Dear Yclas friends,
Do you want to reach more people and increase your sales in the upcoming year? Proven tips & strategies on how to improve your sales performance in 2020 are what we are going to share with you today.
I don't mean to sound like a cliché but you need to prepare yourself for a challenge. Most of the strategies out there are already being used by multiple companies. What you need to do is to find a smarter way of applying those strategies. How to improve your sales skills? Know your audience, keep track of the competitors, be aware of the latest technology trends, and do research as much as possible. It’s of crucial importance to achieve an organized process and clarify your specific goals.
Know your audience
Let’s say you want to improve the sales in your online store. Firstly, ask yourself are you familiar with your audience. Can you answer questions like:
Who will buy your products?
How are you going to differ from your competitors?
What is the best way to reach your audience?
There are many ways to target the group of customers you are aiming for. Finding new customers is always time-consuming. If you already have a database with loyal customers it's more likely to get sales from them. However, don’t forget to search for new customers when you have the opportunity. It will be much easier if you already know who you are looking for.
Personal touch
Let’s say you want to improve your sales. Well, anyone who has been in the marketing business knows that people prefer to buy from familiar faces. If a product is recommended by a family member or a friend, it's more likely for you to buy it, right? Introduce yourself, convince your users that you are a personal friend who has their best interest at heart. Of course, don’t overdo it as we all know how that would go. Include your personal story and establish a connection with your customers. Don’t forget to speak to an individual in your sales letter.
Information channels
Provide the right information on time. That will leave a good impression on you and your website. It will make a big difference for you when your customer knows that they can count on you. Rapid turnaround time should be on your list if you want to improve your revenue. For example, try using social network collaboration software with your team.
Be organized
If you are wasting time talking about the weather with your customers then you must be more organized. Time is essential for top performers. Get your team to be as considered as possible while doing their so-called ‘discovery call’. They should be able to get a “no” as quickly as possible if there is a lack of need for the product or service they are offering. It should go like “ You’re busy, I’m busy, let’s get down to business” in an assertive and empathetic tone.
What changed for marketplace sales since 2020: 2026 data and rules
Knowing your audience and staying organized still matter. But several things have changed since this advice was first written, and they decide whether a visitor actually turns into a buyer. Here is what the current data says, and what it means for your marketplace.
Most visitors are on a phone
According to Statcounter Global Stats, in September 2026 mobile devices accounted for 58.99% of web traffic worldwide, desktops for 39.26% and tablets for 1.76%. If your listing pages, photos, search filters and contact buttons are awkward on a small screen, you are losing most of your audience before any sales technique gets a chance. Test every important page on a phone before you change anything else.
Most buyers leave at checkout, and usually for fixable reasons
The Baymard Institute puts the average online cart abandonment rate at 70.22%, based on 50 studies (page updated September 2025). Leaving aside people who were only browsing, the main reasons shoppers gave were:
| Reason for abandoning checkout | Share of shoppers |
|---|---|
| Extra costs too high (shipping, tax, fees) | 40% |
| Delivery too slow | 20% |
| Didn't trust the site with card details | 19% |
| Site required creating an account | 18% |
| Checkout too long or complicated | 17% |
| Website errors or crashes | 17% |
Baymard also found that the average US checkout has 23.48 form elements, while a well-designed one can manage with 12 to 14. For a marketplace, this means showing all fees on the listing page instead of at the last step, cutting form fields, and making it clear how payments are protected.
Fake reviews now carry legal risk
Since you will be building trust and personal connections with customers, the method matters. The US Federal Trade Commission's Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule took effect on October 21, 2024. As the FTC announced in August 2024, it bans fake or AI-generated reviews, reviews bought on the condition that they are positive (or negative), undisclosed reviews by your own staff, suppressing negative reviews through threats, and buying or selling fake followers or views. It also lets the FTC seek civil penalties against knowing violators. Ask real buyers for honest reviews and leave negative ones up.
Email only works if it reaches the inbox
Email to past customers is still one of the cheapest ways to sell. However, since February 1, 2024, Google's sender guidelines require anyone who sends more than 5,000 messages a day to Gmail accounts to set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC authentication, and to offer one-click unsubscribe in marketing messages. They must also keep the spam rate reported in Postmaster Tools below 0.30%, and Google recommends staying under 0.10%. Send to people who opted in, make unsubscribing easy, and check that your sending domain is authenticated.
A quick checklist
- Open your top listing and checkout pages on a phone and fix anything that is hard to tap or read.
- Show all costs up front and remove form fields you don't need.
- Collect genuine reviews only. Never pay for positive ones.
- Authenticate your email domain and add one-click unsubscribe before you grow your list.
Improve your marketing plan
Small or newly established businesses should always keep an eye on the market and search for fresh clientele. However, to make it through after the first couple of months, you need to create and apply a marketing plan. Without getting into details because there are dozens of courses and plenty of information on the topic, for example, Online Marketing: Introduction, I’ll give you two design tips which you can use to improve your marketing plan.
Target audience identity
In your marketing plan, there should be a section devoted to introducing your target audience. You should identify the people you are aiming for before creating a marketing plan. To keep this in mind at all times, try to picture your audience's personage. Including images of your potential customer, icons and pictures will help you to put a face to your target audience.
It’s essential to acknowledge the identity of your target audience and focus on your highest-performing channels. By visualizing, you will be able to analyze your channels better as well.
Emphasize major statistics
By highlighting major statistics you will make your marketing plan easier to scan and more persuasive. Create a pyramid of data, for instance, you can use charts and tables to visualize major stats and numbers. When using a brighter colored font for important numbers, you will make the standout and catch the reader’s attention.
