How To Create Urgency In Sales To Boost Revenue (Without Being Pushy)

Are you tired of watching potential customers walk away without making a purchase? Do your sales numbers need to catch up to your expectations? It’s time to turn the tables and create a sense of urgency that will propel your sales through the roof!

In the fast-paced world of sales, creating a sense of urgency is a powerful strategy that can significantly boost revenue. The ability to tap into the innate human desire for immediate action can drive customers to make purchasing decisions more swiftly and decisively. Strategies that create urgency can make all the difference when selling products or services. 

In this blog, we explore urgency in sales and outline procedures and strategies that you can use to boost your E-commerce sales. Continue reading to discover.

What Is Urgency In Sales?

Urgency in sales is a technique employed by businesses to create a sense of immediate action among their audience and prospective customers. By leveraging urgency, sales and marketing teams motivate customers to make a buying decision in the present rather than postponing it for later.

For instance, imagine a furniture store promoting a limited-time sale on a popular sofa model. They highlight the sofa’s attractiveness by promoting its quality, comfort, and elegant design. However, they also mention that the sale is only valid for the next three days or until stocks last. 

It encourages buyers to act immediately by combining the appeal of desirability with the introduction of limitations or time constraints. This strategy takes advantage of customers’ FOMO and forces them to make a purchase decision to not lose out on a great deal.

Benefits Of Creating Urgency In Sales 

Creating a sense of urgency in sales offers numerous benefits to your business:

Increases Conversion Rates

Creating a sense of urgency in sales is like adding fuel to the fire. It ignites a spark within potential customers, compelling them to take action and make a purchase decision. The fear of missing out or the excitement of limited-time offers can significantly increase conversion rates. Urgency eliminates hesitation, pushing your potential customers toward the desired outcome.

Helps To Boost Sales Volume

You’ll see a significant increase in sales volume once urgency is integrated into your sales and marketing strategy. Customers who might have been on the fence suddenly find themselves compelled to buy now rather than later. By creating scarcity or time-limited deals, you create an environment where customers feel they need to act fast before opportunities vanish into thin air.

Reduces Procrastination

For both businesses and customers, procrastination slows growth. Employing urgency strategies reduces this tendency by encouraging people to make decisions right away rather than continually delaying them for a day that might never arrive.

Competitive Advantage

Implementing urgency sets you apart from your competitors. You can stand out in a competitive E-commerce market by giving your customers another reason to choose your products or services. Customers may prioritize your offerings over others if they feel pressured to act quickly with promotions or limited-time offers.

Enhance Customer Engagement

Sales urgency increases customer involvement and engagement. Customers are more likely to actively look into your promotions, discounts, or deals if they see time-sensitive offers or limited availability. A higher level of interaction with your brand and products may arise from this increased engagement creating brand awareness.

Fosters Brand Loyalty

Lastly, effective use of urgency can foster brand loyalty. Customers feel appreciated and unique when they receive exclusive offers or time-limited promotions. This positive experience can lead to repeat purchases and long-term customer relationships.

10 Simple Ways To Create Urgency In Sales Without Being Pushy

In a market saturated with varied marketing messages and sales pitches, sales urgency has become an essential tool. By effectively communicating a sense of urgency, businesses can break through the noise, capture their prospects’ attention, and drive them toward making purchasing decisions promptly. 

Different techniques can be used to increase urgency in E-commerce sales. Although many of these practices seem to be the same, they all have different goals and potential outcomes.  

Here are 10 simple ways to create urgency in sales without being pushy. Let’s dive in. 

#1 Create Urgency With A Deadline 

When there is no time limit on your product or service, customers often face decision paralysis. With multiple options in hand, they tend to spend excessive time evaluating the pros and cons of the products. They may also explore competitor offers, review product specifications, read feedback, or, in some cases, just give up and move on.

Setting a deadline or time restriction with your E-commerce sales event is an effective way to overcome these issues. You can encourage customers to respond more quickly by creating a sense of urgency.

Create urgency in sales with a deadline

Credit: Flipkart Website

For instance, Flipkart often runs time-limited sales events like the “Big Billion Days” and “Diwali Sale,” where they offer steep discounts and attractive deals on a wide range of products. These sales are typically held for a short duration, such as a few days or even just 24 hours, creating a sense of urgency among consumers.

Likewise, platforms like Swiggy and Zomato offer time-limited discounts and exclusive deals during specific hours of the day. These offers are displayed on their apps and websites, encouraging customers to purchase within the given time frame. The limited-time nature of these deals motivates customers to quickly decide on their food choices and place orders.

#2 Use The Fear Of Missing Out To Create Urgency

Fear of missing out, or FOMO, is a powerful emotional trigger that can drive customers to move quickly and make more purchases. It is predicated on the idea that nobody wants to miss out on an opportunity or be left behind.

Countdown timers, deadlines, expiration dates, limited-time sales promotions, giveaways, and hosting user-generated contests are some techniques to create a sense of urgency and leverage FOMO in your marketing strategy. By incorporating these elements, you effectively communicate to your audience that time is limited and immediate action is required.

