Creative Shop Talk Podcast Episode 166: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Return Customer Rate

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With Retail Coach Wendy Batten

Listen on:  Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio

Show Notes:

You’ve made it to Part 4 of the Simple Sales Strategy Series! Today we are talking about Return Customer Rate.

So what is a Return Customer Rate? Your return customer rate is calculated by dividing the number of customers who have made more than one purchase from your store by the total number of customers you’ve had during a given timeframe. It’s the percentage of your customers who are coming back again.

Your POS system likely gives you this number.  Keep in mind that figuring out your return customer rate isn’t a perfect science. Your POS system likely tracks return customers by the credit/debit cards they use, so customers who pay in cash might fly under the radar. 

So now that you have your return customer rate handy, give it a quick analysis.  At first glance, a high rate might seem like something to celebrate, but keep in mind that super high return rates might mean that you aren’t acquiring new customers. On the other hand, if our return rate is low, we might be acquiring tons of new customers but if they aren’t coming back we need to know why. Unfortunately, there is no ideal return customer rate, but much like the rest of this series, knowing and analyzing your return customer rate is super empowering and important to your marketing strategy and the tactics you put in place to achieve success in your strategy.

“[You need to understand]…where to spend your time and your energy…so that you are not just doing random acts of marketing.” – Wendy Batten

Your Homework:

So let’s recap: Know your numbers: Conversion rate, average order value, and return customer rate. Know how many people are coming into your shop. Identify where you want to improve your numbers and ideally what you want them to be. (This is your STRATEGY.) Next, attach TACTICS (how you are going to implement your strategy) and get to work implementing. 

This is truly where the magic happens.  Retailers who are intentional with their marketing strategies build strong, healthy businesses.

We are deep diving into all of this inside of my Retailer’s Inner Circle this month. As a member, you will have full access to all of my masterclasses, once-a-month group coaching, and a monthly Roundtable discussion with other members of the group.  Plus, our Facebook community is vibrant with heart-centered business owners. It’s an incredible group of people who are always sharing ideas and helping out.  I’d be honored to have you.

Additionally, I’ve added my course Foot Traffic Made Simple as a stand alone course!  Find out more here.

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Related podcasts we think you’d like:

Episode 165: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Increasing Your Average Order Value
Episode 164: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Foot Traffic and Conversion
Episode 163: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Where to Start

About Your Host, Wendy Batten:

In case we haven’t met yet, I’m Wendy, a small business coach and founder of The Retailer’s Inner Circle, where I help other independent shop owners learn how to gain the right business skillsets to see more profits, paychecks, and joy as they navigate running their retail business. 

Through online classes, business coaching programs, speaking, and a top-ranked podcast, I’ve helped hundreds of retailers around the globe reclaim their dream and see the success they want from their beautiful shops. My signature private coaching community, The Retailer’s Inner Circle, has helped retailers around the world build their retail business skill sets and confidence. 

I am proud to have been featured in several major publications, including my own business column in What Women Create magazine. I have been privileged to be a guest on top-ranked podcasts and sought-after as a guest speaker and teacher for several brands, associations, and communities that are passionate about the success of independent retailers.

When I’m not coaching, you will find me either DIYing and renovating my very imperfect old crooked cottage by the sea in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Lunenburg, NS, or blogging about our travel and RVing adventures and the weird fun things we get up to in our coastal village. I’d love to invite you to check out one of my free resources for real retailers at https://wendybatten.com/free-resources/

For more support from Wendy:

Retailer’s Inner Circle – Join Wendy inside the best retailer’s community

Wendy’s FREE Resources for shop owners 

Hang out and connect with Wendy on IG 

All of Wendy’s programs and services for shop owners can be found HERE.

Subscribe and Review in iTunes:

Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I’d love you to consider it. Subscribing means you won’t miss an episode! Click here to subscribe to iTunes!

If you want to be more of a rock star, I’d love it if you could leave a review over on iTunes as well.  Those reviews help other retailers find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Just click here to review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. So grateful for you! Thank you!

