Marketing for E-Commerce Portals in 2020

Thanks to the immense e-commerce growth in the market even with limited capital it is easy to set up a retail business.

It is estimated that 95% of purchases will be made online in 2040.

Structurally launching an eCommerce platform can be a huge milestone achievement for your brand.

And the prospect is massive!

However, to make a mark you need to devise a well-prepared marketing strategy.

The competition is really tough so to get inside the mind of everyday consumers, you need to understand what they expect and look for when shopping online.

In 2017, eCommerce had a sale of $2.3 trillion & it is expected to double up around $4.5 trillion by 2021.

How to build out a marketing strategy for the eCommerce platform?

Plan out your goals & objectives

Be specific & most importantly REALISTIC in your goals.

This will give you a quantitative number to compare once you start executing the plan.

Some of the key areas you need to be focusing on are:

  • Sales percentage
  • Number of leads that need to be generated
  • The rate of conversion.

Also, a few other goals need to be set up at the very beginning.

  • What is the purpose of this company?
  • What is that you are offering?
  • Who you are offering that product to?

Digging into the demographics

Now, after you have set out goals, your primary job would be targeting customers.

If reports are to be believed, millennials & Gen X are the biggest online shoppers, with over 67% of millennials and 56% of Gen Xers preferring to shop online versus in a brick-and-mortar store.

Also, these are demographics who spend more than 50% more time shopping online.

Interestingly, men indulge in high-priced items such as electronics, gears & said to have spent around $220 per transaction compared to $151 per transaction for women!

And you thought only women are addicted to shopping!

So, knowing your customers is as important as selling quality products. The more you know about your consumers, the better you can market your products and services and boost online revenue.

Understanding customer behavior pattern

Once the demographics are in place, it is time to understand the shopping pattern of your customers.

A good business always takes care of the customers; their likes, dislikes, purchasing power, preferences, even their social media behavior.

This will eliminate the possibility of inefficient campaigns that waste money targeting low-converting, unqualified individuals.

Did you know that booze apparently plays a major role in making online purchases? That’s right.

Apparently, men ended up being more than twice as likely to make purchases under such conditions, with 14% reporting to have done so.

Statistics also reveal that 43% of online shoppers have reported making purchases while in bed & 20% of them reported to shop while on the commute.

Payment methods

With around 57% of online shoppers shopping from oversees sellers at least once, the eCommerce marketplace is thriving ever than before.

Haven’t you noticed that all the major sites like Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra has multiple payment options?

Look, when talking globally credit cards are the preferred method of payment, being used in 53% of transactions, followed by digital payment systems (43%) and debit cards (38%).

Payment Methods
Payment Methods

But when it comes to areas like China and Western Europe, the preferred method is digital payments while cash in mostly preferred in Eastern Europe, Africa, India, and the Middle East.

Platforms for distribution & awareness

After you have done all the research necessary you need to think about the platforms where you want your portal to be.

Think about distribution- the packing, pricing, delivery teams, shipping methods, return policies, etc.

Moreover, for promotions which platforms you will use- social media marketing, Search Engine Marketing, Email Marketing, Per-per-Click, Display ads, Content marketing; the possibility is endless.

How to promote your brand on eCommerce channels?

Whether you are a B2B marketer or B2C eCommerce has a mindblowing amount of prospects if promoted properly.

Social media marketing

Have you heard of the term social shopping?

Social shopping is what happens when eCommerce meets social media.

Reports say that around 74% of the consumers rely on social media networks for purchasing. Additionally, 56% of users that follow brands on social media do so to view products.

One advantage of eCommerce is that your websites are highly visual & have a lot of products to show off.

So your success on social media depends on your use of imagery to drive attention and traffic to your product pages.

Instagram can be a very useful tool for eCommerce businesses. It enables you to post a sharp quality photo while creating a personalized aesthetic for your brand!

Instagram
Instagram

Role of content marketing

Content marketing is the biggest buzz word for the marketing industry today.

Unfortunately, a lot of brands dismiss content marketing by just assuming it to be limited to blogging or social media content.

But content means to improve your website’s ranking in search engines and answer questions related to your industry.

Content is EVERYTHING.

From ad copy to blogs, videos, website content guest posts. And as long as it is unique, original & SEO friendly content marketing is the way to improve your brand position in the market.

Suggestively, content based on Pareto’s 80/20 rule, which means that your promotions should comprise 80% informational content, and 20% promotional content.

Content Marketing
Content Marketing

For example, if you are brand selling wedding lehengas; Google’s search for “Haldi ceremony dresses” is more likely to produce product pages like yours if you’ve included that term on the page. This is called creating an optimized ad copy.

Search Engine Marketing

SEM includes both SEO & paid advertising. While SEO relies on your knowledge of Google’s ranking algorithm to optimize content, SEM can also have PPC campaigns, display ads or product-specific ads.

This is why e-commerce marketers often register with Google AdWords and promote their product pages through PPC campaigns.

What are some of the newer trends in eCommerce marketing?

Chatbots

According to data, more than 60% of the customers said to have preferred digital self-serve tools like websites, apps, or chatbots to answer their simple inquiries.

The primary reason chatbots are so popular is that it often takes far too long to speak to a real person when a customer calls a company. Chatbots are faster which means that inquiries are being dealt with significantly more quickly, with the average wait time to access a chat session being 45 seconds.

If predictions are right, then by 2020, 80% of the eCommerce businesses are said to be using chatbots.

Voice Assistance or Virtual Assistance

Voice searches are getting more popular these days.

Remember the new Lenskart app ad? Yes, that’s how VR technology is working.

It’s also estimated that there will be 21.4 million smart speakers by 2020. Voice commerce sales reached $1.8 billion last year, with the potential to reach $40 billion in 2020.

Personalization & Location

Personalization is the practice of creating personal experiences for the customers. This is done by a series of tailored recommendations based on data such as search queries, browsing behavior, purchase history, and geolocation.