The urgency can be emphasized even further by employing specific words and phrases like “now,” “today,” “last chance,” “limited time,” “only,” or “don’t miss” to highlight how time-sensitive it is.

In the below example, Shoppers Stop has integrated the FOMO effect by putting “Limited Time Offer” in big bold letters next to a clock creating urgency among customers to buy the products. 

Use FOMO to create urgency

Credit: Shoppers Stop website

In addition, you can utilize visual clues, such as a creative or label that shows the product is a “hot” item or selling quickly, to further increase the FOMO effect. 

For instance, First Cry is using the FOMO concept by introducing “The FOMO Sale” with a clear start and end time. By limiting the sale period, they create a sense of urgency among parents, encouraging them to make their purchases quickly to take advantage of the significant discounts.

How to use FOMO in Ecommerce

Credit: Firstcry Website 

#3 Create A Sense Of “Scarcity” and “Exclusivity” To Your Offer

Indeed, “scarcity” and “exclusivity” help create sales urgency.

You can evoke a sense of scarcity and encourage customers to act swiftly to buy the product by displaying the number of products remaining in stock.

For instance, Myntra has displayed alerts like “Only Few Left ” on Kurta Sets. This emphasizes that there is a limited supply of the products. This communicates that the product is in high demand and encourages customers to purchase it before it runs out.

Scarcity tactic used on website by Myntra

Credit: Myntra Website

Likewise, position your product as an exclusive or limited edition. Let people know that it’s only accessible to subscribers or members for a certain period. This creates a perception of exclusivity and makes customers feel special for having access to something unique.

Exclusive discounts offered on website by Firstcry

Credit: First Cry Website 

In this example, First Cry is using the exclusivity of their Club Membership by offering “ Club Price” to create urgency in sales. They offer benefits like up to 10% additional discounts, exclusive offers, club cash benefits on products, free shipping, exclusive coupons, etc to their club members.  By leveraging the concept of exclusivity and tying it to a special discount offer, First Cry aims to drive more conversions and generate excitement among its customer base, encouraging them to make a purchase decision promptly before the opportunity slips away.

While creating a sense of scarcity and exclusivity can be effective in driving sales, it’s essential to maintain integrity and avoid misleading or false claims. Be transparent about the availability and exclusivity of your offer. Make sure that your customers feel respected and valued throughout their purchasing journey.

#4 Add A Countdown Timer On Your Website

A powerful tool that can increase conversions and sales for your business is adding a countdown timer to your website. Whether it’s completing a purchase, subscribing to a newsletter, or signing up for an event, your website visitors are more likely to take action if you create a sense of urgency.

Countdown timer example by Pepperfry website

Credit: Pepperfry Website

In the above example, Pepperfry has added a timer to their sale items indicating the duration of the limited-time offers. This technique reminds the customers to act quickly to take advantage of discounted prices or exclusive deals.

Countdown timers can help your business establish credibility and trust by adding a sense of urgency while also demonstrating your commitment to keeping your promises. They can additionally contribute to improving the perceived value of your offer, which will boost its value to customers. 

Here’s an example of boAT, a consumer electronics brand, displaying a countdown timer on their website to create a sense of urgency and excitement.  The brand has used one color across the page to signify the daily deals. This timer shows the exact time left until the deal ends. Thus, the timer can help the boAT brand achieve its sales objectives and engage customers effectively.

countdown timer shown on website

Credit: boAT Website 

#5 Show Remaining Stock Quantity To Create Urgency

A useful strategy for encouraging customers to make a purchase is by displaying the number of products in stock on the product page.

In the example below, Booking.com creates urgency by highlighting the high demand and limited availability of rooms in Lonavla. The message “only 4 left at this price” emphasizes the risk of missing out on the best accommodations if not booked promptly. This strategy triggers the fear of losing a desired stay, compelling potential customers to make a quick decision to secure their preferred place. Due to the high demand and limited supply, there is a sense of urgency among visitors that prompts them to book a reservation to avoid disappointment.

Example of remaining items left on website

Credit: Booking.com Website

Instead of using generic terms like “Stock: 1,” create a sense of urgency with phrases like “Hurry up, only 1 left”, “Hurry, limited stock,” or “Almost sold out!”. The use of such language motivates shoppers to act quickly and buy the desired item before it sells out.

Further, you can highlight the remaining stocks using bold text, different color schemes, or graphic elements to make the stock quantity stand out.

#6 Start Selling Limited-Series Products

Limited-series products are designed to be unique and rare. This exclusivity inherently creates a sense of value and desirability. Customers are more motivated to buy limited-series products because they feel they have a chance to grab something special.

Limited series products sold by Kamal Watch

Credit: Kamal Watches Website

For instance, Kamal Watch Co. Pvt Ltd is a leading retail chain of watch stores. It also sells limited edition watches of different brands. Limited edition products effectively create a sense of urgency by producing unique and limited products.

Further, limited products often attract collectors or enthusiasts who are specifically interested in owning unique or rare items. This creates excitement and enhances customer interest in the products. As buyers are aware that they might not have another opportunity to purchase the item in the future, their interest and mindset increase the sense of urgency. They may take prompt action out of concern about missing out on something that fits their collecting preferences.

