The business landscape today is hyper-competitive. Customer engagement is the most critical factor in determining a company’s success. Engaged customers are a source of direct revenue and advocates for your brand. Companies must constantly innovate to keep up with customers, who seek services and products that evolve with their needs. By leveraging the power of AI/ML, you can gain a competitive advantage to acquire new customers while effectively retaining the existing ones.

Often used interchangeably, AI and ML perform different duties, which we will encode today! So, before we get into the core of what they can do in the realm of customer engagement, let’s understand what they mean.

Artificial Intelligence (AI): In simple terms, AI is computer-controlled technology that can perform tasks typically done by humans because it requires human-like intelligence and acumen.

Machine Learning (ML): On the contrary, ML is a subset of AI that makes software smarter by learning from data to predict outcomes more accurately.

When married together, this cutting-edge technology has the power to radically change how businesses serve their customers and foster enduring relationships while delivering delightful customer experiences.

Companies like Amazon and Netflix have been pioneers in using AI/ML strategies to analyze user preferences and behaviors, providing personalized product or content recommendations to users, further increasing sales and engagement.

Another prime example of AI in action is Tesla’s Auto Pilot system, which ensures safer and less tiring self-driving car experiences. It uses cameras, radar, and machine learning to detect vehicles, maintain speed, and change lanes when needed. While you stay alert with your hands on the wheel, the AI system assists in steering, accelerating, and braking, making long journeys a cakewalk. It’s like having a co-pilot who has got your back for long drives.

In this article, we’ll explore how AI and ML can aid your business and supercharge your customer engagement.

The Core of Customer Engagement

Now, prior to discussing how AI and ML can boost customer engagement, it is necessary to understand what customer engagement entails. Customer engagement refers to the emotional relationship that customers build with a brand. It covers every customer interaction with a company, from their first website visit to post-purchase support and service.

Thus, customer engagement is closely related to customer experience (CX), which is customers’ perception of their interaction with a company. It is a ‘moment in time’ that customers associate your brand with. Customer engagement results from multiple experiences that produce an emotional connection. Engagement with your brand increases when customers have positive, frequent, and helpful experiences.

Engaged customers exhibit the following key behaviors:

1. Repeat Purchases: Engaged customers return for additional purchases, leading to higher customer lifetime value.
2. Brand Loyalty: They feel a deep involvement with the brand and are less likely to opt for the services/products of your competitors.
3. Referrals: Engaged customers become “brand ambassadors,” recommending your offerings to friends and family.
4. Feedback: They provide valuable feedback and suggestions, helping companies improve their products and services.
5. User-Generated Content: Engaged customers often write reviews, social media posts, and testimonials, which can further promote your brand.

AI/ML evolution in the world of Customer Engagement

The evolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in customer engagement has been a fascinating journey characterized by significant advancements and transformative impacts on businesses. These technologies have evolved from their early stages to become critical tools in understanding, interacting with, and satisfying customer needs. According to a Pegasystems survey on customer engagement, 100% of top-performing companies utilize AI. Additionally, 56% of the top performers report investing in AI to personalize and continuously learn from customer interactions. Let’s explore this evolution in more detail:

Early AI/ML Applications: Initially, AI and ML in customer engagement were rudimentary, with simple chatbots and basic recommendation systems. Chatbots could handle straightforward customer inquiries, while recommendation algorithms offered product suggestions based on past purchase history.

Data Proliferation: As the digital age progressed, the volume of customer data exploded. AI and ML began to play a pivotal role in processing and extracting valuable insights from this data. Businesses use predictive analytics to anticipate customer behavior, allowing for more targeted marketing efforts.

Personalization: AI and ML enables businesses to personalize customer interactions on a larger scale. It aids in delivering more accurate product recommendations, to implement marketing campaigns tailored to individual preferences. This personal touch leads to increased customer engagement and loyalty.

Real-time Insights: Integrating AI and ML into customer engagement systems allowed for real-time customer behavior analysis. Companies could respond promptly to customer inquiries, adapting their strategies on the fly based on the latest data.

Conversational AI: AI-driven chatbots and virtual assistants evolved to handle complex conversations. Natural language processing (NLP) and sentiment analysis enabled these AI systems to understand and respond to customer emotions and nuances.

Customer Support Automation: AI and ML found significant utility in automating customer support. Chatbots could handle a wide range of inquiries, offering 24/7 assistance and reducing response times.

Customer Journey Mapping: AI and ML helped businesses map and analyze the entire customer journey, identifying pain points and opportunities for improvement. This holistic view allowed for a more seamless and satisfying customer experience.

Predictive Customer Engagement: ML algorithms became adept at predicting customer behavior and churn. By analyzing historical data, AI systems could forecast which customers were at risk of leaving and take proactive steps to retain them.

Omnichannel Engagement: AI/ML facilitates omnichannel customer engagement, ensuring consistent experiences across various platforms and touchpoints. This cohesiveness improves customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Hyper-Personalization: Today, AI/ML are at the forefront of hyper-personalization. They can analyze vast datasets to provide individualized product recommendations, content, and pricing, creating a level of personalization that was once unimaginable.

AI and ML Strategies: 5 Transformative Effects on Customer Engagement

1. Personalized Recommendations

AI-driven personalized recommendations are transforming customer engagement across various industries. A recent research by Forrester revealed that AI-driven personalization will become a crucial element of customer experience in 2023. Moreover, the study predicts that no less than 10% of companies will direct their investments toward AI-powered digital content creation in the following years.

For example, Netflix uses AI to suggest movies and series based on your viewing history, keeping you engaged and loyal. Swiggy, an Indian food delivery platform, employs AI and ML algorithms to recommend dishes based on past orders, saving you time and introducing new flavors.

An online Men’s fashion brand, Powerlook, employed WebEngage’s Catalog and Recommendation Engine to solve for a lack of user-specific recommendations on their website. Based on a user’s purchase history, outfits and other fashion offerings were recommended to users after 15 days since their last purchase. Additionally, products and choices were also recommended based on users’ cart history. The results, a 302% uptick in unique conversions, speak for themselves.

Just as it was able to help Powerlook, the WebEngage Recommendation, and Catalog Engine can make a difference to your business as well, by helping you generate personalized recommendations for your clientele.

2. Dynamic Content Generation with Generative AI

A major challenge for many businesses is generating high-quality, relevant content consistently. This is where Generative AI takes precedence. Generative AI falls under the umbrella of AI. It utilizes natural language processing and ML capabilities to produce new content that resembles human-generated content. It alleviates brands’ burden of curating fresh content by auto-populating various formats like text, images, videos, or audio content. Generative AI helps curate and aggregate content from various sources to create customized news feeds, playlists, product catalogs, and more in seconds. This provides users an unbroken stream of relevant and interesting content, keeping them engaged.

Discover how you can boost your campaign effectiveness with WebEngage’s Generative AI.
BECO, an online brand, faced two challenges: customers leaving their shopping carts and ghosting brand messages. They partnered with WebEngage to harness the power of Generative AI to send real-time WhatsApp campaigns. With the power of Generative AI, BECO created a digital avatar of Dia Mirza, their brand ambassador, involving the creation of video and audio clones tied to the avatar’s unique identity. Leveraging AI’s text-to-video capabilities, these clones were seamlessly combined to craft personalized messages. This new approach completely changed how they connected with celebrities, making them part of the customer’s journey. This strategy empowered BECO to deliver Dia Mirza’s avatar-based messages without her dedicating an entire day to traditional shooting sessions.

Here’s a quick look into their AI and Ml generated video:

Sephora, a global cosmetics retailer, utilizes Generative AI to power its Virtual Artist app. Customers can use this app to try on different makeup products, such as shades of lipstick, eyeshadow, and false lashes, virtually. This fun and engaging experience helps customers save time and make purchase decisions. It also increases brand loyalty and advocacy as users can share their virtual “makeovers” on social media.

3. Conversational AI Marketing

Recently, a news channel in Orissa launched an AI news anchor named Lisa to provide news updates to viewers. Chatbots and virtual assistants powered by AI/ML systems perform a different role, but just like Lisa, they are a “likeness of humans.” Moreover, they are becoming commonplace tools for businesses in customer engagement. These AI-driven agents can answer customer queries instantly, offer support, and even complete transactions.
For instance, when a customer visits an e-commerce website with a question about a product, an AI-powered chatbot can provide immediate assistance, helping the customer make an informed decision. This immediate, personalized interaction enhances the customer experience. It keeps them engaged and prevents them from leaving the website to look for information elsewhere.

The biggest example, perhaps, is Amazon’s customer service chatbot, Alexa. Customers use Alexa to make purchases, track orders, get product recommendations, etc., all through natural language interactions.

Closer home, in India, Bajaj Allianz uses an AI-driven WhatsApp bot to assist customers with 36 service requests. This has greatly impacted customer engagement for the insurer, which reported a direct benefit of Rs 45 crore as of September 2021.

Similar efforts to leverage AI in conversational marketing are also going on at Swiggy, which hopes to pilot a neural search feature to support voice-based and typed queries in various Indian languages. A Dineout conversational bot, which acts as a “virtual concierge,” is also an attempt by Swiggy to boost customer engagement.

4. Content Personalization

Beyond personalization and product recommendations, AI is critical in enhancing your customer experiences by predicting user behavior and your ideal cohorts. Instead of creating broader segments extracted from basic demographics, AI and ML systems help you narrow down your users based on their purchasing patterns, individual user preferences, behavior, geographic, psychographic, appographics, and more to curate content that grabs attention from the right users. You can also add another layer to this content personalization mix to identify and re-engage ‘at risk’ users with RFM analysis. Personalizing content allows brands to keep users engaged and anticipate more content that matches their expectations and interests.

For example, you can curate unique landing pages, product descriptions, call-to-action buttons, images, etc., personalized to each visitor using robust AI or ML algorithms, increasing the chances of conversion and engagement.

Toppr, a booming after-school learning app for 5th to 12th-grade Indian students, was able to achieve after partnering with WebEngage. Using RFM analysis, Toppr could segment its users, allowing them to send personalized communication to them. They also employed a multi-channel approach by sending users timely and contextual learning material using push notifications, SMS, and email. This led to 133% growth in conversions and 78% M6 retention.

Brands can also leverage AI/ML algorithms to create personalized subject lines in emails, content, and product recommendations specifically for each recipient, which can help businesses achieve higher email open rates, click-through rates, and conversions. Thrillark, a marketplace that curates experiences for travelers, increased its user engagement by employing this strategy. WebEngage helped Thrillark to hyper-personalize its marketing communication and offer personalized recommendations to its users. As a result, Thrillark achieved a 60% increase in user engagement since inception and a 15% increase in repeat purchases by travelers who used the personalized recommendations.

Thus, we can see that WebEngage has a proven track record in hyper-personalization of marketing communication. WebEngage can do the same for your brand, using tools like Web Personalization, RFM analysis, Journey Designer, and more.

5. Content Translation and Localization:

AI has the potential to revolutionize localization through enhanced translation accuracy and consistency across languages and cultures. Machine learning algorithms analyze extensive data, uncovering patterns that may elude human translators, leading to continuous improvement in translation accuracy. The AI-driven translation is notably faster than human counterparts, enabling efficient digital content localization to remain up-to-date globally. Additionally, AI-based localization is scalable and cost-effective, making it accessible to businesses of all sizes. Although AI has some limitations in handling idioms and cultural nuances, the ongoing evolution of AI technology is expected to address these challenges, promising more accurate and effective localization solutions. Leveraging Natural Language Processing (NLP) and machine learning, AI-powered localization tools ensure accurate, contextually appropriate, and culturally sensitive translations, ultimately benefiting businesses by offering improved accuracy, faster turnaround times, cost-effectiveness, scalability, and enhanced cultural sensitivity.

Addressing Hurdles in AI/ML for Customer Engagement

Customer engagement through AI/ML presents promising opportunities but comes with a set of challenges. Let’s explore some key obstacles and ways to overcome them:

Data Quality and Quantity: AI and ML heavily rely on data. Poor quality or insufficient data can hinder the effectiveness of customer engagement algorithms. The key is to invest in data quality and collection processes like CDP and consider data augmentation techniques to supplement limited datasets.

Privacy Concerns: Gathering and utilizing customer data for engagement must adhere to strict privacy regulations. Mishandling data can result in legal issues and loss of customer trust. Ensure customer data security by implementing robust data protection measures and transparent data handling practices to comply with privacy laws.

Complex Implementation: Adding AI and ML to current systems can be complicated and resource-heavy. To make it easier, create a clear plan and roll out changes gradually to reduce disruptions. Moreover, complex AI models can be difficult to interpret, making understanding the reasoning behind customer engagement decisions challenging. Hence, invest in explainable AI techniques and prioritize models that offer transparency.

Training and Skill Gap: AI and ML talent scarcity poses challenges in implementing customer engagement solutions. Companies can invest in employee training and upskilling to address this, offering relevant courses and certifications. This nurtures an in-house team capable of managing AI projects. Alternatively, outsourcing to AI experts and firms provides specialized knowledge and support without building an internal AI team. These strategies empower organizations to overcome the talent shortage and effectively deploy AI-driven customer engagement solutions.

