Bring Recent Customers Back for More With These 3 Enticing Email Options

Customer acquisition is one of the most critical things for any business.

You have to spread the word about your product or service to the right people, or you'll never make a single sale.

But acquiring customers is just the beginning.

The real goal isn't just to get someone to buy something. It's to keep them coming back again and again.

You want them to buy for life, not just one time.

Whether you're selling something consumable that needs to be replaced — think vitamin supplements or beauty products — or you've got other products someone might also like, your previous customers are red hot leads you need to nurture consistently over time.

One great way to entice someone back after a purchase is to reach out to them via email, provided they're on your mailing list.

There are several options for doing this.

You may want to remind them to restock when they've run out of something, or recommend some accessories.

In a recent blog post, Kissmetrics offers three ideas for emails your customers can't resist.

The Repurchase Reminder

Oftentimes, when you make a purchase on a website, they email you immediately after encouraging you to buy again.

This marketing strategy is rooted in the idea that customers are likely to come back and purchase while your brand is still fresh in their mind.

But oftentimes, companies send emails out immediately and when the customer (naturally) doesn’t respond, they no longer follow up.

If your repeat purchase numbers are flat-lining and your emails are stale, why not wait until more time has passed (depending on how often the customer uses the product) to remind them?

Frequently Purchased Together (But It’s Not What You Think!)

Not all “Frequently Purchased Together” emails have to be a sales pitch. And if the customer didn’t buy them when they were originally presented, there must have been a reason.

Of course, the reasons why customers choose not to buy could be a whole other blog post in itself, but knowing what you know, why not steer the customer more toward educating them about the product add-ons or accessories rather than simply presenting them?

New Product Recommendations Based on Past Purchases

Finally, we have the “new product recommendations” email.

Rather than always notifying customers every time you have new items in stock (and hoping they might like some of them), why not segment the new product announcement emails based on what the customer has purchased previously?

They’re much more likely to buy, and they’ll welcome the added personalized attention!

Despite the different products and industries, all of these emails have one major thing in common — and that is a dedicated — almost fanatical attention to customer orders, browsing habits and preferences.

And although you may be doing a great deal of e-commerce by email, there are still, as these emails demonstrate, new ideas and approaches that can be capitalized on.

You can find more great ideas for increasing customer retention over at Kissmetrics.