#7 Create Urgency In Your Copy And Creatives

Copywriting plays a crucial role in creating urgency. Your ad or product copy is a powerful tool for influencing how customers perceive and connect with your products. Here are some ways to create an urgency-focused copy:

  • Use words and phrases that highlight the time-sensitive nature of the offer. Words like “limited time,” “for a limited period,” or “while supplies last” communicate that the opportunity to purchase the product is fleeting.
  • Use emotional language and expressions that stir up desire or aspiration in your audience. The words “exclusive,” “premium,” or “must-have” can highlight how desirable the product is.
  • Include social proof, such as customer feedback or testimonials in your product descriptions. This helps build the trust of your customers.

For instance, Nykaa has integrated urgency through its ad copy and creative by including discounts and end dates for sales.

The ad begins with an attention-grabbing phrase like “All I can think about is HOT deals”. This creates a sense of excitement and encourages users to read further.

The ad mentions “up to 50% OFF” on some amazing brands, enticing customers with significant savings. Further, it also includes a clear call-to-action button (“Shop Now”) to prompt users to click and browse the sale offerings immediately.

In the video, they have also added the Hot Pink Sale logo, making it visually engaging and relevant to the sale.

Copywriting example to create urgency

Credit: Nykaa’s Instagram Page 

#8 Reward Your First X Customers

Reward your customers and encourage more people to purchase. For example, you can offer them a special discount code, or the first 100 customers will receive a free gift with their order.

This not only gives your customers a sense of urgency, but it also gives the first 100 customers a sense of exclusivity. The rewards should be something your customers will value and can’t get anywhere else, like an exclusive product launch or a limited-edition item created only for them. By doing this, you give your first-time customers a special experience that motivates them to share your products with others and spread the word about them.

Reward your first customers to create urgency in sales

Credit: Huawei Website

Here’s how Huawei integrated the reward program by providing gifts for the first 100 purchases to their buyers. This approach helped the brand to create buzz, generate excitement, and encourage word-of-mouth marketing, especially for new product launches or services.

Thus, this method encourages customers to buy or use the new products or services right from the start, boosting initial sales and adoption rates.

#9 Show Others Interested In The Product

By showing customers what others are buying from your store, you create a sense of popularity, desirability, and urgency. You can implement a system that sends pop-ups or real-time notifications whenever a purchase is made on your website or mobile application. 

These notifications can be in the form of small overlays or sidebars that indicate a recent sale, including the product purchased, the customer’s location, and a timestamp. You can further pin the best-selling products for higher visibility.

Show tags on how many people are interested in the product

Credit: boAT Website

boAT, a leading electronics brand builds trust with potential buyers by including the Users’ Love section on their product page that highlights the unit sold on Flipkart and 5 star reviews by customers. This transparent approach reinforces boAT’s reputation as a reliable brand, ultimately increasing buyer confidence and driving sales.

How to show frequently bought together on website

Source: Flipkart Website

Flipkart’s integration of “Others Interested Products” on their product pages shows a clever approach to create a sense of urgency and encourage buyers to consider combo offers or complementary products. Flipkart encourages customers to add additional items to their shopping carts by advertising combo offers, which increases the order value and the platform’s overall revenue.

However, too many notifications can distract and irritate your customers. So, make sure to implement them strategically, ensuring they do not disturb the overall user experience.

#10 Sent Out Last-Chance Emails To Create Urgency

Send last-chance emails and remind customers of the deadline to take advantage of the offer. Include a countdown in your emails to create an additional sense of urgency.

For instance, Good Pair Days have integrated the last chance email by highlighting the discounts along with a Click-To-Action that labels as “Get yours today”. The brand has a well-designed and responsive email that enhances the user experience and increases the chances of conversion.

Use emails to create urgency in sales

Credit: PairDays

Make sure you include a strong call-to-action that makes it easy for people to act quickly and make their decisions before time runs out. Phrases like “Shop Now,” “Grab Your Deal,” or “Don’t Miss Out” encourage customers to click through.

Additionally, use eye-catching visuals and design elements in your email to capture attention. Highlight the discounts, deals, giveaways, timeframe, etc. so that your audience doesn’t miss out on the important details.

You can also create a specific landing page to showcase your limited edition products or fast-selling products. For instance, Marks and Spencer highlight the “Last Chance To Buy” message on their landing page creating a sense of urgency, prompting visitors to make a decision quickly. This leads to increased conversions and engagement, as visitors are motivated to take advantage of the time-limited offer before it expires.

Must read: 17 Best Abandoned Cart Email Examples With Key Takeaways (+Free Templates)

Display last chance to buy to create urgency in sales

Credit: M&S website

Tips For Using Urgency In Sales

When using urgency in sales, here are some tips to keep in mind:

Communicate The Details

When communicating the details of your sales deal to customers, it’s essential to provide clear and comprehensive information. When communicating the details of your sales deal to customers, it’s essential to provide clear and comprehensive information. Include any other details that could help customers understand the sales offer. This could include details about the product, testimonials, case studies, or reviews that highlight the benefits and value of the product or service.