Technical Costs: Developing and maintaining AI and ML solutions can be expensive. For small businesses, it’s challenging to invest in these technologies. Your best bet is to explore cost-effective AI tools and cloud-based solutions and evaluate the long-term ROI. Tools like WebEngage are cost-effective and result-driven in retaining your potential customers.

Constant Evolution: AI and ML technologies are continually evolving. Keeping up with the latest advancements is crucial for staying competitive. To address this, foster a culture of continuous learning and innovation in your organization while staying updated with industry trends.

Ethical Considerations: Do not undermine ethical concerns like data ethics and AI’s impact on society. Create an ethical framework for AI and ML usage, and regularly check if it aligns with your organization’s values.

Conclusion:

Incorporating AI/ML into your customer experience strategy can be a game-changer. These technologies offer real-time insights, predictive analytics, and the ability to personalize customer journeys across channels. By automating repetitive tasks, optimizing agent assignments, and providing a comprehensive customer view, AI/ML empower your team to deliver exceptional service. Language flexibility, knowledge management, and ongoing training enhance customer support capabilities.

As AI/ML continue to evolve, there are endless possibilities for organizations to harness their dynamic potential and drive meaningful improvements in customer engagement and satisfaction.
Explore how your business can harness these innovative and cutting-edge AI/ML technology to ramp up customer engagement. Read our Impact Stories and Request a Demo to take the first step towards curating engaging AI and ML-powered marketing campaigns.

The post Deep-Dive into AI/ML to Enhance Customer Engagement appeared first on WebEngage.

State of Insurance Marketing

The insurance stalwarts in the space are all legacy players who prefer to market traditionally with minimal or obligatory tech intervention. On the other hand, the new-age customer-focused digitally savvy insurance brands gun for a richer user experience to drive traffic and educate users for increased conversions with a data-backed funnel-centric approach.

If the North Star metric is to boost policy registrations (aka revenue), then insurance companies must take a closer look at one’s website. It is the one touchpoint that substantiates the user’s intent for the product.

A staggering 59 insurance companies are vying for a juicy piece of the pie. They all have websites. Some exist for namesake. Others – the winning ones, exist to educate users, save time, and provide delightful user experiences.

The obvious next step is optimizing your brand website.

Optimizing websites is like creating playlists.

Optimizing a website is a lot like curating the right music playlist – you need to put together a collection of what works best and personalize that collection based on user behavior. If done well, both can keep users engaged and can hold a user’s interest and attention.

How so?

For example, if a user doesn’t move beyond the first two folds of a website, then having the core messaging and the CTA in those two folds would get them to click. Similarly, curating a playlist with jazz and rock songs for a user who only listens to those two genres would resonate with them and pique their interest.

But doing so could mean either going back to the drawing board or tweaking to find the right setting.

There are two things to bear in mind:

Mapping the user journey across your website and measuring leakage at each stage is funnel analysis. Taking steps to ensure they move as intended is Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO).

Here’s how they work – Picture a funnel. Yes, an actual funnel.

At the top, you have users visiting your website. At the bottom, you have users making purchases. The middle of the funnel, however, can and will spring a leak that causes users to drop off your website.

The drop-offs happen for a variety of reasons – from a complicated user interface to a lack of personalization options. The key is to understand where the customer is losing interest and address that pain point.

Let’s study two websites side-by-side step-by-step.

Step 1: Landing Page.

People do judge a book by its cover. A landing page can make or break your user experience.

Website A
Here’s the website of Acko – a new-age insurance provider. Let’s call them Website A.

What’s right?
Website A’s interface is clean, and its messaging – clear. The landing page presents the user with a wide range of avenues to advance the user journey. Note how it not only highlights the Sign Up & Login buttons to boost registrations but also validates the brand’s credibility with a Google rating of 4.7 out of 5 displayed where it catches the eye.

These are some clever tactics to establish trust and invoke curiosity in the users’ minds.

Website B.
On the other hand, we have the landing page of a legacy insurance provider. Let’s call them Website B.

What’s wrong?
There is no flow nor any distinguishable Calls-To-Action (CTA). The landing page is riddled with options, just like Website A, except it’s not as structural and strategic. A website cluttered with information and annoying pop-ups can confuse the user and lead to immediate drop-offs.

Creating landing pages has been distilled down to a science. The goal of a landing page can be to raise awareness, establish intent, and reduce cognitive bias as well as overload. A landing page that does all of the above can make a good first impression. On an insurance website, these goals translate to educating users about insurance policies and getting them to Sign Up or Login.

Step 2: Sign Up/Login

By getting them to register, they become known users in the system. Known users are easier to market to and, ergo, easier to retain.

Website A

Getting Started with Acko

What’s right?
An onboarding page is susceptible to drop-offs, but not if it’s intuitive. All one has to do here is add a name and a number to sign up.

There’s even information on what users can do once they create an account. Such decision-making cues inform the user what’s in store for them and nudge them in the desired direction.

Website B


What’s wrong?
Upon clicking on Login, the website not only redirects users to a new page but a new website. This breaks the user flow and diminishes trust.

Next, it presented me with a set of fields that a user may be unable to fill. If a user wishes to choose a policy, how would they have a policy number to create an account?

Users are likely to get overwhelmed, abandon the website and take their business elsewhere when they are faced with a dilemma on a page that should be otherwise standard procedure.

Step 3: Product Pages

After registering on your website, users will want to know more about your products and services.

Website A


What’s right?
A high-converting product page contains actionable information with a clear intent – inform users and get them to buy a policy. Anything and everything that has those two goals in mind makes for a great product page.

In the above picture, Acko presents users with a form to provide their personal information and choose the right plan. Doing so collects consensual first-party information from the users for advanced segmentation and targeting tactics.

The deeper into the website they are and the deeper into the funnel they are, the closer to conversions they are.

Website B

What’s wrong?
There are no actionable Calls-To-Action (CTA) and nowhere to proceed from this point. Users either download a brochure, read it, and then revisit the website, OR they circle back to the home page and start from square one.

Both routes are time-consuming and lead to user churn.

Between the two brands, one leads to the user buying a policy, and the other one makes them move around in circles.

If that user were you, which one would you likely choose?

There’s strength in numbers.

First-party data collected consensually from users across different touchpoints is invaluable. They reveal knowledge that you wouldn’t have otherwise known. There are a few ways to leverage your data.

Customer Data Platforms (CDP)

A CDP is a packaged software that aggregates and unifies customer data from various sources to provide a 360-degree view of a user.

This singular view of a user, powered by first-party data, shows every decision-making parameter, such as user attributes, website behavior, personal tastes and preferences, geographical location, channel reachability, and psychological tendencies, among others, on a glanceable dashboard – a single source of truth.

A CDP’s job is to aggregate sources of information from partner systems and show you a unified picture. On Acko’s website, travel insurance is quite popular with bus aggregators like Redbus.

When I logged into Acko’s website and viewed ‘My Policies,’ this is what I saw.

What happened here?
I booked and insured a trip on Redbus back in 2017. Acko’s CDP pulled information from Redbus’ system to show me details of that insured trip.

CDPs can also be incredible tools to harness data for hyper-personalization that will immediately level up the customer experience

Hyper-personalization

Website Personalization helps you individualize your web page for a more intimate 1:1 user experience.

Example 1

Two things happened when I keyed in my information on the website:

1. I got a call from Acko Insurance to discuss my insurance needs. By doing so, they not only complete the circle but also lend a human touch, and a human touch majorly factors into a user’s decision-making process.
2. I received a WhatsApp text nudging me to buy the plan I was exploring. This text outlined the details of the policy, along with CTAs for the next steps.

Example 2

In the above example, Acko reminds a user to renew a bike insurance plan that is about to expire soon.

Another popular use case of hyper-personalization is the catalog & recommendation engine.

Catalog & Recommendation Engine
A catalog keeps all your product information up-to-date and helps you send relevant, personalized communications. For example, you can fetch the updated price information for a product from an uploaded Catalog and ensure you never send stale or incorrect data in your messages.

Recommendation Engine personalizes your communication with recommendations based on your users’ actions or events.

What could insurance companies be doing with this feature?
If a user purchases life insurance for themselves, they can use a recommendation engine to suggest other policies that the user might be interested in purchasing.

In closing,

Dissecting your funnel to know which pages of your website are doing well and which ones aren’t will tell you where to optimize your conversion rate.

Out of 100 users, a top-performing website would get 80-90 users to fill out a quote form, 30-35 users to fill out an intent form, and more than 15 users to purchase a policy. A 15 percent conversion rate is a decent upgrade from a mere 3 percent.

Your website’s customer experience can be streamlined by configuring elements of your website, like

1. Customized landing pages with clear Calls-To-Action (CTA),
2. A pain-free onboarding process for easier sign-ups and logins,
3. Detailed product pages outlining crucial decision-making information,
4. Robust customer data platforms and recommendation engines for hyper-personalized experiences
5. Intuitive UI/UX that supports the journey you want the user to take

With small tweaks to your website, there is a big chance to stop the leakage and boost conversions. More conversions mean a higher topline, and a higher topline means a greater market share.

Optimizing CRO is just the tip of the user engagement iceberg. There’s a world of possibilities for exponentially increasing your conversions, but that road is often overwhelming and might need some hand-holding.
At WebEngage, our marketing pundits help you navigate the smaller challenges that open doors to bigger rewards. Our homegrown state-of-the-art marketing automation platform has helped 800+ brands grow their business. To know how we can help you grow, book a free demo with us.

The post A Lion’s Share: Insurance Marketing CRO Strategies For A Bigger Piece Of The Market appeared first on WebEngage.

Why?

e-Commerce customers are no longer limited to a single channel. They prefer bouncing through various channels and touchpoints before zeroing in on a purchase.

Consumers today are dynamic in nature. Their preferred channels to interact with a brand can change by the day. So connecting customers via a channel or two is a lost cause. That’s where a multichannel marketing strategy becomes important to have.

Before we dive into how to create a multichannel marketing strategy, let’s give you a quick recap of what it is:

Multichannel marketing is a technique used to sell products and engage with customers through multiple channels. For example, combining channels like social media, SEO, email marketing, web push, SMS marketing, etc, to ensure your brand remains at the top of their minds throughout their customer journey.

So while multichannel marketing uses a variety of channels to reach out to customers with the same content, omnichannel builds upon interactions in order to advance the customer journey at any touchpoint.

Pro tip: If your business goal is to establish a better brand recall and cut through the digital noise, we recommend using multichannel marketing.

In this post, we’re going to look into how you can create a multichannel marketing strategy for your e-Commerce business.

How to create a multichannel marketing strategy for e-Commerce

While you can approach creating a strategy in many ways, here are ten steps we recommend following when you’re getting started with e-Commerce multichannel marketing:

1. Explore Platforms Where Your Audience Exists

Identify and explore platforms that bring you online traffic and conversions, as these indicate a strong presence of your target audience.

Start by looking into your website analytics using a tool like Google Analytics, social media insights on Facebook, Instagram, and/or YouTube, and analyze other channels that are a part of your e-Commerce sales funnel – this includes email marketing, web push, SMS and possibly every channel you’ve been marketing on.

Say you’re an online cosmetics brand. Your users will most likely shop with your brand through cross-channel engagement on channels like social media, WhatsApp, and your website.

Analyzing top revenue-fetching and engagement-driven platforms lets you start on a definite path to creating a multichannel marketing strategy rather than assuming audience presence.

PS. It’s important to also note that these channels or platforms may look different for different audience segments. While GenZ actively uses social media to shop online, millennials are still more receptive to email, push and SMS marketing.

2. Create A Buyer Persona

A buyer or customer persona details a hypothetical customer by gathering their traits, demographics, pain points, preferences, goals, etc.

Why is this important for e-Commerce multichannel marketing?

Creating an ideal buyer persona acts as a blueprint to identify your current and future customers and their behaviors and map out their potential journeys leading to a purchase.

An e-Commerce buyer’s personas need not be limited to customers’ traits or pain points. Try diving deeper into collecting their purchase frequencies, preferred communication methods, modes of purchase, devices used to browse and purchase products, etc.

To start creating a buyer persona, you can:

• Talk to your current customers and ask for feedback
• Gather customer-related data by running post-purchase surveys and using analytical tools
• Talk to your internal sales and marketing teams to better understand customers’ interactions
• Take note of e-Commerce affinity patterns to learn interests and intent

For example, a buyer persona for an online fitness accessories store can look like this:

1. Name: Jane Smith
2. Age: 29
3. Job: HR manager
4. Lives in: San Francisco
5. Annual income: $80,000
6. Buys for: Product quality, repurchases, and a wide range of fitness products
7. Pain points: Product reliability and effectiveness
8. Research channels: Instagram, website stores, Google

3. Conduct Audience Segmentation

Audience segmentation means dividing your target market into multiple segments based on common grounds, such as similar behavioral data, demographics, purchase tendencies, etc.

Real-time customer segmentation allows you to align your chosen marketing channels and messaging to resonate with a particular audience segment.

With targeted segments, you can personalize messaging to engage potential customers better and move them rapidly down your e-Commerce sales funnel.

e-Commerce companies, for example, can gather customer data for segments during a purchase and trigger actions that move the customers closer to completing the purchase. Suppose a customer quits your online store and leaves it in the shopping cart without purchasing an item. In that case, you can send such customers an email and SMS encouraging them to finish where they left off.

