When it comes to increasing your ecommerce sales, an excellent digital marketing strategy is critical. Since all your sales happen online, you need to capture an audience through a variety of digital channels, and even though it can get tiring, keeping up with all the digital marketing trends will help you keep your ecommerce business successful.
So, what’s the latest and greatest in the industry?
Clubhouse, an exclusive app that intrigues anyone who hasn’t been invited.
Yep…you read that right! You have to be invited by someone else who already has the app. Otherwise, you can download the app and get on the waiting list, but there’s no guarantee you’ll be allowed to join (and Clubhouse is only available on iOS).
However, if you do earn an invite or get accepted to the app, you suddenly have access to an entire audience that many other business owners do not. That can put you ahead of the ecommerce marketing game and improve your overall brand awareness, content strategy, and sales, so let’s dive in: How exactly does it work, and how can it improve your ecommerce marketing strategy?
What is Clubhouse?
Clubhouse is a very unique app that is audio-only. While many other social media platforms feature a lot of videos and photos, you won’t find any of those on Clubhouse. On the app, you make a handle and profile that others can follow, similar to Instagram, and you can follow whomever you’d like.
The homepage is called “the Hallway.” It’s made up of live, drop-in audio rooms that you can join for free and can leave the room whenever you want. You can just listen, or you can create your own public or private audio room for others to listen. Here’s what the Hallway looks like:
Once the audio lives are done, they’re gone forever — it’s a one-time experience with no recording after it’s finished.
So what are ecommerce marketers using the app for?
Social Media Examiner’s Michael Stelzner says, “The great thing about Clubhouse is it’s like networking on steroids.” He continues, “You can make absolutely amazing connections very, very rapidly and discover really rich, interactive content.”
Networking is how most ecommerce marketers are currently using the app, but there are opportunities when it comes to content creation and building a community. Naturally, this leads to brand awareness and as Content Strategist Alex McPeak explains, even an opportunity to acquire new customers. He said, “While most of Clubhouse’s conversations aren’t necessarily associated with or led by brands, there’s an opportunity for founders, entrepreneurs, and brand marketers to use Clubhouse to expand their content strategy.”
Here are all your amazing opportunities on Clubhouse:
Tips for Clubhouse Ecommerce Marketing
Think about content marketing on Clubhouse similarly to the way we think about marketing on podcasts. You create content that intrigues your ideal audience and use it to build your brand. However, it’s easier to start hosting lives on Clubhouse than to build a podcast. Keep in mind that there is no digital advertising on Clubhouse. This platform is better suited for content marketing.
1. Cater to your ideal audience.
Isn’t this true with every form of content marketing? However, it’s so important that it’s worth mentioning again. You want your listeners to be the people that you want to buy your ecommerce products. For example, let’s say you sell cycling shoes for indoor cycle classes. In that case, you want to create content that would attract cyclers such as the best indoor cycling studios, or how to increase your speed and endurance in cycling.
Whatever you think is relevant to your target audience, create content on those topics!
2. Recycle content from other platforms.
If coming up with entirely new content ideas for Clubhouse seems unmanageable, don’t worry! The best content marketers know how to recycle content from their other platforms.
For example, let’s say you briefly talked about a topic on your Instagram stories and realized that a lot of consumers were interested. That would be a great time to brainstorm how to expand that topic into an entire live Clubhouse room. Plus, recycling content means you already have a good amount of ideas around the topic flushed out. You can reuse these ideas in your audio format for your Clubhouse audience.
Not only is recycling content key to reducing the time you spend on marketing, but it’s also a good way to introduce calls to action (CTA) that will lead your audience on other platforms to your Clubhouse account. Not everyone has the app, but for those who do, you could share on your Instagram story about a topic. For consumers who want to learn more, your CTA could be: “If you like learning about this topic, we talk about it frequently on Clubhouse. Follow us!” Then, make sure to share your Clubhouse handle.
3. Add value to the conversation.
If you want people to even listen to your brand, you need to be contributing value to the conversation. Clubhouse is full of meaningful content, and if you want to build an audience, you need to be offering valuable content.
The role of your Clubhouse content is not to get a quick sale. Its role is to build a relationship with your consumers. Create trust and connection with your listeners, and they’re more likely to buy from you in the long term. 76% of consumers will buy from a brand they feel connected to over a competitor.
Clubhouse is unique because it’s genuine and raw. Consumers prefer to listen to your brand’s voice unedited because it makes them feel like they know who you really are, not who you want consumers to think you are. Embrace the possibility of mistakes on Clubhouse. You don’t have to be perfect as a podcast, but that’s why consumers love it.
The Takeaway: Don’t Discount the Potential of Clubhouse
Ecommerce brands have to be active on social media platforms to increase brand awareness and sales, but it’s not enough to just be on the typical social media sites. You need to stand out by creating valuable, genuine content. With Clubhouse, you have a unique opportunity to be yourself and reach a new audience.
