As purchases dropped, many rolled out an aggressive discounting strategy to entice customers to buy. Data shows that orders with discounts from shoe and clothes retailers have increased by 80% and that the average order value of apparel and fashion brands has dropped by at least 15%. Although the measures are justified, they must be repaired once this is over.
Some industries have seen an influx of new customers during these times. Food delivery, groceries, and home goods retailers come to mind. For these, keeping these new customers coming back is a must, as they can provide a considerable boost in future recurring revenues.
Customers who purchased during pandemic only can be treated as one-timers regardless of how many times they purchased in that period. This is because, under normal circumstances, it isn’t a given that they would have become customers in the first place. With research showing that, on average, only 59% of first-time purchasers ever make an additional order, brands have their work cut out for them. But certain best practices can be leveraged.
Customers might have decided to stop purchasing from brands during this period for several reasons. Maybe they have been furloughed and thus have less available income, or it might be they just weren’t in the mood to buy new things. Furthermore, customers might not have churned at all. Customers purchase products at certain frequencies, and it might just be that a customer’s non-purchase frequency overlapped with pandemic.
No matter the situation, marketers must be prepared to reach out and reactivate them once things return to normal.
Marketers need to keep this in mind as they develop their post-pandemic communication strategies.
Once the pandemic is under control, marketers will want to communicate what they are doing to keep employees and customers safe, where customers can visit their stores and plenty of other information. Customers might be hesitant to return to normal, and businesses shouldn’t expect to be back to pre-pandemic normalcy within a short time.
Marketers should build scenarios to prepare for each rollout in three stages:
Before restrictions are lifted – communicate to customers what stores will be open and what hygiene strategy will be followed. Focus on garnering customer trust in your brand and employees.
As restrictions are lifted – remain agile with plans in place for potential secondary outbreaks. Arm employees, especially clienteling and customer service, with proactive and reactive communications.
After “all clear” is given – communicate gratefulness and build brand loyalty. For example, create multichannel campaigns using lists of customers that include only those who purchased during the outbreak to thank them for their support.
To successfully roll such a plan out, marketers will need to create pre-launch checklists to make sure they are only communicating with the relevant customers each time.