Similarly, you can create customer segments based on website activity. Say a user has browsed through your website shopping page. You can target them by displaying mobile push notifications and persuading them to revisit your site.

4. Map Your Customer Journey

Customer journeys sum up the experiences customers have while interacting with your brand. So undoubtedly, understanding a customer’s journey will help you serve them better and create an optimized multichannel experience.

Mapping helps you strategize your multichannel marketing efforts and, basically, connects the dots.

Once you have the segments ready, start visualizing each customer segment’s journey using a customer journey map. Map out each step the customer might take, right from product awareness to purchasing it.

Here’s an example customer journey map for a cart abandoners’ customer segment:

5. Assign Priorities To Channels And Devices

Shoppers may prefer a channel and a device more than the rest. For example, social media like Instagram and mobile devices.

Track your customers’ activities and engagement across your brand’s online presence to find the channels and devices they have an inclination to. Then look at the revenue each audience segment on each channel is driving for your business.

Next, assign priorities to each of them so you can leverage channels and devices accordingly and see the maximum impact, such as increased sales, traffic, or leads – and of course, ROI.

6. Carry Out Seamless Integration Of All Channels

Integrating key channels ensures consistency in all your multichannel marketing efforts. Doing so also improves customer experiences while interacting with your brand. Customers are also not left hanging at any point, regardless of their unique journeys.

Tying in channels together means making them work smoothly in tandem by complementing each other. Integrating can also deliver relevant content via customers’ preferred channels and multiplies the chances of conversion.

For example, integrating mobile or web push notifications with emails and SMS to notify customers of an ongoing discount for Christmas. Customers should be able to choose their preferred platform to browse and purchase products without any friction.

7. Support Web Personalization

E-Commerce web personalization involves personalizing each customer/visitor’s website experience by offering tailored product recommendations, using dynamic website content to engage them better, displaying personalized web notifications, and more.

Web personalization has the highest conversion rates due to its ability to deliver hyper-personalized website experiences based on user actions or segments.

Suppose a customer buys home supplies on the 1st of every month. You can use web personalization to remind them to restock their supplies with a mobile push notification and curate product recommendations. Also, tie on other channels like email and WhatsApp to send them a reminder on the same.

8. Enhance Customer Support

Long wait times to get queries answered can frustrate your e-Commerce customers. And it wouldn’t take long for them to quit your site and jump to your competitors for options.

Therefore, efficient customer support is another feather in your cap while implementing a successful multichannel marketing strategy. It enhances the overall customer experience and turns new customers into brand loyalists.

Using smart automation for customer support, such as automated AI chatbots, can offer 24/7 real-time assistance to customers without delayed responses or facing time-zone differences.

9. Measure Your Performance

Measuring the performance of your multichannel marketing strategy leads your future efforts in the right direction and uncovers anomalies.

Here are four key performance indicators (KPIs) you must track regularly to measure your performance:

KPI #1. Brand awareness

How well are potential and target customers aware of your brand and offering? Measure how effectively you can drive brand awareness through your chosen channels, for example, Google Ads, social media, emails, SEO, etc.

The metrics you must track are:

1. Cost per impression (CPM) to determine your brand’s visibility by calculating ad impressions.
2. Social media engagement metrics like the number of shares, likes, and comments on posts.
3. Website traffic to calculate the number of page views and bounce rate and track user activities.

Bonus read: Difference between Brand engagement and Customer engagement

KPI #2. Conversions

Post the awareness stage comes the conversion stage, when a potential buyer turns into a purchasing customer.

The metrics you must track are:

1. Conversion rate to calculate the total number of unique visitors across channels who converted to buyers.
2. The average order value for each channel.

KPI #3. Customer retention rate

Ensure you track your average retention rate since selling to existing customers is better than acquiring new ones and selling to them,

Also, calculate the customer lifetime value and churn rate to understand if your multichannel marketing strategy needs a reboot.

KPI #4. Brand advocacy

Your happy customers turn into brand advocates, recommending your products to their friends and family. So ensure you track this metric to measure performance.

The metrics you can track are:

1. Product reviews on your website and product mentions on social media sites.
2. Net Promoter Score (NPS) to understand customer loyalty.

We recommend using funnel analytics in order to attribute the success at each stage of the buyer journey more accurately. This also goes back to helping you identify and assign priorities to the best performing channels.

10. Optimize

The more optimized your strategy is, the more likely customers will complete their purchases and stay loyal to your brand.

And optimized strategies are a result of continuous improvement and learning.

So based on the measured KPIs, experiment with different channels and test various audience segments to find what works best for you. Optimize continuously to not just lower your customer acquisition costs, but also customer experiences and the bottom line revenue your business is driving.

Conclusion: Creating A MultiChannel Marketing Strategy For E-Commerce

The e-Commerce space is currently a highly competitive ecosystem. So cutting through the noise needs a multichannel strategy, no doubt. But when paired with personalization, it is your assured route to success.

Customer engagement norms are ever-changing. It has alerted e-Commerce brands to create well-connected marketing campaigns and adapt them as per engagement.

That’s when a multichannel marketing automation platform like WebEngage steps in.

It helps e-Commerce businesses orchestrate connected experiences across multiple channels, leading to better customer engagement and positive business outcomes.

Want to learn more about WebEngage?

Book a demo to get started with multichannel marketing for your e-Commerce business.

The post How To Create A Multichannel Marketing Strategy For E-Commerce appeared first on WebEngage.

Basically, you grab the moment as soon as possible. This can turn the tables for all the e-commerce ventures out there. Because for e-commerce campaigns, moment marketing presents a unique opportunity to create timely and impactful interactions that not only drive engagement but also boost sales.

In this blog, we’ll delve deep into the world of moment marketing for e-commerce campaigns. We’ll explore seven highly effective strategies that can help your business excel in this dynamic approach. From understanding your audience and trends to seamlessly integrating moment marketing with your e-commerce platform, we’ll guide you through each step necessary to make the most out of your moment marketing endeavors.

Strategy 1: Understanding Your Audience and Trends

The foundation of any successful marketing campaign lies in a deep understanding of your target audience. This principle holds especially true for moment marketing. By grasping your audience’s preferences, behaviors, and pain points, you can tailor your moment marketing efforts to resonate with their unique needs and desires.

Consider an e-commerce brand that specialises in offering fitness apparel. By thoroughly understanding that their audience values health, wellness, and an active lifestyle, they can create moment marketing campaigns that perfectly align with trending fitness challenges, wellness awareness days, or major sporting events. This approach not only showcases the brand’s relevance but also positions them as a trusted authority within their industry, fostering a deeper connection with their customers. Take a page from the playbook of the formidable fitness apparel giant Nike.

In May 2023, Nike released a special ‘Be True’ collection expressing their support for LGBTQIA+ community. They paired this collection with an impactful campaign: “No Pride, No Sport.” Through this campaign Nike’s mission to democratize sports and foster a culture of LGBTQIA+ inclusion and visibility was vividly conveyed. The campaign focused on expanding sports for the next generation through community grants, athlete collaborations, compelling narratives, and products that celebrate the diverse spectrum of LGBT+ identity. The message was clear: Sport flourishes when athletes can freely embrace their true selves.

Strategy 2: Monitoring Social Media and News

In an era dominated by social media and real-time news updates, staying informed about trending topics and conversations is crucial for successful moment marketing. As per research, 75% of the user base of Instagram is made up of people belonging to the 18-25 age group while 79% of the audience base of Facebook comprises people from the 30-49 age group, which implies that content on these platforms can serve as a knowledge bank to reach your target audience. Therefore, regularly monitoring platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook as well as keeping a vigilant eye on news outlets, can provide valuable insights into what’s capturing the attention of your target audience.

E-commerce brands can seize these opportunities by actively participating in conversations relevant to their industry. For instance, during a global fashion event or a high-profile awards show, an online clothing store can craft content that highlights how their products align with the latest fashion trends, thus capitalizing on the buzz surrounding the event. By intertwining their products with ongoing discussions, they not only amplify their visibility but also enhance their brand’s relatability.

Strategy 3: Agility in Content Creation

At the heart of moment marketing lies the ability to respond swiftly to emerging opportunities. This calls for an agile content creation process that allows you to draft, approve, and publish content within a remarkably short span of time. Maintaining a versatile content calendar that can accommodate unexpected events is essential to make the most of moment marketing.

Consider the scenario of annual celebrations or holidays. e-commerce brands can swiftly generate content that aligns with the festive spirit, effectively positioning their products as ideal gifts or essential items for the holiday season. This timely approach not only resonates with customers but also positions the brand as the go-to choice for fulfilling their seasonal shopping needs. In this regard, one can not overlook the way Starbucks almost always seizes the opportunity of creating captivating campaigns during the holiday season. Starbucks annually welcomes the holiday season with new designs and drinks that retain the iconic red theme; in 2021, four variations—Wrapping Paper, Ribbon, Holiday Light, and Candy Cane—were unveiled.

This tradition reflects their commitment to seasons, especially the winter-hot beverage connection during Christmas. Amid reduced footfall post Covid, Starbucks partnered with Zomato and Swiggy to bring the magic of their beverages home at reduced prices. Moreover, the 2021 holiday season was a Swifties’ special holiday season, marked by Taylor Swift’s re-released version of Red, Starbucks was quick to jump onto this trend and further amplified it by featuring Taylor’s favorite drink, the Caramel Skim Latte, and adding her songs to their playlists. The partnership was highlighted through tweets, videos, and album covers.

Strategy 4: Real-time Engagement and Responsiveness

One of the inherent advantages of moment marketing is the ability to engage with your audience in real-time conversations. Brands that demonstrate a genuine willingness to engage and promptly respond during trending events often stand out. However, it’s essential to strike a balance between authenticity and promotional messaging to ensure the engagement feels natural and unforced.

Take for instance, an e-commerce brand that specializes in outdoor gear. During a global environmental event, they could actively participate in discussions about sustainability and showcase how their products wholeheartedly support eco-friendly lifestyles. By not only joining the conversation but also presenting their products as solutions, the brand can connect with environmentally conscious customers on a deeper, more meaningful level. Tata Tea executed something similar last year on the occasion of Environment day. On 5 June 2022, Tata Tea unveiled an upgraded edition of its ‘Jaago Re’ campaign. This initiative aims to spotlight the urgency of addressing climate change through the lens of a child’s perspective. By delivering a compelling message through a child’s eyes, the campaign acts as a compelling call to action for parents to combat climate change before it becomes an irreversible crisis.

Strategy 5: Creativity and Relevance

In a world where new trends and challenges pop up with every passing minute, creativity is your trump card. Moment marketing provides a vast canvas for brands to infuse creativity into their campaigns while staying entirely relevant. This is where the concept of “newsjacking” comes into play—aligning your brand with a trending topic or news event in a clever, insightful, and relevant manner.

To illustrate further, consider an example of an e-commerce brand that specializes in groceries. Whenever a major trend sweeps across social media platforms, whether it’s the release of a highly anticipated movie or the announcement of a beloved show’s sequel, brands have the opportunity to craft content that seamlessly integrates with these trends in the most creative and captivating manner possible. By infusing their message with humor, wit, and a strong sense of relevance, the brand’s moment marketing campaign has the potential to capture attention, generate buzz, and leave a lasting impression. One brand that seized such an opportunity back in 2018 is Bisleri, their ‘Har Space Mission Chandrayaan 2 Nahi, Har Pani Ki Bottle Bisleri Nahi,’ campaign was every bit creative and relevant!

Strategy 6: Seamless Integration with e-commerce

While moment marketing revolves around capturing the present, it’s equally vital to convert that engagement into tangible results. This is where the seamless integration of moment marketing with your e-commerce platform comes into play. Creating dedicated landing pages, optimizing the user journey, and streamlining the purchasing process are essential steps to ensure that the moment-driven engagement translates into actual conversions.

Consider the case of a gourmet food store. They could design a dedicated landing page that showcases products aligned with a trending cooking technique or a unique culinary trend. By offering comprehensive information, step-by-step tutorials, and convenient access to the relevant products, the brand can seamlessly guide engaged customers toward making a purchase. This approach not only enhances the user experience but also significantly boosts the chances of conversions. Amazon has consistently outshined when it comes to putting this strategy to use, take for instance their prime day. Amazon excels at seamless integration with e-commerce during its annual event, Prime Day. The company creates dedicated landing pages showcasing exclusive deals, optimizes user journeys with features like “Watch this Deal” and personalized recommendations, and streamlines the purchasing process for quick conversions. Limited-time offers and cross-platform consistency further drive urgency and engagement, while data-driven personalization enhances relevance, resulting in a successful transformation of engagement into sales.

Strategy 7: Measuring and Learning from Campaigns

As with any marketing strategy, measuring the effectiveness of your moment marketing campaigns is pivotal. Tracking metrics such as engagement rates, website traffic, conversion rates, and social media interactions can provide invaluable insights into the impact of your efforts. After all, analyzing the data allows you to discern what strategies work, what doesn’t resonate, and where improvements can be made.

Conclusion: Why is Moment Marketing important?

In the realm of modern marketing, where consumers are inundated with a constant stream of content, standing out and making a lasting impression is no small feat. Moment marketing emerges as a beacon of opportunity—a way for e-commerce businesses to break through the noise, capture attention, and forge genuine connections with their audience.

