50 Value Propositions for Ecommerce Retailers
For eCommerce companies, one of the biggest marketing challenges can be setting yourself apart from the crowd. By creating effective value propositions, you can help customers understand what makes you different—and also increase conversions and drive more revenue. Using some of these 50 value propositions can help you effectively compete in today’s competitive market, without necessarily having to lower the price of your product or service.
Here are 50 tried and tested value propositions to increase conversions and customer lifetime value.
50 Value Propositions for Online Retailers
1. Offer free shipping. Free shipping can help set you apart from competitors. Try adding it into your product prices and see if it increases conversions, you might be surprised from the lift even if product prices stay static.
Business-Supply.com added a free shipping threshold to their webstore and advertise it prominently on all web pages:
2. Have live help. Often eCommerce stores lose business when customers get stuck checking out. REIoffers live help to help people get through the checkout process and increase conversions.
3. Institute a deal of the day. Offering consumers a deal of the day is a great way to connect consumers with your brand—building brand loyalty.
4. Have effective order tracking. Make it easy for customers to view the status of their orders, and track shipping.
5. Recommended items customer may like. Amazon does a great job of showing customers items that are recommended based on past purchases and browsing history.
6. Have a 365-day return policy. Zappos offers a 365-day return policy. Even if your prices end up being a bit higher than other retailers, many consumers will appreciate a generous return policy.
7. Offer coupon codes in emails. Offering special coupon codes in promotional emails is a great way to drive people to your eCommerce store.
8. Provide gift-wrapping. When buying gifts for out of town friends, people often turn to online retailers. Be sure to offer a gift-wrapping option.
9. Have email gift cards available. Provide a way for customers to share their favorite stores with friends via email gift cards.
10. Offer customizable gift cards. Make sure that you offer gift cards for a variety of occasions. AtAmazon, customers can insert a photo to customize their gift cards.
11. Have resources like informational videos. If you have a complicated product, informational videos can help people understand how to properly use your product or service and see the value it can provide. MyBinding.com does a great job of setting up informational product videos for it’s customers:
12. List best sellers. If someone is unfamiliar with your product, listing best sellers can help them have confidence in their purchase.
13. Stay away from hidden charges. A surefire way to lose repeat customers is to add hidden charges.
14. Make your email marketing campaign unforgettable. Customers are inundated by emails from all sorts of retailers these days. Deal a day sights, discount clothing aggregation companies, and big retailers like Amazon and Walmart are competing with your emails that go to prospective customers. How do you win that war? You have to be different, unforgettable, and desirable to your customers.
15. Provide customer service via social media. Many customers turn to Twitter and Facebook to voice complaints regarding products and shopping experience. Be present and respond promptly to concerns, offering effective solutions.
16. Have a secure way of accepting payments. People want to make sure their personal information is protected. Make sure you display your VeriSign and other secure badges.
17. Decrease shopping cart confusion. Make sure it’s easy for customers to checkout via your eCommerce site.
18. Have excellent customer service. One way to set yourself apart from your competition is to make sure you have prompt customer service that goes above and beyond to rectify customer complaints.
19. Offer a variety of shipping options. For various reasons, people prefer different shipping companies. Offer at least two options of different carriers.
20. Give customers discounts for signing up for your newsletter. Have it valid for a limited time to increase urgency.
21. Offer coupons or discount codes when customers share their experiences. Whether it’s via social media, or blogs—coupon codes can encourage customers to share positive experiences.
22. Respond to feedback promptly. If you don’t have live support, make sure that you respond to emails promptly. If you can respond while someone is still shopping, they’re much more likely to finish the checkout process.
23. Send abandoned cart emails. If someone abandons their cart mid-checkout, be sure to follow up with an email offering resources if they need help completing their purchase.
24. Offer deals just to people who are on your email distribution list. Make sure it’s clear that the offer applies just to those who are email subscribers.
25. Have specific offers for people cancelling service. If someone decides not to upgrade after a trial version of your product, offer them a deal that they can’t say no to.
26. Offer comparison shopping. Allow customers to compare similar items to find something that fits their needs specifically.
27. Target loyal customers. Giving special deals to loyal customers will increase their brand loyalty.
28. Offer referral bonuses. If someone refers a friend to your site, offer both people a discount on their next purchase.
29. Allow automatic delivery. Hearty Pet lets users sign up for automatic delivery so they’re sort of on a payment plan with products. This is awesome for sellers with perishable goods.
30. Have community forums on your site. It can be helpful to have forums for customers to help other customers troubleshoot issues and ask questions to other users. It’s also a great way to learn how people are using your product and ways you can improve.
31. Write an engaging ‘about us’ page. People like to connect with companies they buy from. Be sure that your about us page effectively communicates your companies vision and mission—as well as highlights the value you offer customers.
32. Follow-up with first-time customers. Send an email following up with customers after their first purchase. Offer to answer questions and thank them for their order.
33. Encourage people to write reviews. Send emails to customers after they have had a chance to try out their new product and ask them to write a product review.
34. Support charities. And then let your customers know. Today’s consumers like to support companies that they view as responsible retailers who give back to local communities.
35. Gift guide. Macy’s offers a gift guide for people who need to buy a gift for a loved one, but aren’t sure where to start.
36. Money back guarantee. If you’re going to offer it, make sure you stand by it.
37. Low price guarantee. If customers find a lower price somewhere else, honor that price. You may make less on the sale, but you’re keeping the customer shopping at your store.
BestPricedFurniture.com does this well:
38. Free shipping over a certain amount: Some businesses may decide that free shipping on all items isn’t feasible. However, even offering free shipping over a certain amount can help increase average cart size.
39. Get rid of scripted responses. When it comes customer service, people want to speak with a real person—customers can tell when customer service representatives are required to stick to a script.
40. Send coupons on birthdays. Make sure customers feel special by sending them coupons and special offers on their birthday.
41. Offer printable gift cards. When people buy a gift card online, chances are they are doing it last minute. Make sure they can print out a gift card to present it as a gift in person.
42. Provide online resources. HeartyPet offers a blog that helps it’s customers understand common problems with pets and how to fix them.
42. Allow customers to create wish lists. They can save items they want to purchase later
43. Make shopping enjoyable. Spend time on your shopping cart—make sure it’s easy to understand and intuitive for customers. You can set yourself apart by making the online shopping experience enjoyable.
44. Have knowledgeable customer support. Make sure your customer service staff can answer specific questions about products, as well as make recommendations based on customers’ needs. This is important whether it’s live chat, email or by phone.
45. Show cost savings. Demonstrate how people can save money by using your business.
46. Showcase how you’re different. There’s something unique about your company. Be sure it’s easy for customers to see what sets you apart from your competition.
47. Show customer testimonials on your home page. Again Business-Supply.com does a great job of this:
48. Add a sales section to your website that customers can easily get to. HUGO Boss makes it easy:
49. Make your site search better than your competition’s. Google just announced it’s letting smaller sellers use it’s in-site product-search feature.
50. As the business owner, reach out to your customers and connect. Having the CEO of a business reach out and check in on a customer’s experience (and offer goodies or freebies beforehand or to say thanks for talking to you) is a great way to leave a lasting impression on a customer and find out important details about your customer’s buying process. Make it personal and memorable for a long time and you’ll be sure to have created a long-term customer.
