Turning first-time shoppers into repeat customers isn’t easy—but it’s essential. In fact, repeat customers can generate up to 40% of a brand’s revenue, and existing customers have a 67% higher average order value than new customers. 

Lucky for today’s brand marketers, SMS is the silver bullet that helps inspire brand loyalty and drive reorders. With one of the highest open and response rates of any marketing channel, it’s the most immediate and convenient way to reach your customers where they already spend their time. And we’ve got 10 ways you can use SMS to keep customers coming back for more.

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Reorder reminders

For brands with replenishable products, encouraging customers to restock their supply on a regular basis is key. And sending your customers a well-timed reorder reminder makes it easy for them to repurchase their favorite products. Text them a few weeks after their purchase to remind them that it might be time to restock. Better yet, if you have a subscription model, ask if they’d like to subscribe so they never have to worry about running out.

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Text-to-buy

Providing a frictionless shopping experience is key to driving repeat orders, and nothing is easier than texting YES to make a purchase. While every additional click on a website makes it less and less likely that a consumer will convert, letting customers complete purchases without leaving their texts will make reordering your products easy.

Reward your VIPs

Your text subscribers are your most loyal customers, and providing them with the VIP experience you promised when they signed up is key. Giving them early access to new or limited products or text-exclusive sales will increase engagement, make your subscribers feel special, and motivate them to keep buying. And for brands with a rewards program, incentivize your customers to repurchase your prodcuts with member benefits like free shipping, birthday perks, and points programs.

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Segmentation

‍Segmenting your customers into groups with shared attributes and characteristics so you can target them with more relevant messages and campaigns will encourage them to repurchase your products. Take Pinhook, a small batch Kentucky bourbon and rye brand, with a subset of customers who religiously collect their limited vintage bottles. In order to drive more repeat purchases, we help Pinhook craft personalized messaging and prompts to speak this group’s language, and thereby improve conversion.

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Personalization

Today’s consumers expect experiences with their favorite brands to be tailored to their preferences and needs. According to Salesforce, 80% of customers value the experience a company provides as much as its products. Making the effort to personalize each customer interaction and build relationships will turn them into brand loyalists and repeat buyers.

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Post-purchase engagement

From product recommendations to usage instructions, following up with post-purchase educational content and product discovery between transactions is a great way to stay top of mind and provide ongoing value. It might inspire subscribers to try something new, or simply remind them to replenish their tried and trues.

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Cart abandonment prompts

Sometimes consumers forget they added an item to their cart, or just need a nudge to complete the purchase. Sending a timely cart reminder text is an effective way to re-engage high-intent shoppers and follow up on potential sales/reorders that might otherwise be lost.

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Surveys

Interactive surveys are a great way to get to know your customers, get them engaged in your text channel, and gather valuable data and insight. And oftentimes, they drive sales. When our merchant, Raize, releases a new cookie flavor each month, they let their customers vote for it first. These interactive surveys build anticipation and excitement, generate high response rates, and help drive repurchases.

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Testimonials

Providing authentic social proof that your product is worth purchasing is one of the most effective ways to convert customers. A positive user review could be just what they need to complete another purchase.

And be sure to ask customers who’ve purchased before for a review. Incentivize them with free shipping or blank for sharing their experience—doing so might remind them how much they enjoyed your product, and prompt them to reorder it.

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Non-transaction driven campaigns

Not every text you send to customers has to include a call to action to purchase. Sometimes delighting them and reminding them you’re there is enough. MYOS Pet encourages subscribers to submit photos of their dogs via text and then features one pet each month. It’s a way to delight customers with cute photos and share testimonials that educate subscribers on the benefits of MYOS’ supplements.