By delving deep into the mindset of your audience and staying attuned to their preferences and behaviors, you set the stage for moment marketing success. The ability to anticipate trends and participate in ongoing conversations not only demonstrates your brand’s relevance but also positions you as a reliable source of information and inspiration. As you seamlessly integrate moment marketing with your e-commerce platform, you’re bridging the gap between engagement and conversion. The dedicated landing pages, user journey optimizations, and streamlined purchasing processes ensure that the energy generated from these timely interactions translates into concrete results.

The strategies we’ve explored here are your toolkit, your compass, and your guiding light. So, embark on this journey with confidence, armed with the knowledge that each moment holds the potential for connection, engagement, and growth.

Are you ready to transform your e-commerce campaigns through the power of moment marketing? Unlock the full potential of your strategies with WebEngage. To begin your moment marketing revolution, take a demo with WebEngage and embark on a journey that promises engagement, growth, and success.

The post Unveiling the Power of Moment Marketing: Strategies for E-Commerce Success appeared first on WebEngage.

One of the best ways to skyrocket your user engagement is through web personalization — a powerful strategy that enables businesses to connect with their audiences on a deeper level.

Modern consumers expect brands to go beyond generic interactions and offer personalized experiences that resonate with their individual preferences and needs.

Web personalization means customizing your website to match each user’s interests, behavior, and demographics. So, when someone visits your site, they get content, design, and a user experience that feels tailor-made just for them.

It makes customers feel like you “get” them, which makes them more likely to stick around, explore more, and maybe even become loyal customers.

It’s all about making that connection and keeping them engaged.

In this post, we’ll provide you with tried-and-tested website personalization strategies and some web personalization examples for inspiration.

Let’s dive right in!

8 Web Personalization Strategies To Boost User Engagement

Here are eight web personalization strategies that will ensure that your users spend more time on your website, explore more products/services, and convert!

1. Affinity-based personalization

Understanding user affinity is crucial for creating personalized experiences that truly engage your individual visitors.

Affinity profiling involves assigning scores to users based on their interactions with products, helping predict the most relevant items for them in the future. By capturing engagement types and product attributes, marketers can calculate affinity scores and build profiles that rank preferred product colors, categories, and brands.

Affinity scoring involves assigning weights to each interaction type based on its level of intent.

For instance, a purchase might receive a weight of 4X, while an add-to-cart gets 3X, and a product view gets 1X. The scores are multiplied by the attribute value count, considering both the interaction type and recency of each interaction.

The resulting affinity profiles help showcase products users are more likely to engage with at any given moment.
Using ML, you can further enhance the flexibility and personalization of affinity models, unlocking new possibilities for predicting user preferences accurately.

By exposing and controlling affinity information, marketers can tailor campaigns to unique business needs and better predict individual preferences. And the more user sees a product they like, the more likely they’re to engage with your content — taking user engagement to a whole another level.

BONUS READ: Rainy Season Retail: Unveiling 10 E-Commerce Category Affinity Patterns

2. Activity-based personalization

Activity-based personalization focuses on analyzing user actions, such as clicks, browsing patterns, cart additions, and more, to create personalized experiences on a website.

Understanding these interactions helps businesses gain insights into individual preferences and intent, enabling them to deliver targeted content, product recommendations, and offers.

By tracking click behavior, businesses can identify users’ immediate interests. Browsing patterns reveal the user journey, guiding subsequent interactions. Analyzing cart additions and wishlist items allows personalized product recommendations. This relevance keeps users engaged and encourages them to spend more time exploring the site.

Businesses can also monitor time spent on pages, which indicates engagement levels, helping prioritize content and products. You can offer personalized discounts based on user preferences and price sensitivity. Moreover, dynamic website elements, like pop-ups, enhance user engagement by providing more relevant information.

The seamless user journey created through activity-based personalization fosters stronger user connections, increasing engagement and brand loyalty.

3. Past purchase / engagement-based personalization

One of the most effective ways to personalize a website is by analyzing customers’ past purchasing history and engagement data. This approach allows businesses to tailor product and category pages that showcase items similar to a customer’s tastes and preferences.

The personalized product and category pages not only capture users’ attention but also keep them immersed in exploring the site further.

Customers are more likely to click on items that appeal to their tastes, leading to extended browsing sessions. As users spend more time on the website, they are exposed to a broader range of products, increasing the chances of discovering new items that capture their interest.

By leveraging this data-driven personalization strategy, businesses can significantly enhance user engagement and encourage customers to spend more time on their websites.

Past purchase-based personalization complements the customer journey by streamlining the search process. Instead of sifting through countless products, customers are presented with options that match their preferences, saving time and effort.

Data-driven web personalization has become a game-changer as businesses strive to provide tailored experiences that resonate with their customers and drive growth.

4. Aggregated consumer-based personalization

Aggregated consumer-based personalization involves analyzing the interests and buying behavior of customers with similar characteristics, such as demographics, preferences, and purchase history.

By identifying patterns and popularly bought-together items among this group, businesses can offer personalized recommendations and promotions that resonate with a wider audience.

The power of aggregated consumer-based personalization lies in its ability to tap into collective insights. Instead of focusing on individual customer data, you can analyze the preferences of a segment of users with common traits.

This approach allows for more generalized but still highly relevant recommendations that cater to the interests of a broader customer base.

By showcasing popularly bought-together items, businesses encourage users to discover complementary products they might not have considered. This increases the average order value and enhances user engagement by presenting customers with valuable recommendations that align with their interests. Users who see products that complement their purchases or preferences are more likely to explore further and spend more time on the website.

This approach stimulates a sense of community among customers. When users feel that like-minded individuals share their preferences, they become more invested in the brand and its offerings. This sense of belonging creates a positive user experience, leading to higher engagement and brand loyalty.

5. Geotargeting-based personalization

Geotargeting, the art of delivering personalized content and product recommendations based on users’ geographic location, is a powerful tool to increase website user engagement.

Collecting location data through various means like direct inquiries, cookies, and social media allows businesses to offer an individualized experience that resonates with users in specific regions.

With geotargeting, websites can provide users with content that is relevant to their location, such as displaying localized promotions, seasonal products, or regional events. This level of personalization creates a sense of familiarity and connection with the website, boosting user engagement as visitors feel the website caters to their specific needs and interests.

Geotargeting also facilitates personalized product recommendations based on local preferences and buying behavior. When users see products that are popular or trending in their area, they are more likely to engage with the content and explore further.

You can also customize shipping costs and options based on the user’s location, creating a seamless and convenient shopping experience that encourages users to complete their purchases.

If you don’t want your visitor to close your website just because they think that you don’t serve at their location, you must use the geotargeting-based website personalization strategy.

6. Referral source-based personalization

Businesses can create customized experiences that resonate with users’ intent and interests by targeting visitors based on their referral sources.

Segmenting the audience by referral source allows websites to apply specific rules to each group, tailoring the content and offers to match their expectations.

For instance, a visitor coming from a social media link may be interested in the product, so showing them a relevant product offer is likely to capture their attention and drive engagement.

On the other hand, users arriving through a Google search are more likely to seek information about the product or service. Providing informative content and educational resources aligns with their current stage in the customer journey, fostering a positive user experience and keeping them engaged.

By understanding where users are coming from and their probable intent, referral source-based personalization enhances user engagement by creating a seamless and relevant experience.

Visitors feel that the website understands their needs and provides content that aligns with their expectations, leading to increased time spent on the site and a higher likelihood of conversion.

As visitors feel more connected to the website, they are more likely to explore further, engage with other features, and potentially become loyal customers.

7. Psychographic-based personalization

Psychographic-based web personalization allows you to enhance the user experience by delving into the deeper aspects of your customers’ personalities, beliefs, values, and motivations.

Understanding users’ psychographic characteristics goes beyond basic demographics and surface-level interests. It involves analyzing their attitudes, opinions, lifestyle choices, and preferences to comprehensively understand what drives their behavior.

By adapting website content to align with psychographic factors, businesses can create a sense of connection and relevance that fosters a more meaningful and engaging experience.

For instance, users with environmentally conscious beliefs and values might appreciate a website that emphasizes sustainable practices and eco-friendly products. On the other hand, users motivated by innovation and cutting-edge technology would respond well to content highlighting the latest advancements and trends.

By curating content and experiences that appeal to specific interest groups, websites can create a shared experience that encourages users to engage with each other, share feedback, and become brand advocates.

8. Predictive segmentation and personalization

Predictive segmentation is a technique that allows you to create segments based on the user’s propensity for a defined action, such as their likelihood of making a purchase. Like lookalike audiences, predictive segments leverage machine learning to create a list of users with a ‘likeliness to’ perform a certain action, such as likely to purchase or churn.

With the help of predictive segmentation, businesses can proactively personalize the communication across channels, driving back their audience to key touchpoints like the website with more contextual messages. This makes each of the campaigns doubly effective, boosting the overall engagement.

BONUS READ: How to get started with predictive segmentation for personalization

5 Web Personalization Examples For Inspiration

1. Powerlook

Powerlook is one of India’s fastest-growing e-commerce brands offering a unique range of men’s casual wear.

They use an in-line web personalization strategy to create a personalized experience for every user based on multiple user attributes and custom events. Powerlook also recommends relevant products to its customers based on their browsing behavior and past purchases.

As a result of web personalization, Powerlook has significantly increased its user engagement, resulting in over 300% increase in unique conversions.

2. Happilo

Happilo, a gourmet health food brand, gives its consumers one of the largest collections of dry fruits & snacks. And it’s also one of the best web personalization examples in terms of output generated.

At one time, Happilo was unsatisfied with its repeat order frequency and retention rate. But they were able to fix it by showing personalized and relevant content to their customers.

They analyzed and incorporated user attributes, behavior, and on-site personalization to give an optimal platform experience to their customers. Because of web personalization, the customer experience improved, leading to high user engagement and a 286% lift in abandoned cart recovery.

3. Starbucks

Starbucks, the renowned coffee chain, is undoubtedly the best web personalization example to create delightful and engaging experiences for its customers.

Through a focus on user preferences and purchasing history, the Starbucks app provides personalized recommendations for coffee blends, food items, and beverages tailored to each individual’s taste.

By analyzing user data, Starbucks ensures that customers are presented with content that aligns with their unique preferences, increasing user engagement and satisfaction.

Location-based personalization is another essential aspect of Starbucks’ web strategy, as the app suggests nearby store locations, making it convenient for customers to find the nearest Starbucks outlet.

This personalized feature enhances user engagement as customers can easily access their favorite coffee shop wherever they are.

4. Sephora

Sephora, a famous beauty e-commerce brand, excels in website personalization giving personalized recommendations for products and content based on their preferences, skin type, hair type, tutorials, past purchases, and browsing history.

By analyzing customers’ beauty profiles, Sephora curates personalized product suggestions, ensuring that users are presented with items that resonate with their specific needs and interests.

5. Zomato

Zomato is India’s leading food delivery app that leverages web personalization to provide users with food recommendations based on each user’s browsing and purchasing history.

By analyzing this data, Zomato ensures that customers are presented with restaurant options and dishes that match their preferences, driving higher user engagement and order frequency.

Zomato’s push notification strategy is another example of effective personalization. The app sends timely notifications to users, featuring new and favorite dishes and restaurants based on their order history, location, and time of day.

This tailored communication keeps users informed and engaged, encouraging them to explore new dining options and make repeat orders.

Conclusion: Web Personalization Boosts User Engagement

Web personalization has emerged as a game-changer in boosting user engagement and driving business success. By learning from user interactions and adapting your website experience accordingly, you can create personalized and relevant journeys that resonate with the audience on a deeper level.

The key to effective web personalization lies in active customer segmentation and real-time adaptation. By segmenting users based on various attributes such as demographics, browsing behavior, past purchases, and referral sources, businesses can tailor content and recommendations to meet individual preferences and needs.

Personalization surely does the job. But you should also consider the fact that only 12% of marketers are satisfied with their personalization efforts.

Doing personalization right brings the best output. And for this, you must use tools and technologies that can analyze user data in real-time and deliver personalized experiences seamlessly.

Platforms like WebEngage empower businesses to take full control of their web personalization strategy. With WebEngage, businesses can efficiently collect and analyze user data, create dynamic segments, and deliver real-time personalized content, recommendations, and offers.

Want to discover how WebEngage can help your brand take personalization to the next level?

Book a live demo today!

The post How To 3x Your User Engagement With Web Personalization (Examples Included) appeared first on WebEngage.

The fintech industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 30%, and a significant factor driving this growth is the innovative and customer-centric approach of fintech companies.
To continue to thrive, fintech companies need to ensure that user engagement is consistent and actively growing. A great way to achieve this is by using funnels & funnel analysis.

In real life, we use physical funnels to direct the flow of various liquids while filtering out impurities. In the digital life of fintech, funnels do the same – they direct the flow of leads through the user journey – from the time the user first becomes aware of the service being offered, to onboarding, to conversion.

Funnels help identify the interest levels based on consumer behavior to nudge prospects to the next stage of the user journey. They ensure that good-quality users go through from one stage to another. For example, if a user has repeatedly shown interest in a certain financial product on an app/website, such as a home loan, but hasn’t yet taken the necessary steps to complete a purchase, a funnel analysis can help identify the possible reasons for the same, and then take the actions that will motivate the user to apply for the loan.

