The Privy Ecommerce Trends Report HOW SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZED ECOMMERCE STORES ARE MARKETING THEIR BUSINESSES IN 2018

ABOUT THIS RESEARCH In January 2018, we surveyed over 500 small- and medium-sized ecommerce businesses to find out what was working, what their challenges were, and how they find their inspiration. The survey was conducted among Privy registered users selling on Shopify or BigCommerce using the SurveyMonkey platform.

ECOMMERCE IS EXPLODING FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZED BUSINESSES In October, Shopify reported more than 70% growth year over year. 
 With more than 500,000 merchants 
 on its platform, ecommerce is 
 clearly exploding. On Privy sites alone, there were 
 3.2 billion consumer sessions on 
 small- and medium-sized merchant sites in 2017.

SMALL REALLY 
 MEANS SMALL • 50% of participants are “solopreneurs” • 74% of participants sell less than 100 SKUs • 24% sell less than 10 SKUs • 50% sell between 10 and 100 SKUs

OVER 40% OF ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES IN OUR SURVEY PRIMARILY SELL APPAREL Personal Accessories (23%), Sporting Goods (9.5%), and Cosmetics (8%) 
 also ranked highly

SETTING AND 
 MEETING GOALS ARE A CHALLENGE FOR ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES

• Overall, only 43% of ecommerce businesses who set goals were able to meet or exceed them in 2017, while 21% of businesses in the survey did not set revenue goals. • During the holiday season, 50% of all businesses that set goals, met them. • 79% of more established businesses — those with 5 or more employees — did meet their holiday season goals. • On average, ecommerce businesses are looking to grow by 43% in 2018. • More than 16% of businesses want to double their revenue or more.

SECTION 1

Despite the low barriers to entry, 
 starting an ecommerce business is not easy

“ The struggles I'm facing,
 The chances I'm taking,
 Sometimes might knock me down 
 but no I'm not breaking.
 I may not know it,
 But these are the moments that
 I'm going to remember most yeah.
 Just got to keep going,
 And I, I gotta be strong,
 Just keep pushing on.”

- MILEY CYRUS IN “THE CLIMB”

FROM A TECHNOLOGY STANDPOINT, 
 GETTING STARTED IS EASY

Getting results is a much bigger challenge.

2017 REVENUE FOR 
 BUSINESSES IN FIRST YEAR

2017 REVENUE GOALS 
 FOR BUSINESSES IN FIRST YEAR

LESS THAN $5000 $5001, - 10,000

DID NOT MEET MY GOAL

$10,000, =1000,000 $100,001-$5000,000 $500,001 - $999,999 $1 - $5 MILLION $6 - $9 MILLION $10 - $25 MILLION OVER 25 MILLION *Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

I DIDN’T SET GOALS FOR 2017 MET MY GOAL EXCEEDED MY GOALS *Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

“ I just started my business November 26, 2017. I have sold about $300 so far. I would like to increase sales to $100/day.”



 – TRACY FROM THE EQUINE ONLINE

“ I wish my business could expand faster but being a smaller business it has to be one step at a time.” 


- CASSANDRA FROM BROOKLAN TREE

THE 2017 HOLIDAYS WERE ALSO TOUGH FOR MANY NEW ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES

63%

Did not meet their goals in the 2017 Holiday Season *Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

DESPITE CHALLENGES, NEW BUSINESSES ARE OPTIMISTIC ABOUT GROWTH IN 2018

53% 21%

Of new businesses are planning to grow by more than 50%

Of new businesses are planning to double their revenue or more

*Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

TO GROW IN 2018, 
 NEW ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES FACE SIX KEY CHALLENGES 1. Driving traffic to their stores 2. Getting new customers 3. Improving the performance of advertising 4. Building a social media presence 5. Getting repeat purchases from past customers 6. Increasing cart size *Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

?

To drive store traffic and generate sales, 
 Facebook, Instagram, and email are the most used marketing channels 
 and are seen as the most effective by new businesses.