Overall, 22% of consumers say they are satisfied with the level of personalization that they are currently receiving.

Another benefit of personalization is that it helps to grow your business rapidly. This is partly because 75% of customers are most likely to buy from a retailer that recognizes them by name and recommends products based on previous purchases.

Staying with the current trend is crucial for any eCommerce site.

Also, even if you have an offline store, maintaining an active online page is vital to deliver results & increase your brand value to the customers.

Make sure to monitor your website to keep it on the right track!

Need any assistance for your eCommerce business? Contact Skyram Technologies for building a tailor-made online strategy for your business goals!

Also, for more such blogs, read here!

Marketing for Hospitals in 2020

In the healthcare industry, every employee works with an individual goal to provide selfless service to the patients.

The “customers” here are patients who are in dire need of medical assistance for various health-related issues.

Therefore the marketing strategies of a hospital can be slightly different from others. You don’t want to market like a fast-food chain brand using an insane amount of Instagram & collaborating with top-notch influencers.

That would make your organization look like a business center!

According to statistics, 94% of healthcare patients use online reviews to evaluate providers

Therefore, in this overtly competitive market, marketing & self- promotion digitally has become a necessity.

Also, Google says that 47% of Internet users search for information about doctors or other health professionals.

Here are some of the basics you need to consider as marketing strategies for your healthcare center.

Analyzing your marketing needs

As we always say that research is the foremost necessity of any marketing strategy & it takes a lot of time. In the U.S. alone, healthcare advertising spending is expected to increase by 5% in both 2020 and 2021.

This is because of the rise in disease, healthcare needs or maybe because people are now much more aware of the health condition than before.

Your research should be able to provide:

  • The “need”
  • Your target patients, as in income group, gender, etc.

In the healthcare industry, one can create demand for a service just by analyzing the market’s needs and increasing its awareness.

Positioning your brand in the market

Today, promoting your brand isn’t enough.

Studies say that consumers researching physical therapists, nursing homes, and optometrists are the most likely to use search engines. With major hospitals, 60% of the consumers are likely to get admitted to hospitals that have a good brand position.

To position your brand in front of the public eye the hospital brand enters, with educating the public through their marketing activities in branding and promotions, that such prevalence requires intervention and that ‘we’ are here with its solution.

Understanding public value

Here the patients need to engage with your brand.

Look, 81% of consumers are unsatisfied with their healthcare experience.

Doing consumer research to make them understand your uniqueness of the brand.

Take reviews very seriously. 84% of consumers trust reviews as much as personal recommendations. So word-of-mouth can be a trusting tool for you for the promotion of your organization.

For instance, your hospital can come up with special health checkups once a while for women’s breast cancer or PCOD.

Use social media wisely

The whole world is on social media.

But for a healthcare facility, random social media posts & videos can create a negative impression among potential patients.

Of course with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter you can create brand awareness but the subject is the main focus.

Start with a campaign based on social issues, creating awareness pages, patients reviews. You need to keep it real as much as possible.

With hospitals, you cannot afford to make a “fantasy” world with your social media marketing strategies.

According to studies, it only takes 1-6 online reviews for potential patients to form an opinion about your practice.

Creating a responsive website

One of the first things millennials generally do is to search about a hospital online & visit their website.

So just by building a website with loads & loads of information isn’t enough.


Focus on giving patients useful health information to take better care of themselves and their families. Publish weekly blogs; a good idea is to talk about various preventive measures.

Apart from that, online assistance 24*7, query redressal, feedbacks, testimonials, consultant’s information, their availability, should be able to make your website responsive & efficient.

For instance, you can also try to integrate online appointment systems.

Focus on internal marketing as well

Your organization is only as good as your employees.

And people working in this tireless job day & night are also representing your brand to the public. Internal marketing comes into play with the integration of these values through campaigns to align all employees to represent your brand value.

Focus on your HR to make sure that all the employees have a good time working at your hospital.

Email marketing

Emails are effective when you are trying to have a personal connection with your patients.

Maintaining a subscriber email & are helpful information with your patients. Wishing birthdays, creating a reminder for their appointments, relevant newsletters are some of the ways to maintain a personal bond with your patients.

Keep a realistic expectation

The nature of strategic plans is to achieve quantifiable goals. For each service line or marketing campaign, include performance indicators that can be monitored and managed from baseline to conclusion.

Your goals should be firm but strategies should be flexible.

The digital market is quite unpredictable. So keep your strategies in such a way that can be adaptable to the situation.

For hospitals, the strategies are often complex & dynamic. It is always better to have a concrete understanding of the market.

For hospitals, it is best to hire a professional digital marketing agency that can handle all the whimsy nature of the market.

Want some assistance? Contact Skyram Technologies for a concrete marketing plan suited for your business needs.

And for more such blogs keep reading here!

Marketing For Restaurants

The food industry is no blunt when it comes to variety.

Restaurants can range from a dollar meal to elite chef’s special meals. How is this industry so alive and thriving for some and not for others?

Have you ever noticed that some restaurants get a lot of business with mediocre food, whereas others with excellent quality food is lacking in the amount of business they deserve?

Do you have a restaurant that serves awesome quality food?

That is great! But you know what that alone won’t bring you, customers.

According to recent stats, 52% of the consumers prefer to spend money on an experience, such as a restaurant.

Therefore, it is evident that people prefer to go out to eat rather than shopping.

In the U.S alone, 4% of the GDP came from restaurants alone in 2019!

Talking about the Indian market alone, the Indian restaurant industry employed 7.3 million people in 2018-19. That’s a huge number!

Food Industry
Food Industry

Now, you can definitely ask, how technology & marketing will amplify the restaurant industry?

Well, 90% of guests make research a restaurant online before actually going there.

So your presence online & not just a mere presence, your visibility, engagement definitely matters when it comes to customer experience.

