Customer loyalty is the thing of dreams for most eCommerce websites. While we would love to believe that consumers will visit our online store regularly, or before they look at other eCommerce websites, the reality is, unless you are actively engaging them, they are not going to be loyal customers. The key to creating a loyal, reoccurring customer base is to provide additional benefits that make the customer feel valued and appreciated.
Flash Sales
Flash sales are a great way to re-establish a positive relationship with your customer base. The entire purpose of a flash sale is to create an immediate need within the customer. Many eCommerce stores will opt to order an extremely limited number of items for their flash sales, so items appear to be selling out quickly. This creates an immediate desire to do less research and make a purchase. Customers who miss the flash sale or miss items will be more eager to attend subsequent flash sales, and will be ready to “pull the trigger” a lot sooner next time.
Creating A Loyalty Program
Many eCommerce store owners automatically assume that all their former customers are members of their sites. This is the first big mistake shop owners make. It leads you to start sending email blasts to customers who only wanted to take advantage of the sales going on at the time. After a couple of months, your emails are going to get tossed into the spam folder, and the customer will never hear from you again.
The best way to avoid this is to create some type of membership or loyalty program for customers to take advantage of. The program should be free, offer multiple benefits, and focused to target your top customers. Some examples of the benefits could include:
- Free or reduced shipping costs.
- Early access to view products associated with upcoming sales.
- A discount for ordering a specified amount during the sale.
With WooCommerce, you can easily create and manage memberships and/or subscriptions all in one place, generate recurring payments and potentially increase conversions.
Targeting Your Audience
Once you have created your loyalty program, it is time to start sifting through your data. Identify which type of customer you want to provide additional benefits to. For example, do you want the ones with large check out totals? How about the ones that frequently shop on your eCommerce website? What about the customers who also refer a friend, yet might not purchase anything?
You should determine who your true VIP’s are. Once you have figured out whom to target, it is time to make them a VIP. Send them a short email explaining why you want to offer them the chance to become a member and the extra benefit or two associated with being a VIP.
Conclusion
Creating a loyalty program that scouts out future VIP’s is an important tool for any eCommerce store. Especially for those sites that are struggling to find ways to reconnect with their customer base. Something as simple as an exclusive invitation to a welcome back flash sale would be a great way to kick things off.
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