If 2024 is the year for launching or going all-in on your ecommerce business, welcome to the family.

In three years, global ecommerce retail sales are expected to grow by 56% to a whopping $8.1 trillion. As a result, ecommerce has become the premier space for innovative brands to start and grow their reach—that includes you.

The competition is growing, which means you need to make ecommerce growth a priority for your business. In this article, we’ll share with you the latest ecommerce tips to grow your brand in 2024.

11 Ecommerce Tips for 2024 Success

You may have started in the ecommerce industry to build a revolutionary new brand, expand your market reach, or make some side cash. But no matter the reason, the pathways to ecommerce success can seem vast to any newcomer.

Don’t worry. At foundr, we’ve interviewed the most successful ecommerce business leaders on the planet, and we’re sharing their tried and true methods with you. Check out the ecommerce tips below that can make a difference for your business this year.

1. Use AI Tools (Surprise, Surprise)

2023 was definitely the year of generative AI. We even hosted a summit all about AI tools and strategies for ecommerce. So, expect AI to be a more critical part of your ecommerce business in 2024.

If you haven’t started implementing AI tools in your business, don’t worry (for now). We’re still in the early stages of the new era of AI. But your competitors likely use AI in their processes already, and if you don’t jump on the bandwagon, you will be left behind.

2. Find an Ecommerce Platform That Can Grow with You

We’ll shoot it straight with you. The ecommerce platform we recommend for setting up a store quickly and efficiently is Shopify. But just because Shopify is one of the most popular ecommerce platforms doesn’t mean it will benefit your business. Before selecting your platform, try and answer the following questions to make an informed decision.

• How many products are you planning to sell?
• How much are you willing to pay for a platform?
• Will you need accessible technical support or are you comfortable going it alone?
• Will you need imagery, video, and creative features to sell your products?
• In 5 years, how much business do you hope to have?

The key to selecting an ecommerce platform is to choose one that will grow alongside your business. You don’t want to get into a situation 6 months from now where your quick decision creates the need for an entirely new platform. The guides below will break down each ecommerce platform with its pros and cons.

3. Find a Manufacturer That Aligns with Your Values

A manufacturer for your ecommerce product is a relationship that can make or break your business. However, it can be intimidating to know where to start. And once you’re talking to manufacturers, how will you know they’re the right fit? Below are the first 3 steps you need to take when looking for a manufacturing partner.

1. Decide whether you want to make your products from scratch or go through a supplier.
2. Reach out to local manufacturers in your area.
3. Widen your net and find global manufacturers on Alibaba.

Once you’ve narrowed down your list of manufacturers, then you’ll need to ask the right questions to see if they’re going to be a valued partner for your business. Here are some manufacturing questions to ask before signing on the dotted line.

• What are the communication preferences of the manufacturer?
• What is the size of the operation?
• What are their order minimums? Will they be able to scale?
• Will you have access to different leaders within the manufacturing business?
• Have they produced similar products to the one you’re requesting?
• Are you looking to create an original product and control intellectual property?
• Does the manufacturer treat their employees fairly?
• Does the manufacturer use sustainable processes or ingredients?
• Can you visit the manufacturing plant?

It may seem like overkill to be this thorough when you have a launch deadline looming or are struggling to get your product made, but this decision will have consequences—both good and bad. Take it from skincare entrepreneur Sarah Muir.

Sarah fired her manufacturer right before a product launch because they weren’t honest about meeting the sustainability standards she had set. Sarah bounced back and found a better manufacturer that allowed her to launch Palm & Pine Skincare with 2 original formulations and control all intellectual property.

4. Review Your Market Product Fit

Gretta van Riel started 4 multimillion-dollar ecommerce brands and knew how to find the right market for her products. Her strategy reverses the traditional business saying of “product market fit” to “market product fit” when building a new ecommerce brand.

Why? Because you may have a great product idea, but if you blow your budget before identifying the correct market fit, then your business will collapse before it begins. Gretta says:

“New entrepreneurs think that their product is so amazing and it’ll appeal to anyone. Therefore, their target market is everyone. Nobody can afford to market to everybody. So to get more ROI (return on investment) out of your marketing, you need to find the group of people who your offer is the most compelling for.”

Don’t freak out if you’ve made the mistake of marketing to everyone everywhere. Instead, take time to look at the customer data you have or create customer personas of the potential people you’re hoping to reach. Think about the demographics and psychographics of your target market.

Using Demographics and Psychographics

Demographics are data related to population groups and how they’re organized. Demographics include age, race, ethnicity, gender, marital status, income, education, and employment.

Psychographics are data related to the attitudes and psychological behaviors of people. Psychographics include personality traits, lifestyle, interests, opinions, beliefs, and emotional reactions.

Use demographic and psychographic factors to create customer avatars to discover your market product fit. For example:

“Married women, ages 25-45, with full-time jobs, who like to hike, and support environmental groups.”

5. Launch or Relaunch a Product

Whether you’ve recently started your ecommerce brand or are on year 3 looking to expand, launching or relaunching a product is the perfect way to build momentum with customers and generate profit.

The problem many young entrepreneurs face is how to tell those customers that there’s a product offer available. The key is providing value.

That may look different if you’re launching a new product or reintroducing a classic. So, here are tips to make your ecommerce product stand out to new and loyal customers alike.

• Release the Vault: Do you have old products lying around your storage closet or warehouse? Chances are you have customers that love the product or missed out the first time. Release the products with scarcity value. Create a marketing campaign with messaging like “one-time only sale,” “limited time only,” or “from the archives.” Fans of your brand will be delighted to see classics available again, and newcomers will be able to discover new purchase options.
• Build the Hype: The internet goes crazy every time a new Marvel movie trailer is released, and this fandom behavior can work for your brand as well. Tease a new product with subtle messaging on your social platforms, give your email subscribers early access, or add a presale button to the product page. The more excitement you build around a product launch, the more likely your customers will commit to ordering.
• Target Customer Behaviors: If you’ve made a robust email list or customer database, utilize the data to target products people will be interested in. You can provide an exclusive discount to loyal customers, or share upsell offers to repeat purchasers. Use their purchasing behaviors to predict what products align with their desires.