Today we will discuss how internet marketing can build a brand identity for restaurants.

What role do restaurant discovery platforms play?

Portals like Zomato, Swiggy or Yelp are the primary source of finding restaurants, not only for ordering in but for dining.

Yelp
Yelp

Around 73 million monthly mobile web visitors visit Yelp. For Zomato it is around 80 million active users per month.

The idea is to appear in front of your target audience where they are likely to be looking for you.

If you miss out on these major portals, frankly in today’s stiff competition, someone else is ready to take your place!

The Role of SEO

The keyword ‘restaurants near me‘ has round about 7,480,000 monthly searches on Google.

Therefore you can very well understand the importance of SEO. Now, for SEO alone, restaurants can be hard as sites like Zomato or Yelp dominate most of them. But you can do a lot of things like having a blog and regularly publishing interesting content. Make sure it is keyword specific to get the wanted ranking.

How to increase customer engagement?

Don’t ignore customer reviews

12.5% of diners will post a review about the restaurant after their meal, according to Finance Online.

Also, it has been observed that most people post bad reviews much quicker than good ones. Well, do not ignore the reviews.

Popular surveys claim that, when you ask, 70% of consumers will leave a review for your business. So, the idea is to ask!

A lot of restaurants lose customers due to lackluster response towards their customers. Replying particularly to the negative ones will add to your credibility & show that you can accept criticism.

Social media engagement

As of 2017, an average global internet user spends about 135 minutes per day on social media, said Statista.

Most restaurants have a social media account.

Social Media for Restautants
Social Media for Restaurants

However, when it comes to creating specific visual content, they somehow lack ideas.

Look, food is something you relish on.

Arguably one of the best platforms to promote restaurants is Instagram!

260 million+ Instagram posts use the hashtag #food, according to Biz Journal.

Food in Instagram
Food in Instagram

With high-quality drool-worthy photos, you have your half battle won. Consider hiring a pro to take some top-notch photographs, or try it DIY style with your smartphone.

Indulge in shot videos of getting the food ready, or Call to Action buttons directly linked to your website with the social media handles so that customers have easier access in order.

You can also try to collaborate with influencers or food bloggers & let them promote your business.

67% of restaurants are planning to use social media advertising in 2019.

The importance of Online ads

Paid online marketing strategy is very common among the restaurants.

It helps you display your brand to your prospects and get direct traffic on your online food ordering platform. Also, special offers and discounts at your restaurant can be promoted through these advertisements.

Particularly, if you are new in the business then the effectiveness of digital ads can be very effective in building a traffic base for your restaurant.

The easiest way to indulge is Google Adwords with low content, high visual ads.

Building a food ordering app

Many restaurants are focusing on developing their own app rather than using a third-party.

With mobiles becoming popular among the millennials, ordering through apps is expected to grow in the coming years.

Make sure that your app has:

  • Easy to sign up & login.
  • Has a good availability on iOS, Android & Windows stores.
  • Has good content with high SEO.
  • Responsive with high-speed limit.

Why target the Millenials?

Because millennials have gradually passed the baby boomers in terms of buying powers. According to the USA today, 54% of them go out at least thrice a week to eat.

So easily your target demography should be them. 53% of millennials look for new experiences when picking a place to eat.

Picking your audience & promoting to them is essential.

Restaurants are not the easiest things to run. There is a need to experiment with new cuisines, competition, & other developments in the food industry.

It is best for an agency to handle all your promotional matters. Contact Us at Skyram Technologies for a tailor-made digital solution for your business.

Also, for other blogs on marketing, read here!

Marketing For Educational Institutions

The terms marketing & education may sound ridiculous to some of you. As education is supposed to a novel & selfless job which shouldn’t be perceived as a business institution.

However, with so many competitors in the market, promoting educational institutions has become a necessity. Otherwise, how will people know to get information about your institution?

Also, we believe that if you are providing something of quality, you deserve proper audience & clients!

Due to the expanding scope of technology and the newer skill-sets that it demands, the main focus of higher education courses has shifted towards being more practical, industry-relevant, employment-oriented and suiting corporate demands.

Now, conventional offline form of marketing is there, of course, but it can cost a fortune!

Also, in today’s time more & more people prefer digital advertisements as digital marketing is becoming more dominant and prominent in persuading the target group.

Especially for higher education, online marketing has become more relevant, as students between 18 to 24 are the ones who are most active on the internet.

Now to some of the ways to promote your educational institution.

How to attract the students to your educational institution through social media marketing?

Here is simple math.

For a higher educational institution, the student group would be 18 to 25 as mentioned earlier, who are in general very active on social media.

Now, for institutions like kids school, Montessori schools, their parents would be pre Millenials around 35 to 37 age groups, who are well accustomed to digital media.

So anyway, social media marketing is a platform for you to start promoting your institution!

SMM is part of digitization that lures the target audience more easily and instantly.

You can start with the bid daddies- Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn.

It will be much less expensive to even go for promotions or ads on Facebook.

With Instagram, start with building a sketch on how you want your page to look like. Then post pictures, videos of various functions activities, recreations on the page.

You can create events on social media, inform the public to send out invitations!

Majority of the youngsters have their presence on Twitter, Facebook. They can even create groups & invite more & more people.

Parent Interaction Is Essential

Just like for a restaurant, their customer engagement is crucial, with your institution, it is the parents who are the essential audience.

Parents will play a pivotal role in expanding your organization & making it more popular, so organize activities, like Q & A, regular emails, newsletters to interact with them!

How to make use of the website?

All of us know the importance of a website.

Even if you have one, make it user-friendly as much as possible. With most educational institutions, there is a rigidness that comes with designing the website.

Make it in such a way where people actually enjoy going through it.

The Use Of Chatbots

Chatbots are a great way to lead generation. These are Artificial Intelligence (AI driven) method to interact with your website visitors.

