Attracting new retail customers often starts with a coupon promise, but staying relevant in a crowded digital marketing world can be challenging. Do you know how marketers engage their retail audiences to boost sales?
Successful marketing isn’t about flooding inboxes with daily emails, it’s about sending the right message at the right time and on the right channel. While email remains as the preferred option, Push notifications stand out with an average 20% open rate, and Social Media can be the best channel to sell to younger audiences. E-commerce sites are now able to tailor browsing experiences to individual users’ interests, so each visitor’s experience is unique.
In an increasingly complex shopping environment, tools like Salesforce CRM and Marketing Cloud Engagement provide a solid foundation for managing customer relationships and orchestrating digital campaigns. Building on that foundation, AI-powered tools further enhance the reach and effectiveness of marketing efforts: Marketing Cloud Personalization delivers seamless, hyper-personalized cross-channel experiences that resonate with shoppers’ interests, while Data Cloud enables hyper-segmentation and omnichannel activation to reach customers in their preferred way. Innovative solutions like Agentforce agents save customer service teams valuable time.
Let’s explore how retailers leverage these resources to coordinate effective digital campaigns that engage shoppers and drive growth.
Table of Contents
Welcome Series
Welcome series play a crucial role in establishing a brand’s identity and fostering a positive initial impression among new customers. These series typically include a sequence of multi-channel communications orchestrated in Journey Builder to introduce the brand, highlight its unique selling points, and showcase top products.
When strategically combined with qualification-oriented questions or profile landing pages, welcome series can serve as a valuable tool for gathering customer information. By asking targeted questions about preferences, interests, or demographics, retailers can gain insights into their customer base and personalize their marketing efforts across channels.
When using Marketing Cloud Personalization, interactions from cookie-known users enrich their user profiles, enabling the delivery of relevant recommendations across channels, such as ecommerce and email.
Abandoned Cart & Browse Emails
We’ve all explored an e-shop and never reached the checkout. Whether we had second thoughts about buying a product or simply got distracted, there’s a good chance we’ll end up purchasing the items if reminded at a better moment.
In 2024, the average cart abandonment rate worldwide was around 70%, and abandoned cart email campaigns had an average open rate of 50.5% and a click rate of 6.25%. By combining cart information with Journey Builder sends, ads in paid media campaigns and social media retargeting strategies, retailers effectively implement this approach to improve their bottom line. Tools like Advertising Studio or Data Cloud help build segments to be used in paid campaigns.
Retailers optimize browsing experiences by leveraging AI-powered personalization. Using tools like Marketing Cloud Personalization, they analyze cookie-known customers’ browsing history and shopping behavior—both online and in-store—to deliver highly relevant product recommendations across multiple channels.
From Journey email sends with tailored product content hyper-personalized in real-time, to adapting website experiences for each individual. Personalization plays a crucial role in customizing each user’s shopping experience.
Seasonal Promotions
Retailers leverage holidays and special events like Black Friday or Christmas to boost sales. Limited-time deals and pre-sale offers keep shoppers engaged with the brand communications, especially with seasonal coupons, that are often generic, like “VALENTINES20”, to maximize reach.
Tailoring e-shopping experiences to niche audiences increases the chances of relatability to close the deal. Using Marketing Cloud Personalization, retailers can show the most likely-to-buy products to each cookie-known user based on their unique profile, both in emails and on websites or apps.
Segmentation and personalization play an essential role in these communications. Hyper-personalized marketing messages are activated for each audience on channels like Journey Builder or Paid Media with the help of Data Cloud. An internal case study showed that Journey Builder’s Einstein Send Time Optimization, an AI-powered tool, increased click-through rates by delivering content to subscribers at the optimal time.
Product Onboarding and Lifecycle Campaigns
When a potential buyer is interested in an item, innovative AI tools like Agentforce chat assistants can quickly help answer questions. From product availability and specifications to providing advice on the best product for customer needs, these AI agents help save customer service representatives’ time.
Post-purchase product campaigns offer tips and instructions on the item’s usage with Journey communications. Shoppers receive valuable product information and how-tos, and retailers build brand trust while allowing for cross sell opportunities.
As the product’s lifecycle nears its end, retailers encourage customers to renew their products. At this stage, communications can include discounts and special offers for upgrades. These campaigns are designed to retain customers and keep them engaged with the brand. Einstein Copy Insights, a generative AI-powered tool, can help marketers write relevant marketing messages.
Reengagement and Winback Programs
Consumers ignore irrelevant emails, so retailers use re-engagement programs in Journey Builder to reconnect with inactive subscribers. These programs assess interest across channels (website, email, social media, apps) to improve database quality. If customers remain unengaged, they are removed from marketing lists.
Winback programs take a similar approach with buyers who haven’t made any purchases in a few months. Offering a coupon incentive can renew the client’s interest, even outside of seasonal sales.
These scenarios can benefit greatly from the use of AI and Data Cloud. Journey Builder’s AI-powered tool, Einstein Engagement Scoring, can help identify dormant subscribers based on aggregated customer behavior in Salesforce Marketing Cloud Engagement. Data Cloud enables more advanced segmentation (e.g., higher lifetime value customers) allowing for detailed targeting across relevant activation channels.
Loyalty and Referral Programs
Implementing a loyalty program that rewards customers based on their lifetime value can effectively foster long-term relationships with top buyers. By recognizing and appreciating these VIP customers, repeat business is encouraged, and brand loyalty is strengthened. Some ways to reward high-value customers include exclusive gifts and discounts, early access to new collections, invitations to events, and personalized surprises. These communications are orchestrated in Journey Builder, to allow for channel selection.
Referral programs typically provide a reward for both referrals and referred friends. They turn shoppers into brand ambassadors while retailers grow their customer base. This strategy benefits everyone involved, fostering growth and customer relationships.
Birthday Rewards
By celebrating shoppers’ birthdays, retailers show an interest in building long-term relationships with them. It all starts by collecting birthdate information on Salesforce CRM, the source of truth for client data. By choosing different channels like email, Push notifications, Whatsapp or SMS in Journey Builder, some retailers offer a gift or coupon for purchases above a certain amount, while others provide free shipping.
Personalization based on customer interests increases reach and differentiates a brand from its competitors. With an email open rate of around 45%, retailers trust birthday campaigns to enhance brand loyalty and drive sales.
Track Order and NPS surveys
Track order emails and NPS surveys are transactional communications sent before and after receiving a product. Order updates keep clients informed about processing and shipping, reducing customer service inquiries and enhancing transparency.
Ecommerce-based Agentforce agents help customers with order tracking and delivery times, and they can expedite the management of returns and refunds, while providing information on terms and conditions.
NPS surveys assess the client satisfaction with products and services. Shoppers feel heard, and their feedback helps retailers understand expectations and identify areas for improvement, increasing customer satisfaction.
In conclusion, effective retail digital marketing requires sending the right message at the right time and on the right channel. Programs like a welcome series, abandoned cart emails, seasonal promotions, and loyalty programs help engage customers and drive growth. It all starts with foundational tools like Salesforce CRM and Salesforce Marketing Cloud. Then, by leveraging hyper-personalization and AI with innovative tools like Marketing Cloud Personalization, Data Cloud and Agentforce, retailers can transform their digital marketing efforts -fostering brand loyalty, increasing engagement, and ultimately boosting sales.
At Omega CRM, a Merkle Company, we are ready to guide you through this exciting journey. By enhancing the Customer Experience, we help you achieve higher returns on investment and sustainable business growth. Together we can unlock the full potential of digital marketing and create lasting relationships with your customers.
