If you run an ecommerce business or any kind of venture with an online footprint, your website is essential in facilitating and potentially automating your sales pipeline. This pipeline stretches from initial leads all the way through conversion and beyond, encouraging ongoing engagement with customers after the sale.
Sales are vital for any enterprise. Without sales, there are no profits, and without profits, businesses cannot thrive in the long run. While relying on repeat customers is beneficial, it’s crucial to continually seek out new customers. For ecommerce businesses, your website significantly influences the efficiency of this sales pipeline, supporting each step from lead generation through conversion to post-sale relationships.
Overseeing Leads & Your Sales Pipeline
When it comes to NetSuite, generating leads involves creating a Lead record within your company's database. This Lead record can represent either an individual or an organization. Collecting information on potential customers or companies interested in what you have to offer marks the first step in your sales pipeline. The Lead record serves as NetSuite’s method of tracking this crucial information.
Though you can manage Lead records using external CRM software like HubSpot or Salesforce, there are clear advantages to utilizing NetSuite as a comprehensive CRM solution. For example, when using NetSuite CRM, converting a Lead record into a Customer record can be accomplished easily by generating a Sales Order linked to that Lead, eliminating the need for manual data re-entry. Alternatively, you can update the Status field on the Lead record to reflect progress.
How Can You Capture Leads?
In ecommerce, it’s advisable to have multiple and varied lead channels. Most of these should involve targeted, direct response marketing. This approach differs significantly from broader brand awareness marketing, which is more suitable for large consumer brands like Coca-Cola or Nike. As Allen Dib points out in his book...
The goal of your advertising is to find individuals interested in your offerings rather than making an immediate sale from the ad itself. When these interested leads respond, you should place them in a follow-up database where you can enhance their perception of value, position yourself as an expert, and build a trust-based relationship. Through this process, the sale often follows naturally if it fits their needs. - The 1-Page Marketing Plan, pg. 105
Why rely on a database? Why not aim for immediate sales? In actuality, for many businesses, most individuals won’t be prepared to make a purchasing decision right away. Quoting Allan again, "if you don’t add them to a database, you’ve lost them” (The 1-Page Marketing Plan, pg. 105). Marketing through a database resembles farming rather than hunting; you're planting seeds for future purchases rather than solely targeting customers ready to buy now. While you can still attract those few ready-to-purchase customers, you’re also nurturing a far broader market share. All your marketing efforts should aim to collect enough data to create a Lead record, facilitating follow-up and relationship development until that lead transitions into a customer.
What, then, are your strategies for populating your database with leads? How do you gather those most likely to be interested in your products or services? This topic is extensive, so we will focus on a handful of ways to use SuiteCommerce to enhance your lead generation efforts. Additionally, we’ll point out some common website design blunders that may inadvertently hinder your marketing efforts. Structuring your SuiteCommerce site with lead generation in mind can significantly boost your marketing ROI.
Utilizing Google Shopping Feed
Google allocates a specific segment of its search engine for Shopping, separate from standard Google search results.
To have your products featured on this Shopping page, you need to submit a list of your items to Google, formatted according to specific guidelines. Google’s resources refer to this list as a “feed”:
A feed is a file listing the products you wish to promote via Merchant Center. When adding your items, you assign attributes to each one. Your product feed will utilize these attributes to categorize your products. - Google Merchant Center Help
NetSuite provides a handy extension to simplify the creation and management of a product feed: SuiteCommerce Feed Generator. Not only does this extension enable you to share your data with Google Shopping and paid Google Promotions, but it also allows exporting data to Facebook Dynamic Ads or a custom CSV file for additional applications. On your end, this generally involves executing a saved search for the items you want to include in the feed and associating that search with a Product Feed record. The items included in the saved search will be compared against an Item Cache, with relevant data from that cache supplied to Google Shopping.
The Item Cache holds information about active web store inventory items and is designed for quick access, avoiding the need to search your entire database repeatedly. Essentially, the Item Cache is like a backpack containing everything you frequently need for daily tasks, negating the need to return home for items like a phone or lip balm. Caches like this enhance website performance and page load speed, with this particular cache refreshing every 15 minutes to ensure your product feed data is current.
Depending on the industry and types of items you sell, you may need to add specifics to your item records through manual entry, mass updates, or CSV imports. For instance, selling clothing typically requires you to include details about Gender, Material, and Color in your product feed.
Direct Communication with Google
Google does not automatically recognize if your site has reviews or what those reviews entail. You can explicitly inform Google about this information through schema markup. Schema markup consists of accepted code markers that communicate to major search engines how to interpret the data on your website, as Neil Patel states in his guide on boosting SEO with schema markup. This markup employs a set of HTML tagging conventions, documented on schema.org, guiding web developers on how to inform search engines regarding the structure and priority of their website content. For example, if you’re promoting a sale or have an average rating of 4.7 stars in customer reviews, you’ll want that information highlighted in search results beneath your page title.
