If you mention "building a brand," the initial perception might be the brand's (appearance), the logo, the trade name. However, in reality, this is only a small part of the complete picture—of "positioning" in the customer's mind. In the book, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind, Al Ries and Jack Trout defined a distinctive brand as: "an individual idea or concept owned inside the mind of a potential customer." Therefore, it is not something you make, but something you manage.

Meanwhile, Sergio Zyman chooses in his book, The End of Marketing, that: "a brand is, at its core, a repository containing the customer's entire experience with the product or company." It is not something that takes you a long time to manage, but rather what you present right now, in the exact same moment!

Salla, the Future of E-Commerce, is an Easy Platform to Start Your Business

Consequently, establishing unique e-commerce projects is never an easy matter, especially since competition rates in the market—local and global—are high, with weak profit margins and a high failure rate. We see legacy brands closing or unexpectedly declaring bankruptcy. Take Toys"R"Us as an example; they liquidated and closed all their remaining stores in the United States after more than 60 years in the business.

On the other hand, the digital world is far more exciting and exceptional. Business owners launch their digital brands and compete fiercely in the e-commerce market without any actual need to provide expensive fixed assets. Securing a spot among thousands of brands born daily may be reachable—to some extent—but owning a "successful" online store and transforming it into an established brand—especially in the Arab market—is a real challenge.

Well, this will not happen overnight; rather, it requires a lot of effort and preparation. As for success, it requires "consistency," which is what we will address in this article about building a sustainable brand.

The Clash of Titans to Retain Customers

Statistics indicate that nearly 80% of e-commerce companies fail and exit the market after some time due to customers turning away from their stores. This departure can be narrowed down to three main reasons:

• Difficulty in using the website.

• Unclear product value.

• Difficulty in navigation.

• Lack of an effective strategy.

To avoid this waste, you must be careful to build a strong brand targeting the minor, distinct details that matter to the customer.

The Secret Code: Free Shipping!

Customers expect to get what they want instantly, especially on the internet; standards here are high and must be considered. "Up to 80% of shoppers say shipping price and speed have a significant influence on their purchasing decision." For this reason, you should ensure to provide a fast and free shipping option as much as possible to build an unforgettable brand.

Successful Experience | An example of e-commerce websites is the famous site NOON, which sells everything from women's fashion and men's clothing to elegant shoes and accessories. It offers free shipping for orders exceeding 100 AED in the UAE, as well as in Saudi Arabia for orders exceeding 200 SAR.

Remember, the less shipping costs customers have to pay, the more enthusiastic they are to buy. This is a long-term investment in building a distinct brand for your customers.

Simplified Ordering Leads to Increased Transactions

An online shopper seeks convenience above all else, without the complications of difficult return policies or long weights for orders. Therefore, you must make the experience seamless and simple. The more exceptional user experience you provide, the more it becomes your differentiator among a wide range of competing options.

Consistency is What Creates Unforgettable Brands

Undoubtedly, seeking profit tops the reasons behind creating your online store. While offering unique value to your target customers, you still need to increase your profits to achieve the success you aspire to, which in turn leads to consistency, an essential aspect of building a distinguished brand.

Successful Experience | AMAZON was founded in 1994, and despite the massive funding it secured, it did not begin to achieve actual profits until the turn of the new millennium. Thus, the matter is not only about achieving financial profit but also requires consistency, and this is exactly what can be achieved by building a solid and professional brand.

3 Steps to Help You Build an Unforgettable Brand in the E-Commerce World

Undoubtedly, it is difficult to summarize the building phase in a few steps, but we made sure to simplify the task as much as necessary for the picture to become clear and applicable. The following are the most prominent elements contributing to your success in the e-commerce world.

1- Take Care of Your Employees, and They Will Lead Customers to Your Brand

Have you heard of "Li Jinyuan," the Chinese billionaire who took 6,400 employees from his company on a 4-day leisure trip to Paris? Well, "Employee satisfaction guarantees customer satisfaction," which is undeniable. Forbes indicated that employee satisfaction is the magical factor to ensure customer satisfaction, thereby contributing to building a strong brand.

