Inventory loading challenges in eCommerce

Your blog post content herHaving an online shop is no longer an option for retail businesses. COVID-19 accelerated a process that was already happening before the virus spread around the world: e-commerce became the everyday protagonist of many businesses and enterprises.

In our experience, from SMEs to large, established companies have problems with proper inventory uploading. This is because it is a process that requires resources and people in charge who are frequently taking pictures, creating metadata and product descriptions, and in reality this is often not a priority in their day-to-day work or they simply don't have the knowledge in terms of taking pictures, editing or creating content. And this is best reflected at times of high sales, such as Christmas, when employees need to focus on physical sales as well. 

We must understand the difference between selling online and selling physically. Customers, not having access to the product, seek to satisfy their need to make a good investment by finding all the necessary information and living the experience. And although many companies have the possibility of paying for integrations to make the inventory loading process easier, in the end the physical inventory will not have all the data that a virtual inventory requires.

Let's take a look at some data on inventory uploading that you need to consider in order to reach more customers from the virtual universe.

Product image

Although when we talk about product photography many of us think of the classic photo of the object in the foreground with a white background, the reality is that this type of photo is not enough to attract and convince your customer to buy. That is why we advise you to use other angles and perspectives, such as photos with the object in context, photos with zoom, photos of the virtues of the product such as ingredients or claims and why not, photos sent by customers.

Another aspect to consider is the size of the images, they influence the usability of the website, so we have to upload images that are light, but have good resolution.

Product weight

There are several possibilities when configuring the shipping costs of our online shop. Therefore, the weight of a product plays a fundamental role when reviewing which is our best option. The extra costs that our customer will have to pay to receive his order will depend on this.

Measurements

This is another piece of information that goes hand in hand with the shipping, some shipping providers may increase the shipping price if the package is very large as the volume also affects the type of transport and the amount of items that can be carried in that transport.

Categories

For a correct classification of the products in the eCommerce it is convenient to create a main menu. With a few categories that encompass the entire product catalogue. Unlike a physical shop, a product can be in several different categories, use it to your advantage.

Product descriptions

Product descriptions are the e-commerce content that inform, educate and convince customers to buy.

This description should answer simple questions, such as:

• What is the product?
• What is it made of and where does it come from?
• What makes it different from other products?
• How is the product used?
• What problems does it solve?

There are two types of product description, the short description and the long description.

• Short description

It is characterised by setting out the basic details and main selling points in very few words. To make it easier to read, bullet points or lists are often used. 

The aim of the short description is that, after knowing the essential details of the service or product, the user can read the long description or see some photographs.

• Long description
  

If in a short description you concentrate all the information in a list of points, this time you can go longer. Here persuasive writing strategies are of great help. Here are some tips to do it effectively: write for your buyer persona, use keywords, connect with the emotions and feelings of your readers, tell a story and use the simple questions mentioned above.

Read also: Uploading products in Magento Commerce

Metadata

The terms 'metadata' and 'meta tags' have become very important in recent years with the rise of the Internet and SEO, as they are essential for classifying the enormous amount of data present on the web and are very useful when it comes to carrying out searches.

Although these elements are invisible to the user, they play a very important role in the positioning of the website in search engines. Together with the title and other elements of the page, they are analysed by search engine robots and are used to display the results.

Let's see what data you need to take into account when uploading your inventory:

• Title

The title is the most important tag on the page, it will be the first thing your customer will see when searching in the SERPs. Use the name of your product, but do not exceed 65 characters.

• Meta description

The meta description is used by search engines like Google to briefly present the content of the page.

The text must summarise the content of the page in at least 11 words and no more than 150 characters. Otherwise, it may not be displayed in the list of results or may be cut off.

• Keyword research

Keyword research for ecommerce is a task that goes far beyond using the most popular keyword research tools. In addition to the volume of searches or the competition, you also need to know if the keyword converts and more details.

The primary objective of an e-commerce is to sell. For that reason, generic terms, even if they generate a lot of traffic to the website, will report few conversions. On the other hand, more specific terms that reflect a purchase intention will be more likely to generate conversions.

• Alternative text or ALT TEXT
  

Images have an attribute called alternative text (alt) that serves as a substitute for the image in case the image cannot be displayed. It is a way to contextualise an unreadable element for search engines and blind users.

Related products

This is a list of other products that are offered to the customer with the intention of purchasing them.

Suggested sales (up-selling): 

This is a sales technique whereby the customer is offered products or services that are similar to the one he/she is viewing but which offer some advantage.

Cross-selling:

This is a sales technique whereby the customer is offered products that are complementary to the products that he/she is already intending to buy.

You might also be interested in: Infographic: Shopping Tools

Your online inventory is a very important element of your digital marketing strategy. Try to work on it to exploit all the potential it has to offer and reach more shoppers.

Now that you know everything you need to know about loading inventory in your online shop, get to work...

It is clear that inventory management is complex and highly specialised, which is why you need expert support to guide you through the process and help you find the best platform. We invite you to schedule a consulting session with the best implementation team in the region.