Returning customers are the bread and butter of any business, accounting for 25% – 40% of the revenue. It’s easier to keep a customer coming back for more than to acquire a new one, too. Returning customers also spend more, 67% on average than first-timers, according to research by Bain & Company.
Among many marketing tactic to boost sales to get more customers to come back to your stores, there is an easy but (often overlooked) strategy: a loyalty or rewards program. Loyalty program is one of the deciding factors that influence where customers choose to shop, especially Millennials. According to a study by Bond and Visa, more than 80% agree that they are more likely to continue shopping at a brand that has loyalty programs. Here are some other benefits that a loyalty program can bring to your business.
Increase the frequency of customers’ visits
If more of the same people come to shop at your stores, it means you sell more. A loyalty program can make your customers come in twice as often in the same period of time. This is especially true for loyalty programs with time limits, like the points you’ve earned within this year will expire on March next year, or loyalty programs with rewards for customers spending over a specific amount, like 1 free cup of coffee for every 10 cups you’ve purchased.
Increase the transaction size
Setting a minimum threshold for earning points motivates customers to spend more to meet that bar. For example, if customers can earn 1 point for every $10 spent, and they have spent $25, they’ll be likely to spend another $5 to get 3 points. Research from Bond Brand Loyalty studying Millennials even showed that one-third of respondents reported buying something they didn’t need or want just to improve membership status.
However, be careful when setting up your rules here. Don’t make the rules so challenging that they become barriers discouraging customers from taking part in your loyalty program and leaving a bad impression. The rules should be easy enough and there must be clear instructions on how to earn the rewards because customers love convenience. If you ask how easy it should be, set the rules that allow at least 80% of your transactions to be eligible for your loyalty program.
Grow your email marketing list
A loyalty program is an easy way to get a customer signed up. Once customers enroll, you can reach out to them via emails to send them useful information like new arrivals, promotions and the current status of their point balance.
It’s easy and quick to create a new customer and sign him/ her up for your loyalty program in ConnectPOS, so you don’t have to sacrifice the line speed. ConnectPOS is integrated with Reward Points from Aheadworks, which can also be integrated into your Magento store. It takes just a few minutes to set up and your customers can use their online points to pay for their in-store orders and earn points for such orders at the same time.
Integrate gamification
Gamification is another great way to grow your email list and boost sales in 2021. Gamification substantially elevates the customer experience. It keeps your visitors engaged, increases customer loyalty and interaction, gives quantifiable outcomes, and offers incentives to your customers. Gamification is an expansive way of making your brand fun and achieving your business goals if launched with planning.
With Tada, Shopify merchants can offer automatically generated discount codes that encourage visitors to make a purchase. With a countdown timer ticking once the code has been offered, visitors get a sense of urgency, which reduces abandoned carts and drives up sales. Stores have seen a 500% increase in subscribers and a 35% increase in sales after installing Tada. Schedule a demo or contact us for a free consultation today!
►►► See our products: Magento POS, BigCommerce POS, Shopify POS, Woocommerce POS, NetSuite POS, Commercetools POS, Customize POS, Customer Experience Solution and Next-Gen POS
