How to Deal with eCommerce Slow Season
It is easy to fight off the slow season in eCommerce with some creatively planned strategies. Find out helpful initiatives to counter the slow season in eCommerce.
Strategies for Dealing with eCommerce Slow Seasons
Every eCommerce business experiences ups and downs in sales throughout the year. While busy shopping seasons bring a flurry of sales activity, slow seasons can spell trouble for online stores. So how can you power through the slow times?
The Dangers of Slow Seasons
According to Google Shopping data, January through March are the toughest months for eCommerce. This slow season comes on the heels of the holiday shopping spree. With shoppers focused on recuperating from holiday spending, fewer are looking to make new purchases when the new year begins.
Sales can dip by almost 30% in the summer months as well. Shoppers tend to become more budget and health conscious during this time. With less discretionary income and time available for online browsing, sales of non-essential items decline.
Accepting the Reality of Sales Cycles
Ups and downs in sales volumes are a natural part of running an eCommerce business. Rather than resign yourself to plummeting revenues, get proactive about driving sales during slow seasons.
Tips for Battling Slow Seasons
Run Sales Contests and Giveaways
Giveaways are a proven way to generate customer interest during sales slumps. Well-designed contests hosted on your website, blog and social channels can:
- Raise brand awareness
- Leverage your existing customer base
- Drive traffic to your online store
- Prompt competitors' customers to switch brands
- Increase sales
- Grow your email subscriber list
Reward Loyal Customers
Your most reliable source of revenue during slow seasons is your base of loyal customers. Show them some love by offering exclusive deals, early access to new products, and gifts on special occasions. Taking good care of those who support you year-round can help attract new customers through referrals.
Educate and Inform
Leverage slower periods to improve and expand on your product information. Refreshing your product descriptions, imagery, and support materials can really pay off. Consider developing how-to guides, FAQs, buying guides and other content to establish your expertise. The added value will be appreciated by customers.
The Slow Season Survival Guide
While challenging, slow seasons don’t have to spell doom. Get creative with sales contests, focus on rewarding loyal customers, and use it as an opportunity to beef up your product information. With some strategic efforts, your eCommerce store can thrive all year long.
Next article: How To Make eCommerce Eco-friendly
FAQs
What causes slow seasons in eCommerce?
Slow seasons occur after busy shopping holidays when consumers have overspent and need time to recover financially. Times of year when people focus more on health, fitness and summer activities also bring dips in online shopping.
How much can sales drop during slow periods?
eCommerce sales can decline by 30% or more during slow seasons compared to busy shopping times around the winter holidays and summer vacation.
What's the #1 way to boost sales in slow seasons?
Running creative contests, giveaways and other promotions is the most effective tactic for engaging both existing and new customers during slumps.
Why focus on loyal customers?
Your most reliable shoppers provide a steady revenue stream year-round. Giving them VIP perks helps maintain sales plus earns referrals and organic word-of-mouth promotion.
How can you use slow times to help future sales?
Downtime provides the perfect opportunity to overhaul product info, images, descriptions, support articles and other website content. Improving content quality and usefulness pays dividends.
What about offering discounts during slow periods?
Strategic deals and sales can certainly help move inventory. But avoid going overboard with sitewide promotions that diminish the perceived value of your products and brand.
How else can you bring in revenue besides sales?
Consider introducing affiliate promotions, advertising, sponsored content opportunities and other non-sales revenue streams to help stabilize your bottom line year round.