Use them for inquiries, forms & others.

Mobile Optimized Website

In terms of accessing a website, mobile users have long surpassed laptop or computer users. Mobile is heavily popular among students.

Hence, to counter that make your website mobile-friendly. Make sure that your website is around 80 to 90 units in the mobile speed test. Check it in sites like GTmetrix or Google PageSpeed Insights.

How to increase the traffic on the website?

In a successful digital marketing strategy, quality content plays a massive role in generating traffic.

Quality Content

Just writing random kinds of stuff for traffic isn’t good enough right now. Make sure your content has certain relevancy to it along with focused towards generating more traffic and enhancing rankings.

The right amount of keyword will help to make your page more visible to the audience!

On-page SEO

It is an indisposable ingredient of every digital marketing strategy. After all, SEO can actually make your page visible on search engines.

Perfectly scrutinized SEO can actually add a lot to your brand value.

Why it is important to have a remarketing strategy?

Remarketing for any kind of organization is highly in demand.

Remarketing campaigns require a lot of research, database & inside analysis.

Re-targeting your audience

One of the major advantages of retargeting is that it will allow you to reach out to those students who have shown a little interest in your institution.

It may be slow, but can be very effective. Once you get a grasp of what is lacking, you can work on & start promoting in a fresh new manner.

Email campaigns

Email marketing has a high rate of generating quality lead & conversion. Also, it can be a useful tool for remarketing strategy. You can send emails about admission news, newsletters, upcoming events, and recent blogs to your subscribers. However, you need to be careful while sending out emails to your subscribers.

However, be careful about your content. You don’t want to be marked as spam.

Ad Placements

Once you know your target audience, you can indulge in PPC ads on relevant web pages. For instance, if you have started a new data management program, you can place the ad in a data management website or blog, which will be visited by a potential student.

Also, display ads on websites like Shiksha can be quite beneficial for you.

Now, to be honest, going for a fully prepared marketing strategy all by yourself can be daunting as the competition is very stiff.

It is always better to hire a digital marketing agency where things can be done more effectively & with much less cost.

Want some guidance? Contact Us at Skyram Technologies.

We will provide a perfect tailor-made plan for your online market. Also, for more such blogs read here!

Digital Media & Cosmetic Surgery Among Minors

Thanks to the ever-trending Snapchat & Instagram pretty filters, it has made girls realize that you need specific few features- a fuller “Kylie Jenner” lips, large doe-eyes, crystal clear to look beautiful.

A survey from the American Academy of Facial and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS) featured by Time found that surgeons had seen a 31% increase in patients requesting surgery to look better online.

The grave situation is that the amount has increased at a staggering rate among the minors.

Some 229,000 cosmetic procedures were performed on patients aged 13 to 19 in 2017. Cosmetic surgery procedures at large jumped 11% in 2017, with patients spending more than $6.5 billion.

And believe it or not, digital media especially social media has a lot to do with it.

Plastic Surgery in Developing Teens

A major concern about plastic surgery on adolescents is that teen bodies developed throughout those years. There are several pieces of research that have been carried out to understand the risk of giving minors plastic surgery.

What is more annoying is that this has begun to transform into a cultural phenomenon, like a television show on surgical makeovers to procreate the idea of “perfect figure” into young girls.

Do you remember how many girls want those Kylie Jenner lips back in 2016? They were going through lip fillers, botox. Some even tried to suck some bottle cap, injuring themselves badly.

With that one confession, Kylie actually made getting fillers & botox “okay” among teenagers.

The Risk of Cosmetic surgery

Imagine a 10-year-old boy going through breast implant, liposuction, and genital plastic surgery to turn “pretty”. Or a 7-year-old girl going through treatments in order to be a model?

Sounds horrific right? But not too many parents apparently.

Studies have concluded that parents themselves fund thousands of dollars on these wishes.

But you can imagine that someone going through such surgeries obviously will have severe effects on the body. Most girls have at least one serious complication within the first 3 years, including infection, hematomas, & seromas.

For example, doing a breast implant on a 7-year-old girl will hamper the milk ducts that are yet to develop in her body. This can lead to capsular contracture.

Also, breast implants can last for 10 years, so an adolescent will require a repeated number of procedures throughout her lifetime in order to make herself “attractive”.

Also, there was a steady rise in liposuction among minors, especially in America. Liposuction also carries potentially serious risks. Primary risks include infection, damage to the skin, nerves, or vital organs, fat or blood clots that can eventually lead to death as an excessive amount of fluid loss can make the body go in shock; a lot for a teenager’s body to handle.

The difference between reconstructive surgery & cosmetic surgery

Yes, there is a huge, huge difference between the two!

Elaine Ducharme, Ph.D., a board-certified clinical psychologist, explained,

“Plastic surgery can involve reconstruction of a body part to correct certain types of defects, such as birthmarks, cleft lips, ear deformities and other things such as scars from burns or animal bites,”

Now how it is different from cosmetic surgery?

Well, Dr. Ducharme said, “Another type of surgery, generally referred to as cosmetic, is done to make a person feel more satisfied with their body and appearance. This type of surgery includes breast implants, tummy tucks, rhinoplasty, and others.”

The impact of digital media in this epidemic

Nowadays, we capture & document each & every aspect of our lives.

Inevitably, there is a strong correlation between social media & the way we see us!

With its many boons, social media has also brought about an unprecedented wave of digital “self-love” reflected in selfies and other social images.

There are people who want to look like their favorite “filters” as well. Yes, can you believe that?

Individuals can also take advantage of various social apps to dictate how they are perceived by others – for better or worse.

For instance, say a girl with chubby cheeks & curly hair. It would have been a minor problem in the past but now, thanks to social media & the whole “sleek” look trend going on she may have trouble being the “popular girl” or be called a “fatty”.

This constant pressure by the peers, her idols, maybe even her family will make her think that she needs to have a facelift!

