The COVID Fling & How your ecommerce can thrive post-COVID19

We all know that COVID changed people’s lifestyles, priorities and therefore spending habits. Ecommerce boomed (for most).

Now, with traces of normalcy on the horizon, some stores are still booming. But for some, we’re seeing a decline in Ecommerce revenue to previous levels.

Start getting ready for consumers to emerge from their COVID19 lives. Here are a few key strategies to help you attack this next phase head on:

1. Avoid a COVID fling – build lasting relationships

I recently heard the term “COVID fling” on a webinar and I thought it was brilliant.

Your ecommerce store most likely got a big spike in new customers over the past 3 months. Many of them bought from you because they couldn’t walk into their store of choice, and your marketing caught their attention.

Don’t let them be just a COVID fling.

If you don’t communicate with them purposefully, they might never buy from you again. And I’m not talking about a generic Welcome series.

Your new best friend is Segmented Email Marketing – these new customers might have only bought your products or services during the lockdown period, but make them feel valued.

Segment out these new customers over the past 2-3 months and send them a special email series.

Tell them how much it means to you that they stopped by and purchased your products. That your warehouse elves rang bells of joy when their order came in.

Thank them for trusting your brand during COVID19.

It is important that you strategise to maximise the potential benefits of your email campaigns. Use data wherever possible to learn more about your customers’ habits and needs, and make sure your emails are relevant and timely.

If you can, incentivise your campaigns (e.g. offer 10% off storewide or buy one, get one free) to entice these new customers back, and make sure they know how your brand will continue to support them as we face a post-COVID19 world together.

2. Use the downtime to prepare – surprise them with a new experience

I read somewhere that it would be a shame for physical retail stores to open up again, and offer the very same experience to customers longing to walk in again. Brands need to take advantage of this moment to give customers a new experience.

In the same way, Ecommerce stores can take advantage of this moment too.

Many ‘non-essential’ ecommerce businesses such as apparel and jewelry are suffering due to lowered demand. But businesses need to be prepared for when things bounce back to normal (and they will!).

Why give them the very same experience as before?

Delight your customers with a “Welcome Back to Normal” digital experience. You can also use personalisation tools like Google Optimize, Convert.com, Webtrends Optimize or Optimizely to give “New” visitors an extra special personalised experience.

Prepare the team for a possible influx of sales, as people’s spending habits go back to normal.

This downtime for the business could be the perfect chance to stocktake and determine availability of your products, or optimise your website for a more user-friendly experience when your customers return.

3. Learn their changing needs – continue optimising and testing

Regardless of whether your ecommerce sales have increased or decreased during pandemic lockdown, conversion optimisation and testing are still vital to your business’ success moving forward.

Analysis and experimentation has become more important than ever for our ecommerce clients. It is nearly impossible to know how your customers’ needs, priorities and behaviours will change after this unprecedented crisis. Testing and therefore knowing what your customers want rather than going in blind will be one of the keys to thriving beyond the coronavirus pandemic.

Your steps to post-COVID19 success:

While the COVID19 pandemic has changed the way we shop and what we view as ‘essentials’, it is important to prepare your business to bounce back as restrictions ease.

• Avoid a COVID fling – build lasting relationships via segmented email marketing
• Use the downtime to prepare – surprise online customers with a new experience
• Learn customers’ changing needs – continue optimising and testing

Take your conversions to the next level!

Uncover the hidden conversion opportunities in your ecommerce website with a Complimentary Website Conversion Audit. We will show you potential revenue leaks and insights you can take action on straight away. Together we’ll then help you develop an actionable optimisation and experimentation plan to improve your conversions and meet your ecommerce growth goals.

Take advantage of our complimentary Website Conversion Audit today >> HERE

Raoul Doraiswamy is the founder & managing director of Conversionry, a global conversion optimisation agency, that accelerate conversion rates and revenue for leading ecommerce and omni-channel retail brands, via data-driven optimisation and experimentation programs. His passion is to empower Ecommerce marketing teams to win by leveraging customer behaviour. Raoul loves all things conversion, data and persuasive psychology. On his off days, he loves exploring the outdoors with his wife, discussing leadership and helping young people reach for their greatest potential.🌲