Strategies to Increase Repeat Purchases

Strategies to Increase Repeat Purchases
by
Corin Tomasello

There's a marketing adage that it costs more to get new customers than to retain your old ones, and it's SO TRUE!

That’s why I believe the best thing for your business success is to build loyal brand advocates. It’s more important than ever that you generate new growth with your pipeline of current customers. Repeat purchases from loyal customers will lead to long-term business growth and increased market share.

Want to know how you can really increase repeat purchase rates, average order size, order value, and items per transaction? I like to use many marketing and consultative sales techniques to achieve these goals. If your customers trust you, then they will buy from you again and again.

Some companies have reported that nearly 95% of their future sales come from just 5% of their existing customers. An increase from when I was out in the field doing sales and 80% of my book of business came from about 20% of my customers. So you want to leverage this as much as you can because it is well worth the effort.

Loyalty and refer-a-friend programs aren’t the only way to reward repeat purchases in order to have an upswing in sales from returning customers. There are so many ways to get creative with your buyers to get them to buy again.

In my experience, the strategies and integrated approach outlined below will work to raise repeat purchase rates. But the caveat is that you must be good at being as proactive as possible so you stay top of mind and in a positive light.

Personalization

Always personalize your emails, text messages, video, etc. with the client’s names, behaviors, and interests. This will increase their rapport with you because you’re connecting with them on a more personal level. This is easy to implement with form fields but makes a huge impact on retaining your current clientele and getting them to be more active for your brand.

VIP Only Promotions

You’ve probably had on site promotions for new clients or introductory rates to gain more business, but when was the last time that you did one for your best current customers? Having a VIP only event makes clients feel special and makes it more likely that they’ll return to make another purchase with you. I’d recommend keeping it to a few days so there’s urgency but no one feels like it was so short that they missed out.

Sales Calls

Let’s be honest, we are inundated with emails and text messages. It’s easy to overlook things and simply click delete. But a phone call can go a long way. Have your team be proactive to let buyers know about products that will fall in line with their behaviors and interests. Again, keep it personalized.

The goal isn’t to sell (which sounds counter intuitive for a sales call) but it’s more to add a personal touch to keeping the client informed about company updates. This is to educate the customer not overtly sell them. I do recommend if you’re having a good conversation to offer them a little gift to get them to check it out; even something as small as $5 or 5% can go a long way to get someone to buy something new.

Customer Service Discounts

One of my favorite ways to go above and beyond and leverage current customers for repeat purchases is to use your service team. Once they fix the customer’s issue, it’s great to say thanks for the second chance by offering a small discount on their next 2 purchases.

Not only will your clients be happy their issue was resolved, but they’ll feel appreciated in the process so they will be likely to repurchase. The discount being for more than one purchase is another great touch so it stands out plus you have more of a chance to really prove to them that your products and service are both top notch.

Bonus: when you see that they used the coupon say thanks with a call, email or text and use that time as a reminder for their 2nd discount. This is a very effective win-back strategy with a personal touch from your team so it continues to develop the rapport with your company.

Post Review

If someone posts a great review for you online, that is a fabulous opportunity to thank them with savings. In this case, I suggest getting them a coffee card, small gift card, or SendoutCard (with yummy brownies)that you can mail so they will have a positive view of your brand without feeling like you’re pushing them to make a new purchase.

Trust me, when they sip on their coffee or use the gift card they’ll have a positive memory of your company.

Every Touch Point Matters

The best new sale comes from an old customer. Every touch matters and people will do business where they feel appreciated.

Charisma Communications will help you focus on increasing repeat purchase rates, retaining your customers, and turning them into advocates who will share their experience with other like-minded consumers. Contact us today!