We all want loyal customers who will purchase from us often, spend big and tell all of their friends to do the same, right? In some cases, acquiring these unicorn customers can take years, hard work and a lot of money. With a great Customer Loyalty Program for your store, finding and keeping this kind of customer is unbelievably easy.
For those of us in the eCommerce realm, implementing a customer loyalty program or app on your site is simple, requires little effort and will yield big $$$.
Customer loyalty programs can offer rewards to customers as a thank you for continued loyalty. These rewards can include;
1. Customer Acquisition.
These days, consumers have limitless products and brands to choose from when purchasing. Loyalty programs significantly increase the chances of obtaining a new customer. Offering a potential customer the perks of joining a loyalty program might just be the thing that sets you apart from your competitors. The cost of acquiring your first customer can be significant if you’re investing money in remarketing, and multiple touchpoint advertising. If you’re offering a first-time customer a unique gift or reward, the cost per acquisition can be reduced.
2. Customer Retention.
So you’ve got a new customer who’s purchased from you once, now what? It’s 60-70% easier and costs 5-6x less to get an existing customer to convert, than obtaining a new customer.
Customer loyalty programs allow you to encourage a first time customer to become a loyal customer. You can also send repeat customers unique rewards to make them feel valued by you as the store owner, which will encourage them to continue to spend in your store.
3. Customer Life Time Value.
Customer Life Time Value (LTV) measures the potential value or revenue a customer can bring into your business over an extended period of time. This key measurement allows businesses to measure the potential revenue against the cost to acquire that customer to determine the effectiveness of
their marketing efforts. With a loyalty program, the expected amount of money a customer is likely to spend in your business or on your products over their lifetime is higher. As many as 84% of consumers say they’re more likely to stick with a brand that offers a loyalty program. And 66% of customers say the ability to earn rewards actually changes their spending behavior.
At the end of the day, increasing Customer LTV means more money on your bottom line for years to come.
4. Referrals
Loyal customers are more likely to refer your brand or product to their friends and family. According to Ambassodor 78% of loyal customers will recommend your product to friends. Further to this, 92% of people prefer referrals from friends over paid advertising. A common way to incorporate referrals into your loyalty program is by giving your customer a gift when they refer your product to a friend who then converts.
5. Spend less on advertising
Loyalty programs give you more insight into what your customer wants and how they shop. Most apps allow you to segment your loyalty program members in meaningful ways to your business such as by total spend, rewards tier, purchasing habits and many more. This means that you will know who your best customer is and how to communicate with them. Using this valuable data you can create more targeted, cost-effective advertising to prospects that mirror your best customers, and are likely to convert.
In one case study implementing a loyalty app saw a 58% increase in repeat customers and saved over $1,000 in monthly ad spend.
It’s pretty simple really. Customers who feel valued and rewarded are happy, and happy customers spend more money.