Teens basically except that getting a few surgeries may improve their self-confidence. But does it actually help?

There is no proof of that happening!

In fact, it may be detrimental at times. Psychology says that people at the age of 11 to 16 often have difficulty with their body, but it gets better when they reach around 18.

Also, surgeries at such a naïve age may make them dissatisfied later in life which will lead to another set of surgeries or worse, to remove the implants or whatever the procedure has been done!

Celebrities influencing to embrace plastic surgery among minors?

When you hear that your favorite actresses like Kaley Coco, Robin Wright, even Lisa Kudrow, Kylie Jenner, Khloe Kardashian; the royalties of Hollywood are receiving plastic surgery at their teens; obviously you want to follow their footsteps!

On average, a Millennial will take up to 25,700 selfies during their lifetime.

But good or bad, social media influence is here to stay.

The decision is with the parents to get more information. Look, it is okay to make changes if it is what you want, but if you’re just trying to impress others, it might not be needed but has a certain age & with lots of information.

Use social media for positive changes. Looking beautiful is your choice but what is more important is to love yourself first.

Understand that at what age you are in & that your body will go through many changes. Informed consent would enable teens and their parents to decide carefully what is best for them.

How do you feel about minors getting cosmetic surgeries? Tell us at Skyram Technologies.

Also, for more such blogs read here!

Marketing For Pseudoscience

What comes to your mind when I say astrology? Or palmistry?

You would say horoscopes right? Or fate?

Some of you would also say these are utter rubbish as it has no “scientific evidence”. But let me tell you that science is not just about a scholar in a lab, wearing a white coat & doing experiments using chemicals.

Science is an idea & ideas have no limit. And where “traditional science” ends, philosophy starts.

No don’t worry, we won’t be giving you lectures about beliefs & philosophy of life, we simply want to give you an idea of pseudoscience & its marketing prospectives.

A World Beyond Proven Science

Science is an imaginative process, creative process.

The word science is often misunderstood that it needs to be “proved”.

Logical science is skeptical.

After all, the marketing world, unlike the physical world, is constantly changing. In fact, it changes reflexively, so the more successful a strategy is, the less likely it is to work as well next time. The data point we most often miss is ourselves.

And for us marketers, good science-based with a lot of uncertainty is the perfect recipe!

How to market Pseudoscience?

Pseudoscience can be of different types. There is palmistry, astrology which is widely popular and these have a specific audience.

Finding Your Niche

Pseudo-Science businesses are numerous and competitive. With its numerous branches, it can be a task to find your own audience.

Obviously, the audience will come from the specific branch of pseudoscience that you are dealing with.

Like if you are an Astrologer, you need demography who are interested in the subject. Keep in mind that not only believers but also curious people who are into it just for knowledge can also be your target audience.

Studying the subject

Look, pseudoscience needs a lot of research as it is mainly based on theory & observations.

To draw customers one must know their subject very well. Do not expect your audience to be stupid enough to get convinced with everything you say.

As I said earlier, good science always asks questions & faces criticism. So study your field hard. One such successful Astrologer is Susan Miller, who has over 6 million visitors each month on her website.

Another astrologer is Rob Brezsny. His well-known “Free Will Astrology” website and email newsletter have attracted many clients, because Brezsny specializes in finding the most optimistic spin on weekly astrological trends, encouraging clients to view themselves as free agents in the universe. All of these people have immense followers because they exactly know what they are talking about!

Free Services

If you know the subject & want to get loyal customers, you need to give something out for free. Even Rajat Nayar gives away free information.

Many astrologers even coach classes for free to draw clients into exploring more complex situations.

How to market a Psudeoscience Website?

Online marketing for Pseudoscience is not an easy job there are a lot of fake astrologers, palmists, numerologists who may have all flashy websites but not aware of the subject at all.

There are people who will write your entire life for a mere amount. But authentic pseudoscience is not that easy. It requires a lot of studying & observation to find the most accurate information about a single person.

Some of the ways to market pseudoscience

Keyword Research

This is important for all types of online businesses. Proper usage of keywords will help you to get the traffic you are looking for making your page rank higher on Google.

Google My Business

Pseudoscience is a location-based business.

If you have a center or office for your business it is a necessity for any location-based business to have a listing on Google My Business.

And make sure to promote it! When people will search for “palmists near me” “astrologer near me” they will be able to see your page listed on the map!

Social media engagement

Social media has a huge potential for customer engagement be it any business.

Remember, there will be a lot of negative feedback as there is an expected amount of skepticism regarding pseudoscience.

However, to find the exact demography & target them social media management is a very important aspect. You can start by giving them weekly predictions or live streaming on a specific subject.

Content marketing

To market pseudoscience content is a must. It needs to have a little bit of mystical flare embalmed with modern spirituality.

A study from 2018 conducted by Vice and Insight Strategy Group found that religion is on the decline with young people, but 80 percent have a sense of spirituality and believe in some sort of cosmic power.

So to engage your audience you have to think beyond just zodiacs & elements.

The good thing about pseudoscience is that it can be a vast subject so the prospect is massive as well.

Generate interesting unusual facts videos or blogs with a lot of mystical elements to attract new customers.

Spin-off projects

The spread of the Internet has enabled astrologers to find more clients by branching out into spin-off projects.

So as an astrologer you can also collaborate with a numerologist or make spin-off products. For example, Llewellyn, one of the oldest metaphysical publishing companies in the United States, now provides an affiliate program that gives astrologers commissions in exchange for links to Llewellyn products placed on their websites.

But of course, for that, you need to grow your own brand at first.

The Next Generation

As much as people like to disregard pseudoscience it is now becoming mainstream with more & more people taking an interest.

There is a wellness center for yoga, acupuncture, alternative medicines to heal the body from inside.

After all, everything is not voodoo!

If you have the right knowledge you can find the right customer with the help of digital marketing.