Authenticity 

Ensure that the urgency you create is genuine and based on real factors, such as limited stock, limited-time offers, or upcoming deadlines. Creating a false sense of scarcity or using false advertising could negatively impact your reputation with customers.

Use A Clear Call-To-Action (CTA) 

Make it simple for your customers to take action by using language that is action-oriented. Also, add links or buttons that can be clicked to land at the intended conversion.

Eliminate Distractions

Keeping the sale and the products at the forefront might be useful when creating urgency. This maintains sales efficiency and makes decisions quicker. Unimportant links or irrelevant information can distract your customers, affecting their purchasing decisions.

Boost Your E-commerce Sales By Creating Urgency

In conclusion, businesses can enhance conversion rates and motivate customers to act quickly by fostering a sense of urgency. One effective approach is to leverage time-limited promotions or exclusive offers.

However, it is important to employ urgency wisely. Constantly pressing potential customers can cause them to become disinterested. Instead, the emphasis should be on offering exceptional deals that genuinely cause FOMO.

Lastly, effective communication is essential to conveying urgency. To get your audience’s attention, use convincing language, clear calls to action, and eye-catching creatives.

Need help with increasing your E-commerce profits? We at ANS Commerce (A Flipkart Group Company), offer end-to-end E-commerce solutions to brands launching & expanding their presence in India. 

From providing technology solutions to implementing impactful marketing campaigns and seamless warehousing & order fulfillment services, we are supporting 200+ E-commerce brands in India. 

Book a demo today to explore how we can help you create impactful marketing campaigns.

What Is Customer Lifetime Value & Why Is It Important?

As a business owner, you might be tracking multiple metrics to identify what is and isn’t working for your business. However, among all metrics, one special metric that can tell you the value a customer brings to your business is “Customer Lifetime Value (CLV).” Understanding CLV can help you identify and target your most valuable customers, predict future revenue and make informed marketing & investing decisions.

In this blog, let’s find out what Customer Lifetime Value is, how to calculate it, its importance, and some effective strategies to improve customer lifetime value.

Download Free Customer Service Metrics Calculator Now 

What Is Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)?

Why is customer lifetime value important

According to Gartner, Customer Lifetime Value is defined as – 

“The total revenue or value of a customer relationship over a lifetime”

In simple terms, Customer Lifetime Value or CLV measures the total value a customer will bring to your business over the entire duration of their relationship (with your business). CLV is a critical metric to measure because it will help you predict future revenue and long term business success. 

For example, knowing the lifetime value of a customer helps you get answers to these questions: 

  1. How much should you spend on sales and marketing?
  2. What revenue and profits can you predict in the future?
  3. How can you optimize customer acquisition cost for maximum value? 
  4. How much money should you spend on customer acquisition? 

In other words, once you have a fair idea about CLV, you can make much more informed decisions about resource allocation and optimization of your sales and marketing efforts.

How To Calculate Customer Lifetime Value?

Before we dive into the formula of Customer Lifetime Value, you must know about the two models to measure the value of your customers. They are:

  1. Historical Model: This model uses historical data to estimate the value of your customer over their lifetime. It is calculated based on past spending patterns, retention rates, and other factors that have been observed for the customer.
  1. Predictive Model: This model applies regression and machine learning techniques on new and existing customer data to predict future customer behavior. This technique helps in forecasting the future lifetime value of the customer. 
How To Calculate Customer Lifetime Value

Customer lifetime value formula

The Customer Lifetime Value can be calculated by multiplying the Customer Value by the Customer Lifespan.

Customer Lifetime Value = Customer Value X Average Customer Lifespan

Let’s break down the customer lifetime value formula,

Customer value 

Here, Customer Value is the revenue that a customer is expected to generate throughout their relationship with your business. We can calculate customer value by multiplying the Average Purchase Value and the Average Purchase Frequency Rate.

Customer Value = Average Purchase Value (APV) X Average Purchase Frequency Rate (APFR)

Average purchase value 

Further, you can calculate Average Purchase Value by dividing the total revenue of your company in a particular period (usually a year) by the number of orders in the same period. 

Average Purchase Value = Total Revenue/Total Number of Orders

Average purchase frequency rate

The average Purchase Frequency Rate can be obtained by dividing the number of purchases by the number of unique customers during that period.

Average Purchase Frequency Rate = Number of Purchases/Number of Customers

Average customer lifespan

In the customer lifetime value formula, Average Customer Lifespan is the length of time that a customer is expected to remain with a business. You can calculate this number by averaging the number of years a customer keeps buying from your company. 

Average Customer Lifespan = Sum of Customer Lifespan / Number of Customers 

Customer Lifetime Value Example 

Let us consider a simple example to explain the above customer lifetime value. Imagine you own an eCommerce clothing store.

  • Your customer spends INR 1000 per visit on average (this is the Average Purchase Value).
  • He visits your store approximately two times a month (this is the Average Purchase Frequency Rate).
  • So the Customer Value is around INR 2000. 
  • On average, your customer stays with your business for around four years (this is your Customer Lifespan.)
  • Using the above formula, the Customer Lifetime Value for this consumer will be INR 2000 x 12 months x 4 years = INR 96000.

