As consumers get access to more and more information laden with choices, retaining the older customer and bringing in new ones is a challenge to retail firms. Traditionally, impulsive buyers were an optional concern for companies. However, today, the trend of impulse buying forms a strong ground for gaining loyal customers. Loyal customers form over 25% of the total customers and are responsible for over 60% of the sales in a company. While there might be zillions of bytes traveling, giving consumers unlimited choices, how can you use the power of this data to convert impulsive buying into loyal purchasing?
What kind of data will DA provide to you?
When we apply Data Analytics to impulsive buying tendencies, you will be collecting data on those customers who have come to your shop by chance, through a search engine, through blogs or magazines and decided to arbitrarily make a one-time purchase. The kinds of data which you can collect include: historical, behavioral, social media and transactional. Your objective is to make this one-time purchase a first impression that will incline the customer to come to your store over and over again. While collecting data on consumers, you will scan the store regions that the customers are constantly visiting and position your high-end products in this area. Data analytics will also give you information on what kinds of products your impulsive buyer leans towards. Once you know this, you can instantly create a bundle of like products that can be presented at the checkout.
How does Data Analytics give you the power to bring in impulsive buyers and also turn them into loyal customers?
Sync your stock with needs:
When we use data analytics to understand behavior of the consumers, we grasp specific needs of different categories of the target audience. This allows the companies to stock their merchandise according to the ongoing trends and demands. For instance, during a certain period of every year, you realize that consumers have randomly entered your store to buy a product ABC. From the next year on, you can strategically advertise this product prior and during the time period to bring in customers.
Perfectly placing and timing your messages:
With live-information flowing-in to supplement customers’ purchase histories and data, retailers get the opportunity to put out the right messages at correct timings. Suppose Robert is scanning through the Pen Drive section of your online store. You will receive real-time data on the particular companies he is leaning towards and his budget. Taking into account this information, you can provide him pen-drive accessories and other products within the budget and of similar companies. These products can be placed in the Recommendations column of your website. In this manner, the impulse-driven interaction between your customer and the brand will turn into an intimate journey making your brand the home where they can get what they want, within their limitations.
Integrating social media to drive impulsive buying:
Social media networks are breeding grounds for growing impulsive buying inclinations. Go through communities, groups and pages which discuss and talk about your area of products. Classify the participants into categories (high-interest, low-interest or others which could suit your brand more) and focus on bringing in the target audience by using targeted messages. The worst possible method is to send out a mass email or use sales pitch content on the community, group or individual pages. This will only result in spam-reports on your brand. The best way to approach an individual and move them towards impulsive buying is by soliciting their contribution towards your brand- ask an opinion on a fashion trend, request information on animal care and so on depending on your area of concern.
Making the customer at home in your brand:
It is important to remember that consumers only respond positively to a brand when the choices can be easily made. To make your purchase journey easy, start by providing a strong filtering mechanism which will bring to the virtual aisle exactly what the consumer wants. Once this step is completed, quicken the payment process with different options (Pay Now, Use Wallet and others). The simpler you make the purchase process, the stronger you can hold your customers to the brand. Examples of such easy-to-use methods include Amazon’s “One-Click Ordering”, Amazon Dash, Twitter’s “Buy Now” and Instagram’s “Shop Now”.
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