Ecommerce grew by leaps and bounds in 2020 with consumers going online to avoid brick and mortar stores due to Covid-19 pandemic. Because of this massive surge, online shopping is only expected to grow in 2021 and beyond.

Devising an innovative eCommerce marketing campaign in 2021 is no easy feat. In order to get the attention of your audience this year, your content has to be impactful, engaging, and motivating — grabbing hold of viewers, stirring up emotions, and influencing them to take action. Let’s see who has created a winning formula so far this year.

Essential eCommerce Marketing Strategies

An effective eCommerce marketing campaign can come in a variety of forms. From digital to offline and even 360° — there’s no limit to the possibilities.

• Content Marketing
• Retargeting
• Website Optimization
• Social Media Advertising
• Influencer Marketing
• Brand Collaborations

More important than strategy, however, is sequencing. The key is sending the right content to the right customer with the right content at the right time. With precise sequencing and individualized content, not only will you create customers for life, but you’ll also begin to develop brand ambassadors along the way.

With all of these elements in mind, let’s take a look at the best eCommerce marketing campaigns of this year and which companies hit it out of the park.

Sephora’s “Identify as We” Campaign

Sephora did an incredible job with its recent video marketing campaign, reminding its customers that “We Belong to Something Beautiful” as it kicked off Pride Month this year. The video features influencers such as Fatima Jamal and gender non-conforming model Aaron Philips as they talk about how makeup makes them feel and relate to society.

Focusing on inclusivity, Sephora successfully creates a community and promotes a strong message about the LGBTQ experience. In utilizing beautiful people, spaces, and evocative music, Sephora’s message and products really shine.

Nike’s “You Can’t Stop Us” Campaign

Focusing on overcoming hardships and challenges, especially those faced in 2020 like pandemic, politics, and civil rights, Nike’s latest campaign not only builds brand recognition but also keeps customers talking.

The feel-good and inspirational videos put a face to the company brand and show humanity that every customer can relate to. This is especially effective in the current market where consumers are educated on traditional marketing tactics and want to see themselves represented in products.

A successful campaign like this is not only for big corporations either. Small businesses can get the same effect utilizing well-edited stock video, voiceovers, and inspirational music too.

Termana Tequila’s “The Rock” Campaign

Not every brand has the capacity to use its star power to sell its products, but many online influencers out there are willing to lend their credibility to your products.

Targeting key influencers in the industry and using their marketing power is a great way to showcase your eCommerce products. The Rock founded his own Tequila brand and, looking at his social media accounts, he’s interspersed his social posts with product placement to grow his brand.

Hiring The Rock to do media blasts for you is probably not a practical suggestion for your marketing budget, but accounts with hundreds of thousands of views are much more approachable and can give great returns for the money.

Just ensure that you collaborate with influencers that have high views and engagement within your market niche.

Nest Bedding Introduces “Flip”

Nest Bedding is a high-end mattress eCommerce retailer that sells incredibly comfortable bedding for between $900 and $1800 a pop. In order to appeal to a wider audience, budgetarily speaking, Nest launched a more moderately priced mattress called “Flip” that retails for around $400.

Flip mattresses sell exclusively on Amazon and are geared toward a more budget-conscious audience. This eCommerce campaign is a great example of both brand collaboration with Amazon and the company branching out to incorporate a whole new market of customers searching for inexpensive bedding.

Key Takeaways

As you can see from these successful eCommerce marketing campaigns, the winners all had several important elements in common. The campaigns were original, simple, and maintained a strong brand voice and brand integrity in their messaging.

When creating your own eCommerce marketing campaign this year, remember to focus on storytelling, rather than selling, be genuine and welcome your customers into a community in which they can interact, live, work, and shop.