Every eCommerce business owner wants to ensure happy customers and raise profits at the same time. That much is a given. But what if you’re stuck on how to actually boost your conversion rates while increasing your brand’s value?
Enacting a customer rewards or loyalty system that is tailored to your brand and the people who shop your brand might be the answer you’re looking for.
You don’t want your business to experience profits solely from a bunch of one-time-only shoppers. That’s not how you increase brand awareness and profits. You want lifetime customers that keep coming back because what you sell offers the consumer incentive, satisfaction, and value.
By making a little investment in your returning customers with rewards, coupons, discounts and other loyalty program perks, you can call that money well-spent. Why? Because the investment will be returned by your customer coming back, spending more, and recommending your business to friends and family.
If your eCommerce store is starting to generate a lot of sales, you’re already an ideal candidate to start a rewards program. Another indicator that you need to enact a rewards or loyalty program might be that you know your customer base will benefit from special pricing and deals that such programs offer.
For instance, the subscription service Book of the Month offers members special prices for brand new hardcovers, which can be pricey. Members get a brand new book each month for only $14.99, when most new hardcovers cost $25.99 and up. That’s a steal for people who spend money on books. They also have their BFF loyalty program, in which members that have reached a yearlong subscription status get rewards like a free book on their birthday.
A rewards or loyalty program will also give your brand and store a competitive edge. If you’re able to offer better deals and discounts with a rewards program and your competitors have nothing to offer, customers will more than likely shop with your brand instead.
What is a good rewards system comprised of? Here are a few things that are important to focus on when creating a reward system that works for your store and shoppers:
- Easy to use and understand
- Offers membership-only benefits
- Great value for what you’re selling
- Aligns with brand values
- Inspires member engagement and interaction
All of these points ensure that customers will benefit from and become loyal to your brand, which is the ultimate goal.
Whether your system will be a paid for program or free is entirely dependent on what you’re selling and how you can maximize profits from your consumer base. A lot of stores offer both free and paid for reward programs. Once you get started, you’ll have a better idea of what will work best for your store.
So now that you know how your store can benefit from a rewards system, it’s time to talk integration.
Here at DigitlHaus, we’re proud partners with Smile.io, a rewards system service that will cater to your brand’s needs when it comes to enacting a program that helps turn one-time customers into lifelong loyal customers. Over 25,000 businesses are already reaping the many benefits that Smile.io’s reward system services offer.
How does it work? Smile.io uses three systems to engage your customers: Points, VIP, and Referrals. Here’s a little about how each system works!
An effective points system will give your most loyal customers rewards, as well as foster a trusting and lasting relationship with them.
JOIN: Offer reward points for creating an account and making purchases.
ENGAGE: Offer reward points for consumer engagement for things like social follows, birthdays, and product reviews.
SHARE: Offer reward points for referrals to friends and family members.
POINT REDEMPTION: Allow your customers to reap the rewards of their points through percentage discounts, dollar discounts, free products, free shipping.
Other point system features include: Points expiry emails for re-engaging inactive customers, custom point names for special brand experience, rate limiting for how often customers can earn points, and earning conditions for further customization of your point system earning rules.
Some customers are more valuable than others, so you should treat them as such. VIP programs give your top customers even more benefits through rewards, statuses, and perks.
JOIN: Offer special benefits for customers that join your program.
ENGAGE: Offer additional rewards and benefits for the customers that engage with your brand and are with your brand for longer.
REWARD REDEMPTION: Much like the points system, a VIP system allows members to benefit through exclusive dollar discounts, percentage discounts, free products, and accelerated point earning.
Other VIP system features include: additional gifts with specific orders, entry into contests, special sales and discounts for members only.
You can also set tiers of customer milestones. For instance, if a customer gets a certain amount of points you can put them in a certain tiered milestone specific to your store and brand and then set that tier based on their activity with your store.
Your best customers will more than likely recommend your store to the people they know will benefit from your products. Referrals will grow your brand community without hurting your pocketbook.
JOIN: Offer special rewards for the referred customers that join.
SHARE: Offer special rewards for the customers that do the referring and social sharing.
REFERRAL REWARDS: In tune with the points and VIP systems, you can give percentage and dollar discounts, free products and free shipping for referrals.
Referral system features include: making it easy for new customers to claim rewards, encourage sharing on social media channels, and easy branded referral messages for your brand advocates.
So through points, VIP, and referrals features, Smile.io makes the most of the reward system that you want for your store and brand. Now what do we think are the best components of Smile.io?
For starters, their feature Smile UI, lets you customize your rewards system without a developer. That’s pretty neat in itself. This allows you to control the design so that it fits your brand and also makes it easy for your customers to see how they will benefit from your rewards system.
Also, their feature Smile Admin, makes it easy for you to change up your rewards program if you need to and even manage members. Viewing your reward system’s data is also really cool. Sometimes it’s crucial for you to be able to see customer interactions, like how many referrals they’ve made or reward history.
If you’re partnered with BigCommerce, Smile.io can be seamlessly integrated for your store. They auto-generate rewards with BigCommerce’s API, hook into your existing BigCommerce customer accounts, and easily install so you can customize Smile.io to your store.
We at DigitlHaus are proud partners with Smile.io and can help consult, setup, and integrate this application for our client’s stores! If you know your existing customers will love a rewards program, why wait? You have more to benefit than lose when it comes to coming up with a rewards system that will ensure lifelong brand loyalty from your best customers. Contact us today!