An effectively structured funnel will ensure a friction-free user journey, and funnel analytics can help us achieve that in many ways – from onboarding interested prospects, to identifying the cause of drop offs, to driving conversions and more repeat purchases. This is why a detailed understanding and application of funnel analysis is a strategic choice that can boost user engagement. It is a win-win where users get what they need while fintech companies gain a competitive edge.

A basic Acquisition-Activation-Monetization funnel can further be split into more detailed funnels focusing on user behavior’s finer aspects, as below.

• Customer Acquisition funnel (Top of the Funnel – TOFU): Awareness – Interest – Acquisition funnel.
• Activation funnel (Middle of the Funnel – MOFU): Consideration – Intent funnel.
• Monetization (Bottom of the Funnel – BOFU): Evaluation – Purchase – Retention – Repeat Purchase—Referral funnel.

A detailed analysis of these funnels can aid incredible insights into user behavior, especially for fintech companies that organically have access to granular data about individual users.

Here are ten ways in which you can use funnel analysis to increase user engagement:

Strategy #1: Improve Onboarding Process

Onboarding, for most fintech apps or websites, is a process that leads new users on a journey via a predetermined path – from downloading the app/visiting the website, creating an account, sharing their sensitive personal and financial data, confirming their identity (often by receiving an OTP on their phone or email), and completing their first transaction. This multi-stage process is the critical first point of contact with the customer. It is also often an area of improvement for fintech startups. Customers may drop off without completing these steps if this process is cumbersome or confusing.

Funnel analysis can reveal areas of confusion or complexity thereby helping you streamline the process. They can also provide insights into where your high-converting traffic comes from. Identifying your most successful acquisition channels can guide budget allocation.

For FamPay, India’s first neo-bank for teens, the focus on improving onboarding paid off, as they experienced a 2x improvement in the onboarding funnel and a significant increase in the number of transactions made and referral users. They were able to do this with WebEngage’s help by gaining a thorough understanding of important user events and data requirements.

Strategy #2: Identify Drop-Off Points

There are leakages at each stage of the customer’s journey through the funnel. Some of these leakages are inevitable and essential – we only want “quality” users. However, when we start losing these quality users, it becomes a cause for concern. Customer retention is a huge challenge and an enormous opportunity for fintech companies.

Analyzing the funnel helps us isolate specific points where users drop off or abandon the process. By understanding what your users do before and after they drop off, you can take the necessary steps to improve the user interface and retarget the user’s engagement. Even the smallest of user actions – such as repeatedly clicking a button before dropping off – can yield a wealth of data. For example, maybe that feature is non-responsive or not fast enough for the user. Focusing efforts on optimizing features in and around these critical points is an efficient and cost-effective way to reduce friction.

Bajaj Finserv EMI Store (BSES) is a case in point. A leaky conversion funnel showed that most of their users never moved beyond the ‘awareness’ stage because of the company’s inability to reach out to customers at the right time on the right channel via personalized messages. With the help of WebEngage, they analyzed data to pinpoint drop-offs, created a retargeting ecosystem, and inserted the right plugs. As a result, BSES witnessed a 28% uplift in user engagement and a 3.5X increase in completed transactions.

Strategy #3: Optimize User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX)

UI and UX determine the stickiness of an app or service. They make the user journey well-integrated and seamless. A well-designed UI/UX signals the user that the app/website is reliable and consistent, and engenders trust and confidence. Conversely, negative user experiences with the UI can leave users feeling wary and uncomfortable, driving down engagement.

Funnel analysis can give us a detailed understanding of how users interact with the platform. This data can then be used to make UI/UX improvements, add relevant prompts, and refine features, ensuring a smooth and enjoyable user experience. For example, you can use metrics such as customer ratings/reviews, issue resolution rates, and response times to gauge customer service and satisfaction. Accordingly, you can improve the support features by adding chatbots, provide more self-service options, or better manage resource allocation during peak times.

A great example of this is CASHe, a fintech platform providing consumer loans to salaried millennials. Facing the challenges of an exhaustive sales funnel and increased user churn, the company used funnel analysis to identify leakages. They then used real-time communication via IVR – Interactive Voice Response System to bridge the gaps. As a result, 35% of users were routed via IVR and redirected further down the funnel. This led to an impressive 75% increase in CASHe’s repeat user base.

Strategy #4: Personalize User Journey

User journeys are unique to each individual user. Where a new user will need more guidance, a frequent user prefers the ease of self-service and faster movement through the journey, cutting out extraneous steps. Platforms sensitive to these differences can leverage the personalization of features and communication to deliver what the user wants.

Communication primarily benefits from personalization. In this information age, users are regularly bombarded with distracting communication. To cut through the noise, and attract and hold the customer’s attention, what is necessary is a hyper-personalized approach that goes above and beyond to deliver personalized content, recommendations, and offers. This, in turn, increases engagement and conversion rates. Fintech companies can gain the insights necessary to achieve this individual-focused approach by dissecting their funnels.

DSP Blackrock innovatively used WebEngage’s email personalization tools for their new year greeting emails. Using customer transaction data, they personalized their emails by sending each customer a summary of their sound (or not-so-sound) financial decisions in the previous year. This increased the email open rate to 39% and drove up engagement.

Strategy #5: Implement Behavioral Triggers

One specific way personalization can drive engagement is by using behavioral triggers. From a behavioral economics perspective, we are subject to intuitive thinking determining our financial decisions. Understanding these cognitive biases and building solutions or triggers that challenge them enables decision-making which is the key to customer engagement.

Funnel analysis can help us identify triggers that encourage users to take specific actions. Fintech companies can then strategically implement behavioral triggers, such as personalized messages or limited-time offers, to nudge users toward conversion.

Coverfox, India’s largest Insure-tech platform, wanted to ensure existing users renewed their policies. However, behavioral mapping is complex because a single user may hold multiple policies or products. To work around this problem, Coverfox identified each policy as an individual user and then mapped everything about it to a unique user ID. They could then use a targeted and personalized communication strategy to nudge the user periodically to renew their policy, leading to a 30% increase in renewals.

Strategy #6: Streamline Conversion Process

The bottom of the funnel, i.e., the conversion funnel metrics, is a data gold mine for fintech. Using funnel analysis to track high-value conversion events and correlating them with other user activity can help us to identify any bottlenecks or unnecessary steps that may discourage users from completing a transaction. By streamlining the conversion process, fintech companies can increase the chances of successful conversions.

Angel One did just that with WebEngage’s help by identifying multiple opportunities to plug leaks and make UX improvements to increase conversions. This included targeted communication with ‘unknown website visitors,’ welcome campaigns via push notifications, communication in the user’s preferred language, leveraging rich notification content, and encouraging users who have blocked push notifications to reactivate them. As a result, Angel One witnessed double the number of conversions within just six months.

Strategy #7: Enhance Communication and Notifications

As we have seen in multiple examples above, timely, relevant, and personalized communication and notifications can greatly impact user engagement in fintech. Funnels can analyze user engagement with notifications, emails, and other communication channels. This data can then be used to build an effective communication strategy and deliver high-quality content and notifications that drive the user to act.

Merolagani, for example, leveraged WebEngage’s dashboard analytics tools and identified that their communication strategy needed improvement. They then effectively used push notifications, SMS, and email marketing to educate people. This led to an increase in their total user base from 8.9L to 35L and a 40% win-back rate in the first month.

Strategy #8: Increase Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

Converting a lead into a completed purchase is great. What is better is to convert them into a frequent user, who not only repeats the transaction but also purchases additional products and services. Customer lifetime value is the gold standard for fintech.

Analyzing user behavior using funnels can help identify opportunities for cross-selling and upselling to existing users. Fintech companies can position their products/services based on that data, increasing the chances of conversion. For example, as discussed earlier, DSP Blackrock increased user engagement with the help of hyper-personalized new year greetings.

Acko General Insurance boosted its CLV by encouraging its existing policyholders to renew their policies year-on-year (YoY). As a related metric, Acko also wanted to improve its persistency ratio, i.e., how long customers stay with their policies, as indicated by the number of policy renewals. A North Star metric for Acko, the persistency ratio indicates business profitability and growth. Using targeted and hyper-personalized communication tools from WebEngage, Acko achieved a 17.3% increase in policy renewals.

Strategy #9: Optimize Retargeting Strategies

As we have discussed, leakages at various stages of the funnel could mean a potential loss of users. Leveraging retargeting strategies and initiatives effectively to win back these users increases the likelihood of conversions. However, it is necessary to be careful while employing retargeting. It is a delicate balance – too little may mean that users do not return to the platform; too much may risk annoying and alienating them. An excellent retargeting strategy is based on empathy for the user and a genuine desire to serve them.

Funnel analysis can help identify users who dropped off and their reasons for exiting. Based on the same, retargeting strategies, such as personalized ads or follow-up emails, can be designed and implemented to re-engage these users.

Customer drop-off was one of the challenges that Bajaj Finserv faced. With the help of Webengage, they used onsite retargeting to engage visitors to their website with relevant promotional messaging. For example, visitors who visited home loan pages on their last visit but did not make a purchase were shown a message prompting them to ‘Apply for Home Loan’ when they revisited the site. Another microsegment of visitors was targeted using a notification to check their eligibility. The net result was a 29% increase in the monthly leads for one of their financial services products and an impressive 9% growth in the month-on-month loan disbursal.

Strategy #10: Continuous A/B Testing

Frequent A/B tests help fintech companies optimize their user journey by experimenting with different strategies, content, and user experiences. For instance, they might try out different landing pages, call-to-action buttons, or notifications. A comparison of the results through A/B testing using a step-by-step funnel analysis can help them understand what’s working and what’s not.

India’s leading digital wealth manager Scripbox applied insights about the users’ properties and behaviors to communicate the right message to the right users. Initially, they targeted users based on demographics such as age group. This did not yield the desired results. However, segmenting the users into NRI and domestic residents produced significant results. They witnessed a 3X rise in user engagement, an increase in email open rates, and a reduction in the unsubscribe rate.

Conclusion

India’s fintech industry, already the world’s third largest, is on its way to becoming Asia’s fintech capital. Fintech companies must monitor the customer to maximize opportunities and growth. Dissecting their funnels can help fintech companies gain the necessary insights to build a robust and sustainable user engagement strategy based on empathy and sensitivity to the users’ needs.

WebEngage has a proven track record of helping clients refine their customer journeys with dynamic funnels. By combining funnels with other advanced analytics features provided by WebEngage, such as Path analysis, you can gain deep insights into user behavior and drive them toward the most optimal flow. This, in turn, allows you to maximize user engagement and retention.

Curious to learn more? Check out our Impact Stories. We have helped fintech businesses like yours achieve desired results with our innovative analytics capabilities, and we are certain that we can help you, too. Go ahead and request a demo today!

The post Ten Powerful Ways To Boost Fintech User Engagement Through Funnel Analysis appeared first on WebEngage.

Just like that attentive assistant, drip campaigns work their magic by delivering targeted messages and recommendations right to your inbox or mobile device. In the fiercely competitive retail landscape, where marketing prowess reigns supreme, drip campaigns emerge as the ultimate secret weapon for success.

In this blog, we embark on a retail journey to uncover the wonders of drip campaigns, how they revolutionize customer engagement, and why every retail firm should seize the opportunity to harness their remarkable advantages.

Understanding Drip Campaigns

In the fast-paced world of retail, drip campaigns serve as a strategic marketing approach to engage customers with timely and tailored messages. At its core, a drip campaign is a series of automated communications carefully designed to nurture leads and foster lasting customer relationships. So, how do retail firms leverage the power of drip campaigns to entice shoppers on their digital adventures?

In retail, drip campaigns work like a gentle rain shower , providing customers a steady stream of relevant content over time. These campaigns are well-suited to retail, where personalized interactions and targeted promotions are important. By segmenting customers based on their preferences, purchase history, and behavior, retail firms can deliver a seamless and engaging shopping journey through drip campaigns.

Different Channels of Drip Campaigns Commonly Used in Retail:

• Email Campaigns: The retail realm thrives on email marketing, and drip campaigns amplify its impact. From a warm welcome series for new subscribers to abandoned cart reminders and exclusive offers for loyal customers, email drip campaigns cover the entire spectrum of the shopper’s journey.
• SMS Campaigns: In the age of instant communication, SMS drip campaigns allow retail firms to send timely promotions, flash sales, and personalized discounts directly to customers’ mobile devices. The real-time nature of SMS ensures immediate customer engagement.
• Social Media Campaigns: Social media platforms offer an excellent stage for retail firms to showcase their products and interact with customers. Drip campaigns on social media can feature countdown timers for limited-time offers, user-generated content, and personalized recommendations based on previous interactions.

Drip campaigns excel in nurturing potential customers from the awareness stage to the final purchase decision. By delivering relevant content, such as product recommendations, customer reviews, and helpful guides, retail firms can keep customers engaged and informed throughout their shopping journey.