Why Is Customer Lifetime Value important?

It helps you optimize your marketing spend

The whole point of calculating the CLV is to optimize your sales and marketing spend. When you understand your CLV, you will be able to focus your efforts on acquiring and retaining the most valuable customers of your business instead of wasting it on customers with a lower value. You will be able to optimize your budget so that you get the most out of your efforts, which, in turn, will improve your bottom line.

It creates a steady cash flow for your business

A steady cash flow is crucial for your business as it ensures you have the resources to meet your company’s financial obligations as they come due. You need a steady cash flow to pay bills, make payroll, and invest in new opportunities. With the help of CLV, you can identify your repeat customers who will continuously pump cash into your business, resulting in a steady cash flow. You can attract customers with better offers and more personalized experiences so that they continue to purchase from you.

It helps you make better decisions about pricing and promotions

The price you set for products and the promotions you run can significantly impact your profitability and competitiveness. When you understand the CLV of different products and categories, you can make better decisions about product pricing and promotions. For example, if the CLV of a particular product is high, you can charge a higher price, not run any promotions, and still sell.

Increasing CLV can help reduce customer acquisition costs (CAC) and churn rate 

When your CLV is high, your customers are more likely to remain loyal to your business. This not only translates to a lower churn rate but also means you need to spend less money on acquiring new customers to replace the existing ones. Also, higher CLV customers are more likely to bring more new customers through word of mouth, which can further help reduce CAC. A higher CLV customer may also be less sensitive to pricing. This means there will be minimal impact on the churn rate when you decide to increase the prices or make some other changes.

CLV helps identify areas of improvement

CLV is a valuable tool for identifying areas of improvement in your business. Different values and trends in CLV can highlight various issues in your business. For example, 

  • Low CLV indicates that your business is not retaining customers or you are targeting low-value customers. 
  • Declining CLV indicates that your business is slowly falling prey to rising competition, changing customer preferences, or even declining product quality or customer service. 
  • Uneven CLV indicates that some segments of your target audience are less valuable than others. Which means you are not effectively targeting and serving your most valuable customers. 

Long story short, by analyzing your CLV, you can identify different areas of improvement in your business and take necessary steps, like changing customer acquisition and retention strategies or adjusting product offerings, to solve them.

How To Improve Customer Lifetime Value?

Here are 5 simple hacks to improve the CLV of your business – 

Create a great onboarding process

Customer onboarding is the process of introducing a new customer to your business (and your products) and helping them become familiar with it. The goal of customer onboarding is to ensure that the customers can get the most out of your brand by understanding what your brand does, why it matters, and why they should stick around with your business. A smooth onboarding customer experience will increase their likelihood of becoming long-term and loyal customers.

Why does this work?

By creating a great onboarding process, you make your customers feel welcome, supported, and valued. It will directly impact customer satisfaction, which, in turn, will result in a higher CLV.

Craft a loyalty program and reward your customers

A loyalty program is a rewards program that incentivizes customers to continue doing business with your brand. The goal of a loyalty program is to build customer loyalty and encourage customers to make repeat purchases by rewarding them for their patronage. Here is an example how Super Hair Pieces are using reward program pop-up on their website to incentivize repeat customers and referrals, 

brand using customer loyalty program to boost CLV

 Credit: Super Hair Pieces

A well-designed loyalty program can provide customers with a reason to spend more money with your brand than your competitors, as they can unlock rewards and special offers that they can’t find anywhere else. 

Why does this work?

A loyalty program increases customer spending, bolsters customer retention, and enhances customer loyalty, all of which are key ingredients to improve customer lifetime value. A loyalty program also offers valuable data about customer behavior, which can be used to tailor your marketing efforts and improve the overall customer experience. This, again, will have a positive impact on the CLV.

Amp up your customer service

Enhancing your customer service can make the customers feel that their needs are being met and their concerns are being addressed, that too in a timely and satisfactory manner. This will encourage them to continue doing business with your company. In other words, it can result in repeat purchases and a longer customer lifetime. Good customer service also helps in reducing customer churn, as a satisfied customer is less likely to switch to a competitor. You can improve your customer service by offering personalized services, omnichannel support, and a seamless return or refund policy.

Why does this work?

Good customer service can make the customers feel valued by your brand. It clearly communicates that customers are more important to you than sales. This results in more repeat purchases and, finally, better CLV.

Encourage cross-selling and up-selling.

Upselling and cross-selling are extremely important for any business because they can help increase the Average Transaction Value (ATV) and the revenue. In addition, cross-selling and upselling also improve the customer’s perception of your business. For example, if a customer buys a pair of shoes from your online store, you can also recommend a pair of socks to go with the shoes, improving the customer’s overall experience with your store.

Why does this work?

When you carefully select and recommend products that are relevant to the customer’s needs and interests, you can build trust. As a result, it improves the customer retention rate and results in a longer customer lifetime.

Keep engaging your customers through email marketing

By sending targeted emails to your customers, you can stay on top of their minds and encourage repeat purchases. For instance, you can send personalized emails with special offers or recommendations based on the customer’s past purchases. This can help increase the overall value of that customer’s relationship with your business.