It is better to go for an internet marketing agency to find a unique marketing plan for your business.

These experts will know how to handle your target customers, generate quality leads, conversions & brand building.

Want some help? Contact Us at Skyram Technologies. We will guide you through all the digital marketing plans for your business growth!

Also, for more marketing blogs, read here!

Marketing For Offline Retail – Supermarkets In 2020

On this day when the online retail store is growing massively, with automation & VR technologies; offline supermarkets are finding it hard to hold on to its original charm.

In the U.S alone around 7,062 stores got closed in 2019 due to the craze of online retail stores.

Online Competition

An article in Economic Times said that despite strong consumer economy malls are closing more than ever. Already this year retailers have announced over 1,200 more intended closings, including 125 Macy’s stores.

Some people are calling it “the retail apocalypse”!

It is very evident that after stores like Amazon & Flipkart, consumer behavior has changed rapidly even towards big brands like Walmart or Target.

Even in India, the craze for Spencers or Big Bazaar has lowered.

Consumers are now enjoying shopping on mobile phones while at their jobs, which allows them to multi-task & avoid going to the stores.

Also, people of all ages especially the millennials & post-millennials are gradually shifting their spending preferences from things to experience. They want their shopping experience to be fun rather than a routine job.

And here is why online retail stores are outperforming supermarkets with new offers, new technologies, and newer experiences.

Now, does that mean this is the end of offline retail stores?

No, of course not!

They just need a revamp of their marketing strategies.

How can offline retail stores attract customers?


Leverage the potential of Immersive Technology

Do you know you can actually blend the good of both worlds into your supermarket?

A great example of this is IKEA, where they have started using VR technology. So basically when someone arrives at their showroom & opens the app, they guide their customers through VR technology.

This way it can be a fun experience for your customers earning you huge engagements.

Opt for personalization

Personalization is the key to any business nowadays.

It can be as simple as customized newsletters through mails. Or a simple gift card of something in their wishlist!

Have you seen those mails from Swiggy? How they are cumulated as if they are talking to you personally?

As 80% of consumers are more likely to buy from companies that cater to their interests, it’s obvious that personalization counts for a lot.

The secret is to form a bond with your customers, letting them know that you are listening like a friend!

And that can only be achieved through data.

Use Data Insights

This is where most supermarkets lack.

Online retails like Amazon or Myntra use numerous data insights not only target demographic. They have patterns of everything, from customer favorites, shopping patterns, likes, dislikes.

As annoying as it may sound, but it helps to bring out the best shopping experience among the people. Offline marketing campaigns can suffer as companies make poor choices based on assumptions rather than hard data.

Personalization can only happen when you have the proper analysis behind it. Hire an agency if you need to understand your customers better!

Discounts & Offers

Discounts don’t always need to be heavy. They just have to be relevant and compelling enough to prompt people to act.

Temporary price reductions also work. A reduction of 20% will do the job because the tag will attract attention.

This will get the customers to buy more.

Another way to help convince customers to buy more of your product at a time is to position it as a multiuse product.

Use Social Media

Social media can help a brand demonstrate multiple uses of a product.

Like with Pretzel Crisp’s Finger Food Friday recipes on Facebook used different ways of using the food.

Another brand who has started an active social media marketing campaign would be Big Bazaar. They have recently started uploading cooking videos, looks on their social media page to engage more customers. A social media strategy for your grocery store can bring your community together and give your store a voice it never had before.

Understand The Importance Of Mobile Marketing

Data in Statistics show that 80% of millennials sleep with their phone nearby & averagely Americans spend upwards of 4.5 hours on their smartphone every day.

So it might be a high time to direct your marketing campaign towards mobile shoppers. Businesses can also leverage the love of mobile by using beacon technology in their stores, transmitting messages to customer’s devices as they move around the store.

Local Search Engine Optimization

SEO is very important for any business, but gaining visibility on a local level.

Look, there are many different areas your grocery store or supermarket should be listed to gain the maximum local SEO.

The optimum amount of PR is also essential to gain more likeliness in your community.

Balancing is the key

It is easy to just shrug off but in reality, with so much digital transformation, it is understandable to observe a shift in the market.

But despite that, after all a people’s business, so having an enjoyable experience is what the customers expect.

Marketers need to look for ways in which their online and offline channels can complement each other so that their marketing campaigns are blended together. And that can be achieved through better research, database & insights.

How are you planning to implement an internet marketing strategy in your business? Need some help? Contact Us at Skyram Technologies & let us guide you through a personalized online business plan.

Also, for more such blogs read here!

Marketing for Automobile Industry in 2020

The automobile sector is an ever-evolving industry with tons of new advanced models coming up in the market every now & then. After a slowdown in 2019, the market is expected to grow with over 60 new launches.

Moreover, with the collaboration of smartphones, the internet, and digital trends the future of the automobile industry is going to be incredible.

With digitalization, the industry is changing rapidly. If reports are to be believed, 95% of vehicle buyers use digital as a source of information.

How digitalization is influencing the automobile industry?

A recent study mentions that almost 84% of the automobile consumers are active on Facebook, while 66% of the car owners/buyers responded to Facebook ads.

Online media is transforming into a research platform for automotive purchases.

Statistics actually say that 39% of this research can last upto almost sixteen weeks.

Some of the newest trends in the automotive industry are:

Quality over affordability

Look quality is a subjective term, as it can mean different things to different people.

People are now preferring to spend a little more bucks given that the quality is to their preference. It is important for brands to understand what their target audience is liking.

For instance, a survey in Malaysia and Singapore cared more about ‘Innovative products or services’ in auto brands than those in other countries.

Brands need to do research to produce quality products which are upto their standards in the region they are targeting.

Customer service

Customer service is one of the main criteria with around 10% of the people choosing a brand mainly because of its servicing.

When in the automotive industry, if something goes wrong company needs to garner favor with the customer with warm interactions.

