Best ecommerce practices focus on attracting customers, taking them through a seamless purchase and checkout journey, delivering the product or service, and handling any shopper problems successfully so that they can become repeat buyers.
It is a cycle that never ends as businesses are always on the hunt to attract and convert more visitors into buyers and keep them for as long as their brand is alive; hence the term customer lifecycle management. Only that way can you run a successful company that will remain profitable for years.
But managing customers is not as simple as it sounds. You have to understand what it takes to keep a healthy business-customer relationship or many potential clients will abandon you before a purchase and unhappy shoppers may never visit your store.
That’s why you must familiarize yourself with the fundamentals of customer lifestyle management.
What is Customer Lifecycle Management?
Customer Lifecycle management involves identifying effective ways to handle your consumers in a manner that rakes in more profit and revenue without overstretching your budget; and implementing techniques to attract and keep them for good.
And while this process is a hard nut to crack, mastering the art is essential in ensuring your brand remains profitable for years.
And while it is a topic that can be discussed in hundreds of pages of an eBook, this post will break it down in five simple steps.
Managing the Customer’s Lifecycle in 5 easy steps
1. Attraction
This first step marks the first interaction with your clients. For the first time a buyer meets your brand.
There are many ways to attract customers. The best technique for your case depends on your campaign needs and whether your business is located online or in-store.
This is the part where your marketing team comes in; to decide on the appropriate strategies for your business.
But any savvy business cannot underestimate the power of marketing their small business online and in social media platforms.
If 25 percent of grownups in the US are almost continuously online and 77 percent of them of them go online everyday then this is a channel you don’t want to ignore.
2. Acquirement
After you have made efforts to reach out to potential customers and made a first positive impression about your brand, it is now time to make them part of your business.
There are many ways to reach out to a would-be client after the first interaction. This process is important because it determines whether you will convert a prospect to a shopper or lose them.
The acquirement stage involves the use of follow-up emails and personalized content. It reinforces customer trust earned in step 1 of the customer lifecycle management.
Because almost everyone is implementing these new techniques, being unique calls for a personalized approach. Customers have different needs, if you prove that you’re willing addressing on everyone’s unique growing pains then you can win most of your prospects and convert them to clients.
3. Conversion
Conversion, as the term suggests is the process of converting a would-be customer to a shopper.
In the simplest terms, it involves turning your website visitor into a buyer. Remember, not everyone who visits your shop buys items.
Conversion entails proving to a customer that you can offer the services or goods they need, the best way and in the shortest time possible.
Your first impression determines whether a prospect will move from product search to checkout stage.
A fast and friction-free checkout process is essential in converting more visitors into buying shoppers.
Customers hate slow tiresome processes and unclear purchase terms and policies. Such obstacles may lead to sudden abandonment so you want to streamline your checkout procedure to offer the best customer experience.
4. Retaining Customers
Making a sale should not mark the end of a successful business-customer interaction; a brand should work to retain one-time clients to increase chances of future relations.
Savvy small business owners understand the critical role of step 4 in ensuring lifetime profitability and enjoying the maximum customer lifetime value (CLV).
Customer/Shopper lifetime value is the total earnings a company gains from a consumer in the full lifespan of their business relationship.
You can calculate customer lifetime value score of one of your customers by multiplying the yearly profit earned from their purchases by the time span they were retained.
But retention is easier said than done. It is difficult to hold on to customers in a market where every business wants to expand its subscription base.
First, the relationship must be mutual; customers hate to be bored, if you want to have them around then you must have a set of well-thought-out retention strategies. This point is key because it determines whether your retention efforts pays off or your relationships with customers are short-lived.
Shoppers want to see developments, upgrade, goods or services customized to their needs.
But you cannot understand your client’s needs if you meet them, sell to them, and disremember them. Retention gives you the time you need to understand every customer’s pains and specific needs.
To maintain excellent relationships with all buyers, you can leverage the power of tools such as help desk systems, live chat software and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software to help you establish stronger bods with clients.
Lastly, customers love to be identified. If you recognize them and suggest products and services that go in line with their interests then they will hang around for long.
5. Customer Loyalty
This is the final phase of the 5 step journey; it is also when all your hard work produces results.
You say a customer is loyal after they have made more than one purchase—maybe two, three or even more purchases,
Studies have shown from time that more than half of loyal customers will purchase more often from their favorite brands.
On top of loyalty, your brand gets free promoters when satisfied customers spread the word out and recommend you to other potential clients. When earn more and more clients because of referrals from your loyal grow your net promoter score.
Remember, most customers trust product or service suggestions from pals or families.
Final Words
Familiarizing with the customer lifecycle management process is essential in gaining and keeping your customers for the good of today and the future.
Companies that follow best practices in each stage grow into world-known brands with loyal clients all over the globe.
