Have you ever run out of products before you realize you need to restock? Skincare, makeup, soap, laundry detergent, you name it. Some consumers have roommates or family members to remind them to restock items like toilet paper or dish soap, but some don’t.
If your business sells consumable goods or consumer packaged goods (CPGs), you might need to be the roommate or family member that your customers need to remind themselves of when they need to restock. That’s why, in this blog, we’re focusing on automated email reminders to promote repeat purchases. Let’s get started!
The Power of Repeat Purchases
There’s nothing like acquiring a new customer and getting them to buy from your website for the first time. If you own or work for a small business, it may seem like the most important thing you can do is to grow the size of your customer base and the number of people on your email list.
So why should you worry about a repeat purchase rate?
Because, believe it or not, repeat purchase rates can make or break eCommerce brands. For many marketers, the ability to cultivate loyal customers and influence repeat purchases is the most important thing they can do to grow while also earning recurring revenue.
In fact, the statistics around repeat purchases are pretty jaw-dropping:
■ The average eCommerce business earns 41% of its total revenue from only 8% of its customers (aka repeat purchasers).
■ Customers who have already purchased from your brand twice are 9x more likely to convert than a first-time shopper.
■ Your top 10% of customers are worth 6x as much on average as the other 90%.
■ Repeat purchasers spend 3x as much as first-time customers.
Think about it this way: If you could have 100 customers buy something from you once, or you could have 10 customers buy the same product from your brand every month for the rest of their lives, what would you choose? The latter, most likely.
Strategies for Encouraging Repeat Purchases
While it’s probably not breaking news to you that it’s ideal for your customers to buy more than once, the tricky part is figuring out which strategies will encourage shoppers to come back. Additionally, if you sell consumables that people can find at their local shop, how do you keep them coming back to your online store every time they need a refill?
To combat the customer retention challenge, many brands have discovered that setting up a subscription or a membership allows them to guarantee regular repeat purchases.
However, setting up this type of business model isn’t always feasible for every business since there are often higher operational costs associated with subscriptions and memberships and it can be more complex to manage.
Additionally, not all consumers want to commit to recurring payments, so brands that don’t offer subscription services or operate according to both a subscription and non-subscription model need a different way to influence repeat purchases.
In a perfect world, you’d have psychic powers that allowed you to know exactly when your customers were running out of a product so you could follow up, but that’s not exactly realistic. Instead, we’ll focus on the magic of the replenishment email to help you with follow-up.
Reaping the Benefits of Replenishment Email Automation
eCommerce brands can leverage replenishment emails as a strategic tool to enhance customer engagement and boost sales. These emails serve as timely reminders for customers to consider repurchasing products that are likely to be running low or depleted. Unlike subscription reminders, replenishment emails focus on encouraging customers to initiate a new order rather than notifying them about impending charges or shipping updates. By integrating replenishment emails into their marketing mix, brands can tap into the potential for increased customer lifetime value (LTV) and a higher repeat purchase rate. Automated through various email service providers (ESPs), this approach proves effective in nurturing customer loyalty and driving sustained revenue growth.
Enhancing Customer Retention Strategies through Replenishment Emails
For businesses specializing in consumable goods, known as consumer-packaged goods (CPGs), customer retention plays a pivotal role in long-term success. The emphasis shifts from merely acquiring customers to fostering consistent return purchases. CPGs encompass a diverse range of products, including perishables like food, beverages, household items, personal care products, and more. These items naturally deplete over time, necessitating frequent restocking. Implementing replenishment email automation becomes a logical approach for driving customers to reorder as their supplies dwindle. Take, for instance, the case of selling items such as olive oil. By prompting customers to restock approximately every two months, businesses can optimize engagement and revenue generation. However, in scenarios involving non-consumable products like bedding and home goods, alternate strategies like cross-selling or upselling might prove more effective due to the unpredictability of reordering timelines. In a competitive landscape where consumers are bombarded with alternatives, replenishment emails emerge as a strategic avenue to counteract attrition, capitalize on customer preferences, and safeguard against potential sales losses.
Replenishment Email
The best way to think of replenishment emails is as a crossover between a post-purchase email and an abandoned cart email.
That’s because you’re nurturing your customer while also treating them as a shopper who’s shown an interest and intent to purchase a product—because, in a way, they have.
Similar to an abandoned cart email, you typically keep your replenishment email focused on the product, but in this case, the focus is on the item you’re convincing them to restock.
Simple copy, product imagery, details, and a clear call-to-action (CTA) go a long way…but that doesn’t mean the content has to be boring.
Repeat Sales on Repeat
Your customers are your greatest asset, which means the more you do to cultivate customer loyalty and encourage repeat purchases, the better position you’ll be in for the long run, especially for brands that sell consumables.
You may not have considered adding a replenishment email to your post-purchase automation, but it’s the perfect way to nurture your customers and stay top of mind once they’re ready to restock.