Why does this work?

By regularly sending emails that are relevant and personalized, you can bring your customers back to restock supplies, check out new products and offers leading to better CLV. 

Conclusion

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is a key metric to understand and optimize for any business. By calculating the expected value of a customer over their lifetime, you can identify the most valuable customers for your business and focus your efforts on retaining and maximizing the value of these customers. Thereby, building a profitable and successful business. 

But we understand improving CLV takes a lot of time and effort and might not be possible for all due to limited resources. And that’s where we come in. 

We have worked with more than 200+ brands helping them achieve long-term sustainability by improving the Customer Lifetime Value. To know more about how we can help you improve CLV, book a free consulting session with us today!

About ANS Commerce 

A FlipKart group company, ANS Commerce, is India’s #1 Full Stack E-commerce Enabler trusted by 200+ Brands! 

From creating your online store, running profitable performance marketing campaigns, managing marketplaces to order fulfillment & warehousing – we do it all to supercharge your brand’s growth!

How To Plan The Best Strategy For Social Media Marketing?

Social sites today have changed how society functions; the interaction, the connection, even the behavior of people have changed. With the growing popularity of social platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, businesses realized that these websites can influence customer behavior and took the opportunity to reach out to them with their products and services.

Many companies became successful with it as it allowed them to contact millions of people and spread the word about their product in a breeze. However, not all businesses achieve that success. Do you know why?

Social media is continuously growing! New platforms are emerging with different features, and the old ones are getting updated in order to keep their visitors engaged. So, no fixed strategy works. It needs to vary depending on which social networks your target audience uses. Before we discuss that, let’s understand what it is and what it can do for your business.

What is Social Media Marketing?

The process of building a community on social media platforms with the target audience to generate traffic to your business is known as Social Media Marketing (SMM). It is an overall method to communicate with existing consumers and reach out to new ones on the platforms where they socially interact.

Businesses use social media marketing to promote their brand, culture, mission, and even tone. There are a variety of methods on social media networks that allow marketers to advertise their products/services, connect with their users, and interact for the purchase.

Importance of Social Media Marketing

With social media playing such a crucial part at the top of the funnel, it is important to generate a fantastic marketing opportunity. And if you’re not making use of this lucrative source, you’re missing out on its great benefits.

Some benefits of Social Media Marketing are-

Increases Brand Visibility

Having a social media presence for your brand can undoubtedly increase your company’s visibility as it allows you to reach the same level where your customers are, and create a community where your users can interact. Social networking is the most stress-free and profitable digital marketing tool that can quickly generate a large following for your company and boost your brand recognition within a limited period of time.

Improves Brand Loyalty

Communicating with customers on a regular basis and creating a bond with them increases customer retention and loyalty that every business requires. When you have social media presence your customer can easily locate you and connect with you, moreover, you can also engage with your customers and keep them happy increasing brand loyalty.

Helps Remain Budget-Friendly

Social media marketing is perhaps the most cost-effective technique as almost all social networking sites provide free registration and account creation. However, if you decide to employ paid social media advertising, start modestly to have a sense of what to expect. Being cost-effective is critical since it helps you to maximize your return on investment and dedicate more money to other marketing and business needs.

Enhances Customer Satisfaction

When customers post comments on your page, they like to receive a customized answer rather than a generic statement. A firm that appreciates its clients and takes the time to craft a personalized statement is naturally regarded as positive. With the use of these platforms, you can give your company a voice that will help you build your brand image.

Boosts Web Traffic

Another advantage of social media is that it aids in the growth of your website’s traffic. If you post your content on social media, users will be more inclined to visit your website. The more high-quality content you share on social media, the more inbound traffic you’ll receive and the higher your conversion chances will be.

How to Create a Social Media Marketing Strategy?

Social Media Marketing Process includes simple steps:

Define goals

It is important to clearly outline what you want to achieve from social media platforms. Whether you want to increase the followers or enhance sales of your company. Determine the purpose of your company’s social media presence in the first place. Without a clear goal in sight, you won’t be able to choose the best course of action.

Prefer using the S.M.A.R.T. goal framework to create your objectives

Specific- For your goal to be more effective, it is important to be specific. The more specific your goals are, the easier it will be to develop a strategy and set standards. If you want to raise brand recognition or gain followers every month, be explicit about how you’ll accomplish it.

Measurable- Specificity is a good start, but quantifying your objectives makes it easier to follow your progress and determine when you’ve arrived at your destination. You may enhance your results by tweaking your method if you are not able to achieve your goal.

Attainable- This is the moment in the process where you should do a serious self-evaluation. Companies might become too ambitious and establish unreasonable, unreachable objectives. Check to see if your aim is feasible given your resources.

Quick Tip – Reflect on whether your goal is something your team can fairly achieve or is certain to fail. Remember that your goal holds the efforts and the confidence of your whole team. If your goal fails, the confidence of your team also fails.

Relevant- Relevant goals are tightly tied with a company’s aims. This is when you must consider the larger picture. Why are you aiming for this particular goal? What influence will it have on your bottom line?

