What is the sale by geolocation in ecommerce?

08/05/2019

Angela de la Vieja

Geolocation in e-Commerce is one of the sales techniques with the highest potential for retailers. Now that users use mobile devices such as smartphones to make their purchases, offering products, special deals and personalised prices, based on their location is an opportunity that cannot be left untapped.

But, let’s start at the beginning. How do sales by geolocation work? The approach is simple: thanks to systems that are already incorporated in each and every one of the electronic devices used today, online stores are able to identify the place from which the query or purchase is made and return the best results for the user's search. Later, with all the background data collected, the technology will detect trends by area, study purchasing parameters and, finally, define a localised, satisfactory pricing strategy for the potential audience from a specific place.

In e-Commerce geolocation can intervene in three possible ways to enhance the sale:

As an element which allows adjustment of a pricing strategy by location.
As an attention-grabber to promote offers by area.
As a measurement of interest by area for certain products or categories.

Undoubtedly, for online stores, geolocation is now a key point for further development to improve the user experience. A corporation such as Inditex already requests users to select a region from the moment they enter the web, for each of their different brands, in order to adjust, while navigating, the results from the catalogue to their location. Thus, for example, potential clients can check in which physical stores you can see the product in person and even see where the nearest collection points for your orders are in your area.

Also, worth a mention is the case of Amazon, who obviously varies product prices and shipping costs depending on the location of the user making the purchase.

On the other hand, we must also take into account the impact that this technological development can have on an e-Commerce. To sum it up briefly, we could say that three supporting areas will be necessary:

1. A geolocation web system to be able to register the location of the IP or the device of each user.

2. Artificial intelligence technology, or machine learning, capable of making personalised offers to selected users by area.

3. The software or dynamic pricing tool which allows the store to adapt its prices based on the customer location.

Knowing your target audience thoroughly as a method to make more sales

One of the main benefits of activating the possibilities of geolocation within an online store is the exhaustive knowledge about the audience that can be compiled. We already know that the path towards the most extreme personalisation is the door that leads to higher sales ratios and, therefore, knowing which potential clients share common features, such as their location, is the key to improve penetration and user loyalty of a brand within those regions.

However, in the face of this assertion, there is also reason to believe that this could bring audience suspicion regarding their own privacy to the forefront. All the geolocation systems for e-Commerce need to be able to access the location data of their users in order to be effective. In some cases, mainly web versions, the user must indicate where they are (although in many cases the browser itself can already locate them it by itself); in others, like using a mobile app, the user will have to grant a direct permission to 'read' their location through the settings of their device.

What would happen if, suddenly, it turns out that the audience does not want to receive personalised information of this type? Perhaps this is precisely the challenge for new marketers and sales managers: to generate added value of such dimensions that the audience decides on their own to give-in to it. At the end of the day, the list of possibilities of this happening is now much greater since in the midst of a panorama so saturated as that of online sales, the factors of accessibility and time of purchase will be key.

11/11/2022

Consumer behavior: How can behavior tracking be effective for setting the right pricing strategies?

Behavior tracking is becoming massively popular today. As a result, pricing strategies born from studying consumer behavior are a merchant's dream come true. If done right, it can conquer every market for the business quickly. With abundant data available, the strategic makeover of the pricing models is becoming easy for companies.

What is behavioral tracking, and how is the data beneficial in pricing?

For a quick understanding, behavioral tracking refers to gaining in-depth knowledge and insights into consumers through their web data. Their browsing habits, spontaneous decisions, shopping interests, and preferences come under behavioral tracking.

How can enterprises use customer behavior data?

Companies can use customer behavior data as a tool to strengthen their hold on the market. A customer’s preferences, values, and tendencies allow businesses to work in sync with them through the collected data. Apart from this, customer behavior can also aid in:

Tailoring customer needs for customer retention

Personalization is becoming the heart of a company’s growth. No matter in which area an enterprise is functioning, tailoring the services, products, and solutions is becoming increasingly crucial. Uniqueness and personalization attract the crowd like no other.

Increasing the overall value

One of the best ways customer behavior data affects a business is by upgrading the value of customers for the business. The customer’s characteristics allow the company to target the people that match the business prospects well.

Optimizing every type of content

Everything that is up for digital display requires content. You must have seen companies unveiling their products or services through advertisements and making the initial public appearance. Two essential sales strategies – upselling and cross-selling comes through content optimization.

Pricing Strategy

Last but certainly not least is the influence of customer behavior data on the pricing strategy. The pricing strategy essentially constitutes content derived from data analysis. Companies need to have a dynamic approach to the pricing system to attract the right customers.

17/02/2015

Saint Valentine’s Day, always a good opportunity

V-Day is looming, a long-awaited date for all and also a good occasion for the eCommerce. According the study conducted by Prosper Insights and Analytics, it is forecasted the average consumer expense that day will be the highest in last years. Furthermore, 25% of them will buy online, which means an increase of 4% regarding 2014 (The US department of Commerce). This is, therefore, a key date where market competitiveness increase and which could be assumed as a big opportunity for our business or, a big fail if we do not adopt the correct strategies.

How to turn this event into an opportunity? To achieve this goal, we need to adapt our prices to this hostile environment, i.e. we need to develop an appropriate Dynamic Pricing strategy that allows us to adapt our prices to the variations produced in supply and demand and to position us ahead of our competitors. In V-Day, the frequency in changes will be higher, carrying it out each hour or even each minute. It is estimated that 65% of leader retailers have the ability to respond quickly at these variations, such Amazon. For this reason, it acquires great importance the correct use of a software specialised in price motorisation of competitors. Do not miss the time and adapt your business to new adversities.

28/12/2022

Which are the best footwear marketplaces to sell on?

Footwear marketplaces are booming. The last decade has seen the launch of new specialized marketplaces with millions of different users. Among them are Spartoo, Sarenza and Farfetch, portals with international reach. Their main value is that they unite hundreds of footwear brands, as well as offering clothes and accessories. Although each has its own characteristics, they are all vertical marketplaces, i.e., they focus on a specific area, and their sales categories are interrelated. For sellers, these portals provide an opportunity to expand sales channels and drive the globalization of their e-commerce business. We explain how to sell on these footwear marketplaces so that you can assess whether they align with your plans for the future and then start defining a possible pricing strategy.