Creative Shop Talk Podcast Episode 165: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Average Order Value

• Pinterest
• Facebook

With Retail Coach Wendy Batten

Listen on:  Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio

Show Notes:

Welcome to part 3 of the Simple Sales Strategy Series!  Today, we are digging into your average order value. Your average order is likely a number that your POS system is tracking for you. It is the average value of all of the sales you make in your shop over a specified period of time. Simply divide total revenue by the number of orders to find your average order value.

Many retailers think they don’t have any control over what customers are spending in their shops, but guess what? You absolutely do. What if you could increase each of your sales by 2%, 5%, $10…? What would that mean for your business?

This episode isn’t about getting “salesy” or being manipulative. It’s about making sales. We are here to run and optimize profitable businesses while serving our customers in the best ways we can.

Here are just a few ideas for increasing your average order value without feeling salesy:

1. Make a “bestsellers list” and display it in the shop.
2. Ensure staff is trained properly on your core products.
3. Merchandise to SELL.
4. Complete a customer journey map. (Episode 144)
5. Have a grab and go section at checkout.

Your Homework:

Use your POS system to figure out your average order value over a specified period of time. Then, figure out where you want it to be. Next, figure out HOW you are going to change your marketing strategy to get it done. Which tactics are you going to employ to get your AOV up while serving your customers with a better shop experience? If everything else stays the same in your shop (foot traffic, conversion), what would this increased number do for you?

We are deep diving into all of this inside of my Retailer’s Inner Circle this month. As a member, you will have full access to all of my masterclasses, once-a-month group coaching, and a monthly Roundtable discussion with other members of the group.  Plus, our Facebook community is vibrant with heart-centered business owners. It’s an incredible group of people who are always sharing ideas and helping out.  I’d be honored to have you.

• Pinterest
• Facebook

Related podcasts we think you’d like:

Episode 164: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Foot Traffic and Conversion
Episode 163: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Where to Start
Episode 144: How to Create a Customer Journey Map
Episode 118: How to Create Loyalty and Amazing Customer Experiences with Guest Expert & Author, Shep Hyken

About Your Host, Wendy Batten:

In case we haven’t met yet, I’m Wendy, a small business coach and founder of The Retailer’s Inner Circle, where I help other independent shop owners learn how to gain the right business skillsets to see more profits, paychecks, and joy as they navigate running their retail business. 

Through online classes, business coaching programs, speaking, and a top-ranked podcast, I’ve helped hundreds of retailers around the globe reclaim their dream and see the success they want from their beautiful shops. My signature private coaching community, The Retailer’s Inner Circle, has helped retailers around the world build their retail business skill sets and confidence. 

I am proud to have been featured in several major publications, including my own business column in What Women Create magazine. I have been privileged to be a guest on top-ranked podcasts and sought-after as a guest speaker and teacher for several brands, associations, and communities that are passionate about the success of independent retailers.

When I’m not coaching, you will find me either DIYing and renovating my very imperfect old crooked cottage by the sea in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Lunenburg, NS, or blogging about our travel and RVing adventures and the weird fun things we get up to in our coastal village. I’d love to invite you to check out one of my free resources for real retailers at https://wendybatten.com/free-resources/

For more support from Wendy:

Retailer’s Inner Circle – Join Wendy inside the best retailer’s community

Wendy’s FREE Resources for shop owners 

Hang out and connect with Wendy on IG 

All of Wendy’s programs and services for shop owners can be found HERE.

Subscribe and Review in iTunes:

Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I’d love you to consider it. Subscribing means you won’t miss an episode! Click here to subscribe to iTunes!

If you want to be more of a rock star, I’d love it if you could leave a review over on iTunes as well.  Those reviews help other retailers find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Just click here to review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. So grateful for you! Thank you!

Creative Shop Talk Podcast Episode 164: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Foot Traffic and Conversion

• Pinterest
• Facebook

With Retail Coach Wendy Batten

Listen on:  Apple Podcasts |Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio

Show Notes:

So now that you’ve built your audience and people in your community are aware of you (covered in Episode 163), what do we do next? Today, we are going to talk about how and why we measure foot traffic and customer conversion rates. Both numbers are very simple to figure out, so stay with me even if it sounds elementary at first!

