Would you be happy to be friends with someone who only talks about themselves, their interests, and their hobbies? Or, who only shows interest in you when they need something from you?
Probably not.
Yet many businesses are like this friend. You don’t want to be that type of business that only remembers customers when you want them to buy something.
As a business, you want to be a good friend to your customers because that way, they’ll return to buy another product. This is where the concept of customer loyalty comes in.
Why is customer loyalty important?
There are two reasons.
Firstly, it’s always more expensive to attract new customers than to connect with existing ones. You have to find them and then figure out the best way to engage with them. But you already know your current customers and have an ongoing conversation with them.
Secondly, buyers who keep coming back will help you keep the profits high. Research shows that returning customers spend 67% more than customers who are new to your brand. Keeping current customers happy and satisfied helps the long-term success of your online business.
Whether you already run an eCommerce store or are thinking of creating one, there are some basic things that can help your business grow. The same goes for those of you who just had a holiday season boom and want to invite new shoppers back to your store.
This beginner’s guide covers how to build successful relationships with customers and loyalty tools you can use.
1. COMMUNICATE YOUR VALUES
64% of shoppers have cited shared values as the primary reason for choosing a brand. That means, if your customers can relate to your brand, they’ll want to keep buying from you.
There are a couple of simple steps you can take to show what’s important to your business and attract customers who share your ideals.
WRITE A CONVINCING ABOUT US PAGE
An About Us page gives online shoppers insight into your business and the people behind it. This can include:
- How you started your store
- When you sold your first product
- What makes you and your brand unique
- What are your brand values and beliefs
- Why customers should choose you
People love stories and learning more about the brand itself. They’re naturally curious, and not only about the products.
SEND PERSONALIZED EMAILS
I don’t know about you, but receiving an email that’s written as if it could be addressed to anyone doesn’t really make me want to click that “Buy Now’’ button. And I’m not the only one. Emails, where you address the recipient by their name, have a transaction rate 6 times higher than impersonal emails.
Another way to make email communication a little more personal is by sharing the story of why you started your business. Think of it as having a talk with your customer over coffee. It’s an easy way to connect with your customer on a deeper level.
2. GAIN TRUST AND CREDIBILITY
There are several ways how you gain customer trust, but for now, let’s focus on these three steps.
DELIVER EXPECTED PRODUCT QUALITY
This one should go without saying. No customer will ever come back to you if your product descriptions and images are different from what they get.
Source: @kaitlinn_towns
You might’ve seen a few expectations vs. reality photos like this one before.
To avoid these types of situations, make sure your product photos are as close to reality as possible and accurately describe your product to set your customer expectations. Include the following:
- What the product does or what you’re supposed to do with it
- Added value (e.g why your product is so great)
- All the relevant information (the price, color range, availability, etc.)
HAVE CLEAR STORE POLICIES
If you’re anything like me, one of the first things you do before a purchase is look for the store’s return and shipping policies.
Store policies create a sense of security for customers when they’re buying something from you, especially since they can’t try on the product beforehand. They’ll know what to expect if something goes wrong with their order, or if the product doesn’t fit properly.
To get started, take a look at KakaClo’s policy regarding Return & Refund:
- Return policy. Within 15 days of receiving the package, we are committed to exchanging the product for you/your customer if the size is not appropriate. But you will be responsible for exchange shipments & costs. We only accept EXCHANGE requests about SIZE. And the clothes should also be unworn, unwashed,
- unaltered or unused merchandise and in sellable condition.
- Refund Policy. You can always issue a refund if you haven’t collected payment yet. You can refund the order if you’ve made your payment but no items have been fulfilled.
- You can refund an entire order or only part of an order.
HAVE A SOCIAL PRESENCE
Social media is the perfect place to build a relationship with your customers. You can have one-on-one conversations with customers so they feel connected to your brand, and you can showcase your brand personality through humor, images, or videos.
There are many strategies you can use, but I’ll highlight the two most important.
First, be responsive. When shoppers ask a question or leave a comment, reply as soon as you can. A quick response will show everyone that you‘re an accessible brand that cares about its customers. Like Starbucks here—see how fast they replied?
Source: Starbucks
Secondly, keep customers in the loop. Share updates with them about what’s going on at your store and take them behind the scenes. You can post walk-throughs of your products, interview your team, and show pictures or videos of your workspace. Being open about your business practices is a great way to encourage a positive customer-brand relationship.
You can’t speak to all of your customers in person, but you can use your social media presence to make your customers feel like you care.
3. REWARD LOYALTY
The list of customer loyalty examples could go on and on. Personalized discounts, early sneak peeks of soon-to-be-launched products, brand ambassador programs… you get the idea.
Here are a few other extra things you can do to thank customers for their business
SET UP A CUSTOMER LOYALTY PROGRAM
A customer loyalty program is an extra perk you can give to your most frequent customers. By giving your customers some kind of reward, you make them feel good about purchasing and motivate them to keep coming back. The rewards can be free merchandise, free shipping, discounts, coupons, birthday deals—you name it.
SEND REMINDERS
E-commerce sites offer new deals daily, and sometimes people forget about all of those subscriptions and registrations—I know that I do! Send your customers a nice email reminder so they don’t miss those special offers.
PERSONALIZE YOUR ORDERS WITH PACK-INS
The best gifts don’t have to be grandiose to leave a good impression on your customer. Surprise your customer with a small and affordable gift!
It can be something that will add instant value to your product (like adding a small bottle of shoe polish to extend the life of a brand-new pair of leather boots).
The gift can also be a memento from your store, like a sticker or a handwritten thank-you note. For example, West Path—a surf, yoga, and home decor business based in San Diego—sends a branded shaka sticker with each other.
4. GATHER FEEDBACK
Customer feedback is helpful for two reasons. First, you can find out more about what you need to change—or continue doing if customers are satisfied. Secondly, customer reviews will make other shoppers trust your store more.
ASK FOR REVIEWS
Encourage your shoppers to leave a review. Letting your customers know that you value their feedback shows that you’re committed to consistently improving to better serve them.
There are many ways to ask for reviews, but it’s most effective when done immediately following an interaction with a customer. Make any feedback request quick and simple to complete so that they’ll be more likely to share their thoughts.
LEARN FROM THE FEEDBACK
This is the type of step that happens behind the scenes. Whenever you get a bad review, approach it as an opportunity to improve your business. Think about what you need to do to keep an issue from happening again.
ENCOURAGE USER-GENERATED CONTENT
User-generated content or UGC is any type of content created by your customers. From social media posts to testimonials and comments, UGC provides extra social proof reassuring potential customers that it’s a good idea to buy from you.
Time to put these customer loyalty ideas into action
These examples can help you take your first steps to turn a first-time customer into a loyal customer. The most important advice to take from all this is, to be honest about what you do, and eventually, the customer trust you gain will help your business grow.
Keep in mind that retaining existing customers takes time, energy, and resources. But once you follow these steps we described, you have a greater chance of winning customer attention, increasing loyalty and, more importantly, boosting sales.
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