Nowadays, there is no shortage of metrics you can choose to measure on your e-commerce platform. Notwithstanding, when it comes to data and analytics, the more doesn’t always equal the better.
Excessive and unnecessary data hoarding can, in fact, result in all kinds of problems. From clutter to disorganized records, collecting just any data can significantly slow down your growth and be overall counterproductive for your business.
Customer analytics metrics are an important part of your strategy as they help you gain insight into your client base and its behavior. Knowing exactly where to place your focus and how to leverage it to promote your business’s expansion is likely to bring in fast results.
In this article, we have gathered seven of the most important customer analytics metrics for your e-commerce. This way, you can save time and avoid falling into the rabbit hole of vanity metrics.
1. Who Are Your Best Customers?
Identifying your top customers is paramount to the success of your e-commerce business strategy. Gaining information on what audience is most likely to enjoy your product will give you the tools to continue investing in it – in turn bringing you exciting results in the customer conversion and loyalty department.
Customer data can be extracted by looking into your e-commerce conversion data. This is a fairly straightforward procedure on most e-commerce platforms. The information you are looking for is the age range, gender & orientation, hobbies, location, the favorite device used for online shopping, and more.
When available, customer browsing history can also help you shape a 360-degree image of your top buyer outside their interactions with your brand.
2. What’s the Average Revenue per Account?
The Average Revenue Per Account (ARPA), also known as Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR), is a metric designed to help you single out your low-revenue products and services. Along with potentially signaling the need for an adjustment (product placement, pricing, etc.), setting your ARPA straight gives you important data on your overall brand perception.
Moreover, keeping track of your MRR in relation to your customer base lets you see if the majority of your customers perceive value in your offerings and whether they are on board with the expansion of your products.
As a rule of thumb, running a monthly or bi-monthly metrics analysis is enough to make sure everything is going smoothly. It will also allow you to apply relatively easy changes as you go – e.g., create funnels for the rising of average ticket pricing.
3. What’s your Audience’s Peak Time for Online Shopping?
Recent data points out the fact that most online shopping happens at night between 8 and 9 pm.
Whilst the evening time is what best work for most e-commerce, it is still important to see if this general rule applies to your specific target audience.
Depending on the product or service you provide, your average customer might prefer shopping well into the wee hours or work nights and only have time to online shop during the daytime.
Tuning into your specific audience’s routine and habits will help you make the best out of your e-commerce’s peak activity times. Use these metrics to schedule your sales and launches at those times when your client base is most likely to see it.
4. What Is the Average Time In-between Customer Orders?
Knowing how much time passes in-between purchases is another important customer metrics that can make or break your e-commerce strategy. For one, frequent hiatus can point out that your prospects are browsing for similar products at the same time, likely comparing prices and value before making a final decision. By the same token, the abandonment rate could potentially signal your competitors are getting your audience’s attention.
On the plus side, tracking the average time in-between orders will also help you identify your most loyal customers. These are the ones that take the least time to seal the deal.
5. What Is the Average Basket Size and Value for a Specific Customer?
Average basket size (ABS), aka units per transaction (UPT), informs you on the average number of items sold in a single transaction. It is calculated by dividing the number of units purchased by the number of overall transactions on your e-commerce.
Gathering this data gives you top-of-the-shelf information on your business’s current and projected trajectory. It will also shed a light on the success of your marketing and sales strategy.
Knowing how much your average customer is willing and available to spend on a single purchase also allows you to serve them best and keep providing them with the desired value.
Finally, it provides you with guidelines regarding stocking and inventory by informing you on what products are more popular at a given time of the year.
6. What Is the Number of Returns Requested by your Customers?
Intuitively, tracking your e-commerce return request rate will tell you most of what you need to know in regards to how well your products or services are received.
Notwithstanding, it is important to keep in mind that return does not necessarily equal refund.
In the context of your e-commerce, “return” is an umbrella term covering a number of different resolutions – from exchange to refund or store credit.
It is calculated by collecting metrics on returned items over a time period against the total orders in the same time period. Leveraged mindfully, this data informs you on how your customer retention influences your approach to acquisition and conversion.
It is important to understand that the number of returns only offers a gist into a more complex issue, and is to incorporate into a broader strategy taking into account many more variables.
7. Are your Customers Discount Buyers?
Last but not least on the list of important customer metrics for your e-commerce, knowing how drawn your average buyer is to sales can help you adjust your business strategy in a meaningful way.
When running a sale, there will naturally be a few aspects to consider:
- Is the discount being advertised when your prospects and clients are more likely to see it? (Refer to the “peak time for online shopping” discussed above)
- Of all the people interacting with your brand over a sale, how many are being converted?
- Out of the people who bought your products during a sale, how many are returning? Are your sales and discounts leading to retention?
- Is your sales campaign increasing word-of-mouth and advocacy? How likely are your shoppers to recommend your brand to a friend?.
The Bottom Line
In a sea of infinite possibilities, it is sometimes hard to identify what customer metrics are really worth focusing on. When in doubt, Razzo is there to help.
Specifically designed to help you make the best out of your small to medium-sized Magento shop, Razzo focuses on collecting insightful, actionable data that really improves your business strategy. What’s more, it provides you with an easy-to-read, digestible representation of your real-time data – meaning you don’t need to be an expert to understand it.
If you would like to discover new ways to leverage the best customer analytics metrics for the success of your e-commerce, do not hesitate to get in touch.