BONUS READ: Advanced Use Cases for E-Commerce: Revolutionizing Operations and Maximizing Revenue

Advantages of Drip Campaigns in a Retail Firm

Personalized Customer Engagement

In the vast retail universe, one-size-fits-all approaches simply won’t cut it. Drip campaigns, with their personalized touch, emerge as a retail firm’s secret weapon for winning customers’ hearts. By harnessing valuable customer data, such as purchase history, preferences, and browsing behavior, drip campaigns deliver tailored product recommendations that feel like they were handpicked just for the shopper. This level of personalization enhances the shopping experience and builds a deeper connection with customers, fostering a sense of loyalty and trust toward the brand.
As customers receive relevant content that aligns with their interests, they are more likely to stay engaged, return for more shopping adventures, and proudly advocate for the brand within their circles.

Increased Customer Conversion

In the bustling retail marketplace, capturing customers’ attention and guiding them through the sales funnel is a delicate dance. Drip campaigns choreograph this dance seamlessly by delivering targeted content at each stage of the journey. From enticing new subscribers with exclusive offers to nurturing leads with informative guides and customer testimonials, drip campaigns gently steer customers toward making timely purchase decisions. Moreover, drip campaigns play a pivotal role in curbing cart abandonment, as strategically timed reminders and incentives prompt customers to complete their transactions with excitement and confidence.

Promoting Customer Retention

The retail journey does not end at checkout; it’s a beautiful voyage that inspires customers to return for more. Drip campaigns take the reins in post-purchase engagement, ensuring customers remain loyal passengers on this voyage. By crafting post-purchase drip campaigns, retail firms express their gratitude to customers, offering order confirmations, shipping updates, and personalized product recommendations for future purchases.
As customers feel appreciated and valued, they are encouraged to return for repeat purchases, transforming into enthusiastic brand advocates who sing the firm’s praises and refer their friends and family to embark on their shopping journey.

Seasonal and Event-Based Marketing

In the ever-changing seasons of retail, staying relevant during peak shopping periods is essential for retail firms. Drip campaigns are the perfect companions, orchestrating seasonal and event-based marketing strategies with precision. Whether it’s sending out holiday-themed promotions, back-to-school offers, or Black Friday deals, drip campaigns ensure that customers are engaged and excited during these opportune moments. By leveraging data on customer preferences and past behaviors, retail firms can craft compelling offers that resonate with shoppers, maximizing sales opportunities and ensuring the brand shines brightly during these special events.

Upselling and Cross-Selling

In the vast retail galaxy, there are numerous opportunities to guide customers towards complementary products and upgrades. Drip campaigns act as the navigator in this journey, intelligently identifying upselling and cross-selling opportunities through data analysis.

By understanding customers’ past purchases and preferences, retail firms can recommend additional items that complement their current selections, creating a more enriching and satisfying shopping experience. This strategic approach not only increases the average order value but also deepens customer satisfaction, leaving shoppers delighted with their well-rounded retail exploration.

Tracking and Analytics

Data is the guiding star that leads to success. Drip campaigns, with their data-driven nature, allow retail firms to navigate through the vastness of the digital landscape with confidence. By measuring the effectiveness of each drip campaign through analytics, retail firms gain invaluable insights into customer engagement, conversion rates, and overall campaign performance. Armed with these data-driven insights, retail firms can optimize future campaigns, making data-informed decisions that continuously elevate the shopping experience and propel the brand towards new frontiers of success.

Use Cases of Drip Campaigns in Retail

1. Welcome Email Series: For new customers, a well-crafted welcome series would include introducing them to your brand, products, and exclusive offers, setting the tone for a delightful shopping journey.
2. Customer Reactivation: Re-engage dormant customers with a reactivation campaign, reminding them of their previous interactions and offering incentives to spark their interest and encourage a return to your store.
3. Post-Purchase Campaigns: Extend the customer experience beyond the sale with post-purchase emails. Express gratitude, gather feedback, and provide helpful resources to enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty.
4. Referral Program: Capitalize on satisfied customers by launching a referral campaign. Encourage them to refer friends and family in exchange for rewards, expanding your customer base organically.
5. Loyalty and Rewards Program: Nurture loyalty by implementing a drip campaign that keeps your most valuable customers engaged. Offer personalized rewards, exclusive previews, and tailored content to foster lasting relationships.
6. Abandoned Cart Recovery: Revive abandoned shopping carts with strategic reminders. Send a sequence of emails reminding customers of their unpurchased items, emphasizing their value, and possibly offering incentives to complete their purchase.

Incorporating these drip campaigns into your retail strategy can cultivate customer engagement, rekindle interest, and drive conversions, ultimately propelling your business towards success.

Tips for Implementing Drip Campaigns in a Retail Firm

Building a Customer Database and Segmentation

As you embark on your retail adventure with drip campaigns, a comprehensive and organized customer database is your trusty map. Gather essential customer data, such as purchase history, preferences, and demographics, to create a treasure trove of insights. By segmenting your customers based on their unique characteristics, behaviors, and interests, you can craft highly personalized drip campaigns that resonate with each segment.

Whether targeting new subscribers with a welcoming voyage or re-engaging loyal customers with exclusive rewards, segmentation allows you to navigate through the vast retail cosmos with precision, delivering the right message to the right audience at the right time.

Crafting Compelling and Relevant Content

In the bustling marketplace of retail, captivating content is the compass that guides customers toward your brand. As you set sail on your drip campaign journey, ensure your content stands out. Craft compelling and relevant messages that tell captivating stories about your products, offer valuable tips and guides, and inspire customer interaction. Whether it’s eye-catching visuals, irresistible offers, or user-generated content that sparkles like stardust, captivating content is the wind that propels your drip campaigns to success.

Determining the Optimal Campaign Schedule and Frequency

As a seasoned retail captain, you know timing is everything in the journey to customer engagement. Carefully determine the optimal campaign schedule and frequency. Avoid overwhelming customers with too many messages, as it might lead them to navigate away from your brand. Instead, set a steady and considerate pace that keeps customers engaged without feeling inundated. Keep an eye on customer preferences, seasonal trends, and shopping behaviors, as they act as guiding stars in determining the perfect timing for your drip campaigns.

Personalizing Offers and Recommendations

In the vastness of customer data, treasures of personalized offers await. Go forth with personalized recommendations that feel like a treasure map leading customers to their dream products. Leverage customer data to identify upselling and cross-selling opportunities and suggest complementary items that resonate with their interests. By crafting offers catering to individual preferences and shopping habits, you can steer your customers towards a shopping experience that feels like it was custom-made for them.

A/B Testing for Continuous Improvement

In the world of retail, the journey of continuous improvement never ends. Embrace the spirit of exploration and discovery with A/B testing. Experiment with different elements, such as subject lines, content variations, call-to-action buttons, and visuals, to uncover what resonates best with your customers. Analyze the treasure trove of data to discover the most effective routes and optimize your campaigns accordingly. With A/B testing as your compass, you can navigate towards retail triumph, refining your drip campaigns to ensure they shine.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the advantages of incorporating drip campaigns into a retail firm’s marketing strategy are manifold. The personalized and targeted communication they offer play a pivotal role in driving sales and fostering unwavering customer loyalty. As the retail landscape evolves, embracing drip campaigns becomes imperative for sustained growth and success.

Therefore, we encourage all retail businesses to chart a course toward success by integrating drip campaigns into their marketing endeavors. To optimize the impact of these campaigns, book a demo with WebEngage, a leading platform that empowers businesses to craft captivating and effective drip campaigns.
With WebEngage as your trusted partner, you can proceed confidently toward a future of unforgettable shopping experiences and unrivaled success in the retail universe.

The post Navigating Retail Success: Why Drip Campaigns are Essential for Your Business appeared first on WebEngage.

Whatever emotions you attach to the rains, know that rains and seasonal changes affect our mood and behavior to a great extent.

In fact, research has found a profound effect of rain on customer behavior. For instance, a study has found that the weather doesn’t just impact a customer’s consumption experience, but also the way they perceive things – this lowers their engagement levels and the average ratings they share for companies.

But it’s not all bad.

For instance, the food industry definitely sees a lot more orders and takeaway requests as consumers seek warmth and comfort during the day.

In this article, we aim to look into how the rainy season influences user behavior in the food industry and how you can keep up user engagement levels.

How Weather Influences Customer Behavior

A lot of how we feel has an impact on what we do. Apart from the day-to-day choices we make about what to eat, what to pack, items to carry with us to the office and more, it also impacts the purchase decisions and preferences we have during the period.

So we dived into consumer behavior, preferences, category affinity insights and related parameters to find more information. Here’s what we found:

1. Effect of Weather on Mood and Propensity to Purchase

Although we don’t realize it, the weather strongly affects our mood, thus controlling the propensity to purchase.

A study shows that prolonged exposure to sunlight can increase consumption and purchase rates. It was interesting to see that consumers were more willing to pay as much as 37% more for green tea. On the contrary, rainy days saw more spent on food items like coffee and beverages and fast food.
And McCain has been using this psychological trigger smartly:

2. Effect of Weather on Product Demand

Weather also has a strong influence on the demand for certain products.

For example, grocery stores in the UK saw a rise of 22% in carbonated drinks and a 20% drop in juice drinks when the temperature is about 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Similar results were seen in the US. For example, even a one-degree drop in temperature saw a rise in soup sales, oatmeal, and lip balm.

Another study showed a boost in sales of different categories of soft drink when the temperature was maximum while humid weather saw a decline in juice sales.

These purchase preferences can definitely be used by businesses in the food and beverage industry to encourage more user engagement during the monsoons.

Here’s Nescafe creating an entire campaign around Mumbai Monsoons and running it both online and offline to reach their target audience.

And here’s another example you cannot ignore, because who doesn’t love samosas (Indian rissole / savoury stuffed pastry) when it is raining outside?

3. Effect of Weather on Buying Method

Weather influences the buying methods of consumers as well. For example, rain and snow keep consumers away from visiting brick-and-mortar cafes. So there is always a boost in traffic and orders from online channels. Sunny days see more footfall in cafes and restaurants.

Businesses in the food industry can use this to their advantage. If the customer cannot walk up to them, they can offer to get their menu items delivered to their doorstep instead. With a promise to help them avoid the traffic and enjoy the rainy season, businesses can use this opportunity to win hearts.

4. Effect of Weather on the Purchase Price

Weather also plays a significant role in the purchase price a consumer is willing to pay. For example, a study reports that during sunny days, consumers tend to buy lesser products with a lower item price in one order. Also, sunny and rainy weather sees a positive impact on sales, while cloudy weather sees a dip in sales.

So the next time it rains, send in a notification recommending the purchase of hot coffee along with warm bread to see your sales increase!

For example, with so many online orders being placed, who wouldn’t like making some savings too?

BONUS READS: Happilo, A Rising Health Food Brand, Achieves Up To A ~300% Increase In Conversions With WebEngage’s Web Personalization

How Brands can Align Their Marketing Strategy Based on Weather Conditions

While the impact of weather may not be all too prominent, brands can align their marketing campaigns to consumer behavior.

1. Proactively measure user engagement

There’s a lot that brands can do to map consumer behavior with weather changes so that they can proactively measure user engagement and monitor interactions to identify patterns early on. Paying attention to these granular details can help brands tweak their marketing strategy that can boost sales!

Deep diving into your funnel analytics for instance can help you measure user engagement more closely.

2. Create seasonal multichannel campaigns

Brands can lean on weather-based advertising online and offline. Be it a campaign they’re promoting on their website, social media or email, weaving in the weather can boost how contextual it is.

For example, Country Bean is running a monsoon sale on the milk frother knowing its audience would love to enjoy a cafe-style coffee at home.

Here’s another example of the renown food delivery brand Swiggy using monsoons as a trigger to send out push notifications that bring back users to the app! One interesting aspect to notice here is how the brand has cleverly plugged the word ‘immunity’ to boost its vegetable and fruit sales, indirectly referring to the viral flu affecting people during the monsoon.

3. Go above and beyond for an emotional connect

Besides seasonal and weather-based advertising, brands can go above and beyond to strike an emotional connection with their customers through thoughtful campaigns.

For example, Zomato posted these AI-generated images of their delivery partners enjoying a rain dance at the onset of the monsoon on the streets of Mumbai. The caption reads, “Your delivery partner is currently enjoying the rain… sorry for the inconvenience.” Indeed, it will bring a smile to the face of Zomato’s customers.

Conclusion

The ability to understand consumer behavior is what impacts brand growth the most. And taking seasons into account is just a form of behavioral targeting.

If you’re not doing it yet, it’s time to revisit your marketing strategy and see the impact of this rainy season on your campaigns.

Need help understanding how your audience is engaging with your brand right now?

Deep dive into the campaign performance across all customer touchpoint channels and identify patterns that tend to occur frequently during seasonal changes, with WebEngage.

Book a demo today to know more.

The post The Impact Of Rainy Season On User Engagement In The Food Industry appeared first on WebEngage.

Seasoned marketers know that discovery is critical to building successful products. Almost 50% of buyers make unplanned purchases on receiving a personalized nudge! For instance, here’s a perfect example of Marks and Spencer using a pop-up notification to inform users about an offer.

It’s a remarkable way to time pop-ups to a user’s action. In this case, if a user spends too much time on the website and doesn’t buy, M&S lures them with an offer. What a cool way to nudge users. Right?

Pop-ups are touted to be a powerful tool in the marketer’s arsenal to enhance customer experience at every touch point. Using rich media like images and emojis & personalized targeting becomes an incredibly seamless way to deliver messages to active customers and help them discover something unexplored on the website.

