vloggers want to gain the largest number of so-called followers who will ensure their popularity, publicity, viewership and, as a result, earnings. Companies and services, through blog content placed on the site, attract users who can become their potential customers. However, in both cases there are several rules on how to effectively promote your blog.

How to start a blog?

Only a dozen or so years ago, the blog was associated with a kind of online diary, through which users shared their thoughts. Today, blog is a powerful marketing tool that positively affects the position of a page in the search engine. As a result, you can earn on consistent and consistent blogging activities. Blog is an important medium of communication with recipients – not only for the popular blogosphere, but also for e-commerce, companies and services that promote their activities on the web.

However, each time – regardless of the industry – the fundamental task is to set goals that you want to achieve by running a blog.

Friendly platform – whether you are the owner of a store, a company promoting various services, or a lifestyle blogger, your blog should not be visually deterrent. Transparency and clarity, which is enriched by good photos, is half the battle to keep the user on the blog.

Who is the recipient of the blog? – this is one of the most important questions you must ask yourself before starting your creative activity. It is for a specific group that you have to adjust the content and the way of communication that will be most attractive to them.

What are the recipients looking for – bet on strategies, think about what entries will be the most attractive for your group of recipients, what they can search on the web, what phrases to enter to find interesting entries.

Social media – a profile in Social Media is an important medium for building relations with the recipient: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and even Linkedin – depending on the industry and the group of recipients create a profile that will be a kind of communicator between your website and the user.

Read and watch the competition – your blog is just crawling, you expect quick results after a short time. Promoting your blog effectively is a labor-intensive and demanding task. It is worth – especially at the beginning – to observe the actions of the competition, its way of communication with the user and the way of blogging.

Thematic niche – if your business that you want to promote on your blog belongs to a so-called thematic niche, then be sure to use your unique knowledge and promote it on your blog. This is an opportunity to share expert knowledge of the topic that will be important to users.

Blog promotion – how?

How to successfully break through with your blog, in the jungle of such powerful competition – this is a question many are asking. The nature of the blog is of great importance here – whether they are traditional entries, vlogs or a social media channel. The purpose of the blog is also important. It is currently necessary in e-commerce, in agencies, services and companies that have the chance to gain new customers through blog entries. Online sales are steadily increasing, and business owners must constantly seek new ways to attract customers. A unique product at a good price is one thing, but the user must still find it. A blog is a great place to promote your activities and services, subtle definition of the company profile, but also to share substantive, industry knowledge.

Valuable content – the content contained on the site are the most important when successfully promoting a blog. In e-commerce and services, content should be consistent, closely related to the company’s operations, but also specialized in its message. The content on the blog must respond to the user’s needs through queries and key phrases that he enters in the search engine. If a potential customer of an online shoe store wants to buy shoes for a winter expedition to the mountains, then your blog text should thoroughly answer this question through an article, for example with the heading: “Winter shoes in the mountains – which to choose?”. A user who hits the post and is content about its content can automatically decide to buy this footwear in your store.

Do not treat these entries with disdain, share the knowledge available to you, do it in an exhaustive, substantive way so that the client feels that you are a specialist in your field. Write a text you would like to read yourself and which will answer your questions as a potential customer.

Does the length of characters in the text matter? Of course. The expert text should have a minimum of 6,000 characters with spaces, and the longer the text, the better. The content on the blog cannot bore the user, which is why they should contain reliable, specific information – necessarily enriched with relevant headlines, key phrases, bold and bullet points. The reader will then not be tired of reading the content, and in addition will be able to pick out the issues that interest him.

Remember that despite having, for example, social media, your blog will “live” mainly thanks to the search engine. And if so, they have all the guidelines associated with the traditional positioning process when building it.

Remember to enrich the text with photos described by the alt and title attributes. Images on the page not only increase the attractiveness of the text, but also affect the positioning of the page.

Accurate and thought-out headlines – popular titles and subheadings, marked with the character from h1 to h6, are indispensable elements in any text. They significantly affect the positioning of the site and thus promote the blog. Headlines must match key phrases and queries that a potential customer can enter on Google, such as “How to promote a blog.” Avoid in the titles of insignificant wording that will not lead the crawlers to your text and thus do not push blog content to a higher position in the search engine. Catch the micromoments, i.e. answer the user’s questions such as: what, how to do, I want to know.

Track current trends – in every industry, contemporary trends that guide potential customers in making the final choice are important. Blog trends are important in terms of content, popular topics and top issues. Keep up to date with what’s going on in them, for example through social media.

Comments, forums, other blogs – be in constant interaction with the user. Respond to comments or participate in other blogs and forums, but provide valuable content and conduct substantive discussions so that the administrator does not recognize these activities as intrusive self-promotion.

Systematics and consistency of actions – the first entries are optimistic, but the lack of quick effects effectively deters from further actions. Do not worry about the initial, poor results. The positioning of valuable content on the blog can take up to several months. It is important to create content systematically and reliably, because it affects the positioning of the page.

Effective promotion of a blog is a time consuming and demanding discipline and consistency in action. Many are discouraged when they don’t see the results after a short time. Blog promotion is not only your own entries, but also tracking trends, responding to the needs of users, sharing in forums and comments, being active in Social Media and searching for new, valuable and unique topics for subsequent entries.

Search engine optimization plays a significant role. They can be made effective by expert content, relevant headlines, key phrases and queries, images with alt and title attributes, internal and external linking, and consistency of actions, which is appreciated by indexing robots.

Why does Google support small and medium enterprises?

According to data from the World Bank, companies from the SME sector constitute as much as 90% of all companies. The same applies to the majority of advertisers, i.e. Google customers, who are currently facing the loss of customers and employees. That’s why Google has decided to help those whose business may suffer the most during an epidemic, as well as those who play such an important role in the market and whose survival is so important.

How does Google support the SME sector?

As part of support for companies in the SME sector, Google provides additional funds for advertising campaigns run in Google Ads (including search, advertising and YouTube, as well as in all types of campaigns). Advertisers who have been running their campaigns on Google in the last 10 months of 12 in 2019 are eligible for the program. Paraphrase-Online.com specialists reports that also newer advertising accounts or campaigns that were conducted in a shorter time and whose expenses oscillated at a higher level can also count on an additional advertising budget.

How to apply for an additional amount of advertising from Google?

You do not need to apply for funds. Google itself qualifies our company and transfers the appropriate amount to our advertising account. Importantly, the amounts received for advertising cannot be transferred to another account, divided or refunded. So, if our company operates in the SME sector, it probably has already received support. We will also receive an email when the funds are credited to your account.

How much advertising money can you get under the program?

The additional amount for the ad is expected to reach all advertisers by July 1. According to Google information, it depends on past Google Ads spending, the country of billing address, and the currency in which the campaign is being run on the Google Ads account. The earned amounts for advertising can fluctuate significantly, but the maximum amount paid will not exceed $ 1,000. Currently, at Paraphrase-Online.com, we monitor the inflows to our clients’ accounts and inform those whose accounts have already appeared. According to our observations, they currently range from around $ 40 to $ 250.

Advertisers can use amounts sent by Google until the end of 2020. Importantly, the unused sum will automatically disappear from the advertising account after December 31 and cannot be restored.