November 24, 2023

How do e-commerce sellers measure success?

There

This week, we're shifting away from big sales events and looking at stories that reflect the current — and future — state of E-commerce. Here's the news you should know:

18 key metrics to measure success on Amazon, according to Fortunet Partners Ltd.
US E-commerce sales are up, even as overall retail growth stalls.
"Nonstore" sales were up 10.4% in October — what does that mean for Black Friday and Cyber Monday?
3 easy ways to improve conversions on your Shopify store.

The Amazon Corner

How Do You Stack Up? 18 Key Amazon Metrics to Measure Success

Finally, a clear view of the goalposts: Fortunet Partners Ltd., an investment bank specializing in Amazon and other E-commerce platforms, has released a new report that tracks 18 metrics to help sellers understand how they compare to competitors. The report, "Benchmark Guide for Amazon Private Label," was created using data collected from Fortunet's work with more than 150 Amazon merchants in the US, UK, and Europe.

One of the most valuable takeaways from the report is the importance of star ratings on Amazon; by Fortunet's estimates, a rating of 4.6 or above is high, while anything under 3.8 is low and, therefore, unattractive to potential buyers. The report breaks metrics into four categories (advertising, market and business performance, sales and financial, and operational complexity), and each one offers sellers insights into their strengths and weaknesses on the platform.

Read the full story here...

Growing Pains: US E-Commerce Growth Stalls Even As Sales Rise

What can we expect from next quarter? According to Digital Commerce 360's analysis of Department of Commerce numbers, US E-commerce sales in Q3 of 2023 grew by 7.8% compared to Q3 2022, hitting $271.7 billion in the midst of successful pre-holiday sales and promotions. That's more than one-fifth (21.4%) of total retail sales for the quarter. Additionally, E-commerce growth outpaced traditional retail growth (7.7% versus 3.9% in the first nine months of 2023).

While those figures are good news for E-commerce sellers, Digital Commerce 360 analyst James Risley notes that growth is slower than it was pre-pandemic: "While E-commerce growth is faster than overall growth, during the rough economic times we're in, E-commerce is struggling along with the rest of retail." For example, Q3 of this year failed to match the trillion-dollar high of Q2.

More of this story here...

Online Sellers Rejoice: October "Nonstore" Retail Sales Rise 10.4%

October-Nonstore-Retail-Sales-Rise-10.4-Percent

You can't beat the convenience of online shopping: According to US Department of Commerce figures, "nonstore" sales (which happen largely online) grew 10.4% year over year in October. This is a huge win for E-commerce, especially when compared to the .5% growth of in-store sales (excluding purchases of vehicles, vehicle parts, gasoline, and spending at restaurants and bars).

According to Neil Saunders, Global Data managing director and retail analyst, "Growth was helped by a proliferation of deals and promotions, including big events from Amazon, Walmart, and Target." Of course, the leap between September and October may have been the result of customers holding back until such sales events; time will tell whether or not the increase in spending has a dampening effect on similar promotions during Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

This Week's Featured Article

Capitalize On Those Clicks: 3 Easy Ways To Increase Conversions On Shopify

3-Easy-Ways-To-Increase-Shopify-Conversions

Don't leave money on the table: Shopify is a highly approachable and versatile platform for sellers, but despite its relative simplicity, there's some finesse involved in converting browsers into buyers. In fact, the average conversion rate for Shopify sellers is just 1.4%. In this guide, we'll walk you through three proven techniques to help you beat the odds and increase conversions on your Shopify store....

A Little More

QUICK TIP

Try this. Build a dynamic "free shipping" bar for your website that shows customers how close they are to hitting the free shipping threshold in real-time.

FUN FACT

More than half of consumers say free shipping is the top reason they choose to shop online.

LISTEN UP

Scaling sustainably is essential to creating a healthy business in the long term. On this 111th episode of The E-Comm Show, Andrew Maff interviews Laura Lady, founder and CEO of FryAway — a unique kitchen product that helps customers conveniently and safely dispose of used cooking oil.

In this episode, Laura will talk about how she's made use of Amazon as a discoverability platform to get her product in front of the right customers and how she's carefully navigating expansion into retail by prioritizing smart inventory management over short-term profits. Don't miss this episode if you're interested in seeing your product in stores!

Watch the full episode below, or visit TheEcommShow.com for more.

E-Comm-Show-Episode-111-Laura-Lady-FryAway

Hannah Mladenovich and Andrew Maff wrote this email, did you know that?

Did someone really cool forward this email to you? Sign up here.

WAIT! If you didn't love this week's Click and Conversion, we're sorry! :( We hope that you'll give us another chance and see what next week brings. But, if you feel you must unsubscribe, you can manage your preferences below to make sure you still get all our other great content!