Gaining thousands of customers is good, but having customers who are loyal to your store is perfect. The reason behind this is that loyal customers are said to visit your store often to have repeat purchases. With this, your customer retention rate can improve tremendously. And more can be done to improve customer experience to boost customer loyalty.
One pretty outcome from a smart marketing strategy is that one customer can bring you 2 or more new customers if you hit it right. That is why much of your store’s revenue can come from loyal customers. This is the reason why you should be intentional about creating a brand with strong customer loyalty.
There is no sweet marketing strategy as having your customers promote your store through the word of mouth marketing. It is cheap and comes with an authentic result in terms of sales.
Ways To Grow Customer Loyalty
1. Personalizing customer experience
This marketing trick is that one size fits all of marketing. Personalization improves the customer experience in diverse ways. From helping you convert first-timers into returning buyers to harnessing a bunch of loyal customers.
When it seems as though something is not working as you expect it in your store, maybe a marketing strategy. You can boost it by having that strategy created based on individual customers’ interests. The psychology behind this is that people feel very carried along when what they experience while shopping is specific to them.
This strategy is what a popular e-commerce platform, Aliexpress uses for its customers. The kind of product promoted on your home page, cart, and featured products can be very different from what your friend will get. And that is because the products you are looking for are distinct.
2. Social media marketing
This can be a two-way thing. The popular one is that you can drive customers from your social media pages to your Shopify stores which is very true.
But for times when customers you just acquired discovered you through other marketing and promotion channels like Google Ads or word of mouth from an existing buyer. Customers like this might not be aware that there is a social media page for your store.
To engage customers in the described category, you can actively share your social media links on your store’s homepage, cart, and post-purchase page (thank you page). This way you are luring customers to join your community or follow your page on social media.
How can social media help you drive engagement to boost customer loyalty?
The mighty rule of social media is frequent and consistent creation of content to keep your followers who in your case are your customers or potential customers engaged. It also poses to them that you are very active in business.
To draw more customers closer and increase customer loyalty from existing buyers, you can have content that can help you keep them engaged. Such activities can be
Cost-Effective Ways To Increase Customer Retention
3. Genuine product
Even in a world where you can sell generic products, there is a way to get your customers to trust the quality of the product that you sell. Selling authentic products or making your customers know the specific quality of items that you sell in your store is a good way to begin gaining customer loyalty.
As you are giving your customers originality in terms of product, you can share the process it takes to make your products especially if you are in the craft industry.
4. Reward consistent customers
Being appreciative of your customers can be a channel to having a bunch of loyal ones. Customer loyalty can be bred with rewards like gifts, discounts on the next purchase, free shipping for their others after reaching a set threshold, and so on.
Putting a program in place to help you show appreciation to returning customers will foster a strong bond with customers. As they will feel valued and important. There are reward programs that can keep customers engaged and keep them on their toes. It can come in the form of a purchase streak which gives them points that can be redeemed.
Growing Sales: How To Drive Traffic To Your Shopify Store
5. Nudging customers to create user-generated content
User-generated content is another way to boost visibility for your store, acquire new customers as well as strengthen the relationship with existing customers.
UGC allows customers to participate in giving visibility to a brand usually by making content out of the shopping process or with the product gotten from the store.
Some store owners engage social influencers to create user-generated content as naturally as possible to promote their store. This has a great impact on potential customers because they feel they are hearing more about your store from a co-buyer like them.
That becomes a trust signal that your store is authentic. This can also be the channel through which customers get to review what buying from you is like. If very positive, it can be a strong source of customer acquisition for your store.
Benefits Of Strengthening Customer Loyalty
1. Increased repeat purchase
Loyal customers are more likely to make repeat purchases, leading to increased sales and revenue for the business. They have established trust in the brand and are willing to choose it over competitors, resulting in a higher customer lifetime value.
How And Why You Need To Encourage Repeat Purchases.
2. High customer retention rate
Strengthening customer loyalty helps in retaining existing customers. Retaining customers is generally more cost-effective than acquiring new ones. By nurturing strong relationships with loyal customers, businesses can reduce churn rates and maintain a stable customer base.
3. Boosts sales and revenue
Loyal customers tend to be less price-sensitive compared to new customers. They are more willing to pay a premium for products or services they trust and have a positive experience with. This can contribute to higher profit margins for the business.
Acquiring new customers often involves significant marketing expenses. Giving an effort on customer loyalty, businesses get to reduce their marketing costs as loyal customers require less investment to maintain their relationship and are more likely to respond positively to targeted marketing efforts.
Wrap
Instead of putting all your focus on growth and customer acquisition alone, you should look to build trust with your customers. That in turn will help you strengthen customer loyalty. Engaging your customers can help you build a trustworthy relationship which better improves their customer experience and satisfaction.