Time-bound- Set your deadlines! You and your team must discuss the time frame and agree on when a target has been met in order to accurately assess success. Discussing when the team should begin and execute can further make your goal more effective and memorable.

Set different goals for each social media platform you are using and keep a track of your progress to check the difference.

Determine audience

A target audience is a set of individuals who are most likely to be interested in your company. They’d have similar demographics and habits.

Remember, assumptions are bad for marketers! So don’t be afraid while researching your target audience. It will allow you to go deeper into the details and produce more relevant posts. Most of the information you need to shape your social media marketing plan is already available. It’s only a matter of knowing where to look.

With the right technologies, marketers can quickly research their target demographic. There’s no need for professional market research or data science expertise.

Choose Platform

We already discussed the increasing periphery of social media and distinct features that the platforms own. You can’t just incorporate every social media network in your approach because there are hundreds of them. It’s critical to perform some research before deciding on the best platforms for your marketing plan. Approach the ones that are most relevant for your brand and help you reach a large audience.  

You also need to understand that a distinct collection of users interact in distinct ways on different platforms. So, you cannot post the same material across all platforms as your audience won’t like it.

Here are some pointers on how to pick the best social media platform:

Facebook- Facebook has almost 2.7 billion users that love to develop relationships and stay in touch with old friends. As a result, Facebook is an excellent medium for increasing client loyalty but for attracting a new audience it has an enormous user base, and you might need to go for ads to make your posts reach a large number of people.

Consider your company goals when you evaluate Facebook as a possible platform.

Learn Facebook Ad Targeting Tips to Drive Conversions for Your Business.

Twitter- Twitter is a wonderful tool for increasing brand recognition. A hashtag is a tool used by Twitter to arrange conversations around a word or phrase. You may discover what others are talking about by Googling hashtags and tailoring your tweets to join in on the topic.

Many companies mix Twitter with offline interaction, such as events, because Twitter is frequently used to offer real-time information to an audience.

LinkedIn- LinkedIn has the distinction of being the most popular platform among citizens between the ages of 30 and 49. LinkedIn is also distinct in that it has a specific emphasis on educated users. LinkedIn is used to look for employment and network professionally. As a result, the platform is beneficial for generating B2B leads, general networking, and personnel recruitment.

LinkedIn serves as a hub for in-depth, industry-specific material that is more niche than what you’ll find on Facebook or Twitter.

Pinterest- Pinterest is a social media platform for “scrapbooking,” or preserving material by “pinning” photographs or videos to a virtual bulletin board. The Pinterest demographic is dominated by women. Recipes, styling suggestions, breathtaking images, and DIY projects are among the most popular pins. You’ll need good images to captivate consumers on Pinterest because it’s a visual site. Strong retail sales have been connected to successful company usage of Pinterest.

Instagram- Instagram is one of the most popular social media networks, especially among millennials and Gen Z. Instagram, like Pinterest, depends on photographs or videos to generate interaction. As a result, this platform is ideal for enterprises that are visual in nature, such as art, cuisine, retail, and beauty. There is less noise than on Facebook because it is a growing platform. As your reach is broader, the platform is excellent for generating leads.

Create Content

It is no surprise that we are already aware of the importance of content. Content is the core of any social media marketing plan. Based on your goals, audience, and brand identity, you should have a very clear sense of what to post at which stage.

Here are some suggestions and ideas to get you started-

Conduct keyword research- While keyword research and analysis are essential for advertising success, doing keyword research on social media may substantially boost your exposure.

Post in the form of Stories- Stories aren’t going away anytime soon. Story-style content is both participatory and can’t-miss. An appealing story can help your brand’s account “jump the line” and stay in the mind of your followers.

Engage with conversation- Ask questions, give answers! Drop the statements that can initiate conversation. Show more of your human side as people love interacting rather than getting instructions.  

Quick Tip – You can conduct a competitive analysis to check what your competitors are up to.

Advertise Posts

It’s difficult to get your work seen on the internet, especially on social media, where nearly half of all information is shared with no one.

Post your content on the right platform at the right time to reach your target audience. Customers are not available on all platforms at all times. You need to check the density of the visitors on the specific platform and post the content during that same time so that it reaches the maximum viewers.

Moreover, follow the 80/20 rule to get the most out of your social media: “spend 20% of your effort developing content and the balance (80%) advertising it.”

Measure Progress

Your social media marketing plan is crucial to your overall marketing strategy. It’s difficult to get everything properly the first time.

As you begin to implement your plan and track results, you may discover that some of your approaches aren’t as effective as you had hoped. Keep track of your performance and compare it to entail your top-performing material.

Adjust your Approach

By this point, you should have a clear vision of your social media approach. However, you must be able to change your plan as the year progresses. There’s no doubt that a lot of social media is a learning process. Real-time monitoring can help you to make incremental adjustments to your social media marketing plan.

ANS Commerce Enabled Services

We are a team of experts that have years of experience in a variety of industries and brands with varied sizes and complexity. We are well aware of the kind of assistance you require when landing on social media platforms. Whether it is to increase brand visibility, ROAS, or retarget users based on their interests. We take care of every platform from the start to the end and influence customer behaviour to make impulse purchases.

