eCommerce Customer Retention: Best Strategies

Keeping old customers instead of finding new ones has proven to be quite profitable. A retention rate of 5% could increase your profits by anywhere between 25% to 95%.

So, having loyal customers does pay off! Let's have a look at how you can get them. Today, we will talk about:

Customer retention refers to the ability of a company to keep or retain its customers over a specific period of time. Retaining a customer means that you've successfully convinced the customer to keep buying and doing business with you.

A high retention rate means that old customers return to your business frequently and have grown accustomed to buying your products or services.

Retaining a customer is less expensive and easier than attracting a new one. Once a customer is loyal to you, it's difficult for them to break that habit and choose someone new.

Customer service and experience play a large part in retaining customers. Around 89% of customers will switch to a competitor following a bad experience. Also, 96% of customers worldwide agree that customer service is detrimental in choosing what brand they'll be loyal to.

Loyal customers account for 65% of a company's business. Also, 91% of customers are more likely to buy something from a brand they already know.

So, seeing as these two factors are highly important for business, it's expected that 89% of companies will compete primarily on customer experience when retaining customers.

Customer loyalty and retention can do wonders for your business, and they definitely are worth the try!

Create a superior customer experience

user engagement and overall customer satisfaction are higher when a customer has a great experience while doing business with you. All customers appreciate honesty, so promise as much as you can deliver, and don't hesitate to let customers know when something is unavailable. For example, have a simple yet cool design, give handwritten or personalized notes with each delivery, offer free shipping for orders over a certain amount, etc.

This will help you not only create a better customer experience but will also improve the relationship you have with each customer, especially if the purchasing process has a more personal approach, like displaying targeted messages after the purchase is made

Prioritize customer service

when customers know or have experienced your support, they feel like they are a part of the community. This can go a long way in them choosing your brand and business as their go-to. Having automated messages when a customer visits your site is a must.

Also, phone calls can be pretty productive, where you check in on the customer or ask them if there is something you can do for them. Additionally, personalized emails can do the trick, where you encourage customers to share their experience and any recommendations they might have. This could also entice the customer to post a review online, which is good for your business's overall rating and credibility. Another crucial thing is that when a customer is not tech-savvy and is experiencing issues, always provide a solution they can understand in a friendly and non-condescending tone

Auto-renewal is a must

because it makes it easy for customers to continue doing business with you. Make sure that the auto-renewal is quick and easy. Also, to convince customers to keep doing business with you, make sure to tell them that by auto-renewing, they are doing themselves a favor because auto-renewal ensures that their business runs with no interruptions. To seal the deal, offer them long-term options that come with better rates. You can also offer bigger referral bonuses that will entice them to tell others about you even more

Solve problems that haven't been recognized yet

aside from the products and services you sell, you can also offer other solutions and suggestions that will help customers. Make sure to offer services that are appropriate and needed by the customer and that you offer a solution to a tedious and often overlooked issue. For example, you can offer site maintenance, expertise on marketing strategies, service updates, backups, new security features, etc. You can also offer customers offline solutions, i.e., you can take some work off their hands and give it to a third party. This way, the customer will see you as a problem-solver, and you will expand your network by doing business with other relevant companies. For example, you can offer to help customers with printing ads, mailings or offer to provide them with promotional materials and products

Offer loyalty programs

most loyalty programs give customers purchase points, which can be redeemed as discounts or in exchange for other products. This way, by buying more, customers get more significant discounts. Loyalty programs are a hub for repeat business and customer referrals. Customers are most likely to give your business a shot if someone else refers it to them and if they get a bonus by constantly doing business with you

Have a shipment tracking option

this will make you more credible in the eyes of customers, which will lead them to trust you. And trust is essential to having loyal customers. By enabling customers to see where their products are at any point in time, you prove that you will not scam them and will deliver the products as promised. And, seeing as over 24% of customers have said that they are highly likely to return to a business that has a shipment tracking option, it can only be beneficial for you to have this option

Provide gift cards

by offering customers the chance to buy gift cards for others, you give them a solution to future problems they may have. For example, gift cards are an excellent birthday present for others and an excellent tool for people to use when buying products for themselves. Also, around 59% of customers are likely to spend more than the gift card's value, so you can expect additional value from providing gift cards. This is a great way to convert customers because you offer them a solution to a common issue. Additionally, you can get extra business from the people that will receive your gift cards as presents

Make sure that customers know that you offer dedicated support, even if unavailable. For example, if you entrust your business to Verpex, you can also use our customer service and offer it to your customers.

This way, if one of your customers is having trouble with domain transfer, for example, you can refer them to us for help if you're unable to help them yourself, ensuring that your customers know that there is always someone available to help them.

Let's look at Verpex's retention strategies in more detail. Verpex offers customers free backups, migrations, and SSL, which solves an issue that the customer may not even consider when choosing their provider. Also, Verpex has 24/7 customer support, which is available via Live Chat, support tickets, and phone support for the UK and US.

These are great features that go a long way in getting customers to stay with Verpex because we let them know that our expert support team is always here to help and that solutions for some potential issues are already included in our services.

There are many steps you can take to retain customers. It would be best if you take as many as you can and cover all of your bases.

Customer retention pays off a lot and can get you a significant increase in profits. So, don't wait any longer. Follow these steps and turn your business into a money-making machine!