Returns on Visit

   As mentioned in an earlier blog post ("The Cultural Classroom"), it is no secret that I geek out over numbers and statistics.  This being said, my favorite time of my shifts at Loft come on the hour when the manager on duty's voice comes over my headset and announces, "okay, team! It's time for our one o'clock read," or whatever the hour may be.  This read includes net sales, conversion rate, numbers of transactions, returns on visit (or ROV), and more numerical reports.  Next, the manager will state where we need to be at the next hour, if we're behind or ahead, and encouragement on what we should be doing to help reach our next goal, now 58 minutes away. 

   Today my emphasis will be on returns on visit.  The ROV is simply a calculation that averages how much our company is getting based on each person that walks through our door, leaving with a purchase or not.  However, the ROV I want to discuss is only an inspiration of this calculation, not the actual number. 

   Over the past few weeks, with the various promotions, I have tuned in to how these promotions are benefitting our clients while even more so benefitting us.  I'm not talking about a monetary return but a physical return of a single customer. 

   What can we do as a company to transform a first time customer into a dedicated client?  Of course the experience is crucial.  It is important to client service, fulfilling our customer's every need, whether that may be styling, helping find a size, or giving them an honest and genuine opinion.  These factors of customer service helps put the client at ease, feel welcome, and trust the brand.  These are the simply building blocks of creating a return client. 

   But there must be more than just personal interaction to do this, a more calculated numerical way--and there is.  As I mentioned these recent promotions have helped open my eyes to the purpose of them.  Not only is the purpose to generate sales and create an illusion of discounts with markdowns as I discussed in the same earlier blog post ("The Cultural Classroom"), but the purpose also is to create recurring visits from a client. 

   These specific promotions are Friends and Family and Cash Cards.  Friends and Family is a designated time period where the entire store is 40% off.  Although Loft carries sales not too different from this year round, there is never a known end date. Even the managers usually don't find out what the promotion is or if it is going to be continued until opening the store the next morning.   Giving a specified range of dates allows the customer to stop I'm, browse, perhaps make an impulse buy based on fear of the item selling out during the sale, and coming back later that weekend with known confidence that the promotion will still be going on.  This helps make this customer become a more dedicated one. 

   Cash Cards even further dedicate our customers.  Loft Cash Cards, which began about a week ago, is a promotion we hold about once a season or a few times a year.  When shopping and purchasing $50 worth of merchandise for a designated range of dates, usually two to three weeks, the customer receives a $25 Cash Card in return to use at a later date.  The customer receives 1 Cash Card for each $50 spent, so either by making a large purchase, multiple purchases, or both while Loft is distributing Cash Cards, the client can easily build up a collection of savings.  This also helps influence add-on to a purchase.  "You're only $5 away from your second Cash Card!  Do you want to look at sale or jewelry to bump you up to a second Card?"  

   The main aspect of transitioning this said customer into a return client is when the date rolls around for her to redeem her $25 Cash Card.  This takes place after the two to three weeks that we are distributing the Cash Cards, and around this time period customers flood in for their savings. 

   These simple tactics are ones that benefit both our customer and our company.  By these first few initial visits, it is not difficult to turn this client into a regular--and even better, and advocate of our brand.