A successful ecommerce site doesn’t just make the sale. It makes the next sale, and the one after that. A successful ecommerce site has loyal customers who return again and again for their favorite products, or maybe even to try out new ones. If you’re constantly chasing new customers, you’re eventually going to run out. They key is to find customers and then keep them coming back. This next tip is about what happens after the sale.
Tip #10: Follow Up
So you’ve made the sale, and now you’re planning ways to entice the next customer. Before you think about that next customer for a single second, figure out how you’re going to get the first one back.
A simple follow-up email may be all it takes to get a customer buying from you again and again. Follow-up emails can build your reputation as a credible company that values its customers’ business.
Follow up with emails to remind customers that you’re still around, to prompt them to stock up on a new batch of favorite items and to offer special incentives. All of this can be done without a single thought from you. If you prepare for follow-up during the site planning phase, all of the follow-up can be done automatically and on schedule. If you sell soap and you know that the average length of time it takes to use a bar is two weeks, make sure you’re triggering an email two weeks later to a customer who bought a bar of soap with a reminder to buy again. If you have a customer who always buys dark chocolate from your chocoholic web site, make sure that customer gets an email the next time dark chocolate is on sale.
Just remember to give customers the opportunity to “opt out” of your emails if they choose. Good follow-up always respects the customer.
Planning and building a good ecommerce web site can be challenging, but the reward will be a site that draws visitors, turns them into customers and keeps them coming back for more. Make your ecommerce site an integral part of the success of your business by following a process that builds a solid foundation and a functional system and then uses sound web site marketing strategies to bring in and keep the customers your business deserves.
How do you follow up with customers to increase the likelihood of repeat business?
Read More In The “Fundamentals For Ecommerce Success” Series
- Tip #1: Build The Foundation
- Tip #2: Get Organized
- Tip #3: Know The Business Rules
- Tip #4: Decide Where Product Information Will Come From
- Tip #5: Set Up The Warehouse
- Tip #6: Choose A Maintenance Option
- Tip #7: Plan The Shopping Cart
- Tip #8: Be The Expert
- Tip #9: Use Feedback
- Tip #10: Follow Up
About Carol Lynn Rivera
