The e-comm marketplace
E-commerce has become an increasingly competitive landscape. Fuelled by a number of factors such as convenience, discoverability, accountability – all of course super-charged by a global pandemic and the shutdown of high-street shops, further compounding the long-term trend of buying goods and services online.
For e-commerce brands, achieving visibility, driving qualified traffic to their stores and converting that interest to sales requires strategic focus across a number of channels, both organic and paid.
Paid media for e-commerce brands
Paid media relates to any marketing activity that involves paying to place a brand’s message in front of an audience. This includes search ads, social media ads, display ads, video ads, and more.
Unlike organic marketing, paid media guarantees visibility and can be highly targeted, accountable and optimised, making it an essential component of a comprehensive digital marketing strategy.
Getting to the right plan
Here at The Nest we have a no-frill approach to delivering media plans that drive results for our clients.
Understanding your goals is a fundamental part of the process, ensuring all stakeholders are clear on what we are trying to achieve. We spend time unpacking our clients objectives to make sure they are measurable and achievable.
Identifying key target audiences is key and using a suite of market leading tools, we’re able to paint a picture of who the target audience/s are, understand how large (or small) the target pool is, how many might be in-market and what messaging might most appeal to them.
In understanding who the target audience is, we’re also able to identify what channel might be most appropriate considering the action we want them to take. Channel selection is also influenced by price, creative impact, ability to reach the target effectively, cost of reaching them, likelihood of returning on our investment.
Planning for flexibility
Before the campaign even starts we develop bespoke testing roadmaps, clearly laying out all variables to be tested within the campaign, allowing us to understand what campaign elements are most effective in driving performance. This often involves using A/B testing to compare different audiences or ad versions to see which performs better, continuously refining our approach based on performance data.
Across the majority of channels – especially those all important e-commerce digital channels – we have our hands on all of the in-platform buying levers, meaning we can adjust spend and media weights in an instant. This allows us to shift budgets into the best performing campaign elements in a heartbeat, maximising return on our investments.
Focusing on the right metrics
Our campaigns are set up to give us a clear understanding of what’s working well and what might not be. This includes clear naming conventions, full-funnel campaign structures where appropriate and dynamic tagging to help us compare in-platform and analytics data quickly and easily.
Bespoke, live dashboards are set-up to give clear visualisations of data trends across all key metrics, encompassing in-platform, analytics and client data where available.
We always take a holistic multi-metric view of performance, understanding that in-platform data can be deceiving, whilst last-click analytics data might not be painting the full picture.
Paid Media Best Practices for E-commerce brands
- Seasonal and Trend Analysis to capitalise on increased consumer spending: Adjusting media planning and buying strategies based on seasonal trends and events, e.g. allocating extra budget during pay-day or key seasonal moments such as holidays.
- Leverage retargeting to significantly improve conversion rates: Retargeting ads are powerful for e-commerce brands, allowing us to re-engage known users who may have previously visited a website without making a purchase.
- Utilise Lookalike Audiences to maximise relevant reach: Platforms like Facebook offer lookalike audience features, allowing you to reach new potential customers who are similar to your existing ones expanding reach while maintaining relevance.
In summary
Paid media planning and buying are integral to the success of e-commerce brands. By strategically targeting the right audience, choosing appropriate channels, and optimising campaigns effectively, we can significantly enhance your brand’s visibility and drive sales.
Implementing these practices will not only maximise your Return on Ad Spend but also position your brand for long-term success in the ever-evolving e-commerce landscape.