Here at Scratch-it, we love engagement. That’s, like, double underlined love, in case you weren’t sure.
Why?
Glad you asked…because engagement builds trust, fosters loyalty, and increases customer base, all while building up your bottom line.
Brands like that (and so do we). And, few brands rely more on the loyalty of their customers than retail brands.
Think about it. When a customer finds a pair of jeans they love, chances are they aren’t going to keep shopping for more. They go back to that same brand every time they need new jeans. That’s why loyalty in retail is crucial.
But, it’s also getting harder and harder.
Consumers are changing. People are far more skewed towards making their purchases online than ever before. Statistics cite that 40% of internet users worldwide have bought goods online.
E-commerce retail brands that aren’t embracing digital marketing practices that create loyalty and engage readers are likely to get left behind. Using a combination of email marketing and ads that are web and social media based, brands can create campaigns that specifically focus on increasing both the loyalty and engagement of potential consumers.
Let’s do a quick break down of each component that can help you increase customer loyalty for online retail.
Email Marketing
Email marketing is a key component for e-commerce focused marketers and brands.
One way to improve your bottom line is to create a cart abandonment campaign that sends a targeted email out to potential customers who have placed something in their online cart but haven’t purchased. The emails can offer discounts like 10% off coupons or free shipping if they return to the cart and buy.
Here’s an example of a Scratch-it that targeted cart abandonment for Uniqlo:
The Scratch-it in this case builds up curiosity, anticipation, interaction, and increases engagement. Once the potential customer discovers their “prize” they are more likely to follow through on the action and complete the purchase.
While many brands aren’t doing this, the ones that are see results.
Email marketing can also be used to announce special events, sales, and to build trust among subscribers. For example, brands can us emails to showcase special ways to use their products, fun stories, and recipes.
By using email marketing, e-commerce brands can tap into a potential customer base and start building loyalty and a positive associations.
Ad Campaigns
While most digital marketing experts will agree that banner and pop up ads aren’t anywhere near as useful as they once were, there is a type of ad campaign that’s seeing far better results: re-targeting campaigns.
Re-targeting is when an ad is featured online to consumers based on their previous web browsing behaviors. Google, Facebook and even YouTube are all players in the re-targeting game. They allow e-commerce brands to “follow” the potential customers who have visited their site to try to entice them to buy in the future.
And guess what? Re-targeting works.
Re-targeting experts Criteo recently completed a study that found “website visitors who subsequently see re-targeted display ads are 70% more likely to convert.”
That’s huge potential for e-commerce brands and marketers.
Don’t forget that re-targeting can also be a feature of your social media marketing platforms.
When potential consumers actively engage with brands on social by liking, sharing, pinning, or re-tweeting content, it increases their purchase activity, as shown in this survey by ShareThis.
That leaves quite a bit of potential for e-commerce brands to step up their ad game.
Wrapping Up
It’s easy to see that there are plenty of untapped resources that e-commerce brands who are in tune with digital marketing can use to build brand loyalty among potential consumers.
Now, the question is, are you ready to embrace it?
