We speak to a lot of organisations, which means a lot of different business goals. And one of the main ones we hear is to increase customer acquisition. Their biggest challenge, they tell us, is that they’re just not getting enough sales. They’ve exhausted their current audiences and they need to expand their reach and find more prospects.
Maybe. But maybe their problem isn’t customer acquisition – maybe it’s customer loyalty.
Did you know? Repeat customers spend 33% more than new customers. All it takes is a personalised strategy that encourages loyalty. Find out more by downloading our Impressive Report: Personalising the Customer Experience.
The importance of customer loyalty
Quick. Pop quiz. What’s more valuable to your business: Acquiring 20 new customers worth $100 each, or increasing revenue by $2000?
If you said it’s the same amount, you need to keep reading this blog.
It actually costs your business anywhere between 5 to 25 times more to acquire a new customer than it does to retain an existing one – so that $100 each you’ve just made on those 20 new customers comes with a tax, while the increase in revenue is exactly what it sounds like: more money in your bank.
And that, right there, is why customer loyalty is important.
Whether you work in eCommerce or a service-based industry, retaining existing customers and encouraging them to come back for more is where the real revenue growth is.
Tried and tested retargeting strategies
One of the best ways to increase customer retention in the digital space is through retargeting. In fact, businesses that are retargeting their existing customers have increased their conversions up to 300-400%! Their campaigns have also helped them to reduce their CPC on search ads – which keeps that revenue goal front and centre.
While retargeting is already a common practice amongst digital marketers, we’re not just talking about installing a pixel and following your visitors across the web.
If you want real customer loyalty, you’ve got to be real as well. And that means getting personalised.
Some of the personalised retargeting strategies we recommend include:
Abandoned cart
Roughly 97 visitors out of 100 will leave an eCommerce store without converting. They may get as far as filling the cart, but will disappear before they finalise their checkout.
With those stats in mind, it’s easy to see how abandoned cart retargeting is a popular strategy. But it’s not just for eCommerce – it can work for service-based businesses where the final goal wasn’t completed as well.
To get the most out of this strategy, make sure you use all of the data that’s available to you. Consider all demographic and behaviour data in your advertisements. Your goal is to remind them that they didn’t complete their checkout – and give them a reason to change their mind!
Discounts and special promotions
Loyal customers want loyalty in return.
And the best way a business can show it is by sharing discounts or special promotions with them. Price is a strong motivator for most people, and even existing customers who may have previously purchased at full-price like to be treated with an ‘exclusive’ discount.
Just like with the abandoned cart strategy, you’ve got to dive deep into your data. What was the last thing your customers bought or looked at? What are their interests? Make sure you tailor your retargeting to increase the likelihood of conversion.
Upsell and cross-sell opportunities
Has someone bought a dress from your company’s website recently? Maybe they need a matching pair of shoes to go with it? A pretty simple retargeting strategy, but if done right, it’s highly personalised – all of which leads to a high likelihood for conversion. Sounds good to us!
This works for more than just fashion and eCommerce. Service-based industries can easily tap into this strategy. For example, a telco might have an existing fixed broadband customer and can now start targeting them with a mobile service for when they’re on the move.
The possibilities are endless once you get into your customer’s headspace and think about their needs.
Want some brownie points?
An ad only has two options: it does well, or it doesn’t.
And the critical factor in its performance review?
Targeting.
Even traditional marketing like TV, radio and billboards consider targeting. While these audiences are broad, they’re crucial. After all, a pretty ad will still fail if it doesn’t reach its intended audience.
In the digital space, the options for targeting are refined, and the amount of ad variations are endless. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t drill down and speak to specific segments.
Some suggestions:
Personalised ad copy
While the amount of variations in ad creative are endless, your resources might not be. But don’t worry, your words are what matter. Once you’ve segmented your audience on as many attributes as possible, write ad copy that addresses them directly. The results are worth it.
Custom landing pages
You’ve written all this personalised ad copy, and everyone’s clicking your ads. Great! But you’re still not converting. What’s going wrong?
Chances are, you’re sending everyone to the exact same landing page.
It’s an absolute must that the page your ad directs your customers to shows the same message. This means using similar language as your ad copy. The last thing you want is a customer to be unsure whether they’re on the right page!
By customising your landing pages to suit your intended audience segment, your conversion rate is likely to sky rocket.
Impress your customers
Now, keep in mind that retargeting is only one piece of your digital marketing puzzle. While segmenting your target audience, tailoring your ads and creating custom landing pages will certainly increase the likelihood of conversions, to be truly successful it needs to be a part of a larger personalised digital strategy.
According to Adobe & Econsultancy, 52% of marketers consider personalisation a fundamental factor to their online marketing strategy – and so do we. Whether looking for new customers or retargeting existing ones, it’s all about showing them that you understand them.
And that means getting personal.
Want to find out how you can create personalised, integrated digital campaigns that truly speak to your customers? Download our Impressive Report: Personalising the Customer Experience – inside, you’ll learn everything you need to know about driving conversions, enhancing customer loyalty, and increasing revenue.
