Last Updated: January 2025
In the post-pandemic era, it is critical for e-commerce stores to get to know the customer needs better. If you do not differentiate between customer categories, your conversion rate could be less than optimal. This is due to a profound shift in customer behavior since the pandemic will only accelerate the time to come.
As you might expect, this change is being driven by young consumers demanding a value-driven experience. So, it’s not just about price, quality, and convenience anymore. It’s about genuine interaction and personalization.
The digital generation will command significant purchasing power throughout the 2020s. For example, by 2025, Millennials will constitute 75% of the working population, and Gen Z is not far behind. Forbes reports that Gen Z already accounts for 40% of all US consumers. As digital natives, both groups demand meaningful interactions with brands based on transparency and seamless user experience.
They are highly opinionated and outspoken, and it can take just one bad experience for them to switch to a different company. For e-commerce stores, this means an unrelenting focus on customer engagement.
To be sure, customer engagement is a product of trust, reliability, and value built over a period of time. The typical ecommerce customer journey provides brands with multi-touch points at which it can drive engagement. With the right strategies, you can not only engage customers but also enhance lifetime value. Once you have studied their shopping patterns, you have a much better chance of succeeding in your efforts to create engagement.
Customer Engagement Lessons from the Digital-First Generation
Here are some of the key factors you need to pay attention to in order to engage the digital generation:
1. Mobile-first
According to GlobalWebIndex, 28% of Gen Z and 31% are likely to sacrifice other spendings to buy a product sooner. The majority of these transactions are made using smartphones and tablets. In the 2020s and beyond, mobile experiences will play a critical role in influencing product discovery and conversion. This means online brands must optimize their websites for any type of screen- small and large. For example, product listing pages must be easy to navigate.
The check-out page should display the total order cost and have robust security features to protect credit card data. Tailor the content for easy viewing on mobile screens. This is a critical factor for customers to click through opt-in ad links and convert.
2. Gamification
To create genuine engagement, you need to look beyond discounts and freebies and create memorable experiences that make visitors want to return. While most ecommerce brands offer loyalty programs, the fun element is often missing. This is exactly what the top 25% of brands are capitalizing on. The solution: gamification. According to Giga Information, gamification enhances online customer activity by 68%.
In addition to leaderboards, badges, quizzes, or trivia, focus on educating customers about how they can get the most value out of your products. This can create up-sell and cross-sell opportunities for you. Increased customer awareness will also encourage referrals and repeat sales.
3. Embrace user-generated content
Millennials and Gen Z are less likely to be influenced by what a brand has to say about itself. According to research, 47% of millennials trust the opinions and recommendations of other users with the corresponding figure for Gen Z being 36%. Leverage customer reviews and social media comments to boost the authenticity of your brand. Remember: people trust other people who are like themselves.
Besides, UGC can also help you improve your search rankings, boosting traffic and conversions. Responding to customer reviews – a form of user-generated content – is a critical factor as it demonstrates that you’re open to feedback.
4. Personalized product recommendations
Personalized product recommendations are the key to driving conversion and ROI for ecommerce brands. This is particularly crucial when it comes to young consumers. According to Salesforce, personalization can boost sales by as much as 10%. Of course, this requires a data-centric approach to marketing and communication. Fortunately, Millennials and Gen Z are more than willing to share their personal data with you, if it means a brand or color-specific recommendations matching their preferences.
If you have your e-commerce app, increasingly use app-based push notifications to update customers about new products, share information on discounts, promotions, and loyalty reward points.
5. Feedback
Young customers have a keen sense of right and wrong and are happy to provide suggestions for improvement. They can help you get real-time information about what changes need to be made. Ask for feedback regularly via feedback forms and surveys, and remember to keep it simple. Begin by telling them why you need their feedback, for example, to improve your website. Provide no more than 3-4 response buttons per question and keep the total number of questions minimum.
Once you have analyzed the feedback, share your findings with them and create a positive experience. The digital generation appreciates transparency and is likely to reward you with positive reviews.
Last Words
To engage your customers, you need to think beyond basic customer service. The focus should shift from just solving customer problems to delivering positive end-to-end interactions. This can help you build long-term customer relationships that transcend single-digit sales. Thus, every interaction is an opportunity to create engagement.
However, overworked agents barely have the enthusiasm or patience to handle customers. If you are new to remote working, you may face challenges with quality and adherence too. An experienced partner like Saufter can help you streamline your processes and systems.
That’s why you should consider the AI-powered live chat solution of Saufter. With this software, you can leverage your customer engagement without compromising the quality of the service. Additionally, it can help you with automated e-commerce workflows and robust reporting. What’s more, it also comes with customized pricing.
So, what are you waiting for?
