The secret to growing your online store
without any new customers is to look after the ones you've already
got. Does that sound too good to be true? Well, research
actually suggests that trying to acquire new customers is the least
efficient way to improve on your bottom line.
And Bain
& Company found that boosting retention
rates by just 5 percent, can actually raise profits by 95 percent! If
you can't afford to miss out on those kind of stats, then check out
how you can grow your online store, without the help of new
customers...
Start by rewarding
loyalty
See those people walking around with a
barcode dangling from their keychain? That's because they've got a
loyalty points system set up at their favorite store. It's a win-win
situation as the store will get more sales, while the customer will
get more discounts.
Top tip: Set
up an individual code for each of your customers so that they can use
it to collect reward points each time they shop.
Personalize the service
The great thing about a loyalty system
is that it can really help with CRM. Using the customers assigned
loyalty code, you can find out what they like to buy from your store,
and then target them with the stuff they actually care about! This
will help cut back on unsubscribers and will entice customers to come
and shop with you again.
Top tip: Take
note from Amazon
and
give customers recommended suggestions based on their previous
purchases.
Work hard and go the
extra mile
When was the last time you received
incredible customer service? Truth be told, it doesn't happen often,
but when it does, it really makes you appreciate that store. Going
the extra mile may take more effort, but if you want customers to
come back and stay then you need to show them that you value their
custom.
When companies do try their hardest to
look after their customers, it's often well documented.
Just some companies that we can look for inspiration include, Trader
Joe's, who, after receiving a call from a distraught granddaughter,
delivered food to her snowed in grandfather and they didn't charge a
penny.
Top tip: Tackle
a hard and unexpected challenge on behalf of the customer and turn it
into a great success story - for the customer and for yourself!
Take action when
customers are vacant
When a customer hasn't shopped with you
in while, there's no need to admit defeat and give up. You need to go
and find out why not! Developing a way to attack this will really
help your retention rates. It can't hurt to nudge them in the right
direction by sending them an enticing 'we miss you' email with an
attractive discount to spend on your products. Or if you've got some
new stuff in that you want to shout about then be sure to let them
know.
Top tip: Entice
shoppers back to your store by sending past customers an email with a
discount code.
Be the expert they came
to see...
Remember that a customer has come to
you because they trust your expertise, so you need to show them that
you can still deliver. It's ok to be passionate about what you do and
a great way to showcase this is via your blog. Think about setting up
a weekly post with how-to guides, tips and advice or even features on
new products. If you do this regularly your customers will start to
come back time and time again to catch your latest post.
Top tip: Get
each member of your team to write a blog post explaining their area
of expertise, so your customers can get to know you as a company, and
learn something.
Be open to change
There will be reasons why your
customers will shop with you time and time again, but you can't just
put all your hopes on that. As the digital world changes, you need to
move with it. Make sure you implement a/b testing to find out what
your customers like and what they don't like. Think about changing
your design, or even switching up your copy, so that your customers
have something new to read about when they come to your website.
Top tip: Implement
a survey tofind out
what your customer wants to see when they land on your website.
Let us help you!
Here at AmeriCommerce we happen to know
a thing or two about building the perfect online store. So if you
don't already use our service then why not give us a call? We offer
plenty of benefits to go with our innovative features
and all of which, come at an amazing price. We look forward to
hearing from you very soon!