How to Measure Foot Traffic and Conversion Rate

Step 1: Literally to count everyone that comes in the door over a specific period of time!  You can do this with a digital counter or with a post-it by the cash wrap with tally marks. 
Step 2:  Add up the number of sales you had during the timeframe. A POS system can give you this information, as well as your average order value.
Step 3: Divide the number of sales by the number of people who came in the door.  That’s all there is to it!
Example: 100 people came in the door, we made 50 sales. Conversion rate = 50%

Now that you have your conversion rate, what’s next? Knowing the foot traffic, conversion rate, and average order value numbers for your business is extremely empowering.  Once you know your numbers, you can identify how you want to build your marketing strategy to push the gas and grow your business. This episode is all about empowering you once you have these numbers. There are countless ideas on how to increase foot traffic, average order value, and conversion rates, but we need to market with intention.  

If you’ve got a shop on a busy street with foot traffic coming in all day long but your conversion rate is only 3%, you might want to build a strategy around increasing your conversion rate and order value, not necessarily your foot traffic. On the other hand, if you are a destination shop in the middle of the country with a conversion rate of 75% but with only 4 customers per day, you might want to build a strategy around increasing the foot traffic and average order value.

Your Homework:

Over the next month, track your foot traffic and conversion rate so you have a benchmark.  Knowing these numbers will shed light on where there may be gaps in your marketing strategy and where you might want to push the gas a little bit.

We are deep diving into all of this inside of my Retailer’s Inner Circle this month. As a member, you will have full access to all of my masterclasses, once-a-month group coaching, and a monthly Roundtable discussion with other members of the group.  Plus, our Facebook community is vibrant with heart-centered business owners. It’s an incredible group of people who are always sharing ideas and helping out.  I’d be honored to have you.

• Pinterest
• Facebook

Related podcasts we think you’d like:

Episode 163: Simple Sales Strategy Series: Where to Start
Episode 145: How to Market Promotional Events in Your Shop
Episode 107: Turn Browsers into Buyers
Episode 103: Increase Sales with Your Silent Salesperson: Signage
Episode 93: How to Wow and Delight Your Customers and Keep Them Coming Back

About Your Host, Wendy Batten:

In case we haven’t met yet, I’m Wendy, a small business coach and founder of The Retailer’s Inner Circle, where I help other independent shop owners learn how to gain the right business skillsets to see more profits, paychecks, and joy as they navigate running their retail business. 

Through online classes, business coaching programs, speaking, and a top-ranked podcast, I’ve helped hundreds of retailers around the globe reclaim their dream and see the success they want from their beautiful shops. My signature private coaching community, The Retailer’s Inner Circle, has helped retailers around the world build their retail business skill sets and confidence. 

I am proud to have been featured in several major publications, including my own business column in What Women Create magazine. I have been privileged to be a guest on top-ranked podcasts and sought-after as a guest speaker and teacher for several brands, associations, and communities that are passionate about the success of independent retailers.

When I’m not coaching, you will find me either DIYing and renovating my very imperfect old crooked cottage by the sea in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Lunenburg, NS, or blogging about our travel and RVing adventures and the weird fun things we get up to in our coastal village. I’d love to invite you to check out one of my free resources for real retailers at https://wendybatten.com/free-resources/

For more support from Wendy:

Retailer’s Inner Circle – Join Wendy inside the best retailer’s community

Wendy’s FREE Resources for shop owners 

Hang out and connect with Wendy on IG 

All of Wendy’s programs and services for shop owners can be found HERE.

Subscribe and Review in iTunes:

Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I’d love you to consider it. Subscribing means you won’t miss an episode! Click here to subscribe to iTunes!

If you want to be more of a rock star, I’d love it if you could leave a review over on iTunes as well.  Those reviews help other retailers find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Just click here to review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. So grateful for you! Thank you!