The negative review mainly goes when people have a hard time with dealerships, warranties, fixing things and things not working were big topics of discussion.

The impact of IoT (Internet of Things)

IoT is a highly innovative technology in the automobile industry which has led to being termed as “connected car”. It is set to dominate the list of essential things connected to the internet.

IoT is leading the industry towards a more data-enabled service. Not only this but it is also enhancing performances by installing tracking sensors in automobiles.

Ultimately, this is leading to the improvement of product quality, and also innovative and new services in the future.

Self-driving cars

While many clearly think they’re a way off, we found that 9% of consumers globally think self-driving cars will be the most transformative tech of 2020.

Today automation has reached its thriving point & countries especially the U.S is gearing towards self-driven cars for sure!

Mobility is the future

The transformation of the automation industry is so massive in a few years that it is referred to as the “mobility industry” instead of the “automobile industry”.

Experts are predicting that futuristic technology along with digital marketing will gradually turn cars into “gadgets”. New players like Google, Apple, and Cruise have started to emerge in the market whose non-traditional approaches have alerted even the well-established firms like Ford, Toyota, Daimler and Honda with the requisition to go digital.

Efforts towards sustainability

Renewable energy has been a topic of discussion in this industry for a few years.

As the climate change protest is growing in size, it seems that auto brands are here to stay. Sustainable vehicles are still outcasted in number & at times can be costly for many customers.

Internet marketing for automobiles

When marketing for the automotive industry, proper sources are important to promote any brand.

Automotive SEO

For any business, organic traffic is the backbone.

Since the buyers mostly rely on the internet for searching their preferred services. Be sure to optimize your website page and its products with effective titles and meta descriptions that help search engine crawlers in making your site stand tall in SERP results.

Look no matter what industry you are in, industry-specific SEO is important for the fast loading of your site.

Content marketing

Of course, any industry while doing promotion will require marketing. But when you are being industry-specific you need to speak their language. Providing the information related to the models, brands, their features in the form of blogs sounds great and marketing it through social media is fuel to your industry.

Every platform you are in needs to have all the required content for added benefits.

YouTube Marketing

Cars or any form of automobile marketing can be done great when it is in a video format.

Look you don’t need to have your own YouTube channel, although that would be great in the first place. But even collaborating with experts & other influencers will benefit your strategy a lot. It will have more exposure & engagement reaching millions through just sharing.

E-mail Marketing

It was found that 25% of website visits were triggered by email marketing alone.

Also, with newsletters, you can keep your clients updated about your new models, features, awards & so on. Email marketing will help you in high traffic volume & increase your sales.

In a nutshell, for an industry like automotive you need to up your game in the digital media as well. It is better to hire an agency who exactly knows how to place you in the market making it a smooth ride for you!

Want some help in making the perfect digital marketing strategy for your business? Contact Us at Skyram Technologies. Our experts will help you to reach your business goals with the perfect internet marketing solutions.

Also, for more marketing-related blogs, read here!

Tech News – Corona Virus, Apple 5G, & More

While the world is still struggling with coronavirus with new developments every day, there have been new updates in the tech world as well.

Welcome to another installment of tech news. Here are all the major updates from the tech industry.

China’s smartphone brands adapting to coronavirus restrictions

As the country is still dealing with the horrific effects of coronavirus, Xiaomi in the meantime is hosting an online-only product launch this week in an attempt to fight the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

Xiaomi founder Lei Jun, very emotionally said, “Wuhan is a city of heroes. Wuhan people are brave, confident and optimistic … Life can be affected by the epidemic, but we cannot be defeated by it,”

Live-streaming of product launches has quickly emerged as one alternative to bringing new devices to market.

To get more details, read here.

Apple to develop its own 5G antenna for iPhones

Apple is said to be working on own 5G antenna for the latest iPhone.

A close source of the company recently reported that the team doesn’t feel that Qualcomm‘s QTM-525 millimeter-wave antenna fits quite right with its sleek design of 5G phone that is said to be launching soon.

To get more details, read here.

Google has removed over 500 malicious Chrome extensions from its Web Store

After two months of investigation, security researcher Jamila Kaya, identified around 500 of Chrome installations that are injecting malicious ads within browsing sessions.

These extensions were said to be a part of huge malware operation, very much active for at least two-years, injecting conditionally-activated malicious code and redirecting users to specific sites.

A Google spokesperson said, “We appreciate the work of the research community, and when we are alerted of extensions in the Web Store that violate our policies, we take action and use those incidents as training material to improve our automated and manual analyses,”

To know more, read here.

Facebook launches Hobbi

Facebook through its NPE Team has been launching new consumer-focused apps under the developer name “NPE Team, from Facebook.”

For instance, Whale was one such app used to create memes.

Hobbi.com is owned by a gentleman in Malaysia and currently does not resolve. The app was registered in August 2019.

To know more details, read here

Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus has a fake twin

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus has been a huge success in the market.

However, recent news is that it has found itself an imitator. The fake phone is currently available on China’s Aliexpress, the Kimtien Note 10 Plus resembles very much like the Samsung phone. One of the reasons why the Galaxy Note 10 Plus did as well as it did was because of the stylus that came with the smartphone.

So it is not very surprising that a fake one would be available in just $166 dollars. Reports have it that about “tens of thousands” of units are currently available.

For more details on the news, read here.

Shadowgun War Games may replace PUBG or Call of Duty

If you had enough of PUBG or Call of Duty, then there is a new rival game around the block. Shadowgun Legends developer Madfinger has finally launched its much-awaited Shadowgun War Games. This new game is available both for Android and iOS.

Like all its peers, it is free of cost & is available to be downloaded on the App Store & Play Store.

To get more details, read here.

Apple reached a 75.6% market share in 2019 in India!