Consider a search result for a Goodreads page:
Notice how both the rating and vote count are displayed by Google as a result of schema markup application. For more detailed examples regarding rich text and schema markup, see Explore the Search Gallery & Rich Results | Google Search Central.
It’s valuable to note that schema markup is often referred to as “structured data” or “rich text.” The output of implementing schema markup, such as the 3.8-star rating for Huckleberry Finn, is termed a “rich snippet.”
NetSuite employs the schema markup format recommended by Google: JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data (JSON-LD). Once the Structured Data Markup tool (Setup > SuiteCommerce Advanced > Configuration > Shopping Catalog) is activated, your website will automatically incorporate correctly structured JSON-LD data markup on each product detail page. However, keep in mind that this automated markup only applies to product detail pages, not product listing pages.
Refer to the following table from Structured Data Markup for item properties that can be transmitted from NetSuite as schema markup:
| Item Property | Schema Markup Representation | Name | `name` | | Description | `description` | | Image | `image` | | Price | `offers.price` | | Aggregate Rating | `aggregateRating` |
You should actively verify that Google is interpreting your schema markup correctly using Google’s Rich Results testing tool, which has succeeded the former Structured Data testing tool.
Turning Leads into Sales
Leads hold no value unless they convert into actual sales. Your SuiteCommerce site can significantly aid in this conversion process.
Neil Patel, co-founder of the optimization consultancy Crazy Egg, emphasizes that a crucial element in convincing a lead to become a customer is to highlight the advantages of your product or service rather than its specifications:
When you capture your audience's attention, evoke desire by emphasizing the benefits of your offering rather than its features. Apple exemplifies this brilliantly; they focus on how their products are sleek, stylish, user-friendly, and secure, rather than delving into mundane specifications. Concentrate your marketing messages on how a consumer’s life improves by choosing your product. - Secrets of the E-Commerce Conversion Funnel
For instance, if you operate a vehicle detailing service, instead of detailing your cleaning products and equipment, describe how pristine and fresh the customers’ cars will be following your service. Answer this key question for leads: How does becoming your customer enhance their lives?
Effectively conveying this message on your website requires careful attention to various elements. Here are four key aspects:
1. Website Navigation
If navigating your site complicates a customer's experience, how likely are they to perceive that your products can simplify their lives? Website navigation should be seamless, and checkout should be straightforward. Thoughtful search filters and Personalized Catalog Views are two SuiteCommerce tools that can help you achieve an intuitive website experience.
2. Quality Marketing Copy
The impact of your marketing copy (the written content on your site) cannot be understated. Quality copy should be free from typos or formatting issues, but excellent writing goes far beyond that. Your text needs to be compelling and persuasive, designed to intrigue, excite, and engage potential customers! One effective method to ensure higher-quality content is to have multiple discerning eyes review anything published on your site. These copy-editors should possess a knack for clear and engaging writing, enabling them to refine your copy effectively.
3. Utilizing SuitePromotions
NetSuite’s built-in system for handling discounts and promotional codes is invaluable. Offering discounts (or even better, a complimentary gift) communicates an additional incentive to potential customers regarding the advantages of purchasing from you. The SuitePromotions feature allows for five types of promotions:
Item: A percentage or fixed amount discount on items
Fixed Price Item: A set discounted price on products
Order: A discount applied at the order level
Shipping: A discount providing free shipping on specific methods
Free Gift: A complimentary item for users meeting specific order criteria (available in the Aconcagua edition of SuiteCommerce only)
Users can apply an item, fixed price item, order, or shipping promotion within the web store using a coupon code linked to a NetSuite promotions record.
SuiteCommerce can even manage multiple discount codes by leveraging the promocodes.allowMultiples property.
4. Collecting Customer Reviews
While not every website necessitates reviews, they can be instrumental in promoting the benefits of your offerings. Reviews can create a chorus of opinions about your products, as people are generally influenced by the views of others, particularly if there’s a consensus.
As long as you establish a system that maintains overwhelming positivity in your reviews (achievable through excellent customer service, proactive follow-up after sales, and quality products), reviews can act as a powerful endorsement for your offerings. Using NetSuite’s automated support case ticketing system, seamlessly integrated from the My Account page on your SuiteCommerce site to backend support case records, can help keep customers satisfied and feeling valued.
Additionally, a customization we designed enhances your review and rating system. Product ratings are crucial if you wish to show them as rich snippets in search results. Without resorting to unethical means, you can boost ratings and accumulate real, positive reviews by following up with customers. However, managing this follow-up manually can be tedious, which is why our customization automates the process of collecting and encouraging reviews two weeks post-delivery. Moreover, you could create a system to flag any reviews under three stars for manual assessment and response. It's essential to recognize that achieving favorable ratings entails more than just offering a quality product; being proactive is key.
If you utilize Mailchimp, a widely-used email marketing tool with flexible pricing, you would benefit from integrating your NetSuite item/cart data with Mailchimp to enhance your chances of conversion through its cart abandonment and product recommendation automations. We’ve rolled out an effective Mailchimp-NetSuite integration that facilitates this!
