6 proven strategies to improve customer retention, engagement, and loyalty

If you’re a small business owner, can we both please take a moment to acknowledge the fact that YOU are awesome? 🙂

I’m Anuja and I am a Content Strategist at Vajro, a platform that helps e-commerce store owners build a mobile app for their Shopify store with absolutely zero coding.

Having interacted with a lot of small business owners to understand their business needs better, I have heard the challenges you face in keeping your customers happy and loyal. Businesses vary across industries and geographies, business goals vary, and business requirements vary. And there’s no one-size-fits-all approach for every business in the world to become successful. But there’s one thing that’s the crux of every business - Customers. In this blog, I’ve put down 6 proven tips to keep your customers happy and make them return to you for purchase.

But before that, let’s take a moment to understand why you should focus more on engaging with your existing customers than acquiring new customers.

Why improve customer retention, engagement, and loyalty?

The probability of selling to an existing customer is 60–70%, while the probability of selling to a new prospect is 5-20%. That is why!

Loyal and happy customers tend to make repeat purchases and have a higher lifetime value, contributing to revenue growth.

Acquiring new customers can be expensive due to marketing efforts and promotions. And if you run paid ads to acquire new customers, you must understand that providing excellent service to these customers is the most important step for retaining them in the long run. This in turn results in good ROI. 

According to a famous study by Bain & Company, increasing customer retention rates by just 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%. Below are 6 ways by which you can get there.

1. Personalize the customer experience:

Personalizing a customer's shopping experience is not just including their name on your email's opening line. The 'how',' why', and 'when' you interact with them matters.

Some of your promotions could be app-specific, some done only through emails, while some could be a mix of emails, push notifications, and SMS. Multichannel marketing is archaic. It’s time to embrace omnichannel marketing to offer personalized and seamless shopping experiences to your customers across various channels based on their behavioral data.

With a marketing automation tool integrated with a mobile app, you can leverage customer data to tailor your messaging and promotions to meet your customers’ unique needs. This helps build stronger customer relationships and connections.

A survey by Econsultancy states that 93% of companies saw an increase in conversion rates due to personalization efforts.

2. Let your customers know what you’re up to:

Be transparent and authentic in your communications with customers, and ensure your messaging aligns with your values. Be honest about any changes, security issues, or updates related to your products or services.

One of the most effective ways in which you can communicate to your customers is by sending them push notifications. With targeted and personalized push notifications, you could announce new products, promotions, and offers.

Live selling is another promising strategy that enables you to boost engagement, interact with customers in real time, generate a sense of FOMO that drives more sales, and leverage repeat purchases. Live selling also gives you engaging content that can be used again.

A survey by Livestream reports that 82% of people would prefer a live video from a brand to a blog or social media post. 

3. Offer exclusive rewards to repeat customers and referrals:

Offering exclusive perks and rewards to your loyal customers can help incentivize them to continue doing business with your brand. Consider offering discounts, complementary gifts, or access to exclusive events or products to your most loyal customers and referrers.

Loyal customers are more likely to become your brand advocates by referring friends and family to your store, driving organic growth through word-of-mouth marketing.  

A survey by Influitive found that 91% of customers are more likely to make a purchase after receiving a referral from a friend, and another report by Annex Cloud states that customers who are part of a loyalty program are 70% more likely to spread the word about a brand.

‍4. Offer exceptional customer experience: 

A study by Gartner states that companies that prioritize customer experience generate 60% higher profits than the ones that don't invest in customer support. Providing exceptional customer service is crucial to driving customer retention.

Ensure you provide your customer service team with the required training and empower them to handle customer request, complaints, and feedback efficiently. Make it your top goal to provide a positive shopping experience to your customers consistently. This will eventually increase your average order value.  

Having  a mobile-optimized website is just the first step in the journey to offer a seamless shopping experience. Take it up a notch by getting a mobile app for your brand - your customers will thank you for it!

5. Foster a sense of community and provide valuable content:

Build a community around your brand to foster a sense of belonging and loyalty among your customers. Create forums, social media groups, or other platforms where customers can interact and share their experiences with your brand. You could also provide helpful tips, insights, or education related to your products or services.

A Facebook study found that a customer is 3.5 times more likely to make a purchase if they feel a sense of community with a brand.

6. Encourage feedback and act on it:

Demonstrate your commitment to customer satisfaction by encouraging customers to provide feedback and promptly taking the necessary action to address it.

Honest feedback can even come as a game-changer. You never know how a small suggestion from your most loyal customer can help you enhance your store's offerings, thereby improving customer satisfaction.

According to a research by Survey Monkey, 85% of customers would give their feedback after a good experience with a brand, and 81% would give feedback if their experience went bad. 

Wrapping up...‍

Before I conclude: nothing here is doctrine. These are just a few of many tried and true strategies that you can apply to your business to see significant results.

Improving customer retention, engagement, and loyalty not only drives more sales but also builds up your brand's reputation among your competitors in the e-commerce platform.

Vajro offers various mobile commerce features, such as live selling, push notifications, mobile-friendly product pages, one-click checkout, and powerful integrations, to help you streamline and ease your customers shopping experience.

If you are looking to build a mobile app for yourself, try Vajro today. Trusted by over 5,000 customers across various industries from around the world, Vajro stands tall in the Shopify ecosystem with 1,600+ 5-star ratings. To know more, book a demo now.