Keeping Credit Card Users Loyal Through Email Marketing

Many studies have been conducted over the years to see how the method of purchases affect the overall amount paid during shopping experiences. These studies overwhelming point to the fact that consumers who use credit cards will spend more than those paying with other methods.

Case in point is a study that was highlighted by an article published by Psychology Today. The article included information on numerous studies including one conducted in 2001. Test subjects were presented with the option of purchasing tickets to a professional basketball game that was sold out. Because the game was already sold out, the tickets were highly desirable. Half the participants were told they could pay with cash; the other half were given the choice to pay with credit card. When asked how much they would be willing to spend on these tickets, the study participants who were given the option of paying with credit card were willing to pay twice as much as those who would be paying with cash!

Dave Ramsey has also written about a study that was conducted at McDonalds that found that customers spent 47 percent more on their purchases when they paid with credit card as opposed to cash.

As you can see, it’s important to keep credit card users loyal to your brand. By focusing marketing efforts on these customers, you will be increasing the overall spend and increase the revenue for your company. One way to keep these customers loyal is through email marketing. Here are five tactics you can use in your email marketing efforts to build that loyalty.

Segment your list

The most effective email marketing efforts are those with targeted lists. In this case, you will want to segment your list to include those consumers who have used credit cards to purchase from your company.

To increase the effectiveness of your efforts, you may want to further segment your list. Focusing on age, gender and location are some easy ways you can focus your list to ensure the content you send out is interesting for the recipient. Even if you are ultimately sending the same offer, you can customize the graphics and some of the text to be geared toward those unique segments.

Welcome emails

The first time that a consumer makes a purchase through your website, it’s a great idea to send them a welcome email. This establishes that you appreciate their business, which they will remember the next time they need to make a similar purchase. It will also provide you an opportunity to explain your brand and show them what they can expect from your future emails. This will decrease the incidents of your emails being marked as spam.

Educate to build trust

Often, business owners automatically think of coupons and special email offers when it comes to loyalty email marketing. However, don’t overlook the effectiveness of educational newsletters to build trust and brand loyalty.

To do this, simply write (or pay someone else to write) short articles that will help your customers simply or save money in their daily lives. These articles can tie into your industry, or, they can even be about a non-related topic. The point is to show that you care about the recipient’s well-being.

You don’t want to bombard your customers’ email boxes but you do want to keep your brand in the forefront of their minds, so be sure to schedule regular educational emails.

Decrease shopping cart abandonment

Create a trigger email campaign that is launched when a consumer leaves their shopping cart before completing their purchase. Once items have been in the shopping cart for a set amount of time (24-48 hours is typical), your system sends out an email reminding them about the items.

If you allow your customers to save their preferred credit card in their account, you can remind them that checking out is as easy as 1-2-3; they simply need to return to your site, sign in and click “complete purchase” for their order to be on its way.

Increase future spends

Another great way to build loyalty through your credit card users is through transactional emails. Send out email receipts when a customer makes a purchase through your site. In that email, include the details of their purchase and also include recommended items based off of that purchase. This will help educate your customer on the other areas you can help them out so they expand their view of your company.
If possible, include customer reviews of the recommended products to entice your customer into making that purchase. Studies have shown that customers view user reviews in high regard, making those reviews an influencer on future purchases.