4 Things you Need to Understand for E-Commerce Branding

E-commerce branding

Does the name you give to your E-commerce business really matter? Honestly, having the right answer to this question is key to the success of your E-commerce branding. Let’s consider the following statistics on E-commerce by Statista, one of the leading statistics companies on the Internet:

  • In 2013, worldwide B2C E-commerce sales amounted to more than $1.2 trillion US dollars.
  • More than 40% of worldwide Internet users have purchased goods or products online.
  • That is, more than 1 billion online buyers have bought something through the Internet.

The implication of the above statistics is that if such a huge number of Internet users have spent such a huge amount of money on E-commerce products, you can calve a niche for yourself in the world of E-commerce. And one of the best ways to achieve this is to develop a competitive name for your E-commerce business.
In view of this, below are the 4 practical tips for getting your E-commerce business the right business name.

1. Understand the Importance of a business name: Does your name explain who you are?

How important is a business name? Plus, what impact does a business name have on the ability of a business to achieve success? Below are some of the facts that answer these questions.
Firstly, your business name communicates to the people what your business does. A business name is a medium of business communication. That means if you get the right name for your business, you will be communicating your business rightly to your potential clients.
Secondly, your business name gives your business an identity. Every business has an identity (that is, what a business is known for). And since there are millions of E-commerce businesses on the Internet, one of the best ways to make yours stand out and tall is to give it the right name.
Thirdly, your business name is one of the most important assets your business will ever possess. It is quite unfortunate to note that only a few businesses realize this fact. Since it is impossible to have a business without a name, getting the right name for your E-commerce business gives it a competitive advantage.
Fourthly, your business name goes a long way in determining the kinds of clients and business networking and partnerships  you attract. As the say goes: like attracts like. Lastly, your business name determines, to an extent, the nature, level, number, etc, of business opportunities your business is able to attract. So, considering the above facts, the name you give to your E-commerce business matters a lot.

2. Understand what your business is all about: How well does your name transmit that message?

Having known the importance of a business name, let’s see how understanding your E-commerce business can help you develop the competitive name your business needs. The fact is, if you don’t understand the very nature of the E-commerce business you are going into, you cannot provide the best name for it.
Why are you going into an E-commerce business? What product(s) or service(s) are you going to be selling online? What are your business goals? What kind of a business identity are you going to be creating? Do you intend to one day become an industry leader and an established brand?
If you can adequately answer the above and other equally crucial business questions, then you should be better equipped to come up with a “selling” name for your E-commerce business. If the world’s leading business brands are very serious about the names they give to their brands, then giving your business the right name should be of great importance to you.
LinkedIn as a brand, for example, perfectly has integrated its overall business objective into its name so that LinkedIn gets people “linked in” with business and professional opportunities. In other words, through its name, LinkedIn makes its target audience easily and immediately understand that by becoming a member, you open yourself up to numerous professional, business, career and networking opportunities globally.
That shows you the importance of choosing the right business name. So, the better you understand your business, the better your business name will be.

3. Understand your target audience: Does your E-commerce branding speak to them?

Besides understanding what you want to achieve with your business, you will need to understand your target audience, to develop an effective name for your business. Who are your prospective clients? You will need to factor them in so as to develop an effective name for your E-commerce business.
Just as you optimize your website for online visibility and traffic, likewise, you can “optimize” your business name for client attraction, conversion and retention. We call this “Business Name Optimization” (BNO). If done correctly, your business name becomes a keyword your potential clients would be searching for, when in need of the kind of service(s) or product(s) you provide.
That is why knowing your target audience is key to getting a quality business name for your business. The beautiful thing about this strategy is that your business name does two things: it talks about your E-commerce business as well as becomes a keyword your prospective clients are searching for.

4. Understand the “WHY” of your competitors’ names: How does your branding measure up?

In addition to knowing your target audience before you develop the right name for your E-commerce business, you should also understand the reasons your competitors chose their business names. Are you going to be running an E-commerce business that is similar to the ones being run by the established brands in your industry and/or category? Do you wish to become a well-known brand some day like Amazon, for example?
If your answers to the above questions are a capital “YES,” then you need to know, so as to do, the very things your competitors have done and are doing to achieve the results they are having right now. For instance, both Google and Bing are search engine giants. That means they are competitors. Do you know they have some things in common? Let’s cite four of their similarities:
1. Both names are one-word names;
2. Both are made-up names;
3. Both names have less than 10 characters;
4. Both names invoke curiosity and action.
So, whenever you think of Google, what comes to your mind about Bing and vice versa? That’s competition. That means If you want your prospective customers to consider patronizing you when they think of your competitors, you will need to learn few important things about your competitors, one of which is their business names.
The bottom line is: when your potential customers come across your E-commerce business, by merely seeing your business name, they should see you as a competent competitor. Conclusively, when you understand the relevance of a business name, the goal of your E-commerce business, your prospective clients, and the “WHY” of your competitors’ names, then you will be adequately equipped to develop the right, selling, effective, competitive name for your E-commerce business. 

Image credit : Viktorija Grachkova