The vast number of digital marketing idea choices can be overwhelming. In addition, some marketing tactics are best suited for a particular industry, require significant investment in time and money, and there is no guarantee that your business will have a high return on investment. Where do you start?
Furniture retailing is currently a very enjoyable industry. As long as people buy furniture from retailers, they go directly to the showroom, try them on, physically feel their materials, and then spend a lot of money on large furniture that is considered an investment.
Today, for smaller, more versatile parts that more and more people live more minimally and consider to be more disposable as they move from one place to another more often than previous generations. I’m giving up on that big and expensive investment furniture.
And that means that more and more furniture purchases are migrating to the Internet. There, customers shop based on digital marketing rather than going to the showroom to test their work directly.
Furniture retailers who have not benefited from the industry’s e-commerce boom can lag behind. If you don’t know how to start marketing furniture for online sales, these 22 techniques are your buffet. Read on to learn more about each marketing idea (and how it fits into your overall marketing strategy) so you can determine if it’s the right dish for your furniture marketing food.
1.Marketing to reach new customers
If your business goal is to expand your current customer base and reach new buyers, try these marketing strategies.
2.Social media marketing
In the Internet age, almost everyone uses social media in some way, making it a powerful way for brands to reach new audiences and interact with buyers. Here are some common ways to use social media in your furniture marketing strategy.
3.Instagram
Instagram is the platform your store should use, as the furniture industry relies heavily on images. Encourage customers to tag you with posts that include purchasing furniture in your store and repost a photo showing your product in another home.
4.Facebook
Facebook is a social media OG and remains a powerful tool. One of the biggest benefits Facebook offers to the market is a dedicated advertising tool. With a small investment in paid Facebook ads, you can carefully monitor the demographics your ads reach by targeting people who may visit your site and buy your product.
5.YouTube
Video is one of the fastest-growing social media marketing segments. In short, YouTube is a platform worth investing in. There are many ways to use video in your marketing strategy (discussed below). So if you don’t already have a YouTube account for the store, you’ll need to create one.
6.Pinterest
For home furnishings, Pinterest remains a powerful platform despite its time. You can use customer-generated images of decorated rooms, including furniture, to link them to the product page of your site.
7.Pay socially
The organic nature of social media really helps drive the brand, but there’s still something to say about paid social media advertising. Platforms like Facebook and Instagram insert paid ads into the user stream to make them look like regular placements and show the product in front of potential customers while relaxing and browsing.
8.Content marketing
One of the best ways brands can invest in the internet age is to invest in content. Here are some ways furniture brands can leverage good content with good marketing strategies.
9.Email campaign
When customers buy online, it’s a great and easy time to collect email addresses for future marketing purposes. Creating a mailing list can be used for all types of campaigns, from promotions to email discounts and special offers.
10.Affiliate marketing
A common way for e-commerce retailers to promote their products and websites is to use links to third-party websites. This allows you to reach more customers. Also, one of the biggest benefits of using affiliate marketing is that you only have to pay if your customers make purchases using affiliate codes. In short, the ROI of this marketing strategy is very high. The most popular third-party affiliate sites for furniture retailers and other retailers include RetailMeNot, Ebates, SlickDeals and FatWallet.
11.Mobile marketing
Slowly but surely, online shopping is migrating from computer devices to mobile devices. Here’s how furniture sellers need to adopt mobile marketing to stay ahead of the curve.
12.Lead Magnets
Lead magnets are transactions that invite buyers to come to your store rather than competitors. Lead magnets can be coupons, free items, a limited number of limited items, or a downloadable catalog. These types of offers add value and can be a powerful sales driver with the added benefit of attracting new customers to your site to take advantage of the offer.
13.Product review
Buyers want to know as much as possible about their products before buying online. That’s why practicing some video reviews can be a good marketing strategy for furniture retailers. This helps buyers visualize the parts they are considering buying, and proper reviews help them make their purchases.
14.Paid search
Paid search allows you to promote your brand by displaying text ads on search engine results pages. It can help attract new customers by targeting the keywords they may be looking for. Suppose your brand places a paid search ad that promotes your site when a buyer searches for a “brown sofa.” This allows you to attract customers early in the purchasing process.
15.Payment planning and funding options
Furniture can be expensive. Not all potential customers have the cash to quickly indulge in important pieces such as sofas and big-screen TVs. Therefore, loyalty can be significantly increased by providing easy financing options that facilitate the purchase of these important customers. Payment plans that remain interest-free for the first few months are popular and give customers an economic break while encouraging them to pay quickly for their purchases.
16.Videos that can be purchased
Platforms like YouTube and Instagram are now offering videos with clickable pop-ups that direct buyers directly to websites and product pages. This means that buyers can directly click on their favorite products to create videos (such as home tours) that they can take wherever they can buy them.
17.Niche ads
Advertising where many people see your ad seems like a good strategy, but it often doesn’t help attract new customers. The most effective way is to define the type of customer you want to attract and then advertise with resources that are likely to find that target customer. This is a particularly useful strategy for selling certain types of furniture.
For example, rustic wooden furniture is likely to appeal to those who own a hut or farm, so you can target that niche.
18.Excellent transparent customer service
When it comes to building customer loyalty, nothing beats good old customer service. Customers have high expectations for their brand, so when providing services, you must strive to not only meet and exceed your expectations. If you please your customers with a service that goes one step further, they will come back to your store over and over again.
19.Loyalty programs and referral rewards
Customers may be loyal to the brand when they get something from a transaction. Traditional loyalty programs can be difficult for furniture retailers to complete because most buyers do not buy furniture on a regular basis. This does not mean that you cannot offer repeaters benefits such as discounts and free items.
Another option is to offer rewards such as cash refunds and discounts to customers who refer your store to others. It attracts your new customers and enhances the loyalty of existing customers.
20.Education and educational videos
Educational videos on platforms such as Masterclass and Skillshare are a big boost, so think about how to incorporate education into your furniture marketing strategy. Educational videos on how to design a room, how to choose the right upholstery, how to clean a sofa-these are useful topics that can get you a lot of organic views and guide your audience to your site.
21.Video marketing
Video is one of the most popular new marketing strategies. Here’s how furniture retailers can use video to attract new customers and increase sales.
22.Demonstration
Just as review videos help customers visualize their furniture, so do demo videos. Especially useful for multipurpose furniture or furniture with a single purpose. For example, a demo video showing how to change a desk from sitting to standing may be useful to buyers who do not fully understand how to use a convertible-height workbench.