1. Understand the consumer
It’s easy to speak in terms of generalities, but the best strategy is one of the most basic: understanding who your customer is and what their needs are. When, what, and why do they buy?
Every niche and audience of course is a little different, and you will have an easier time fostering customer loyalty when you have a clear understanding of who you’re serving. Find out: who is your customer? What problems are they trying to solve? How can you make it easier for them to make a buying decision? Could you provide more or better information than your competitors? Could you cater to a market that’s currently underserved?
2. Expressing value in the product
Your customer is coming to your website because they want to buy a product from you. The transaction can happen more or less on autopilot if you provide them with the right information and they’re convinced it’s the right product for them. But what if you were to draw more attention to the value the product can provide for the customer?
Think carefully about the problem your customer is trying to solve and how your product can help. This instantly elevates the value of the product in their eyes. You can create even more value by: developing value-adding content that answers customer questions, building a community for your customers where an exchange of information can take place, and by hosting live, in-person events. Don’t just see a transaction as an exchange of money for product. See it as an opportunity to create more value in your business-customer relationship.
3. Create great customer support/service
Today’s customers expect a great support and service experience. They don’t want to feel like they’re buying from a faceless enterprise that treats them like a number. When they have questions, they want them answered. When they have a problem with their order, they want to be able to reach a real human being and not a pre-recorded answering service. They want to be heard. Allow them multiple channels to contact you on – phone, social media, live chat, email, etc. Also make sure you’re listening and responding to your customers on social media in a timely manner. Another big one is making sure to answer incoming queries quickly. For great customer experience you must create fast response times.
4. Incentives
Generating more leads and customers should be a part of every businesses’ strategy. But what we often forget is that serving our existing customers is more profitable than constantly pursuing fresh blood. If we can continually incentivise repeat business, we’ll extend customer lifetime value and encourage more sales from each and every customer. One way to incentivise your customers is with a loyalty program. You can offer free shipping, product discounts and other promotions to people who have bought from you. This will keep them coming back when they need to buy more of what you have to offer.
You can also implement a membership program, which can take many different forms. If you offer a consumable product like a vitamin, for example, you could offer a subscription to your customers so fresh supplies are automatically sent to their doors as they’re about to run out. The membership could also take the form of an online community, such as a forum, where your customers can go to ask questions and interact with other community members. This would work well in a passion niche like guitar, fishing or golf. Giving your users the ability to login to your website and save their personal information with you is also par for the course. This encourages repeat business and also saves your customers from having to enter their address and credit card information every time they order something from you.
Thank you to Entrepreneur!