As more and more people gain interest in e-commerce, a traditionally competitive industry is getting fiercer by the day. This is compelling ecommerce business owners to seek out every advantage they can find with regards to effective ways to drive more customers to their sites and maintain a loyal customer base. Achieving and maintaining a healthy web traffic is the most important aspect of an e-commerce business but is the most challenging.

The use of social media has proven to be crucial in improving site visitors and is a powerful force in the evolution of e-commerce. It is an all-inclusive platform for marketing, conversations, information, reviews, and expressions. According to research by Magento, 93 percent of consumers depend on social media to make buying decisions, whereas 90 percent say they trust peer recommendations.

Here are some of the strategies digital marketers can employ to drive traffic to e-commerce sites:

1. Create, curate and share great content

Plan your posts to include mostly helpful content that the audience can like sharing and which can make them want to come back for more. Continuously marketing your products will cause your audience to burn out and start dropping out. This will cause post engagement to drop making your posts visible to fewer users. Write something interesting to create a buzz about your business. This can work magic if you are launching a new product or when in need of reigniting the audience interest. The blog on the Canvas Factory store for example has taken the approach of providing great relatable to content to their audience on a monthly basis, without any mention of buying or a call to action. That strategy of delivering real value without expecting anything in return is great for building a loyal audience.

2. Embrace micro-content

There is a constant state of information overload on the internet today, making marketing even tougher. The audience is constantly bombarded with information from their favourite publisher, brand and media outlet. That is where micro-content comes in. To squeeze your content into the limited time, consider making shorter yet informative and engaging content that the audience can consume on the go. Make 10-second videos, or convert videos to GIF format and share on Twitter to bump user engagement. When the user knows the content will not take much of their time, they will drop by and read or watch.

3. Use influencers

Many industries have joined the new marketing buzz known as influencer marketing. It is more common in food, fashion, and travel industries. It is just the old word-of-mouth organized to drive targeted traffic to websites. Influencers play a major part in the buying process by convincing the customer to decide to buy the product. The likeability and trustworthiness of the influencer is crucial if you want more leads. The influencer is more of a brand ambassador hence the need for their credibility. You can use them for events, campaigns, reviews, product launches, and user engagement.

4. Use product videos

Customers always like touching and feeling a product before buying. However, e-commerce does not give that opportunity. However, using product videos can help the customer come close enough to the feeling, therefore, increasing the chances of them purchasing. Posting product images from different angles will help the customer have a better view. Videos can bridge the gap between online and offline shopping experience. Other than on product pages, product videos can be posted on social media sites or as part of YouTube and Facebook ads campaigns. The currently popular live videos, 30-second videos, 360-degree videos, time lapse videos, white videos, animated videos, and stop motion videos can play a significant part in an e-commerce marketing campaign.

5. Social reviews

Customers of today want to see some social proof before buying from an online shop. The social media has many opportunities to provide your customers the proof they need to make a buying decision. Reviews from your social media accounts can help, but consider using apps like Yotpo to develop engaging reviews that can convince a new customer to buy from your e-commerce store. This app allows you to connect your social media account, then post user-generated reviews that customers can trust. Facebook, for instance, has its inbuilt reviews that should be activated to help prospective customers see and know more about your products and customer care even without visiting your site.