So… shit got real quickly for your Black Friday plans this year, didn’t it?

You were maybe sat at your desk / home desk / ironing board with your laptop balanced on top in September thinking: 

‘Should probably pop an email out with a discount code in case it’s a bit busier. Use code ‘UNPRECEDENTEDTIMES5’ at checkout, lol. It’ll be decent to shift the summer stock in the back.’

And then maybe you looked at the US market and did a smug little laugh because all of their in store Black Friday deals were banned, and at least the UK was stable enough to keep non essential shops open for the busiest trading day of the year. 

Aye. Was probably a bit of an oversight to bank on sticking to the programme for the last bit of 2020. 

It’s fine, babe. Happens to the best of us. (Well, not us specifically or we wouldn’t be an ecommerce agency).

You’re going to get exactly what you give when it comes to returning customer longevity this year. And there are massive opportunities to keep the extra traffic.

Here’s how.

You’ve gotta knock ‘em dead, kid.

If Lockdown No.1 taught ecommerce strategists anything, it’s that potential buyers want to try new things online. And why not? They’ve never had more time to shop around. There’s a metaphor in here about nurturing relationships so neither of you end up looking elsewhere when things go pear shaped – but 2020 is complicated enough, so we’ll just stick to customer touchpoints.

I’m easily bought (and an even cheaper date, if anyone’s asking) – as most customers are. So you’ve never had a better chance to attract new business, and the experience you deliver is what sets you apart from the competition. It’s the Date Night Dress. It’s your lucky pulling pants. It’s your calling card for creating a consistent, reliable booty call. 

 

Soz, hun.

Give them something to talk about.

There’s no allure in being the tall, dark and silent type when there’s revenue to be made. You can’t just smoulder your way to your ads being in front of new pairs of eyes, and look at them longingly hoping they’ll stay.

Black Friday kicks off the busiest time of year for ecommerce brands, and there’s some argument the foot doesn’t come fully off the gas until we’ve seen the last Boxing Day sale. It’s probably a good time (yup, right now) to consider tactics to grow your mailing list – coz if you’re recruiting new subs before the big show, they’re going to have plenty of time to window shop. Loads of tips on how to sex up your email marketing just here.

If you’re thinking about sliding that along next to something sweet like… oh, I don’t know, an ‘email only’ offer of exclusive access to Black Friday or Cyber Monday deals, you’ll always be the ‘ex’ they compare all new flames to. Y’know, the one your Mam always asks about at Christmas after a glass and a half of wine. In front of your current partner. Thanks, Carole.

Always leave them wanting more.

Getting your head around what your customer wants is 10000 times different to what you think they want – and there’s no prizes for guessing which should be taking priority. 

You’re given a bit of a free pass on usual behaviour patterns and touchpoints at the end of the year, because a lot of your new clickers will be gift shopping as opposed to adding to the cart for themselves. So it’s not quite as simple to pop back up in January and say ‘You’re about to run out of the thing you bought in November. Add to cart, hun?’

That doesn’t mean repeat conversions can’t happen, o ye of little ecommerce faith. 

Offering guest checkout and alternative payments (if you aren’t on Klarna and the likes, get on it) make the path to purchase smoother. There are a shit tonne of tiny tweaks you can make to purchases processes to make buyers want to do it all over again – Jeff went over looooads of them in more detail just here. Damn, he’s good.

Look, it’s the digital difference between shopping at Harrods and shopping at The Co-op. 

Where’s the first place you want to spend money when you’re feeling a bit boujie? It’s the place that creates the most fuss, and you know it is.

It’s really simple touches that’ll ramp up user experiences, and keep your brand sitting pretty at the top of the list when customers are back for something new. 

Treat yo’self.

 

Reward repeat purchases.

Time for the relationship metaphor I’m not quite sure I’m pulling off to make another appearance. You’ve acquired all of these beautiful, smart, funny, different-to-the-guys-you-usually-date customers and you don’t want the honeymoon period to end. You’re gonna want to showcase the benefit of being a long term customer pretty sharpish. 

Here’s where a ‘Welcome Series’ is really, really important. Cheeky extras like loyalty points for festive purchases that can be redeemed in the new year doesn’t affect your stock, inventory or even your time – but it does provide a solid reason for someone to come check you out again. ‘Buy Now, and you’ll still be seeing the benefits in 2021.’ There are so many ‘something to look forward to’ uses of copy you can add it would take another post to jot them all down.

Remember to retarget as well, please. The more relevant you can make your ads, the more likely your targeted customers will return to your site. Make yourself their first choice every time. You got this, gorgeous.

We’ve got to mention the importance of data, coz it’s kind of our ‘thing.’

Customer retention is cheaper than new customer acquisition. After you’ve spent the end of the year playing sickly sweet to win over new customers, it’s important not to let them slip away. Remembering changes in buying trends like first time buyers are likelier to have a higher first time Average Order Value when they’re shopping for someone else is a biggie when it comes to data. 

And as to nod to longevity, it’s regarded as pretty decent practice to show off your socials as an invitation in your email follow ups. Purchases x Community = Come Back Kids.

If it’s a relationship that’s going to go the distance, they’ve got to meet the family at some point. 

We do honestly know how much you’ve had on your plate in a year that keeps piling it on, regardless whether you’ve got the mental or physical capacity of it. You won’t be the only retailer ready to pull their hair out – so much so, we need another Google Shopping specialist in the ranks, like, yesterday.

So if personalisation, poor metaphors and repeat performance on ROAS just ain’t something you can pick up your own  – we could be just the match you’re looking for. And we’d never leave you. We’re needy.

(You didn’t think I was going to lob out a whole blog about repeat performance and then not ask you to come back again, did you? Sign up for more like this below.)