How are pop-ups different from push notifications?

Pop-up notifications are a new mini browser, banner, or window a user didn’t intentionally open. They just appear on the website while browsing. The most common use case of pop-up notifications is to inform a user about a significant update or offer.
Push notifications (PNs) are a style of messaging delivered to the user directly on the lock screen or home screen. In other words, PNs are delivered to the user even when they are not active on the website, web or app. They can be agnostic of any user event at that moment.

Take a look at some of the critical differences between push & pop-up notifications:

Importance & benefits of pop-up notifications

In an article published by Optimonk, the average conversion rate for a website pop-up is around 11%, making pop-ups one of the most effective ways to convert users. Thus, a well-designed pop-up targeted at the right users can unlock several essential goals which include:

• Higher engagement: Contextual and well-timed messaging based on where the user is in their buying journey can prove incredibly valuable in keeping users engaged. Braze claims engagement is 131% higher among users who received pop-ups than those who did not.
• Increased retention: Pop-ups are the e-commerce equivalent of someone who greets you at the store. Using pop-up notifications at high friction points, like a paywall or data collection page, can reduce user churn. All you must do is keep the messaging crisp, contextual, & attention-grabbing.



• Better conversion rates: Imagine a well-timed discount coupon popping up on the user’s screen just before purchase or a countdown pop-up that creates a sense of urgency – these personalized pop-ups lead to instant conversions.

According to Drop, anything shown around the 8th second works 3x better than those shown before or after.

Improved user experience: Leveraging pop-up notifications to guide a new user through their website or app journey improves user experience multifold. Users targeted by pop-ups in their first session had a 90% higher retention rate because they were exposed to their AHA moments sooner than later.

A website pop-up aims to motivate users with an intuitive and straightforward prompt that brings value to their experience and elicits action. These meaningful experiences drive them towards instant gratification and reduce friction in the journey.

Why do you need to use pop-ups?

Pop-ups help in achieving everything from higher engagement to better retention. But the success of any pop-up campaign (measured by click-through rates) depends on answering four essential questions: who, when, where, and why.

Here, click-through rate (CTR) is a function of who is receiving the pop-up (audience), when & where they are receiving it (timing & placement), and why they are receiving it (purpose & targeting)!

To achieve a higher CTR, marketers must define the why (i.e. the goal). For instance, if you want to increase AOV or improve the health of cart abandonment, should you show a pop-up on the checkout page or while the customer is browsing? This decision needs to be made post-traffic analysis of the website that tells you when your customer really drop.

• Acquisition: Pop-ups don’t support direct or new customer acquisition; however, they can help you resurrect inactive customers. Ever wondered how a website knows when you’re about to leave your cart and move on?

What goes in the backend is out of our syllabus, but exit intent pop-ups are among the most popular marketing strategy to reduce cart abandonment Here’s an example from GetResponse asking visitors to subscribe before they go.


• Engagement: Imagine a highly active user slowly inching towards a dormant phase – In such a case send them a pop-up reminding them about their core activity or new proposition that may reactivate the users..

It reflects the bond between the user and the brand and is measured by the number of times a user interacts with the brand, and pop-ups are a great way to motivate users to take action.

• Conversion: This is a core success metric that depicts how many users have ultimately taken the desired action ( product purchase, subscribing to a newsletter, or sharing information).

From full screen to those that slide in with information, conversion as a metric can benefit vastly from the versatility that pop-ups bring to the table. Here, Nykaa is showing its website visitors a pop-up to log in by enticing them with 2000 reward points.


• Retention: An indicator of loyalty, retention defines how many customers continue to use the product/service over time. You can use cohorts on WebEngage dashboard to identify dormant users and run campaigns to bring them back to life.

Identify a cohort that previously spent a lot of time with the brand or purchased it but doesn’t anymore. Send them a personalized nudge about an offer to reactivate them.

Once you know your goal, the next step is to identify the target audience. A few examples of target groups are new users, returning users, inactive users, social media followers, newsletter subscribers, or users who exited abruptly.

The last step is to decide on the timing & placement of the pop-up. Marketers can choose the most effective type of notification from a sea of predefined layouts on WebEngage (below are a few examples).

Use Cases for Personalized Pop-Up Notifications

Personalized pop-up notifications are known for being versatile and grabbing users’ attention. Here are examples of a few events based on which you can target customers better:

1. Page URL based: Personalisation based on which page or section of the website the users are in is called URL-based targeting.

For instance, if the readers of a blog on psychology are the best customers for a newly launched book, visiting this blog’s URL can be used as a trigger event.

2. Customer type based: Determine if it is a new, existing , or reactivated customer. This information can be used to run onboarding / conversion / re-engagement campaigns.

For instance, existing customers can receive recommendations based on their past purchases.

3. Geolocation based: Did the monsoon come early in a specific part of India? If you were an e-commerce marketplace, would you not suggest your users from a specific location to stock up for the rainy days? You could run targeted ads based on the geolocation of your user.
4. Time-based: Starbucks rewards people on their birthdays & anniversaries for being loyal members. This can be constituted as a time-based pop-up where time denotes an hour, a day, or any important event!
5. Transaction based: Want to incentivize users who have a cart filled with products worth a certain amount? Simply target them with discount pop-up notifications to complete their purchase. Transaction-based targeting also encompasses sharing of order status & other wallet updates.
6. Offer-based: Reaching out to users with an offer will surely have the highest conversions and generate much transaction-based value. These are the most impactful ways to resurrect plummeting sales, bring old users back, and share a new update.

Best Practices for Pop-Up Notifications

If you ask your next-door friendly marketer about why and how they use pop-ups for best results, their answer would be simply by facilitating the right information at the right time.

Here are some tips on how to make pop-ups the most effective tool in your marketing arsenal:

• Notification Schedule: Timing is not just about when to send notifications, but more importantly, about when not to. Users hate to be disturbed during bedtime or work hours. They also don’t want to hear from brands first thing in the morning or too often – so avoid that.

According to a study, CTR peaks between 12 to 2 PM.


• Personalizing notifications : Relevant & on-point messaging ensures better conversion & higher sales. So, ensure you know your customer’s individual needs & preferences for the success of your pop-up campaigns. Try their name or wordplay with the product they’re engaging with.
• Consistency and frequency of notifications: The message is often lost if the sending frequency of your pop-up notifications is low. But if the opposite happens, users may feel annoyed by the repetitive messaging, which could lead to uninstalls. To maintain the balance try to not send more than 2-5 notifications a week.
• Value of the message conveyed: Your pop-up adds no value if it doesn’t convey the message in a concise & simple manner. More importantly, if the CTA doesn’t redirect the user to the right place, they will merely drop off. Build precise journeys that make customer experience seamless.
• Ease to respond or exit: Pop-ups are attention-grabbing by nature. But don’t risk removing the exit option from it. Avoid forcing the user on a journey they don’t enjoy. Remember, even if the pop-up is closed, the message has reached them!

Tips to Design Effective Pop-Up Notifications

Getting your users to love pop-up notifications as much as you do is a function of four things: format, placement, copy, and design. And we’ve got you covered; this is how you can create the most compelling pop-up.

You must understand where to place the pop-up notification on the screen. Here are a few options to explore while setting up your pop-ups.

• Lightbox popups: As the name suggests, these pop-ups take over the user’s screen by covering the website’s content and making the background dim.

Best use case: An important messaging which drives your north star metric.


• Slide-in pop-ups: These pop-ups usually appear on a smaller portion of the screen, and do not interrupt the website contents otherwise. Here, you allow users to go about their business on the website without stopping or hindering their journey.

Best use case: They’re primarily used for service updates, showing deals, or redirecting to a new offering.


• Dialogue box pop-up: These are similar to the lightbox pop-up but slightly more engaging and interactive in nature. Lightbox pop-ups usually flash information, but the dialogue box usually expects users to engage – you can ask for details, feedback etc. A good-looking image or question can reinforce your argument, convey more information, and encourage action.

Best use case: When you want to collect or verify the information.


• Fullscreen welcome mat: Need we say more? They’re what they sound like – a full-screen welcome mat that’s hard to ignore. They guarantee a high click-through rate but at the expense of a poor experience. You never know if your users are in the mood for such an intrusion.

Best use case: Only the most critical business use case or discounts.


• Floating bar: Ideally placed at the top or the bottom of the page, floating bars are a common website information disbursal layout. Like the slide-in pop-ups, they are highly non-intrusive and commonly used for a quick update.

Best use case: Promotional message or an update.

Once the placement is determined, you must choose the event that triggers the pop-up. Does that pop-up appear on

1. Click: when a link, image, or button is clicked?
2. Scroll: when the user reaches a specific point on the page?
3. Time delay: when a user spends a predefined amount of time on the page.
4. Exit-intent: when a user attempts to leave the page.

On an average, 69% of carts are abandoned across industries, and websites – using a pop-up here could make or break your sales funnel. A discount? A testimonial? A freebie? Some free shipping? Run A/B tests on your audience, figure out what converts higher and then create a robust pop-up that compliments your website.

The next critical step is to write a compelling message. An impressive copy can potentially prevent users from perceiving pop-ups as intrusive and annoying. So, here are four tips on how to curate compelling pop-up copies:

1. Keep your message simple: Use action words, and instead of speaking about the features of your product, focus on how it benefits your users. Convey their incentives in an obvious, specific, and concise manner.
2. Back it up with social proof: Customers love to learn from others’ experiences. Strengthen your communication by sharing any form of testimonial, customer stories, customer ratings, or feedback to trigger social proof/influence.
3. Create FOMO: Humans are also social beings and react well to emotions such as exclusivity & urgency. Use powerful words to trigger the fear of missing out to get a desired action.
4. Have a clear CTA: Let the user know what you want them to do. Distinguish the CTA button by placing it in a box and using different colors & power words like “enter” or “subscribe”.

But can a great copy make up for bad design? No, design is equally (if not more) important for the success of a pop-up campaign! A Backlinko survey claims brighter-colored pop-ups outperformed dull ones by 51.3%.

So what goes into cooking a perfect pop-up?

• Using your brand colors and allowing users to generate maximum recall
• Writing a copy that elicits an emotion, & drives action
• Using fonts that align with your branding guidelines
• Creating snackable, & appealing visuals in conjunction with your offering
• Picking the perfect time slot to stay relevant

Here are a few more design elements that can make an impact:

1. Stay away from generic templates: Experiment with colors, elements, and typography to grab the user’s attention.
2. Retain the brand’s identity: For better brand recall, experiment within your brand’s guidelines for better brand recall.
3. Allow the CTA to breathe: Your call-to-action must be easy to find & prominent. A crowded design is unattractive, distracts the user & lowers the CTR.

Lastly, iterate while deciding the format, placement, copy, and design. Create multiple combinations, experimenting with the length of the copy, headlines, CTAs, and overall designs.

Top Ways to Leverage Pop-Up Notifications

Now that you know why pop-up notifications are important and how you can drive up engagement, retention, and acquisition using compelling notifications, it’s time to explore the use cases!

There are tons of use cases you can implement based on the kind of business goals you want to accomplish- from generating leads to getting conversions. Let’s take a look at some of the use cases you can get started with:

Informational Popups: Helps to display important announcements or updates related to your product or services. For instance, notify users about changes in store hours or policies, announce an upcoming sale or share about a new product upgrade.

Email List Popups: Mostly used to cultivate email addresses from website visitors. It allows to connect with users by sending personalized products/services recommendations to boost engagement and conversions.

Cookie Popups: Comply with GDPR and ePrivacy Directive by requesting cookie consent. Cookie popups inform users about data collection and usage on the website. They are the best solution to inform your users that you save their data.

User Login Popups: Similar to email popups, it simplifies the login process for users by offering a popup login form. It allows to improve the user experience by enabling hassle-free login process.

Cart Abandonment Popups: The purpose of a Cart Abandonment Popup is to entice potential buyers with discounts or incentives, to reconsider leaving the site without completing their purchase. These type of targeted pop-up notification are mostly used by an e-commerce website or online store.

Testimonial and Feedback Popups: Customer interest rely heavily on social proof. Displaying customer testimonials to build trust and credibility is an excellent way to give a personal touch and humanize your brand.

Using pop-up notifications effectively can significantly improve user engagement, lead generation, and conversion rates. The possibilities for marketers to utilize pop-ups as a medium to reach out to their users, and speak to their customers at an optimal time are endless. However, it’s essential to use them thoughtfully and considerately to avoid overwhelming users and negatively impacting the user experience.

Limitations of pop-ups & how to avoid them

Website pop-ups are an incredible way to talk to your users and deliver information without much hindrance. However, it’s worth knowing what not to do – because simple mistakes can cause any campaign to tank.

1. Demotivate users to engage: Too many prompts can ruin user experience. Do keep a check on the frequency & timing of your pop up notifications so as not to annoy users.

An ideal strategy is using the average time spent by a user on your website and then marking a threshold of 50-60% to show a pop up, claims wiseapps.


2. Use generic templates & irrelevant messaging: Repetitive designs, copy, or irrelevant information is a big turn-off. To avoid this, marketers must approve only those campaigns that add true value to the business.

Track user engagement across a variety of pop up designs, placement, events, or activities. Chartbeat claims that most users who scroll below the fold tend to spend more time on the page down than page up.


