Ecommerce optimization hangs on making a customer feel unique and valued through personalization.
According to Segmentify, 74% of customers feel frustrated when website content isn’t personalized. Plus, 62% of customers say they expect companies to personalize email offers and discounts, depending on their recent purchase history.
This tells us something vital: customers want to be treated as individuals rather than part of a general pool.
So, how do you go about fulfilling this expectation? A loyalty program is a quick and efficient way to gather lots of customer data points. With one, you gain access to important details such as email addresses, phone numbers, birthdays and preferred rewards.
Let’s take a look at how you can use this data to personalize your customer’s experience, increase customer retention and loyalty and, ultimately, help each customer to feel valued by your business.
Greater segmentation opportunities
With a loyalty program, you can distinguish between new customers and returning customers. Those who have already signed up to your loyalty program can be quickly classified as “returning customers”. While customers who haven’t signed up yet are new customers who need to be nurtured.
This clear distinction opens the door for a multitude of personalization options. Why not email a new customer some further product suggestions based on their most recent purchase? Or, perhaps it’s time to reward an older customer for their loyalty with a discount on their most recently viewed item?
With a loyalty program, you can also segment shoppers on whether they’re loyal, at-risk or churned. You can then send them personalized content based on their status.
For example, the beauty brand, Farmacy, offers its loyal customers money-off products and access to member-only sales. This is an excellent way to not only reward those customers who have already joined your loyalty program but incentivize new customers to sign up too. The more customers that sign up, the better data you’ll have to segment customers and give them a top-quality experience.
For your at-risk and churned customers, take action with a win-back strategy. Email this segment telling them that they can easily earn points and redeem rewards by completing on-site and off-site actions (such as referring a friend). They’ll be encouraged to return to you when they weren’t planning to. And, they could even end up purchasing from you again.
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Advanced personalization strategies
65% of customers say they’re motivated to interact with a business when they receive personalized offers. A further 61% say that they enjoy personalized product recommendations.
These statistics put into perspective how crucial customer data is. With a loyalty program, you can store data points beyond simple demographics. All so you can connect with your customers using more than just their email address.
For example, Beauty Bakerie adds the customer name to the homepage every time a member signs into the program. A tailor-made landing page like this personalizes the shopping experience and builds trust.
When we consider that 48% of customers spend more money when they feel their experience is custom-made, personalization becomes paramount to increase profits. This is why personalized product recommendations are so effective.
In your emails, show customers recommendations based on their purchase history. By also showing that they’ll get loyalty points alongside their purchase, they’ll be more likely to return and shop again.
You can reward customers loyalty points for sharing their birthday with you when they sign up. Then, when the big day rolls around, send them a celebration email and let them know you’ve added bonus points to their account.
Better, more targeted and relevant messaging
50% of marketers argue that tailored, personal messages are one of the most effective methods of delivering unique experiences to the customer. Plus, consumers prefer to interact with brands where their individual needs are met. Loyalty data helps provide targeted and relevant messages directly to your customers.
Reach out to your shoppers with relevant messages to entice them back to your store. Send emails that include the member’s loyalty status and point balance. Loyalty emails have a higher open rates and click-through-rates than general marketing emails as they’re tailored to each individual. Set a good impression early by also including targeted messaging in your welcome emails.
To make your emails even more relevant, serve your customer up content that’s related to their purchases or interactions with your store. If a shopper has referred a friend to your brand, share them content that educates them on your brand community. Or, if they’re bought a particular product, serve them up a tutorial on how to use it or style it.
Personalize your shopping experiences for better engagement
In the modern world, ecommerce customers expect to be treated as individuals. This can be done by personalizing the shopping experience for each customer. To achieve this, and more, dive into your loyalty data to boost personalization and relevancy.
This article was written by Alison Murtagh at LoyaltyLion. LoyaltyLion is a data-driven loyalty and engagement platform trusted by thousands of ecommerce brands worldwide. Merchants use LoyaltyLion when they want a fully customized loyalty program that is proven to increase customer engagement, retention and spend. Stores using LoyaltyLion typically generate at least $15 for every $1 they spend on the platform.