With a stellar performance of iPhone 11 and price drop on previous-generation models, the iPhone generated 75.6% premium market share of smartphones in India. According to Navkendar Singh, Research Director, IDC India, while the first half of 2019 was relatively slower for Apple, it managed to find growth in the second half.

Singh said, “It happened on the back of price drops on previous-generation iPhone models (iPhone XR, 7, 8). This, along with affordability schemes like cashback’s, EMIs especially on the e-tailer platforms during the festive quarter of Diwali, led to this growth,”

To know all the details here is the full story.

Pixel prototype leak is creating havoc in the internet

Google Pixel 5 design is creating a buzz on the internet.

The design is eye-catching but not in a positive sense. The U-shaped camera has a risk of covering the lenses while taking pictures.

Earlier Google has been often accused of copying Apple. Although Jon Prosser of Front Page Tech explains that this may not be the final design of the Pixel 5.

To read more details, read here.

Did we miss out on anything? Comment & let us know below!

Also, for more such installments of Tech News, read here!

We publish this segment every first & third Monday of the month.

Virtual Reality in Videography

We have talked quite a bit about Virtual & Augmented Reality in our blogs.

Yes, we do agree with our love for AR & VR technology this Valentine’s Day!

But the whole Virtual Reality space is just so fascinating & it is expanding at such a rate that it is impossible to keep track.

So, a couple of days back, I saw a YouTube video of Beautiful Destinations. The video was shot by a drone but the video was shot wearing a VR glass. This made the video stand out so much!

Beautiful Destinations The Bolivia Travel Guide

Every shot was so meticulous that I was awestruck. And that’s when I realized how much VR has gained importance in videography-, especially travelogues.

How the world of travel is using VR?

Virtual reality worlds can be entirely fictional or artificial creations. Top-of-the-line virtual reality setups can be costly, with headsets, controllers, and a powerful enough computer with lots of available space to consider.

The travel industry is beginning to unlock the possibility of virtual reality. A report from Grand View Research, Inc. projects that the global VR market is expected to reach $48.5 billion USD by 2025, with interest across industries ranging from gaming to healthcare to travel.

Although the quantity of travel videos with VR is quite low till now, the idea is gaining momentum.

VR Helping Travel Business To Sell Smarter

For many travelers, exploring new destinations involve a huge cost of transportation, food & lodging. VR experiences could be a powerful tool to lower those barriers.

For instance, a fully immersive 3D experience where you can walk around the property and see for yourself all it has to offer before booking.

Airlines, rails & ships are using this technology to give a preview to their customers of seats or rooms so that customers can make a more confident decision.

Similarly, hotels and resorts are beginning to use VR to show customers their rooms and amenities prior to purchase.

World-renowned travel agencies like Thomas Cook in the UK have developed VR content for their customers at their locations & as a result, they claimed to have triple-digit sales for New York vacations.

VR for Visiting Newer Attractions

VR can be used to explore venues, attractions & new places. For the outdoors traveler, VR could be used to help inform hike route planning or campsite selection for backpacking trips.

One of the most compelling attractions of virtual reality is that it has the potential to explore unseen places.

Imagine being able to explore the beautiful Putoransky Zapovednik nature preserve in Central Siberia near the Arctic Circle. The destination is otherwise heavily restricted to preserve the natural landscapes.

VR can make us reach unreachable!

The Newer Essence Of Human-Machine Interface

The primary essence of VR technology is that it is a human-machine interface at its best. The ability to enter the computer world and be a part of the digital environment is a revolutionary act.

Look, there are ways where human chats with bots, interactive voices, partners & so on. But never before there has been an experience to fully immersive in so many different levels!

Some of the best examples of VR in videography

The New York Times

They took VR into a new level altogether.

They decided to ship out Google Cardboard glasses to their subscribers so they could enjoy the release of their eighth VR production: Seeking Pluto’s Frigid Heart. They not only increased their engagement through the video, they send out glasses to their loyal customers as well.

Google Cardboard Glasses by Unbox Therapy

It was the next generation marketing move.

School of Rock

This video was done to promote a Broadway musical School of Rock. The composer Andrew Lloyd Webber released a 360° interactive music video for the song, “You’re In The Band.” From inside jokes to drawings of characters from other musicals, the video went beyond just audience engagement.

The Future Of Vr In Video Production

Developing content specifically for VR users

With an increased level of VR usage among the new generation, advertisers & marketers will have to provide content for the VR audience.

Some content will stay the same, but the interactive components such as finding items in your store, making lists, communicating with others on the platform, and similar tasks will need to be developed in a way that will work with the virtual platform.

A greater level of immersion

VR technology has massive potential for higher immersion content. For businesses or video producers, this can be a great opportunity.

This will lead to more actions that customers will perform, including a different level of conversions.

More 3D content

Obviously, for VR to come to full life, you need to be aware of the importance of 3D.

New standards will be created as far as the concepts and application of virtual reality in the future to fit the growing need for adaptation to the new technology comes to place.

Virtual Reality in eCommerce videos

With VR components that will aid in the immersive shopping experience, virtual reality will be more customer-friendly, high-tech, and effective in finding the customer what they want.

Also, with more & more video-oriented content in the market, the future of e-commerce is inevitably VR videos for a greater experience.

This will increase the shopping experience as well. Future shoppers are said to be shopping using VR glasses.

In the end, as far as video production goes, VR can be an excellent solution to cut back travel costs & make telecommunicating more viable. The key with VR video production for marketing is actually providing something of use for your audience. That is to say, don’t just produce a virtual reality video just to do it, do it with a purpose and a goal in mind.

The real experiences cannot replace actual experience- like traveling or shopping. It is a great way for those people who can’t travel to get a multi-sensory experience. You can’t ignore the importance of feeling which comes with touch.

VR & AR are not there yet.

Got any ideas to implement VR technology? Contact Us at Skyram Technologies. We will help you to make your idea a reality!

Also, for more such blogs on AR & VR read here!