Ensuring Customer Retention
Having successfully converted leads into customers is commendable! However, your tasks are not yet finished. A critical question arises: will your customers keep returning to you? Building repeat business is pivotal for maximizing profits and fostering growth.
How to cultivate customer loyalty is a vast subject, so we will focus on one of the means NetSuite facilitates: automated email follow-ups.
These emails can aim to serve one or more of the following purposes:
1. Maintaining the Relationship
Essentially, this involves reminding customers of your existence and that their lives are improved because of you. These emails should be light-hearted, brief, and enjoyable to read - delivering smiles to your customers' inboxes. Brand loyalty is often driven by emotions rather than analytical decision-making; utilize these feelings to reinforce your connection with customers. Having established trust, your customers are likely to be receptive to your messages. Mailchimp can aid in this ongoing relationship by recommending products based on past purchases while keeping it entertaining.
2. Providing Education
When customers aren’t fully aware of how to maximize the value of your products, they may undervalue their worth. For example, if you sell nail guns that only function with specific types of nails, but a customer uses an incompatible nail type, dissatisfaction will ensue, likely reducing recommendations or repeat purchases. To mitigate such situations, send out informative emails containing essential tips on using your products effectively.
3. Presenting Incentives for Repeat Purchases
Motivate your customers to return soon by offering sales or complimentary gifts (possibly managed through SuitePromotions).
4. Encouraging Customer Marketing Efforts
This differs from merely depending on “word-of-mouth” marketing, which can often mean neglecting genuine marketing strategies. Instead, design a targeted initiative to motivate satisfied customers to introduce you to their personal networks. An example of effective execution can be seen in Mint Mobile’s referral program, which is both persistent and generous. Remember, whatever incentives you provide for referrals should be compelling enough to motivate customers to engage, ranging from sharing links on social media to personally contacting potential clients. Make it worthwhile for them, as it can often be more cost-effective than other marketing methods.
Automating Email Marketing
NetSuite excels in managing email marketing tasks. When paired with a tool like Mailchimp (and our seamless Mailchimp/NetSuite integration), you can utilize customer cart details, past orders, and other characteristics to send automated, personalized shopper engagement emails. These automated messages are triggered by customer actions and minimize the chances of human error. The time and labor saved by automating follow-up emails can be substantial.
With NetSuite data, you can prompt Mailchimp to deliver follow-up emails based on triggers. This might involve a customer not making a purchase for a certain length of time or abandoning items in their cart. Alternatively, triggers could be related to NetSuite order fulfillment, such as order dispatch notifications. These context-driven communications will help you capture revenue from customers who may have otherwise forgotten about you while simultaneously keeping them engaged and cared for.
You can tailor these emails to cross-sell items similar to prior purchases or modify messages according to whether the recipient is a previous customer or merely a prospect.
Perhaps most critically, Mailchimp tracks and reports on the effectiveness of every automated message type, gauging success through metrics such as “opens, clicks, and conversions,” instead of evaluating success in isolation. Such reporting offers significant insights into which email formats and marketing campaigns are successful and which aren’t, allowing resource allocation to focus on strategies that yield results while dismissing ineffective approaches. Without this level of reporting, you'd essentially be guessing; with it, you can confidently govern your sales pipeline and customer retention strategies.
Using Mailchimp or a similar tool alongside SuiteCommerce creates a powerful ecommerce and marketing ecosystem. While NetSuite’s native SuiteAnalytics and email marketing tools can track certain data (like conversion rates), tracking metrics such as open and click rates often necessitate supplementary software like Mailchimp.
Establishing Loyalty Programs
Creating a solid connection with your customers can be solidified through the implementation of a loyalty program. Historically, loyalty programs sought one primary objective: to encourage further purchases. Consider a coffee shop that issues a punch card redeemable for a free drink after ten visits. This incentivization continues to be a crucial element of loyalty programs. Nevertheless, services like Annex Cloud now allow for expanded functionalities beyond mere generic incentivization.
Annex Cloud empowers you to gather valuable insights about your customers, collected through the registration process when they join your loyalty program and from digital data such as social media interactions, browser history, and in-store buying patterns. Essentially, loyal customers engage in a mutually beneficial arrangement: they supply you with crucial data about their preferences and purchase behaviors, and in return, you offer tailored experiences. Examples include sending a free gift or bundled discount, reminding customers about consumable items that need replenishing, or inviting them to customer appreciation events tailored to specific demographics.
Gathering and analyzing this customer data enhances your understanding of who your top customers are and what matters most to them. With this knowledge, you can provide the personalized content, services, and products necessary to retain them - and even transform them into advocates for your brand. Leveraging a service like Annex Cloud enables the creation of referral systems that encourage customers to raise awareness of your company through their social media channels.
Think about how much more effectively you could concentrate your marketing initiatives with in-depth knowledge about your past and current customers! Of course, this data may be somewhat biased, as some will only come from customers willing to enroll in loyalty programs or become referral partners, but it still offers a clearer picture of your repeat customers.
