The holiday season is known for offering a significant boost in retail sales, and the recent 2021 season is no exception. Holiday retail sales grew this year, with more shoppers, more spending, and a longer shopping season.
Many retailers gained new customers, including those who came in to get gifts or take advantage of timely discounts. With the holiday sales season over, it’s a critical time for retailers to reengage those new customers after their initial purchases.
Why reengaging customers is important
Reconnecting with your customers after their first purchases has a lot of benefits for your company. There are a few reasons why this should be a priority.
- It’s much less expensive to retain an existing customer than to attain a new one. If you brought in new customers during the holidays, reengaging afterwards can help them to return for a second purchase.
- Customers are likely to shop at many places for the holidays. If they were a first time customer, reengaging with them reminds them which purchase they made with you and helps them to build more association of that positive product experience with your brand.
- Reengagement helps shoppers to see that your company cares about building an ongoing relationship with them, which is key to building brand loyalty.
How to reengage your new customers
If you want to get the benefits of reengaging your new customers after their holiday shopping, here are 4 ways to start.
Send a invite to leave a review
A study found that 92% of customers are more likely to purchase a product after reading a trusted review. For many shoppers, reading product reviews is an essential part of their customer journey. Reading positive reviews gives customers confidence when making a new online purchase, especially if it’s a product or company that is new to them. Reviews serve as a valuable tool to drive conversion, especially among cautious customers who want the additional reassurance before checkout.
If you’ve had higher traffic and sales during the holiday season, the time after purchase is a great opportunity to get those customers back to leave a review. Send an email reminding them what item they purchased and on what date, and invite them to leave a rating and any comments. Customers who ordered a product as a gift that was well-received can also feel motivated after the holidays to share a review that the gift was loved by the recipient.
Asking customers for a review also gives satisfied shoppers the chance to recall the positive experience they had with your product. As they write and submit their product review, it reinforces a positive impression they have of your brand in addition to helping convert future customers.
Promote upcoming sales
A big motivator for shoppers in their purchase decisions over the holidays is when they have an opportunity to take advantage of holiday discounts. Lower prices are a significant driver in consumer behavior, as we saw from discounted prices extending out the holiday retail sales season in 2021. Shopping patterns this last year saw more customers starting their shopping earlier and continuing to shop the week following Christmas in order to take advantage of ongoing sales.
With President’s Day fast approaching, many customers will be looking to see which retailers are offering discounts. Retail holidays present a great opportunity to bring back customers because they imply a limited-time offer. These help create urgency with browsing customers to act fast in order to not miss out on the savings.
Shoppers who took advantage of your deals during the holiday season are likely to be interested if you’re offering any upcoming promotions. These can vary from percent-off discount, new items moved to sale, or an offer for free shipping. Reengage your customers by notifying them about upcoming deals. If you have an active social media presence, promoting sales on social media as well as through email helps to reach a larger number of customers.
Offer a post-purchase warranty
Extended warranties are a great way to drive incremental revenue, even after holiday season sales. Customers who just made holiday purchases with you can still add on an extended warranty post-purchase. Offering an extended warranty shortly after the purchase date gives existing customers an add-on option that is highly relevant to their purchase.
Within those first few weeks of owning the product, customers have the chance to handle it in person. This can be a time in which customers are likely to consider breakage or damage as they’re starting to use the item. It makes that window an optimal time to present customers with an option to add an extended warranty to protect against accidental damage. Coverage starts immediately, allowing customers to get the benefits of the plan right away.
Adding in post-purchase warranty options with a qualified warranty provider is a fast and easy integration process. A warranty provider like Mulberry can integrate with your existing email marketing program or even manage the emails to consumers. This allows the warranty provider to take on the load so retailers don’t have to manage post-purchase outreach. This allows our retail partners to make money without any additional lift, while we do the work to optimize and test emails and help customers get set up with a great warranty experience.
Send a welcome to new customers
With new customers making initial purchases from you during the holidays, your email list likely grew. You can welcome new contacts or email list subscribers with a personalized email. A successful welcome email can look like a message thanking your new customers for their purchase and welcoming them to the brand or the email list. You can make them feel like a valued part of the company’s success rather than one of many anonymous shoppers.
A welcome or thank you email is also a way to reach out to new customers with a reason for them to return. Shoppers who come back soon after their first purchase are more likely to become loyal to your brand and stay on as a long-term customer. One great way to do this is with a discount code offer for them to return to make a second purchase in a certain amount of time.
Another tactic to help personalize emails is to send reminders about any unfinished purchases. An email could notify a customer who didn’t convert that they left items behind in their cart and prompt them to check out. This feels more personalized than a generic email to return to the store, especially if a company holds the customer’s cart for them in between sessions.
Reengage your customers to take advantage of shopping post-holiday season
The time following the holiday shopping season is a key period for retailers to reach out to their new customers. It’s a great opportunity to drive new revenue, retain current customers, and build customer loyalty that keeps them returning. Reengagement efforts show customers you want to have a long-term relationship with them, long after the holiday season is over.
