Four Tips for Retaining Footwear Customers

To thrive, or even survive, in footwear — or any business, for that matter — building a loyal customer base is crucial. While marketing and consumer-management specialists seem to agree that there’s no magic formula for customer retention, experts say there are a few hacks that can help shoe brands and retailers secure customer allegiance.

Here are four customer-retention tips to include in your business strategy now.

Never Forget That Product Is King
It’s obvious that brands need to create the finest possible product— that should always be the priority. For retailers, selecting and maintaining a healthy assortment of trend-right merchandise is key.

“The best marketing campaign in the world will not matter if the product is wrong or is out of stock,” said Matt Powell, a sports-industry analyst at NPD Group.

A top-notch marketing campaign might drive initial interest, but once customers realize your shoes wear out easily or lack arch support or that your store is always sold out of the hottest kicks, that news is liable to spread like wildfire and undo all the puffery you’ve attempted to pump into the environment.

Speaking of puffery, if you beefed up your advertising and other promotional activities with exaggerated claims or catchy nothingness, that’s sure to leave a bitter taste in the mouths of consumers.

“No matter how personalized and motivating customer engagements may be, customers will not make repeat purchases if the products they receive are of poor quality or style,” said Tyler Walton, marketing manager at consulting firm Clutch. “To create and maintain an attractive product, brands must make conscious decisions to become customer-centric and continually design their footwear around evolving customer tastes.”

Invest in a Consumer-Loyalty Program
If done right, experts say, consumer-loyalty programs can be effective. “Millennials are looking for value,” explained Powell. “Loyalty programs provide value.”

The promise of a free gift or discount after racking up a certain number of points on a loyalty card can sometimes provide just the motivation a customer needs to make an additional purchase.

However, Walton warns of the pitfalls that can accompany customer loyalty programs that are poorly developed.

“The most effective loyalty programs focus on adding value for the customer, not discounting,” Walton said. “While a coupon can periodically be effective in driving lapsed customers back, the overall focus should be on the brand experience. A brand’s biggest fans already believe the product is worth the price, so marketers need to think of creative ways to increase that value.”

Systems that offer regularly anticipated rewards and foster customer entitlement versus loyalty, or one-size-fits-all incentives that ignore individual tastes, are common mistakes, experts caution.

Read More: http://footwearnews.com/2015/business/retail/tips-retaining-footwear-shoe-customers-retail-44757
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