An insider’s guide to conversion optimisation – part 4

Part 4: Loyalty and Re-engagement

With the cost of SEM increasing each year, the more mature eCommerce stores are focusing on the 80:20 rule: The more information that you can collect about your customers the better. With the ability to segment this data by things such as lifetime value, previous purchases and demography, you can re-activate them by email (which should be your most valuable channel). By offering them personalised recommendations, discounts and the VIP treatment not just by email, but also on-site you can start to inspire some brand loyalty.

This is not as hard as it sounds and maturer CMS platforms like Magento Enterprise have this built-in. For platforms that don’t include this functionality, we find the most affordable option is Barilliance.

Test

Like most things in life, you usually don’t get it right the first time. After performing many A/B and Multivariate Tests on clients’ sites, we have learned the hard way that what works on one site doesn’t necessarily always work well on another. The key to success is to define the goals upfront. Formalise what you will count as statistically significant before the test has been deployed. Although it is very tempting, just because you like the look of the new version, don’t let it stay on the site permanently until it produces a statistically significant result. For more information on how to measure this, read this great article from Avinash Kaushik.

Final Thought

As discussed at the beginning of this series, making money online isn’t as easy as some people think it is, and it is only going to get harder as the market gets more saturated. None of the recommendations above are going to move the needle, unless there is enough traffic on your site.

Just like bricks and mortar, there needs to be an adequate demand for what you are selling in that location. If the footfall in the mall is high, so is the cost of leasing the property.

You need to greet the customer and then leave them to browse. If they like what they see, only then will they listen to your recommendations. If they find what they want then they will buy the product so long as the queue isn’t too long. If you don’t offer free returns or you prices aren’t competitive, they will walk next door.

This concludes the final part. Thank you for following this series. Hope you have come away with a few ideas on how to drive conversion optimisation for your eCommerce website.