Getting Help From An eCommerce Expert: Questions To Ask Before Hiring – An eCommerce website is only as good as its strategy. Creating a site with beautiful images and informative product descriptions is the beginning of a successful eCommerce venture.

Businesses must have a strategic plan from the onset to drive traffic and conversions. This involves working with an eCommerce consultant to create specific goals, identify target audiences, and develop an actionable implementation plan.

An expert in eCommerce can offer insight into market trends and best practices that will help you drive more traffic to your site and increase conversions without breaking the bank.

However, before you get help from an eCommerce expert, there are some questions you should ask to determine if they will be right for your business. They include:

1. What Is Your Background in eCommerce?

An eCommerce expert should understand the ins and outs of the eCommerce industry. They should be able to provide helpful insights into how your business can best take advantage of current trends and market fluctuations to stay ahead of the competition.

Be sure to ask how they became interested in eCommerce. Try to find out about their past work experience so you can get a better idea of the expertise they bring to the table. You can also ask if the consultant has any certifications or training in eCommerce.

Depending on your business needs, you may want help from an eCommerce professional with experience in retail, B2B, or B2C. This will provide insight into the strengths and weaknesses of their experience.

You can also ask if they have worked with similar businesses to yours in the past. This will give you a better idea of how the consultant views your business and what strategies they might implement.

For example, if you are looking for someone to provide assistance with growing your Shopify sales, a person who specializes in Amazon marketing might not be the best professional to get help from.

2. What Is Your eCommerce Strategy?

An eCommerce strategy is a plan for how to best implement your goals. This includes deciding on what products to sell, how to promote those products, and which digital marketing channels to use.

Your strategy should be customized to your business, target customers, and goals. It should be based on data and analytics and include suggestions for improvement that will allow your business to thrive in the long term.

During the interview, ask your consultant’s eCommerce strategy for your business’s website. From there, you can determine if they’re a good match.

3. What Are Your Recommendations To Drive More Traffic and Sales?

There are several eCommerce best practices for driving more traffic and sales. These include leveraging the power of SEO and Amazon Ads, building a strong brand, creating a consistent experience across all devices, and improving page speed and content.

That said, different professionals have different opinions regarding best industry practices. The best way to determine if an eCommerce expert is right for your business is to ask them what they think. This is your chance to get insight into the best practices they recommend for driving more traffic and sales. This will also help you determine if the two of you are on the same page.

4. Are There Any Recommendations You Would Avoid? Why?

There are many different recommendations an eCommerce expert will make for driving traffic and increasing sales. However, not all are right for every business. Be sure to ask about any recommendations you are unsure about.

An eCommerce expert should be willing to recommend everything within the scope of their expertise. Asking this will provide insight into what your consultant would avoid if given the opportunity. This question is necessary to help you achieve your goals.

If they are unwilling to make a recommendation but insist it is the best course of action, you should be wary.

5. How Will You Measure Success?

If you’re going to get help from an eCommerce expert, you should have realistic expectations for the outcomes of your recommendations. This means setting measurable goals and tracking the progress of your strategies to ensure you are on track to achieve those targets.

They should also have a clearly defined measurement system in place. For example, if an eCommerce expert recommends increasing the number of sales you’re receiving per day by $100, they should be able to tell you exactly how they plan on achieving that goal. This includes measurements like customer acquisition, conversion rates, and sales.

6. Which Ad Platforms Should Be a Priority?

There are many different ad platforms to choose from, each with its own pros and cons. Depending on your niche and business goals, you may want to focus on one or two ad platforms. Or, you may want to use a combination of platforms to maximize your site’s traffic.

Your eCommerce consultant should be able to walk you through which platforms will be most effective for your business. If they are hesitant to make a recommendation or offer a vague response, they might not be the best choice for your business.

7. Do You Plan on Using SEO? Why?

If your eCommerce consultant has SEO as part of their strategy, you’ll want to factor that timeline into your business goals.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is an important aspect of any eCommerce business. It can help drive traffic to your site and convert those visitors into paying customers.

If your eCommerce consultant has experience in SEO, they should be able to walk you through their strategy. They should also have recommendations for specific SEO practices you can implement to drive more traffic to your site.

8. How Much Time Will Each Recommendation Take To Implement?

An eCommerce expert should know the timeliness of the various recommendations they make. For example, if your expert recommends publishing blog posts every week, but you can only publish bi-monthly, this recommendation will not benefit your business.

Be sure to ask how long each recommendation will take to implement and how often you should repeat the process. This will help you determine if the eCommerce expert is right for your business.

In Conclusion

An eCommerce expert can help you create a strategic plan for your business’s website and drive more traffic and sales. This is why it is important to ask the right questions when interviewing potential experts to determine which one on your shortlist is right for your business.