How to Sell Consumer Electronics Online
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
If you’re looking to sell consumer electronics online either on a marketplace or your own online consumer electronics store, you’ve come to the right place. First, let’s look at the online consumer electronics market revenue.
According to Blueboard, global consumer electronics’ eCommerce sales currently account for 33% of the total sales. The current trends suggest that almost half (47%) of total sales revenue will come from online channels by 2023. According to Edge, as mass merchandise retailers like Amazon expand their influence in consumer electronics (CE), the category is rapidly shifting online – with double-digit online growth (14.3% CAGR) projected through 2023.
Why Do I Sell Consumer Electronics Online?
The fact that the online consumer electronics market is expected to grow by 14.3% annually to almost half of the total sales revenue is a compelling reason why you may want to ride that wave, whether you are a brick-and-mortar consumer electronics store and are looking to expand online, or you want to just sell consumer electronics online. In summary, below are the upsides of selling your products directly on your online consumer electronics store.
First, you can sell consumer electronics online to anyone anywhere anytime. This can boost your sales by leaps and bounds.
Secondly, you can keep your overheads to a minimum while growing your sales.
Thirdly, an online consumer electronics store with the right content can keep your online store at the top of search results pages i.e. higher SEO ranking on search engines like Google.
Fourthly, many people only shop online. You can reach new audience whom you will not have reached by just selling offline.
Fifthly, you can enhance your customer experience by letting them download product information, answering their feedback, posting how-to videos, webinars, FAQs, etc. from your online store.
Additionally, you may share your posts on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, YouTube, etc. This can funnel your social media visitors and followers back to your online store.
Finally, you can improve your corporate image and brand awareness by having an online presence.
What eCommerce Platforms Are Available?
Deciding which eCommerce platforms to use to sell consumer electronics online is the very first and yet the most critical step. However, there are tons of options available. Below is a summary of the most popular eCommerce platforms you may use to create your online consumer electronics store.
- Marketplaces like Amazon, eBay and Etsy
- Hosted platforms like Shopify, Squarespace, Wix, and Weebly
- Self-hosted platforms like WooCommerce, Magento, OpenCart, and PrestaShop
WooCommerce is the world’s leading eCommerce platform for online stores. According to Datanyze (the world’s leader in technographics), WooCommerce is used by more than 28% of all the eCommerce websites.
Most importantly, WooCommerce is built on WordPress, the world’s leading online content management system that powers over 35% of the websites around the world. WooCommerce is simply the best of the best as far as an eCommerce platform.
Besides, regularly audited by Sucuri, an industry leader in security, WooCommerce online stores are in good hands.
Here are the features of a WooCommerce online store.
How To Create A Website to Sell Consumer Electronics Online
If you want to create a WooCommerce website to sell consumer electronics online, you may follow these simple steps.
- Think of an online store name that is creative and easy to remember.
- Get a domain that matches your blog name.
- Get a hosting plan.
- Install WordPress.
- Install and set up WooCommerce.
- Customize online store design.
- Set up products in your store.
- Set up shipping.
- Connect a payment gateway e.g. Paypal or Stripe
- Start selling.
- Manage orders.
- Analyze sales data.
What Should An Online Consumer Electronics Store Have?
Fundamentals
First, you should ensure the following on your online consumer electronics store.
- Good UI/UX in terms of design, colors, fonts, and navigation
- bright, clean, and visually-driven
- Short and concise calls-to-action that stand out with compelling words
- Website performance optimization
- Mobile-friendly responsive design
- HTTPS secure website
Pages
Secondly, to sell consumer electronics online, your website should include the following pages.
- Home
- A slider of high-quality professional product images with high-value messaging
- Dynamic and engaging, emphasizing products and the buyer journey
- Clear and direct CTAs with smooth and fluid graphics leading to checkout
- A call-to-action button to buy your products like Free Shipping, Best Sellers, Favorites, and Special Offers
- Featured products with high-quality professional images
- A newsletter sign-up form to stay in touch with your consumers by email about new products, offers, and reviews
- Social media icons
- About
- Write your brand story and business values that sets you apart from others by conveying your personality to build trust
- Products
- Write compelling and persuasive product descriptions with details about your products including the product materials and dimensions especially for bulky items.
- A selection of high-quality product images with a suitable background, and a well-lit environment
- Product images must be clear and in focus
- Product reviews from your customers after their purchase to share their buying experience with links to your social media channels
- Filter products by category, sub-category, feature, functionality, brand, color, price, etc. if you are selling a large variety of products for better conversions
- Returns & Shipping
- Many shoppers would reconsider buying on the same website if product returns are easy so customers need to know if and how they can exchange or return the products.
- Free return is a good strategy to rationalize a buying decision.
- Shipping policy ensures that your customer’s order arrives on time
- Contacts
- Multiple ways that your customers can reach you on like email, phone, instant chat, social media
Features
Thirdly, you may consider the below features when you sell consumer electronics online.
- Cross-selling allows you to incorporate relevant products to those already in your customer’s cart
- Multiple payment options for better user experience like credit card, debit card, internet banking (depending on the countries you sell to), Apple Pay, Google Pay, Paypal, Stripe, Afterpay, etc.
- Wishlist does not only allow customers to save the products they want to buy later but also allow store owners to find out what your customers’ preferences for marketing purposes.
Content Marketing
Lastly, you can use content to market your online consumer electronics store. They include blog posts, videos, podcasts, whitepapers, case studies, eBooks, webinars, guides, and checklists.
Conclusion
To sell consumer electronics online, what is the best eCommerce platform? In fact, there is no definitive answer which depends very much on what you are looking for on an online consumer electronics store.
For instance, as a startup with not much budget and time, you may try Amazon. First, it is because according to Statista, there were over 2 billion visits to Amazon per month from May 2019 to February 2020. This gives your products great exposure but lots of competition too. Secondly, Amazon can manage your inventory, packing and shipping. This lowers your upfront and operating costs as a startup.
If you have time and a bit more budget, you may consider building a Shopify online store from scratch by using their online store templates and purchase a domain at Shopify.
However, if you are a discerning businessperson with long-term goals, you may want to scale up your online store project with customizations and add-on features to grow your audience and boost your sales using WooCommerce.
