Getting those first few sales on your new online store is always a rush. It’s exciting to get new customers, to get that influx of orders. Wrapping up those orders are exciting and a cause for celebration.
But while getting new customers is a major focus when you’re starting out, it’s important to look into customer retention early, too. It’s easier to keep your current customers than get new ones. Remember, the top 1% of your customers can spend more than 30 times your average customers. Even if your regular products are low priced, your loyal customers are very valuable because of the amount they spend with your business over a longer period of time.
Here are some ways you can increase your loyal and returning customers. Start small, but go steady.
Start a Relationship by Giving Back to Them
People love free things. You should start looking at creating valuable content for them to come back to over time. For example, if you’re targeting people in healthcare, perhaps a series of downloadable PDFs on information that they can use in the industry will be of use to them. It doesn’t have to be PDFs--anything can work.
These are what’s called lead magnets. It is an offer, promotion, or other incentive that you can give potential customers in exchange for email address or phone number.
Then you can use this contact information to send them more content to build their relationship with your business, alongside your regular promotions and updates.
These lead magnets can take many forms, such as:
- In-depth guides
- Video tutorials
- Resource lists
- Cheat sheets
- Free trials and consultations
- Exclusive deals
Focus on Your Promoters
While you’re still a small, manageable outfit, you should get to know the people who love talking about your business--or who might be great at it! Take note of people who love talking about your products, and reach out if you can.
These people are your promoters and they can boost your social credibility through word of mouth. They can be loyal, paying customers (important for repeat orders!) but also bring you new customers, too!
It’s like influencer marketing that the big brands are doing, only on a tighter budget.
If you can, offer these people reasons to promote you. You can give them personalized discount codes that they can give to their family, friends, and followers. Not only will you land extra sales, but you can keep track of your best promoters depending on how many use their promotional codes, too.
But remember that it’s very important to focus on being true and real when working with your promoters. People notice right off the bat if there’s something fishy, and it can backfire on your efforts if they think you’re just buying likes and followers. Building relationships can be difficult, but the long-term rewards will be satisfying.
Invite People After Their First Purchase
It’s important that completing a purchase is as easy as possible. That’s why we’re such a fan of having chatbots manage the whole transaction. But don’t stop once they check out!
You need to follow through and start that relationship once they purchase.
If you have a website for your online shop, give them the option to create an account after their first purchase. You can do this right in the checkout process, or in a thank-you and confirmation email that you send them.
If they purchase on a chatbot, you can set up another message that sends after a specified period of time, to thank them and invite them to join your mailing list, like your Page, or otherwise interact more with your business.
Tell them the perks of building a tighter relationship with you: saving their details for faster checkouts, accessing past orders, remembering their favorite products, and so on.
You can also add perks for when they do sign up with an account, such as discount codes or a loyalty program.
Build a Social Media Personality
Don’t forget to use social media, email lists, and SMS lists to create genuine relationships with your customers. Don’t just be a pushy salesperson and talk only about your products and promotions.
For example, take a look at popular fast food chains like Taco Bell, who have fun interactions on Twitter with their followers.
Online and downloadable coloring book pages probably generate zero revenue for Taco Bell, but that doesn’t stop them from connecting with their followers. People reply to their tweets, retweet their tweets, and they stay in touch with their market.
It’s also important to keep track of complaints and negative feedback on social media. Reach out to these people in a timely manner. Ignored public complaints can be harmful for your business, and can get out of control if you don’t take care of it.
Just Keep Swimming
Don’t sit back once you’ve started working on returning customers. The world is always changing, so our business should too. Always check to see if your marketing efforts to keep your customers engaged are working as you want it to, or if you need to change it up.
You can turn your potential customers into loyal customers. Just keep swimming.