Have you been struggling to grow your eCommerce store?
Are your sales stagnant, despite all the work you’ve been putting in?
If so, here's some good news: there is a (not so) secret formula for success! 🧪
All you need to do is make sure that you are investing at least 3% of your annual revenue in growing your store. 🪄 Easy.
Now, you're going to be in one of 2 camps with your reaction to this:
Camp 1: 'Holy shit! 3%, you must be kidding, I can only just about make ends meet as it is...'
OR
Camp 2: 'Holy Shit! 3% is nothing, I want to growwww already!'
For those in camp 1, 3% may seem like a leap if you aren't budgeting for growth, but the question is, can you afford not to?
For those in camp 2, 3% may seem like a small number, but the good news is you can spend more, but don't be fooled into thinking that the returns are linear.
Let’s take a look at why this number is so important. 👇
WHY 3% IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
Like a houseplant, you have to invest in growth 🪴 if you don’t invest anything in growing your eCommerce store, then it will begin to die (like too many of those pesky houseplants).
But how much should you be investing?
For all of you in camp 1 - 3% is the minimum you should be spending on growth initiatives each year. This ensures that your store is staying competitive and not falling behind the competition - You're effectively keeping up with the pack. 🚴♀️ 🚴♂️ 🚴 The bad news: you aren't actually growing relatively speaking.
And those in camp 2, I hear you, what if 3% isn’t enough?
Well, then it's time to get smart about investing more than 3%. Many successful eCommerce stores are investing anything from 8-10% of their annual revenue on growth initiatives. So if you've been thinking that the competition is killing it, this could be part of the reason why and it's time for you to up your game. 💪
HOW CAN YOU MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE INVESTING ENOUGH?
The key here is making sure that you have sufficient resources allocated towards growth initiatives each year. Take time to examine where your money is going — is it all being spent on maintaining existing products and services? If so, then chances are that not enough of it is being used for growing your business.
It may seem counterintuitive, but investing in growing your eCommerce store can actually save you money in the long run by helping keep costs down and profits up! 🤯
So, for all of you who thought 3% was a stretch, it's time to think again.
Look at your current costs. Are there economies of scale that you could benefit from? Staff and technology costs are key areas for scrutiny. These don't typically scale in line with your growth, so as you add additional revenue the contributory costs for these areas become a much smaller percentage of your operating expenses.
You can also benefit from a growing customer base. Once you have acquired a customer, invest in retaining them by leveraging email and SMS. This will free up some of your budget up that was used to plug the hole of constantly churn of customers allowing you to use this for genuine growth opportunities.
So don’t skimp on investing in your store—it could pay off big time! 💰