For new businesses, Facebook, Instagram, Facebook ads, and email are the most used 
 marketing channels for driving online store traffic.

FACEBOOK INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK ADS EMAIL MARKETING PINTEREST GOOGLE ADS TWITTER REMARKETING YOUTUBE

*Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

New businesses find that Facebook, Instagram, Facebook ads, Google ads, and email 
 were most effective in driving sales.

MOST EFFECTIVE

IN

G A T S

M RA C FA

EB

K O O

AD

LEAST EFFECTIVE

S

C FA

E

OK O B

G

OO

D A E GL

S

IL A EM

MA

G N I ET K R

A M RE

G N I ET K R

*Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

SE

ST E R TE

O PIN

U YO

BE U T

T

ER T T WI

ALMOST 70% OF NEW BUSINESSES SAY THAT GROWING THEIR EMAIL 


LIST IS VERY IMPORTANT OR CRITICAL TO THEIR BUSINESS *Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

In 2018, new ecommerce businesses looking to expand their marketing 
 are most interested in trying Google Ads, remarketing, and YouTube.

Interested in trying: 18.5% Google Ads, 13.9% Remarketing, 13.5% YouTube *Responses from 0-1 year old businesses

KEY TAKEAWAY:

While the technology makes it easy to get started, 
 it takes planning, grit, and perseverance 
 to be successful in ecommerce.

SECTION 2 


Ecommerce businesses focus 
 on the top of the funnel

“ What really decides consumers to buy or not to buy is the content of your advertising, not its form.”

DAVID OGILVY ADVERTISING ICON 


ACROSS ALL ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES, 
 THE TOP GROWTH CHALLENGES ARE CONSISTENT:
 
 Driving site traffic and getting new customers DRIVING TRAFFIC TO YOUR SITE GETTING NEW CUSTOMERS GETTING REPEAT PURCHASES FROM PREVIOUS CUSTOMERS INTRODUCING NEW PRODUCTS INCREASING CART SIZE INCREASING INVENTORY REDUCING SHIPPING COSTS

WHAT IS YOUR #1 CHALLENGE/GOAL FOR 2018? “Drive more traffic and grow my email list/social accounts faster.” 
 
 – KELLY FROM ROLLICK

“My business is only a few months old but I hope to get more consistent traffic and more sales this year.”
 
 – GABRIELLE FROM THE DIAMOND SPUR BOUTIQUE

“Build brand awareness and develop a community of followers through my brand. I don’t want to just be a clothing line, but an entire movement.”
 
 – CHALISA FROM FLAVOR

Over half of companies with 5 or more employees are using Google Ads. 28% of companies with 
 5 or less employees use Google Ads.

Instagram, Facebook Ads, and email marketing are the 
 most used channels for driving sales across all ecommerce stores.

MOST USED

TA S IN

A GR

DS A K OO

M FA

B CE

LEAST USED

C FA

OK O EB

G

OO

D A E GL

S IL A EM

MA

G N I ET K R

A M RE

G N I ET K R

O SE

PIN

ST E R TE

U YO

BE U T

T

TT I W

ER

For 100k+ revenue companies, email marketing is the most effective channel for driving sales.

Instagram, Facebook Ads, and email marketing are 
 also seen as most effective in driving sales.

MOST USED

TA S IN

A GR

DS A K OO

M FA

B CE

LEAST USED

C FA

OK O EB

G

OO

D A E GL

S IL A EM

MA

G N I ET K R

A M RE

G N I ET K R

O SE

PIN

ST E R TE

U YO

BE U T

T

TT I W

ER

70% 


of ecommerce stores 
 think list growth is very important to their business



THE MOST SUCCESSFUL ECOMMERCE BRANDS ARE USING EMAIL MARKETING

82% Of companies with 5 
 or more employees

88% Of companies with over 
 100K in revenue

96% of ecommerce businesses are using offers 
 in their marketing and on their website.

Free shipping and percentage off a whole order are seen as the most effective offers.

