“I will only focus on getting the sale.”

If this is what you think can drive your eCommerce business, you’re on the wrong track. “Customer come back” should be your ultimate goal and engaging your customer after the sale is an important aspect of inbound marketing. A 5% customer retention rate can increase profits by 25% and even up to as high as 95%, according to Harvard Business School.

Why is Post Purchase Customer Engagement so Important?

According to Marketing Metrics the probability of selling a product to existing customers is around 60 to 70%, while the probability of selling to a new customer is only 5% to 20%.  Customer retention is an economically all-encompassing business strategy. It is more cost-effective to re-market your products to existing customers than it is trying to convert new ones. Existing customers have already demonstrated their interest in your products and are engaged with your brand for a prolonged period of time. The rule of thumb is that it is five times more expensive to acquire new customers – than to retain existing ones.

As your customers are deeply engaged with your brand, you are building your brand’s loyalty among them. This is the path to build a fan base that brings in new customers. A customer’s lifetime value is important for measuring your business success and it is important to optimize customer retention to increase the lifetime value of your customers.

Improve the Lifetime Value of Your Customers:

Build Trust in Your Contact Page

Your customers always do a little bit of homework before they connect with you. So how do you create trust and make them come back to your site?

• Evaluate the information you have asked for on your contact page. If you are not getting enough information, you can try to collect it later in the process.
• To reduce confusion and invalid input errors set each field’s expectation very clearly.
• Don’t pressure your customers for information. For instance, making irrelevant fields mandatory or forcefully asking your customers for their birth date will create discomfort.
• Customers should know what will be done with their information and why they are being asked for it. Assure your customers that their email address will not be added to any marketing lists or shared with any other advertising partners.

Motivate Your Customers to Create an Account

Often, customers are forced to create an account during the checkout process. Don’t make it so difficult. Instead, offer a guest checkout option. Make it easy by asking for less information in the form fields. Don’t ask them repetitive questions like name, address or email because you already gather these during the actual purchase process.  And if you want them to create an account, you have to help them understand the benefits of actually having one.

Request that they sign up for your newsletter. But before you ask them to do so, explain the advantages of receiving your newsletter- things like product discounts, coupons, incentives, new product updates, etc. And then time your newsletter according to the lifespan of your product.

Use Strategic Post Purchase Surveys:

• As you let your customers know that their products have been shipped and the purchase was successful, give them an option to say something about your products as well in the form of a testimonial or review. Those can then be used to engage customers and increase leads.
• Ask customers to complete a quick survey about their experience. This gives you valuable feedback regarding ways you can to improve customer service.
• Send email notifications with a link to let them know their reviews have been posted and show them where. 
• Use the cross sell strategy and let customers know that you appreciate their purchase and are looking for other ways to help them.
• Send a special offer or incentive to those who have recently purchased from you and inspire them to come back.
• Start sending purchase anniversary emails that acknowledge your customers in a special way.

Design for Mobile Users

With evolving mobile audiences, designing for a mobile experience can make your contact form easier to use. Eliminate irrelevant input fields and do not make each field too painful to fill in from a mobile phone.

If you have a mobile app and send SMS alerts, encourage customers to download the app and sign up for the alerts to deepen your relationship. Utilize the benefits of behavioral targeting technologies to enhance the value and relevance of your messages. Use persuasive words like free, sale or discount to entice your customers to buy more.

Improve Your Thank You Page

Don’t forget to say “Thank you” to your customers on the first page your visitors see once they have completed their purchase. A thank you page is an ideal place to show your appreciation.

Continuous post-sale customer support plays a major role in retaining your customer. Conversion rate optimization is not just about getting customers. Use effective ways to deliver the best experience to your customers – after their purchase and well beyond it.

Courtesy: Small Biz Trends

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