The average conversion rate in furniture ecommerce is about 0.5%. But brands like IKEA use marketing tactics to increase their conversions to 1.7%. Read on to learn the details.

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Key takeaways:

• IKEA hosted 4.3 billion web visitors in 2022
• The company uses tactics like relationship marketing, interactive storytelling, content marketing, personalized emails, omnichannel marketing, and Google Search Ads to improve online conversions
• Companies like Wayfair and Dunelm use IKEA’s marketing approaches and have seen success

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IKEA, the world’s largest furniture brand, hosted over  4.3 billion visitors online in 2022. Moreover, the brand has a higher-than-average conversion rate of 1.7%. Their secret? A unique marketing approach. One that creates a connection and engages their customers, pushing them to purchase.

This blog delves into the seven marketing strategies driving IKEA’s online success. So let’s get right into it.

‘IKEA, the world's largest furniture brands, hosted over 4.3 billion visitors online in 2022’

Ikea’s marketing strategies: 7 tactics you should know about

1. Relationship marketing

IKEA moved away from transactional to relationship marketing to connect with buyers better. And here’s what you need to know about it.

The company has a membership program, the IKEA family. It offers workshops, discounts, and product insurance to make shopping appealing for buyers. Thanks to IKEA family, the stores have play areas for children and restaurants.

Additionally, they also have a gift registry, and an online forum taking the shopping experience to the next level. But that is not all.

In recent years, the company has also revamped its home products to cater to buyers’ tastes. And it has focused on improving its online shopping experience. 

Besides, the furniture chain contributes to community projects to strengthen buyer relationships. This includes campaigns to help children, homeless people, students, and the environment. But that is not all.

The brand ensures its staff and partners abide by their customer-centric values. This makes the buyer experience memorable.

For example, IKEA ensures its employees imbibe togetherness, cost-effectiveness, and enthusiasm. And it also creates a work environment that facilitates them. This translates right down to customer interactions.

If that wasn’t enough, IKEA also has a code of conduct for its suppliers that aligns with customer interests.

IKEA’s relational marketing strategy has worked in its favor and won many customers’ hearts.

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2. Google search ads

Along with relationship marketing, IKEA has invested in Search Ads on Google in the UK. First, the company segmented its customer accounts into categories based on their device preferences. Then it allocated budgets.

It also used revenue records to categorize its products based on sales. Then, it created adaptive shopping campaigns by grouping products with similar returns. 

This approach allowed IKEA to market newer products and rearrange budgets. Besides, it also made retargeting efforts easier. Thanks to these efforts, IKEA increased its sales by 117% and ROAS by 68%.

‘IKEA increased its sales by 117% and its ROAS by 68% with Google Search Ads.’ 

3. Interactive storytelling

IKEA uses interactive storytelling to drive its online shopping experience occasionally. The 2019 “What’s Incredible is the Price” campaign is a prime example.

The furniture giant created a unique ad campaign incorporating footage from IKEA stores. Thanks to YouTube shopping, customers could view the product catalog and discount offers. They could also click on products and make purchases.

The interactive storytelling ad format allowed customers to have an in-store experience in their homes. This drove engagement, increased website visits, and improved conversions.

This campaign had a 33% ad recall and a 33% view rate. Besides, the ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) was 460% too.

‘IKEA increased its ROAS by 460% through the What’s incredible is the Price campaign.’

4. Content marketing

IKEA’s content marketing strategy is characterized by creating posts optimized for different social channels.

For instance, the company reshares blogs showcasing its community efforts over Twitter. But the handle shares home decor images on Instagram and boards on Pinterest.

Regional IKEA accounts share posts of their discounts or reshare posts of their customers. In simple terms, IKEA only posts content optimized for specific social platforms.

That said, IKEA ensures its unique brand identity stands out in every form. Furthermore, the brand tries to ensure the content is relatable and personable. This helps the brand stand out from its competitors and also helps drive conversions.

5. Search engine optimization

IKEA optimizes its product pages according to the latest SEO guidelines, improving its visibility on search engines. It also uses product-specific keywords that align with buyer intent. This helps the brand rank higher on SERP.

Now, we know that most users don’t move past Google’s first page. So safe to say, given their higher ranking, IKEA attracts more new website visitors compared to other retailers.

6. Omnichannel marketing

IKEA goes the extra mile to ensure its in-store and website shopping experiences are cohesive.

For instance, IKEA introduced its 'Click and Collect' service in 2015. Buyers could order online through the service and choose their closest IKEA store. Then, customer service would inform them when the order was ready for collection, saving the buyer's time.

The customer experience here is quick. Moreover, it transitions between the website and the store in a seamless manner. This makes it memorable, reliable, and enjoyable.

7. Interactive digital experiences

To improve its digital buying process further, IKEA introduced IKEA Place. This augmented reality (AR) application allows users to view furniture in their homes.

Users can change object locations and view alternatives using the AR tool. This helps them choose a product with confidence and solidifies buying decisions. So, it helps drive online conversions too.

The furniture giant is also testing virtual reality (VR) to make its in-store experience immersive. Reports suggest that the new technology will help buyers visualize furniture better.

‘With their new AI technology, we will bring home visualization to a different level. By letting you scan your home, one room at a time, and turn it into a 3D model in which you can try out the IKEA home product range from any location.’ Barbara Martin Coppolla, CDO, IKEA Retail in an HBR interview

2 furniture ecommerce businesses using ikea’s marketing strategies (and how you can do it too)

1. Dunelm, omnichannel marketing

Dunelm, a UK-based furniture retailer, focused on its omnichannel retail efforts across 2020.

It improved its technology, catered to customer demands, and improved its delivery services. And that’s not all.

The furniture retailer improved all its consumer-facing activities. This included customer and web services to self-help services to make shopping easier for the online buyer.

Thanks to these efforts, Dunelm saw an online increase of 111% in its preliminary H1 FY2020/21. 

How you can improve your omnichannel efforts

• Map out your customer’s online journeys. This helps where customers spend their time. Also, it gives you clues about how to integrate these channels.
• Do a content analysis to understand the content you can share across channels. Also, ensure you maintain consistent messaging and branding across all channels.
• Expand your digital capabilities to provide a seamless online shopping experience. This includes expanding servers, hiring more customer support staff, managing online bots, etc.

2. Wayfair, 3D and AR

One of the biggest advantages of augmented reality in furniture? It can help buyers make confident buying decisions. This is why Wayfair integrated 3D and AR into its customer journeys long ago.

The retailer has a designated app with the tech to make the online buyer’s experience immersive. Additionally, since the customers do not shift between many tabs to use the AR tool, buying is seamless.

How you can integrate 3D and AR into the buyer journey

• Check if your buyers use the website or the app for their purchases. This will help you decide if you need an app-based AR experience or a web-AR experience.
• Update your product catalog with all the products you want to display using the AR tool.

Partner with Enhance to create realistic 3D and AR projections with the tool.