In a matter of a few quick clicks, a visitor suddenly transforms into a customer on your online store. Cue the celebration!
Even though the checkout process only lasts a few minutes — significant time, effort and marketing dollars were invested into this new customer acquisition. While you should still very much be in the business of acquiring new customers, it’s simply far more expensive to gain them than to retain them.
When a visitor becomes a customer, this visitor has started a relationship with you. It’s up to you to continue that conversion well after the initial purchase. Why? By improving customer experience, you can expect increased loyalty and future purchases. In the ecommerce world, this business-to-customer communication is referred to as post-purchase engagement.
To help you retain more customers, we’ve gathered five post-purchase engagement measures you can implement to your Volusion store marketing tactics.
1. Jazz up Your Confirmation & Shipped Emails
Both after a customer completes a purchase and after you’ve shipped their order, emails are automatically triggered to send. You can customize each of these two emails in a number of ways to foster the anticipation of the new product’s arrival. After all, deciding on a purchase is exciting! Encourage your customers’ excitement by utilizing positive language, visual impact and links back to your website or social media channels on these emails. Utilize these calls-to-action to motivate this new customer to follow you on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest or Twitter or link back to your website’s blog or FAQ page like in the example below.
You can customize these emails by navigating to your store’s dashboard. Refer to this Volusion Knowledge Base article for an in-depth how-to.
2. Ask for Product Reviews
A useful post-purchase engagement measure is to ask for a review from your customer. We live in a world of constant sharing. People want “social proof” of a purchase. Whether it’s sharing a good or bad product and shopping experience, chances are your customers want to tell someone about it. Why not direct that information back to your website? Not only will online reviews on your website help increase the authority of the product, encouraging other visitors to purchase, but these reviews will also add useful, relevant content to your website and help you understand how to make improvements. It’s estimated that over 80% of customers’ buying decisions are influenced by reviews posted online. If most of your products don’t currently have any reviews, it’s time for you to consider launching a product review campaign! With Volusion, you can simply edit and enable Order Review Requests to send a customer an email after their purchase. A link of what your customer purchased will automatically be included as seen below.
Don’t send a product review request right after the purchase; instead give your customer some time to experience the product. Send a product review request between 7-15 days after the shipment’s arrival. Learn how to enable this great feature here.
3. Respond to the Good, the Bad & the Ugly
In the online world, a person is more likely to complain than to praise. Hey, it’s human nature! It’s up to you (or your social media manager) to respond to every comment, direct message and tweet. If it’s a complaint, apologize and try to help your customer feel happy. In the end, they simply want to be heard. They’ve invested time and money into your product and they’re not feeling it for some reason. Not only will your satisfied clients feel a closer connection to you, but also those who aren’t satisfied will see your effort and stellar customer service.
4. Send Replenishment Emails
Depending on what you’re selling, it could be worthwhile to send a replenishment email. A good timeline for this email will vary by business. If you’re selling beauty products, for example, aim to send a replenishment email 8-12 weeks after the initial purchase. For industrial parts, a longer time window of 12-14 months will yield better results.
5. Celebrate Birthdays/Milestones
If a user has created an account on your online store, you more than likely have their date of birth and the date the account was created. Around birthdays, it’s common for site visitors to feel a need to “treat’ themselves with something new! Sending them a small discount as a happy birthday or free shipping can improve chances of conversion!
Remember to think past the checkout! Not only will these extra steps improve your customer’s overall experience with your brand, you’ll also be able to cultivate a wider base of loyal visitors. A happy customer will be sure to share a positive experience with his or her friends and family and you’ll enjoy a longer-term relationship with your customers. In the end, an active customer sustains your ecommerce business. Aim to keep your shoppers engaged so they can continue shopping!
Have any questions about these measures? Let us know in the comments!