3. Miss mobile optimization: As many as 75% web designers feel that non responsiveness of a website for mobile is the reason why users leave it, claims Sonary.

With an increasing number of users operating websites from their mobile, mobile optimization of pop-ups can’t be skipped. Make sure it meets the aesthetic and is not too intrusive.


4. No testing: Creating a great pop-up that converts, is contextual, talks to the users, offers value is no rocket science, however, requires some thoughtful thinking about users.

Before you take a pop up live, check on multiple devices, browsers, OS and locations. Test out the journey, CTA, and exit option.

Conclusion

Pop-up notifications are a definite game-changer for marketers struggling to improve website retention, and engagement. The key is in keeping things simple, and intuitive. WebEngage offers a suite of pre-built templates that are tried and tested by 100s of marketers.

Whether you’re looking to address cart abandonment or share an offer code – pop-up notifications can unblock you creatively. Effective pop-ups should be concise, appealing, crisp, and personalized. Need help in understanding what works best for your industry? Reach out to our team at WebEngage and harness the full potential pop-ups for your brand.

The post Boost Website User Engagement with Pop-Up Notifications [2023 Edition] appeared first on WebEngage.

In fact, a whopping 69% of marketers use email marketing as one of their primary channels for content distribution. The best part? The industry average ROI for email marketing is a staggering $36 for every dollar spent. But, for e-commerce companies, this number jumps to an impressive $45 per dollar spent.

In this article, we’ll delve into the most powerful email marketing strategies for e-commerce brands looking to establish a community of loyal customers and supercharge their sales. From crafting personalized and engaging content to optimizing email campaigns for maximum impact, we’ve got you covered. So, whether you’re a seasoned e-commerce pro or just starting out, read on to discover how to take your brand to the next level with the power of email marketing!

Strategy #1: Personalize emails to nurture relationships and build trust

With research indicating that personalized emails have significantly higher open rates and click-through rates, it’s no wonder that businesses are scrambling to personalize their emails. And why not! When personalized emails can improve your click rates by almost 139%.

In a world where individuals receive over 100 emails on average daily, you need to ensure that your emails stand out and provide value to your customers. Generic emails simply won’t cut it. By personalizing your emails, you can make your customers’ lives easier by sending them content that is relevant to their specific needs.

For instance, let’s assume a new dog owner was checking out dog food on your webstore. When you send them recommendations of dog food based on dog sizes and breeds or give them special offers on certain brands of dog food, it helps them make an informed decision.

And when your buyers see that you understand and help them, it encourages them to share more data with you, which further helps personalize your email marketing campaigns.

Customers’ demographics can be used to personalize your e-commerce emails, such as their name, age, income level, location, etc. For example, if the customer’s location faces heavy rainfall, one can suggest monsoon-specific garments, skincare, haircare, or health supplements. Email signup forms can ask subscribers about their basic details, which can be used for demography-based personalization.

Behavioral personalization refers to sending emails based on the customer’s browsing and purchasing patterns. You may have seen how e-commerce companies like Flipkart or Amazon send you recommendations based on browsing behavior.

In contextual personalization, the buyer’s journey is taken into account. Let’s assume a customer is researching sneakers on your website. It would be helpful to send them more content, such as a blog post or an article, that would assist them in making a decision based on their specific needs. When the customer appears ready to buy, showing product features, prices, and promotional offers is a good idea.

And the results speak for themselves. Saudi Arabia’s leading e-commerce brand, Hnak.com, was facing challenges with attracting the right audience due to limited personalization and segmentation. With the help of WebEngage’s email campaign management, which included hyper-personalization based on real-time customer data, HNAK increased its average email open rate by 30% and its cart abandonment rate declined by 67%.

Strategy #2: Focus On Dynamic Content

Do you want to increase your email open rates and double your return on investment? Look no further than dynamic content. This personalized content can include user-specific product recommendations, tailored call to actions, and offers specific to each customer.

Studies suggest dynamic content can increase your email ROI by a whopping 100%, making it the foundation for building strong relationships with your audience. It’s like gifting your subscribers with personal shopping assistants who know exactly what they want and need.

Remember that the purpose of dynamic content isn’t only to make sales. It also aims to educate and nurture early and mid stage buyers motivating them to make their first purchase. Dynamic content is the foundation for building strong relationships with your audience.

Consider the case of Speero, Saudi Arabia’s largest automotive aftersales marketplace. Using WebEngage’s Dynamic Segmentation and Funnel Analytics, the Speero team gained valuable customer insights that helped grow their overall revenue by 25% and increased the orders of cart abandoners by 189%.

Dynamic content is the key to standing out in a sea of generic emails and building a loyal customer base. Start using it today and watch your email marketing campaign thrive.

Strategy #3: Leverage User-Generated Content

When you think about purchasing from an e-commerce brand, what’s the first thing you do? If you’re like the majority, then chances are you read the product reviews. Studies show that 92% of people trust recommendations from peers over advertisers.

User-generated content (UGC) like reviews, photos, and videos can be used by e-commerce businesses to build a sense of community and garner trust. Email marketing is a great avenue to display and utilize your UGC.

For example, your welcome email to a new subscriber can include photos and reviews of your happy customers. You can send UGC to cart abandoners to show them the highlights of the products and nudge them to make the purchase.

Post-purchase emails are a prime opportunity to solicit UGC from satisfied customers. By asking customers to share their experiences with your products, your brand can generate valuable content that can be used in email and social media campaigns.

But why stop there? Myntra, for example, goes beyond traditional UGC and has created a rewards program called “Myntra Insider” that incentivizes customers to share their experiences with the brand and products. By fostering a community of loyal customers who are passionate about the brand, Myntra is taking UGC to the next level.

Strategy #4: Design Emails That Catch Users’ Attention

When it comes to e-commerce email marketing, it’s not just what you say that matters, it’s also how you say it. Your emails need to be well-crafted, engaging, and visually appealing. According to a study, 20% of marketers said their email engagement improved with better-designed emails.

One way to make your emails more visually appealing and interactive is by including videos and graphics. In fact, videos can increase click-through rates by a whopping 300%, while graphics can boost open rates by 10%.

Take a cue from Sugar Cosmetics, whose beautifully designed email is a work of art. With its visually appealing and responsive design, the email showcases Sugar products in an attractive way. The clear call-to-action makes it easy for customers to navigate to their website and make a purchase. Don’t underestimate the power of a well-designed email; it could be the key to unlocking higher engagement and sales for your e-commerce brand.

Strategy #5: Craft A Clear And Compelling CTA

It’s hard to pay attention to all the emails we receive every day. That’s why having a clear and concise Call-To-Action (CTA) in your e-commerce emails is more important than ever.

You want your readers to take a specific action, whether it’s purchasing a product, signing up for a newsletter, or downloading an ebook. However, if your CTA is buried within your email or is difficult to understand, your readers are likely to hit the delete button and move on to the next email.

A clear CTA is all about simplicity. Keep your CTA easy to read and find by using a font that’s legible and stands out from the rest of your email. Stick to one clear ask per email to avoid overwhelming your reader and decreasing the likelihood of any action being taken at all.

Your subject line should serve as a preview of what’s inside your email. Make it clear in the subject line what you want your reader to do, and use action-oriented language to encourage them to take that next step.

Take a cue from Nykaa Fashion’s email, which features a big, bold “Explore” button to entice subscribers to take advantage of an attractive offer. By using a prominent and persuasive CTA, they make it easy for their audience to take the desired action.

A clear and concise call to action is vital for any e-commerce email campaign. By keeping it simple, legible, and action-oriented, you can increase the chances of your readers taking the desired action.

Strategy #6: Reward Repeat Customers With Loyalty Programs

Your loyal customers are your assets. By rewarding customers for repeat purchases, you can motivate them to keep coming back for more. And it doesn’t stop there. They, in turn, will refer your brand to their friends and families, thus building your loyal customer base even further.

Let’s consider Chumbak’s “Insider” community. Once you become a member, you get exclusive access to new collections, discounts, free shipping, and gifts. The company expresses it perfectly when it says that the Insiders are its MVPs (most valuable players).

When it comes to rewards, don’t just settle for discounts. Sure, discounts can be great, but experiential rewards can be even better. Most companies offer discounts. So, wouldn’t your customers be more excited about a once-in-a-lifetime trip to an exotic location or an exclusive meet-and-greet event with a celebrity? For example, Nykaa’s loyalty program, Nykaa Privé, includes rewards like exclusive invites to events.

Strategy #7: Adopt An Email Automation Strategy

Running an ecommerce store can be daunting, with too many things to do. And that’s why streamlining and automating your email marketing campaigns with the help of campaign management tools is extremely important.

With automation, you can keep your email marketing consistent without sacrificing the personal touch that keeps customers interested. Automation tools like WebEngage take the headache out of monitoring customer behavior, communicating with buyers at the right time, and personalizing your messages for different user segments. As a result, you can focus on the growth of your ecommerce business. As a matter of fact, automated emails have been found to generate 320% more revenue than non-automated emails.

WebEngage can help you with all your email automation efforts be it sending welcome emails, abandoned cart reminders, or re-engagement campaigns. Moglix, a B2B e-commerce unicorn, faced challenges with automating user engagement and sending out personalized communication. After adopting the Webengage Retention Operating System, it could send more personalized messages like abandoned cart notifications and real-time order status updates. As a result, Moglix’s ROI improved by 40%, its conversions by cart abandoners increased by 60%, and its email engagement grew by 10% MoM.

Strategy #8: Tempt Buyers With Seasonal And Festive Offers

The holiday season is not just a time for gorging on delicacies and celebrating with family. It’s also the perfect time for e-commerce businesses to boost their sales with seasonal email campaigns. These campaigns can significantly boost your bottom line, especially when it comes to attracting customers who are on the hunt for a great deal.

November and December account for a whopping 25% of annual retail sales in the e-commerce industry. In India, autumnal festivities like Durga Puja, Dussehra, and Diwali are the perfect time to send out festive-themed email campaigns that entice customers to purchase.

Start planning your seasonal email campaigns early, and get creative with your promotions. Remember, customers are on the lookout for great deals, so make sure your emails stand out in their inboxes with compelling content and offers they can’t resist.

Strategy #9: Craft A Tempting Abandoned Cart Email Series

Abandoned carts are a common issue faced by e-commerce businesses, with abandoned cart rates hovering over 72% globally. That’s a lot of missed opportunities. However, the abandoned cart email series is one of the most powerful campaigns to win back customers.

An effective cart abandonment email series usually consists of three emails:

• The first reminds the customer that they left items in their cart.
• The second offers a small discount to incentivize them to complete their purchase.
• The third provides a final nudge with a time-limited offer.

Timing is key when it comes to cart abandonment emails. You don’t want to send them too soon or too late. Research suggests that the most effective approach is sending the first email within an hour of the customer abandoning their cart.

While offering discounts can be an effective incentive, you don’t want to train your customers to abandon their carts in order to receive a discount. Experiment with different types of offers and see what works best for your business.

A catchy subject line can make all the difference in getting your email opened.
For example, consider the abandoned cart email with the witty subject line by the dental hygiene e-commerce business, Quip. The email continues in the same lighter vein in the body. Quip’s email is effective because it is engaging to read, it incentivizes the user with a $10 free refill, and it also shares reviews of satisfied customers to persuade the reader further.

DODuae.com, UAE’s largest online shopping store, witnessed a 14.77% abandoned cart recovery after adopting WebEngage’s campaign management tools. The cart abandonment recovery strategy wasn’t a simple one. It took into account several factors like region-specific abandoned cart emails during the FIFA season (as shown below).

Strategy #10: Test Your Email Campaigns

Split testing and A/B testing are some of the crucial ways to test the effectiveness of your email campaigns. A/B tests can increase your email’s ROI by 82%. When conducting split tests, stick with one variable at a time to avoid confusing your audience by changing too many elements simultaneously. Once you’ve completed your split or A/B tests and have statistically significant results, it’s time to implement the changes.

WebEngage empowers you to test different versions of your email campaigns with its A/B and multivariate testing and get customer insights. As a result, you can send your audience the most impactful and persuasive e-commerce emails.

ApnaKlub, an agent-led B2B wholesale platform, enrolled in the WebEngage Startup Program to build better customer communications and brand engagement. With the help of WebEngage’s analytics, ApnaKlub tracked important metrics such as open rates, conversion rates, revenue generated, etc. As a result, the company witnessed a 30% increase in month-on-month repeat orders and a 23% boost in the push notifications click-through rates.

Final Thoughts

In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, email marketing is a tried and tested method for engaging with customers and boosting sales. However, achieving the right balance between informative content and promotional messaging is essential for success. Done right, email marketing can elevate your e-commerce brand’s reputation as an authoritative industry leader and convert leads into loyal customers.

Our compilation of the above ten tried and tested tactics is tailored to the unique email marketing needs of e-commerce companies. But why stop there? At WebEngage, we offer an email marketing platform that can take your campaigns to the next level. With a user-friendly drag-and-drop interface, hyper-personalization options, A/B testing, and more, our platform has helped many e-commerce clients achieve exceptional results.
Don’t just take our word for it – book a demo with us today and experience the difference for yourself.

The post The Ultimate Guide To Effective Email Marketing Strategies For E-Commerce appeared first on WebEngage.