Nine Email Marketing Techniques to Gradually Strengthen Customer Loyalty

As consumers become more selective about the brands they stay loyal to, customer retention has become more important than ever before. This is why it’s so important for businesses that use email marketing to focus on building loyalty among existing customers. Fortunately, there are various ways to use emails to deepen the relationship with customers and keep them coming back for more.

Before looking at how emails can be used to strengthen customer loyalty, it’s important to understand how consumer needs have changed in recent years.

How Customer Loyalty Has Evolved

In the wake of the pandemic and continuing economic uncertainty, customer loyalty has taken a hit. With over half of Gen Z Americans now feeling less loyal to brands (1), businesses need to work even harder to build relationships with their customers.

With growing consumer expectations, businesses need to adjust their strategies to meet the new needs of their customers. This can involve introducing new products and services, improving existing ones, offering more competitive pricing, or simply being more responsive to the needs of customers. Now more than ever, it’s important for businesses to prioritize customer service, offer exclusive deals and perks that customers actually value, and create a more personalized customer experience that other businesses aren’t offering.

To stand out from the competition, brands also need to be more transparent, focus on social responsibility, and listen more to customers and their feedback. Consumers want to feel an emotional connection with the brands they interact with, and one of the best ways to achieve this and all of the above is through email marketing.

Email Marketing Techniques to Build Customer Loyalty

Whether you’re a new business looking to grow a more loyal customer base or an established brand aiming to drive more repeat sales, the following nine email marketing techniques are a good place to start:

1. Reward Loyalty Gradually

Show your repeat customers how much you value them by rewarding their loyalty, but don’t offer too many rewards at once – let the rewards build up slowly. For example:

• Send a surprise email offer when a customer places their tenth order.
• Send a discount code to a subscriber for their next purchase.
• Offer free shipping on all orders once a customer reaches a certain number of purchases.
• Celebrate milestone events such as birthdays and subscription anniversaries with personalized offers.

Setting up a loyalty program with exclusive deals and discounts will also help you build a stronger bond with customers. According to Bond research, 79 percent of consumers say a loyalty program makes them more likely to shop with a brand (2). Periodically remind customers of your loyalty program and include a link to sign up.

2. Sharpen Your Brand Voice

By crafting a distinct voice and consistently reinforcing it in all your emails, you can create a stronger emotional connection with your audience. To strengthen your brand voice, determine your company’s mission and values, and then create a style guide that outlines the tone and language you should use to communicate. It should be relatable, authentic, and capture the essence of your brand. Using consistent design elements like logos, color schemes, and imagery can further reinforce your brand identity.

3. Send a Variety of Automated Follow-Up Emails

Use automation to send timely emails to your subscribers based on their actions. From thank you messages and abandoned cart notifications to product recommendations and order confirmations, automation can ensure your business stays front and center in your customers’ minds.

4. Develop a Consistent Email Schedule

A consistent email schedule helps to build trust with your subscribers and keeps your brand top of mind. Consistency gives your customers a sense of security and familiarity and also creates a sense of anticipation and excitement around your email content.

There’s no ideal sending frequency for email marketing – it depends on your business, your audience, and the content you plan to send. Start with a frequency that you can manage, analyze the performance of your emails over time, and adjust your schedule accordingly. Additionally, ask subscribers about their preferences and segment your list based on their responses.

5. Use Email Surveys to Improve the Customer Experience

Collecting feedback from customers is crucial for any business, but you need to listen carefully and act on it. For example, if you send out an email survey and 60 percent of respondents tell you that you need to improve your customer service, make it a priority to address their concerns. Once the improvement is complete, tell your subscribers about it.

Also, listen to feedback about your email content and make adjustments where necessary. Ultimately, your emails should be built around your subscribers based on their needs and expectations.

6. Emphasize Your Values and Company Culture

In a recent consumer survey, 71 percent of respondents said they preferred buying from brands that aligned with their values (3). This is why you should use your emails to highlight your company values and culture. Whether it’s a charitable cause you support or your commitment to diversity and inclusion, let your subscribers know about it. Show the faces behind your brand, and let subscribers know that you’re a business that cares about its people.

7. Create a Monthly Newsletter

While some people enjoy receiving emails weekly or even daily, others prefer a slower pace. By providing a monthly newsletter, people can learn more about your brand without feeling overwhelmed, which can encourage more signups to your email list. For this reason alone, newsletters are a great idea. They don’t need to be long or complicated, just informative and engaging, with clear links so your subscribers can access more information. Company news, special offers, blog post roundups, employee spotlights, and product updates are all good examples of things to include.

8. Provide Invaluable Resources

If your emails consistently provide value to subscribers, they’re more likely to stay subscribed and stick with your brand. In addition to keeping your audience up to date with the latest news and offers, offer resources that help subscribers make the most of your products and services. This could include free tools and tips, how-to guides, downloadable resources, helpful videos, and more.

9. Promote Your Other Marketing Channels

Email marketing gives you the opportunity to showcase your other marketing channels, such as your social media pages, blog, website, youtube channel, or any other channels you might have. Including links to these other channels allows customers to engage with your brand outside of your email messages, giving them more opportunities to see the benefits of your products and services.

If you’re struggling to retain customers or you’re just looking for new ways to keep your customers engaged, the techniques above are a good place to start. Building customer loyalty is an ongoing process, so it’s important to experiment with different strategies to determine what works best for your audience. By using a combination of the above techniques, you can steadily build customer loyalty and ensure that your email marketing efforts support the growth of your business for years to come.