How?

By creating a work environment where employees feel committed and appreciated for their active contributions in helping the company achieve its goals. In fact, a company committed to customer satisfaction, or wishing to be, will benefit from extending the same courtesies to its employees and will receive many benefits in return.

Take Lush, the care products brand, as an example. Just as it spoils its customers with luxurious organic skincare and haircare products, it treats its employees by offering a 75% discount on all products throughout their employment! Therefore, we recommend ensuring the following:

• Make trust and loyalty an ongoing, top priority.

• Clearly and consistently demonstrate—in action and not just words—commitment to making employees feel valued.

• Increase your trust in them and empower them with authority.

• Demonstrate that high sales levels will have a satisfying financial and moral impact on the company and employees.

• Keep in mind that you are on the same journey with your employees, and by creating a good work environment, you will reduce employee stress and foster teamwork.

2- Focus on Analytics

Ecommerce is one of the sectors heavily affected by continuous transformation and rapid development, where new technologies, services, and marketing methods constantly gain wide popularity. For your store to shine and persist, you must be able to make better decisions faster. Only numbers and web analytics can support you in this mission. He who can read numbers will know his path on the chessboard, which is crucial in the journey to build an unforgettable brand and marketing the product in simple steps.

Web analytics are not limited to observing your store's activity via Google Analytics; you must excel at analyzing every action a buyer takes on your online store and seek the reasons behind that behavior. This includes analyzing:

• What are the most viewed categories?

• Which products have high purchase rates?

• Which products have low purchase rates?

• When do customers buy (peak hours)?

• What element, if available in your store, would motivate customers to buy immediately?

• Why do customers abandon their shopping carts at a certain stage?

• What do customers ask about most?

• What are your customers complaining about?

• What obstacles did they face?

• What things did they like?

This is in addition to other questions for which you must start seeking answers to become more aware of your customers' needs through analysis results. You have the choice of the execution method: either doing it yourself or delegating it to a specialist.

3- Beyond Satisfaction

During Christmas celebrations in 2013, more than 250 passengers aboard flights bound for Calgary were part of a "Christmas Miracle" orchestrated by WestJet. That year, WestJet placed a micro video conference device at the airport, through which Santa Claus appeared to speak with them live, asking them about their Christmas wishes. Passengers began interacting with the video and stating their wishes.

Some asked for a camera, others wished for a tablet, some wanted a warm beanie, others asked for a large TV, and so on. Even though flight passengers initially thought it was a funny prank, the real surprise awaited them at the destination terminal! As they were waiting for their luggage next to the baggage carousel, travelers were astonished to find wrapped gifts rolling out on the belt instead of their luggage, each bearing the name and wish of a passenger who had talked to Santa.

Imagine the impact of this dazzling surprise on them, even though WestJet did not need to do any of this; its customers were already satisfied and content. They did not need the exceptional and expensive surprise they ended up getting, but the impact was stunning enough to connect them even more to the brand, contributing heavily to the marketing and effective registration of the brand, to be known later—after this delightful experience—as the ultimate professional airline.

Our advice to you is never to stop surprising your customers while building a brand; exceed their expectations, as this is what builds stories around your brand.

If you are wondering, attempting to satisfy and surprise customers certainly costs a lot of money, but it is a guaranteed investment. The return on investment is worth the risk, as every individual who experiences this exceptional service will act as an advocate for your brand among their acquaintances and friends. Consequently, it represents a promotional mix in a targeted, interested segment that often trusts whoever recommended and shared the real-life experience. In the end, this will undoubtedly lead to doubling sales and purchase operations! This is how any experience or event spreads virally without direct intervention from brands.

This is the power of customer satisfaction, and you need it whether you are at the beginning or in an advanced stage of your project: having people speak positively about you in a "Word of Mouth" manner, which is what you should always strive to achieve. The "Word of Mouth" tool is one of the important foundations when planning to build an unforgettable brand for your audience!

All you need to do now is take the first step and start executing, and you will see the difference yourself.

Your online store on the Salla platform is waiting for you to build your success with wonderful supporting services.