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by Chris Kristoff, co-founder of monster insightthe main plugin for Google Analytics.
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Business leaders and marketers around the world are in a never-ending battle to retain their customers. It is no longer enough to just convince someone that a product or service is worth buying in the first place. Instead, you should give your users a reason to stick with your brand after ordering.
Repeat customers shop more, see brands as more trustworthy, and are more likely to tell friends and family about their experiences. In other words, retention is more than just keeping one customer. It’s about cultivating a community of people who trust and respect your business.
There are many ways to create a first-class customer experience and win customers from the moment they place an order on your website. Today we explore four strategies that can help you increase retention and sales. Let’s dive in!
1. Keep your promises.
Start by discussing how to handle new customers as soon as they buy your product or sign up for your mailing list. The key to winning users during this time is to act fast and deliver on your promises.
For example, someone signed up for your mailing list because they were interested in being a content-based lead magnet for your site. As soon as the person enters their name and email her address, content upgrades arrive straight to their inbox. Imagine how you would feel if you were in their shoes and didn’t receive the offer you were promised until days after you signed up for the subscription. It is quite possible that it has started.
This principle also applies to how you market your products. The email marketing SaaS owner doesn’t say its software will help a user triple her subscribers overnight. They probably couldn’t keep this promise because every person and situation is different.
My advice in situations like this is to evaluate all offers and customer outreach and ask yourself, “Am I consistently delivering on this promise?” In that case, you may need to rework your messaging and offers to match what your customers expect from your business.
2. Develop an intuitive onboarding system.
Develop intuitive onboarding systems to help new customers continue using your products and services after their first order. Onboarding is the process of showing customers how to get more value from their purchase. This strategy is commonly used in digital products such as software and applications.
One good example that comes to mind is Spotify’s onboarding program. New users who download the app will see prompts on the screen showing how to do things like save albums and create playlists. This feature is beneficial for those new to music streaming services.
If you need help developing an onboarding program, review user feedback and invite your loyal customers to beta test upcoming releases. After some testing, you may find that the majority of participants are confused about certain features. In that case, this aspect of onboarding can be developed. After a few test runs, you should have a detailed system that improves retention and customer satisfaction.
3. Personalize your messages and offers.
Now let’s talk about the power of personalization. Shoppers expect brands to personalize interactions and marketing materials based on their goals, interests and pain points. The best way to add this strategy to your business is by segmenting your audience. Segmentation is dividing your customers into lists based on their needs.
For example, an online pet store creates a list of people who have different animals. Cat owners, like dog owners, need specific products and services. Can you imagine how a cat owner would feel if every email from a new pet supply store they found was about dogs only? Meeting their needs through personalization ensures that people will continue to read your emails and visit your website.
If you need help implementing list segmentation and personalization, we recommend asking new customers to select their preferences as soon as they engage with your brand. Put them on a list that ensures the content they see matches their interests.
4. Create a loyalty program.
Finally, you can reach new customers by creating a loyalty program. The type of program you use depends a lot on your product choice, budget, and industry. The purpose of a loyalty program is to reward customers for repeat orders.
An email marketing SaaS may create a subscription tier where users pay for one year up front and get two months free. Alternatively, a brand that sells physical goods could introduce a loyalty system where users receive cash back for every dollar from their first order. Customers are waiting for a $20 credit on their next order. If you see , you’re much more likely to return to the site and make additional purchases in the coming weeks.
Feel free to experiment with different loyalty programs. Adjust your strategy based on engagement and retention after each change. With continued fine-tuning of rewards and systems, you can expect more people to place multiple orders.
As you can see, there are many exciting ways to acquire new customers. The tips outlined today will help you build a system that will make your target audience fall in love with your brand from the moment they place their first order.
