6 Proven Ways to Increase Customer Lifetime Value in Ecommerce
Did you know that acquiring customers can cost up to five times more than retaining them? Instead of putting all your money into driving new traffic, you can boost your bottom line by boosting your customer lifetime value (CLV) the value that a customer brings to your business throughout their relationship with your business.
In this article, we discuss some proven strategies that you can use to encourage repeat purchases and keep customers coming back to your business.
1. Stay in Touch Through Email Marketing
Your customers won’t come back to your business if they don’t remember who you are. To keep your brand top of mind, it’s imperative that you communicate with your customer base. Email marketing is an effective channel for online businesses to stay in touch with their customers.
An email marketing effort like a monthly newsletter can go a long way toward creating a relationship with your customers. Regular email communications give you a way to stay in touch with your customers and provide value beyond the context of a purchase experience. When done right, email marketing can offer a great return, driving sales for your business and increasing order value over time.
2. Turn Shoppers into Repeat Buyers with Subscriptions
In general, a subscriber can provide more revenue to your business than a one-time buyer. A subscription service can help you boost customer loyalty by providing convenience and personalization two qualities that many shoppers value in an online buying experience.
Subscriptions allow your customers to “set and forget” a recurring order or create a curated recurring order based on their needs. This not only increases revenue, but also retains customers over a longer period of time and keeps them coming back to your business.
3. Offer Personalized Upselling
In many industries, it’s much easier to sell to a customer who knows you and has already purchased from you than it is to convert an entirely new prospect. One way to provide more value to an existing customer is through upselling and cross-selling.
Upselling is when you promote a more expensive product, add-on, or upgrade that will increase the value of the customer’s purchase. Cross-selling encourages customers to purchase a similar or associated product. Both selling methods allow you to offer personalized suggestions and appeal to the interests of your shoppers. This is a great way to encourage customers to explore your site, discover new products, and add more items to their order, boosting each customers’ average order value—an important factor in increasing your overall CLV.
4. Provide Stellar Customer Service
This might seem like a no-brainer, but a happy and satisfied customer is more likely to become a repeat buyer. Customer service is frequently listed as a top deciding factor for customers 89 percent of shoppers are more likely to make a purchase after a positive customer experience. Building trust and providing quality service are crucial to keeping shoppers content and loyal to your business.
There are many ways for you to deliver outstanding customer service. It could be from providing accurate delivery times and post-purchase communications to answering inquiries via live chat and asking customers for their feedback. Increasing customer satisfaction allows you to build a bigger community of fans who are excited to come back and purchase from you again.
5. Win Over Customers with a Great Brand
Subscriptions, loyalty programs, and upselling on your site are all effective ways to increase your CLV. A key component of building customer lifetime value is getting customers to invest in you. Your brand can serve as a great gateway for making an emotional connection to your customers.
Stand out from your competition by defining your brand identity. Make sure your values, beliefs, visuals, and messaging reflect those of your target customer base. Customers are more likely to revisit and engage with the companies that share their viewpoints and are able to capture their attention.
6. Reward Your Best Customers
Loyalty programs are effective for building up a loyal customer base and encouraging repeat business. You can reward your most active customers with exclusive deals, discount coupons, rewards and encourage them to sign up for your loyalty program. A loyalty program treats each customer like a VIP, giving them incentive to come back and make that next purchase on your site. Moreover, all the points mentioned above can be easily implemented with a loyalty program.
Research shows that shoppers are more likely to recommend brands with good loyalty programs. These word-of-mouth referrals can help lower marketing costs while connecting you with both loyal customers and new prospective visitors. To dazzle casual browsers and turn them into enthusiastic fans, make sure your ecommerce platform is equipped with the features and functionality needed to deliver a spectacular online experience. The brand must have the ability to provide subscriptions and loyalty programs to tools for dynamic product recommendations and email marketing integration. With the right tools and a strategic approach to customer retention and satisfaction you can boost your customer lifetime value, increase revenue, and forge lasting, profitable customer relationships.
Article written by editorial team of Miva