MOST USED FREE SHIPPING % OFF A WHOLE ORDER % OFF A SINGLE PRODUCT

MOST EFFECTIVE % OFF A WHOLE ORDER FREE SHIPPING $ OFF A WHOLE ORDER

$ OFF A WHOLE ORDER FREE GIFT WITH PURCHASE

% OFF A SINGLE PRODUCT

$ OFF A SINGLE PRODUCT

FREE GIFT WITH PURCHASE

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE I DON’T OFFER DISCOUNTS

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE $ OFF A SINGLE PRODUCT

KEY TAKEAWAY:

The most successful ecommerce businesses are investing in specific strategies to attract more visitors to their stores and strategies to turn visitors into subscribers and customers.

SECTION 3 


Small ecommerce brands are 
 playing follow the leader

“ Inspiration is hard 


to come by. 
 You have to take it where you find it.”

BOB DYLAN

Ecommerce brands look for advice from the experts, 
 industry leaders, and each other.

WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION? I READ ECOMMERCE AND MARKETING EXPERT BLOGS AND ARTICLES I LOOK AT TOP RETAIL & ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES I SEEK OUT OTHER BUSINESSES LIKE MINE IN ONLINE FORUMS & COMMUNITIES I READ MARKETING PUBLICATIONS I ASK FRIENDS AND FAMILY I GO TO CONFERENCES OR WORKSHOPS OTHER I DON’T SEEK OUT ADVICE OR INSPIRATION

EMPLOYEES AT BIGGER COMPANIES ARE FAR MORE LIKELY TO READ ECOMMERCE AND MARKETING EXPERT BLOGS

69% 31% of respondents at brands with 5 or more employees read expert blogs

of respondents at brands less than 
 5 employees read expert blogs

ECOMMERCE STORES ARE INSPIRED BY 
 THE BEST ONLINE RETAIL BRANDS

*most common response in open ended questions

WHAT BRANDS INSPIRE YOU?

“ Patagonia does an extremely good job on creating copy that elaborates and illustrates how serious they are about environmentalist efforts as well as detailing the quality of their products. Their founder embodies humanity and injects it into the brand’s core values.” 
 – CHRISTIAN AT MOJO BAZAAR

“ Tiffany’s and Victoria's Secret. The products are strongly linked with the emotion of love and is expressed very well through their marketing.” 
 – UMAR FROM TUESDAY IN LOVE

“ Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Tesla. They have been able to dominate their market and continue to innovate.” 
 – MARK AT BLUE BUDDAH STORE

“Ellen is a brand I am inspired by. Being kind to one another is a good motivator for all the products they sell.” 
 – TEHMINA FROM SHEEN FASHION

“ Brands like Nasty Gal inspire me to be more innovative and to create stories with the product we sell rather than just shoving product down peoples throat. More like selling a lifestyle.”
 – JACLYN AT GIA MONAE

“ From a total business perspective, I am inspired by New Zealand brand Untouched World. I love the quality products that they offer, their attention to detail, design aesthetic and strict adherence to social and environmental ethics.”
 – KRISTEN FROM ECOHAVEN

“ Vineyard Vines - they provide great products, amazing photography, and have an insane following .”
 – MATT AT SHELLY

“Apple inspires me because of all the different technology they are putting out. It keeps changing and growing every year.”
 – MARISSA FROM SHOP CELL ACCESSORIES

KEY TAKEAWAY:

Take inspiration and ideas from proven brands and apply your own passion to make it personal for you and your customers.

Thanks For Reading The 2018 
 Privy Ecommerce Trends Report LEARN MORE ABOUT GROWING YOUR ONLINE BUSINESS OR SIGN UP AT 
 PRIVY.COM

Privy 2018 Ecommerce Trends Research Report.pdf

Page 2 of 47. In January 2018, we surveyed over 500 small- and. medium-sized ecommerce businesses to find out. what was working, what their challenges were,. and how they find their inspiration. The survey was conducted among Privy registered. users selling on Shopify or BigCommerce using the. SurveyMonkey ...

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