How the best brands boost their online sales in just 7 steps

    The opinions of contributing entrepreneurs are their own.   </p><div>

With 2.7 billion online shoppers worldwide and more than 13.7 million e-commerce stores in the US, it’s harder than ever for brands to stand out. After working with hundreds of founders across Shopify, Amazon, and DTC stores, I’ve learned that growing your brand online isn’t about doing more, it’s about doing it smarter.

Bee Everything Brandingwe’ve seen firsthand how founders can drive online sales by creating a connected, data-driven approach that brings every marketing channel together.

“When PR, Google Ads and emails work together, the results multiply. PR builds trust, ads capture intent and email drives loyalty,” says our client Tiffany McCasland, The Chair Deken + City Bonfires. “That full-circle approach has led to some of our highest conversion rates to date.”

Here’s how to make your ecommerce brand not just visible, but indispensable.

Related: How to Earn Customer Trust and Boost Sales Without Big Advertising Budgets

1. Make every marketing channel work together

Many founders treat PR, Google/Meta advertising, email, and SEO as separate islands. But when these channels work together, you unlock exponential growth.

Here’s what I mean: When your brand gets a media feature, that article expands your digital footprint and sends high-intent traffic to your site. From there, pixels capture valuable data, allowing Google and Meta Ads to retarget visitors with personalized campaigns.

This multi-channel synergy ensures your customers see your brand consistently across search, social media and press, a key factor when research shows people need more than 7-15 brand touchpoints before making a purchase.

2. The secret weapon that every brand overlooks: press

One of the fastest ways to increase online sales and your search results is through press-driven SEO.

Media outlets pay to appear in Google’s top results. When your brand is mentioned in those high SEO articles, you inherit that authority and visibility. We’ve had clients who were still making sales from a single article years after publication.

And because many outlets now use affiliate links, they are incentivized to continue promoting your product. That’s like having hundreds of digital salespeople working for you 24/7.

3. Discover overlooked sales channels that actually convert

Founders often focus heavily on Meta and Google, but some of the most effective ecommerce sales channels are the ones some brands ignore:

• TikTok store: The perfect place for viral discovery and impulse buying.
• Pinterest: A visual search engine where consumers are already looking to shop.
• Amazon Creator Connections: This allows you to reward influencers for driving sales.
• Walmart Marketplace: A hidden gem if your target audience is big buyers.

Your goal is not to be everywhere; it’s about being strategically present where your buyers are ready to engage.

Related: Do you want to increase sales? Start with this weekly report.

4. Price your products with marketing in mind

Here’s a common mistake: setting prices that don’t leave room for marketing.

If you’re selling a $40 product but can’t afford marketing services for it, you’re stuck. Successful e-commerce brands factor marketing costs into their prices, including digital ad spend, affiliate commissions and PR fees.

Premium results come from a premium strategy. Marketing is the cost of visibility, not an optional expense.

5. Marketing is never “one and done”

The brands that consistently grow understand this: marketing is never finished. Algorithms change. Platforms evolve. Consumer behavior is changing.

That’s why you should never pause your marketing, but rather refine it when sales slow down. The brands that continue to invest, test and optimize are the ones that turn one-time customers into loyal fans.

6. Complete this checklist before hiring a marketing agency

If you hire an agency, choose wisely. Here are some points to consider:

• Do they have verifiable results from real customers posted publicly?
• Can they connect PR, affiliate and Google/Meta advertising strategies for a cohesive plan?
• Are they transparent about metrics and ROI?
• Do they understand how brand awareness fuels long-term sales?

At my company, we believe in giving brands the visibility, data and credibility they need to scale and not just have temporary peaks.

7. Stop giving all the credit to one channel

If you look at a single traffic source and call it the winner, you’re missing the full picture.

Your customer’s journey can start with a media mention, continue through a retargeting ad, and end with an email click. Each channel supports the other. When you understand attribution across touchpoints, you start to see marketing as a connected ecosystem, because that’s exactly what it is.

Related: This Is the Underrated Marketing Approach That Will Help You Retain Customers Longer

Common mistakes I see founders make

After working with hundreds of brands, these are the biggest pitfalls I see time and time again:

• Expecting premium results without investing premiums: If you expect great results, invest a little more in a top digital marketing agency.
• Not verifying testimonials or proof of performance: It is easy to fake a testimonial if the company or full name is not publicly listed. As you evaluate which agency you want to work with, check to see if it’s a real person or client with a quick Google search.
• Starting Google and Meta ads too early: If you haven’t yet invested in increased brand awareness with a successful PR campaign, it’s too early to spend money on Google and Meta ads. First, people won’t Google your brand if they don’t know it exists. For Meta, if you’re not seeing $30,000 a month in sales, you probably don’t have the ad spend to make your campaign successful. Meta ads (Facebook and Instagram) can take testing and time before they deliver success. Plan to spend at least $3,000 per month on ads for three months until you start seeing ROAS.
• Ignoring Amazon’s value as a branding and wholesale engine, not just a sales platform. Time and time again I hear about Amazon fees and point out that they are often less than the discount a brand gives to a wholesaler. Having an Amazon presence is a marketing tool in itself and is 38% more likely to bring in sales.
• Overcomplicating the purchasing process: If it is not easy to find and buy it, you will lose the sale. Take the time to go through the buyer’s journey. Make sure “buy now” is above the fold and very easy to do. Paste your URL into ChatGPT and ask what you can do to eliminate abandoned visitors. Sometimes the simplest solutions, like clear site navigation, free shipping, and an optimized checkout process, make the biggest impact.
• Charging too much shipping: We live in the age of Amazon Prime. If a customer goes to checkout at your online store and 50% of the product cost is added to shipping costs, he or she is likely to abandon the shopping cart. Factor shipping costs into your prices so you can offer the coveted free shipping.
• No email campaign is active: If press or a Google ad generates a one-time sale, stay ahead of your buyers with regular updates and new product announcements. Offer an instant discount when you subscribe to ongoing communications from your brand.
• Pulling out the plug too quickly: If your PR starts to build, keep it up! So many brands want to run short campaigns, get their brand in a few credible outlets and think that’s all they need. In the digital age, consumers need to see your brand 7-15+ times before they convert. That journey can start with a press mention, continue through a Google ad, and end with an email reminder. Shutting down one of your channels too early will likely wipe out any investment you’ve made so far. To see the full results of your marketing spend, you need to give it the time it needs. As long as you see results climbing, let it ride.
• Failure to maximize press mentions: Promote every important mention in the press during your marketing efforts. Use media quotes in your Google/Meta ad campaigns, promote them in your newsletters and showcase them on your website and social media channels. Press is a third-party, trusted source that recommends your products to consumers. It is pure gold that you have to keep reminding people of.
• Being impatient: Successful Google/meta ad campaigns often require testing to find the ad that converts best. Likewise, signing with a PR agency doesn’t mean you’ll have your first feature film tomorrow. It takes a lot of work to reach out on your behalf and then it depends on the media timeline. Hang in there and give your agency representatives mercy.

If you take one thing away, let it be this: Marketing is an ecosystem, not a checklist. Every click, article, ad and email plays a role in building trust and driving conversions.

The brands that win online are the ones that keep showing up, keep optimizing, and keep investing in their growth. Keep in mind that well-known brands are constantly marketing to stay top of mind with their consumers.

If you’re ready to give your brand your all, start connecting the dots between your marketing channels. Because in today’s busy digital marketplace, strategy wins over noise every time.