Courtship is on everyone’s minds with Valentine’s Day just around the corner. While you may be focused on your romantic relationship during this season of love, we also encourage you to consider your customer relationships. Successfully attracting and retaining loyal customers is just as involved as nurturing any other relationship in your life. Your brand must invest the time and effort to keep your customers engaged beyond their purchase. Here are a few of our recommendations for helping customers continue to follow their hearts back to your store.
Welcome Them to the Family
You can start engaging with customers during the purchasing process and immediately following it. Ask thoughtful questions about their future, such as when the engagement or wedding will take place. You can also gather their email and social media handles as additional touchpoints. Keep a detailed log of each customer’s profile for future engagement—more on that later!
You have a unique opportunity to get their attention after a positive shopping experience and show your genuine appreciation for their business. Sending a handwritten thank-you note or other personalized, meaningful gesture will make them feel special and remembered. You can also ask for permission to submit their story to Uneek to be featured as an #EveryLoveIsUneek highlight on our platforms. Get creative with sincere ways to connect with your customers and continue cultivating the relationship from the moment they join the family.
Keep in Touch
Build upon the relationship by creating and growing personal connections. Leveraging social media will play a massive role in this dialogue. Make it easy for your customers to stay connected by building a complete digital presence across platforms, recognizing that specific age demographics will spend more time on different platforms.
Dedicated newsletter lists are another effective way to stay in front of your loyal audience. In addition to price-point and promotions, other factors that drive repeat purchases are free services or exclusive access to new products. For example, you could filter your subscriber list based on the day they joined and send free appraisal offers every three years to protect their investment. This gesture will bring them back into your store and show that you genuinely care about them throughout the entirety of their product journey.
Remember that keeping in touch is a two-way street. Encourage your customers to give feedback or share their opinion on what they would like to see from your store. Ensure that someone on your team is responsible for listening to what customers are saying across your messaging channels and can bring action items to key decision-makers.
Find New Ways to Surprise and Delight
Don’t assume that your customers will keep coming back. Complacency could negatively impact your customers’ loyalty. Take note of why they chose your brand first and continue to put those guiding principles as a priority.
Remember when you gathered their wedding date and social media handles? Add placeholders in your content calendar to celebrate anniversaries or other milestones. This acknowledgment will make your store the obvious choice when they want to return for a push-present or 5th-anniversary gift!
You can also select former customers at random for unexpected surprises. Whether that’s sending them a free Starbucks gift card to let them know you haven’t forgotten them or sending flowers on Valentine’s Day to continue spreading the love. Random acts of kindness with no strings attached will go a long way in encouraging brand loyalty and increasing referrals.
Adapt and Refine Your Business Model
With a greater emphasis on your digital presence, keep in mind that your customers’ journey might start online. Adapt to the changing buyer behaviors by creating a seamless online and in-store shopping experience. Embrace new technology to support an e-commerce platform to make online purchases convenient, secure, and trustworthy. Design your in-store shopping experience to feel safe for shoppers, with communication and customer service at the forefront.
In addition to convenient shopping experiences, your customers are also putting a greater emphasis on social responsibility. They want to know how you give back to the community, how you take care of your employees, and how you ensure your products’ quality and ethics. Consider collaborating with small local businesses or non-profits organizations within your community, and make sure you are placing diversity and inclusion at the heart of your business practices. When your loyal customers talk about your store, you want them to tell a compelling story that starts with making sure you have a reputation in the community as an empathetic, transparent brand.
Now that you’ve learned some valuable action items, it’s time to show some love for your relationships! Remember to treat each customer with personalized attention and quality hospitality. This Valentine’s Day, we’re raising a glass to love of all kinds, especially those who help us continue to write our own story here at Uneek.
The post Retailer Resources: How to Court Your Customers on Valentine’s Day appeared first on UNEEK JEWELRY.