Soline from Easyship kicked off the event by welcoming the presenters and thanking the Hive Spring for hosting. She then introduced Alex from Wave Commerce to share digital marketing tips and tactics for boosting sales.

Building a Personal and Mobile-first Ecommerce Strategy for Online Stores using Facebook and Search

Alex’s presentation focused on 3 main tactics:

• Tools for personalizing an online store
  
• Personalizing re-targeting ads to convert bottom of funnel sales leads
  
• Using Google Shopping Ads to capture mobile search traffic
  

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Alex talked about the increasing importance that personalization plays in ecommerce and shared how some merchants have built personalization into their online store experience to improve conversion rates. Onsite personalization tactics can include displaying relevant discount offers for new and return customers to offering personalized product recommendations based on viewing and order history. Some popular website personalization tools include Bouncex, Klaviyo and Qubit.

But what happens if a customer leaves your store? Alex illustrated how merchants can re-engage shoppers through Facebook Dynamic Product Ads based on a consumer’s previous product views, cart items, and past purchases. He also advised merchants to start by selecting images that fit the ad format and begin with manual product feeds to avoid displaying out of stock products.

Finally, Alex discussed how the continued shift to mobile means merchants should consider marketing and sales channels that are better suited for a mobile screen. Google Shopping Ads place image listings at the top of organic searches, providing merchants with an opportunity to reach relevant shoppers.

Frictionless Payment Gateways Increase Checkouts and Retention

Ecommerce Day #3 Attendees at the Hive Spring — Photo provided by EasyShip

Next, Satya Tammareddy from Stripe shared how payment experiences can reduce the rate of abandoned carts and help merchants offer localized payment options. Consumers expect online convenience and redirecting for payment gateways can lose interested customers. Satya mentioned that in Asia, majority of Stripe transactions take place over mobile, but that mobile completed checkouts are also 11% lower than desktop versions. Using Android Pay, Apple Pay, or Samsung Pay immediately helps mobile conversion because of the simplified payment steps. Finally, Satya mentioned that saving customer information helps merchants keep customers who have repeat purchases, such as subscriptions.

Transparent Shipping Options Help Merchants Sell Globally

Andre Poon from EasyShip spoke about the challenges of shipping globally and how merchants in Hong Kong can use shipping to raise their ecommerce game. Andre explained that selling globally does not require another online store, but instead requires an awareness of different market regulations (such as taxes for imports) which platforms like Easyship can help with. Andre advised merchants to give customers transparent shipping options and fees so that they can choose solutions based on their needs.

Offering Contextual Personalization Helps Ecommerce Businesses Meet Asian Consumer Demands

Finally, Philip Wiggenraad from Tofugear provided omnichannel insights and strategies to help ecommerce merchants increase engagement, win brand loyalty, and drive sales. Philip outlined the unique features of the Asian markets, such as popular large marketplaces including T-Mall for China. He observed that customers have high expectations and many younger shoppers are willing to give personal data for higher personalization and item recommendation. He suggested that merchants consider contextual personalization with solutions that could include using beacons in physical stores, identifying customers through app installs to help sales tailor recommendations, and using machine learning to improve related item suggestions after someone has made a purchase.

Networking after presentations — Photo provided by EasyShip

After the presentations, there was a casual networking session with a great crowd who stayed on late into the night. The Wave Commerce team enjoyed talking to all the merchants who attended! Look out for another ecommerce event in the Fall!

If you would like to discuss growth opportunities for your ecommerce brand, please get in touch!

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