How many times did you spot the same customers visiting your store again? We’re sure you would get delighted on seeing them twice. This would make you wonder how you can get to increase their visits.
Your current customers hold the key to more stable and quality sales due to a plethora of reasons. First, you don’t have to convince them of your exclusive services – they are already well aware and that is why they chose to visit again.
Second, there is already a connection between you and them, so guiding them to purchase becomes easier. And the third one, of course, is their regular visits ending up making them buy something. This gives you a cue to put in extra effort to retain them at all costs.
When you and your current customers have a fair understanding of each other’s requirements, you get to establish a strong relationship. It can happen that you might be out of stock for the wholesale products, or might be facing some other issue. But a good customer relationship will not let those inconveniences tarnish your reputation. It can be said that repeat buyers are an asset to your business.
Why you should focus on recurring customers?
Regular customers are also considered loyal customers. Their faith in your services leads them to visit your store and in many cases, despite other retailers rolling out attractive offers, they choose to buy from you.
For identifying customers who make repeat purchases at your store you must start paying close attention to the data gathered from the past week, month or whichever the case may be. Increasing the number of repeat customers generates more money.
As you boost your regular customer rate, you won’t have to spend as much on customer acquisition. The value of regular consumers is underscored by its various benefits.
It’s a well-acknowledged fact that retaining regular customers is cheaper than attracting new customers. The main reason for this is that consumers will buy from brands they trust. Over half of consumers have said they will spend up to 57% more on a brand that they are loyal to. Furthermore, it takes a lot more marketing efforts to convert a new customer than a loyal one.
According to a study conducted by Bain & Company, a 5% improvement in retention correlates with at least a 25% gain in profit.
Spending more on diverse retention strategies, providing better customer service or creating customer loyalty programs can help you gain more loyal consumers in the long haul.
Repeat customers = high CLTV
Customer lifetime value (CLTV) is higher for repeat customers. With every transaction, a loyal customer will spend more money than a new customer by placing more repeat orders or through upsells. Why? A lot of elements are at play here, but one is trust.
The more repeat customers trust you, the less they hesitate to buy from you. That’s why introducing new products to repeat buyers takes less work than promoting the products to new customers.
Repeat customers spend more
Not only do repeat customers buy your products more, but they also have a greater average order value than first-time buyers. The number of past transactions made and how long a consumer has used your services significantly impact how much a repeat customer spends in your business.
Repeat customers promote your business
Along with growing revenue, repeat customers advertise your business with word-of-mouth advertising, which is one of the finest strategies to increase your customer base. The more purchases a customer makes the more likely they are to refer you to their friends and relatives. They’ll be more comfortable making a good referral once they have experienced great customer service.
For example, Bain & Company found that after 10 purchases, purchasers refer as many as 50% more people than one-time buyers.
This is how they could enhance your sales by bringing in new customers.
How to retain loyal customers
These simple steps may help you reach your goal –
Loyalty initiatives
Your goal should be to persuade current consumers to join your loyalty programme. This can be something that your consumers can enjoy right away, like offering freebies, discounts on their initial purchases, or the launch of a loyalty point system. The registration procedure should be simple. Start to think about making them subscribe to your reward programme during the checkout process. You can share the link to a Google Form for this.
Study your data
To find regular customers, you can examine consumer data. Calculate the percentage of returning customers using the following formula:
(Number of customers that have made multiple purchases/Total Customers) / 100 = Repeat Customer Rate (%)
The calculations can also be adjusted based on your customers’ spending patterns:
(Number of customers who have made X purchases / Total Consumers) / 100 = The percentage of customers who have made X purchases.
Note – The ideal benchmark for repeat customers is around 20-30% a month. If you can get 20-30% of your total customers in a month to buy from you again, it is safe to assume you’re doing pretty well.
Show Appreciation
By remembering and appreciating your loyal customers, you will surprise them. Also, never run out of kind words of gratitude for your existing buyers. Small efforts count for a great impact when it’s about appreciating them for choosing you when they could easily go to other retailers.
You can use the 80/20 rule: 20% of buyers often make up 80% of sales.
When they make a purchase, go a step further and send them a unique thank you note. (They’ll love it)
Put the customer first
The ultimate aim of the company is to boost earnings. This is only feasible if you make sure to give your consumers the best customer service.
For instance, an online pet food distributor Chewy is famous for its top-notch customer support. It consistently goes above and above to give its customers great customer service.
Reward Them
Discounts and incentives are quite popular. Customers frequently use it as justification for trying out various things before making repeat purchases. Offering incentives, particularly after the first purchase, can be a wonderful strategy to boost your business. Examples of these include bonus upgrades, more samples, loyalty points, or shop credit.
Study customer information
By knowing and understanding your customers’ shopping habits and preferences, you can evaluate consumer data to tailor your offerings. Update your marketing strategy by using the gathered data to guide your operations in both your offline and online stores.
To assist you to sell the best things in your physical store, for instance, you can monitor customer ratings and reviews on Google for your products.
Create positive experiences
You can improve customer experience by ensuring these steps –
Offer a special service that enables users to perform at their own convenience. Customers can receive the royal treatment they merit when they shop by appointment, personalising the experience.
Provide a seamless checkout process for your customers. Accept credit cards, debit cards, and mobile payments among other payment methods. Make sure the checkout process is simple, fun, and easy.
Be a dependable and considerate retailer. Not only should you serve your customers well, but you should also treat all of your employees fairly, give back to your community, and represent your company as being socially responsible.
Summing Up
As a retailer, you definitely would want to increase your sales and profits. But that doesn’t mean you should only focus on attracting new buyers. You also need to make sure that your regular customers are making repeat purchases from you. Nurturing your regular customer is easy if you follow these strategies. Ultimately, maintaining and keeping your existing customers is more efficient than selling wholesale products to acquire new ones.