Our services include Performance Marketing, Marketplace Management, Warehouse & Fulfillment, and e-commerce advice to help you get relieved of your marketing stress. We handle everything social media marketing- tools and target. So, get a DEMO and improve your internet presence now!

7 Customer Retention Strategies to Boost your Sales More Than Ever!

Customers are one of the biggest assets of any business. In a nutshell, any entrepreneur’s strategic planning starts and ends with building long-term relationships with customers. 

There are two facets to bonding with your customers – lead generation and customer retention. While the former welcomes new customers, the latter takes care of the existing ones. Now the question is, would you rather welcome only new customers and avoid the older ones, or would like to keep a balance between the two? 

“Marketers around the world put so much emphasis on nurturing new leads, they sometimes fail to entice the existing users.” 

It’s important to invite new faces, but at what cost? Also, it has always been easier to hold on to the existing customers because they are aware of your services and offerings. Approaching them takes less time than it takes to attract new ones. But how can you keep your existing users engaged? 

To help you maintain your loyal assets, we have come up with 7 customer retention strategies So let’s start, shall we?

7 Proven Customer Retention Strategies

1. Surprise your customers with great service

People love it when you take a step forward and value them. You can get creative in your customer support services and offer them valuable services without their knowledge, pulling off their attention. You can add thoughtful quotes with personalized messages, thanking them to buy from you. Additionally, you can give them special offers and discounts occasionally, conveying they are important for your business. 

Quick tip: You can come up with creative discount codes specially made for an existing customer base, grabbing their attention. For example, coupon codes such as JUST4YOU, and WELCOME_BACK, can grab their attention immediately. 


2. Get your customer’s feedback 

The market forces are no more driven by your products, but they rather revolve around customers’ needs and preferences. In simpler words, it’s not about your products and their features. It’s about the people you cater to. Their likes and dislikes play a major role especially when you roll out a new product in the market. And it’s impossible to satisfy every customer without knowing their taste. With customer feedback, not only do you get to know your strengths and weaknesses but you also make them feel noticeable and valuable. 

Quick tip: There are many ways to gather customer feedback. One such way is to do customer surveys. Come up with short, simple, and open-ended questions.

3. Send regular updates via email automation 

Newsletters are the best way to engage your customers in your brand. It’s one of the most cost-effective ways to retain customers. You can start with drip campaigns to nurture your customers with occasional updates. From time-sensitive offers to the new collection, to seasonal sales, cover each and every occasion to hit mail! To make it persuasive and attractive, use quirky content marketing strategies, grabbing the attention. 

4. Start with cause marketing programs

Consumers love to engage with those brands that support a social cause. By launching corporate social responsibility campaigns, you can grab the attention of your users. It’s the best way to retain your customers as cause marketing makes your organization look more credible and reliable. Check your brand’s mission statement and find what you as an organization genuinely care about. Share it with your community. It creates a sense of trust in the minds of the user, persuading them to swear by your products.

5. Use the strategy of gamification

Focused on the mechanism of gaming, this strategy is not your regular game. It’s more of a marketing tool to pull off the customer’s attention. Rewarding your customers when they refer your app to their friends, is one of the examples of gamification. You can even create customer-oriented campaigns using gamification. For example, create a contest asking your users to refer your business to ten friends. If five of their friends purchase using their code, they will get a free product. 

Quick tip: With more than 50+ third-party integrations, Kartify – our tech brandstore is pre-integrated with various loyalty programs. Get your hands on it and explore what’s best for your customer. Request your free DEMO now! 


6. Organize live educational webinars to motivate your customers

Webinars are a great way to educate your customers. You can organize a webinar, revolving around an area of your business. This way you can educate your customers and ask them to purchase from you. For example: If you are an e-commerce fashion brand. You can organize a webinar, highlighting fashion branding tips. This way you can introduce your new offers and products while giving them a glimpse of how you market your brand.

Want To Drive Traffic to your e-commerce website? Click here to read 10 concrete ways to boost your website’s traffic! 

7. Prepare a communication calendar

By creating a communication calendar, you get an idea of how often you interact with your customers. Even when you don’t get the answer to the feedback form, it’s your responsibility to reach out to them time and again. A communication calendar is similar to your editorial calendar. The only difference is, it tells the last time you communicated with your customers. 

Quick tip: By using a communication calendar, you can check if a customer’s subscription is about to get expired. You can reach out to them before it gets expired. This helps in retaining the existing customers. 

How to do it all?

From maintaining your brandstore with our in-house tech “Kartify” to assisting you with our performance marketing services, ANS Commerce is a full-stack e-commerce enabler. We strive at strategies that help you tackle all the obstacles including e-commerce marketing and brandstore hygiene. You can reduce your cart abandonment rate with our exclusive services. Request a demo for our e-commerce solutions now! Request your free DEMO now! 

Customer retaining campaigns cost 10X less than lead generation campaigns. These strategies are indeed very important to be included in your marketing efforts. Start with the above 7 strategies to enjoy long-lasting benefits.