Repeat customers drive steady revenue, but a website alone is not enough to make them return consistently, and many merchants struggle with how to increase repeat purchase.
Most merchants try to bring customers back with email campaigns, loyalty points, or ads, but many do not know how to increase repeat purchase because these efforts only work if customers actively revisit the site. Once a session ends, the website cannot re-engage customers at the right moment.
This makes repeat purchases less frequent and retention more expensive over time. Now, efforts alone won’t change it. The website is not optimised for repeat purchases.
Why Websites Struggle With Retention and How to Increase Repeat Purchase?
Websites perform well when shoppers arrive with intent to browse products and complete a purchase but once the session ends the website no longer has visibility into customer attention or timing which creates a natural break in the buying cycle.
Because websites do not persist beyond the session, retention depends on customers remembering to return or being pulled back through external channels such as email or paid ads. Both options introduce friction and delay, which directly reduces repeat purchase rates.
Even when a customer has a positive experience, the website has no built-in way to re-enter their shopping flow at the right moment. As a result, repeat purchases often happen later than intended or not at all.
These limitations are not caused by poor site design or missing features. They exist because websites were built around one time visits, not repeat behavior.
- Websites Only Work During Active Visits
Once a session ends the website cannot re-engage customers on its own. - Websites Depend On External Channels For Return Traffic
Emails and ads reach customers outside the buying moment. As a result, they often arrive when the customer is busy, distracted, or no longer thinking about purchasing. - Website Do Not Support Habitual Buying
Once customers leave a website, most of them do not plan return visits. They buy when something reminds them.
Websites have no built-in reminders, which causes buying moments to be missed and repeat orders happen less frequently. - They Increase Reacquisition Costs
The websites cannot reach customers on their own. Therefore, merchants rely on ads, emails, or discounts to bring them back.
Returning traffic is possible through effort and spend rather than happening naturally. This increases costs and reduces the profit margin on repeat purchases.
How Mobile Apps are Designed Around Customer Return Behavior?
Mobile apps are designed to enable repeat purchases with less friction and provide a clear solution for how to increase repeat purchase. Apps stay on the customer’s device turning return purchases into a default behavior not a reminder task.
Moreover, they remain accessible, visible, and one tap away on the customer’s phone. It helps merchants to re-enter the buying journey at the right moment through push notifications and in-app personalization instead of waiting for customers to remember to return.
- Push notifications give merchants a direct way to bring customers back into the app at the right moment when buying intent is still active instead of waiting for customers to remember the brand on their own.
- In-app personalization keeps the experience relevant after every visit. Hence returning customers view products and offers aligned with their past behavior. This increases repeat purchase frequency without additional acquisition spend.
Because the app controls when and how the customer comes back, shoppers return while they are still ready to buy.
This reduces drop-off caused by delay or distraction and leads to more repeat orders, helping merchants increase customer retention. Using mobile apps effectively also shows merchants how to increase repeat purchase rate by keeping customers engaged at the right moment.
Common Retention Fixes Merchants Try on Websites (But It Will Fail)
These are common ways merchants try to boost repeat orders, but a website can’t make customers return on its own, which is why many merchants struggle with how to increase repeat purchase. This highlights why merchants need strategies that focus on how to increase customer retention beyond the website.
Therefore, these tricks only work after the customer comes back and don’t drive repeat purchases on their own.
Saved Addresses And Faster Checkout
Saving addresses and faster checkout help once customers return but do nothing to bring them back. The website cannot trigger the return, so this convenience only helps in repeat orders after the customer decides to come back.
Example: A customer completes a purchase and their address is saved for faster checkout. They leave the website and do not return for weeks. The saved address makes checkout easier but does not bring them back sooner because the website cannot remind them.
Homepage Personalization And Recommendations
Personalized product suggestions on the homepage only work during the current session. Once the session ends or the customer switches devices, the context is lost and the recommendations disappear. This means the website cannot influence future behavior or consistently guide repeat purchases.
Example: A customer browses running shoes on your homepage and leaves without buying. When they return a week later from a different device, the homepage shows generic products instead of the shoes they were interested in. Now they have to start over as the context is lost. It will reduce the chance of a repeat purchase.
Loyalty Programs And On-Site Rewards
Points and rewards sit idle unless customers actively return to the website to see them. The website cannot remind customers of unused rewards at the right moment, so the incentives often go unused. Without persistent reminders, these programs have limited impact on repeat purchase frequency.
Example: A customer earns points for their first purchase but doesn’t return for weeks. Without reminders, customers forget their points and miss the reward. The website cannot nudge them at the right moment, so the reward program fails to drive additional orders.
Email Marketing
Emails compete with dozens of other messages and often reach customers after the moment of buying intent has passed. The delay reduces the likelihood that the customer will act immediately, making repeat purchases slower and less predictable. Relying on emails alone turns retention into a waiting game rather than a controlled process.
Example: A customer abandons a cart on Monday. You send an email on Wednesday reminding them to complete the purchase. By the time the email reaches the customer, they may have shifted attention elsewhere, which lowers its impact on repeat purchases.
Retargeting Ads
Paid ads can bring customers back, but every return requires additional spending. Retention should ideally happen without recurring cost, and websites alone cannot generate it organically. This approach makes repeat purchases more expensive and dependent on continued marketing investment.
Example: A customer views a product but leaves. You show them a Facebook ad later in the week to bring them back.
Every click costs money but some customers never return despite the ad. Unlike an app the website cannot naturally pull customers back. As a result customer retention depends on paid marketing.
Brand Storytelling
Customers may enjoy the brand story, but affinity alone does not drive them back. A smooth and timely buying experience is what turns interest into action. Without a persistent way to re-engage, websites cannot turn brand love into frequent repeat purchases.
Example: A customer visits a fashion store’s website and loves the brand story, browsing the “About Us” page and feeling connected to the mission. They leave without buying anything or only make a single purchase. A week later, they forget about the store and move on to another brand.
Even though they loved the story, the website has no way to remind them or bring them back at the right moment, which makes it difficult for merchants to understand how to increase repeat purchase.
Without the right tools, merchants also struggle to see how to increase customer retention rate using repeatable processes rather than hoping customers return on their own.
How Merchants Can Use Apps to Increase Repeat Customers?
Unlike websites, mobile apps stay connected to customers and guide them back at the right moment. This makes repeat purchases more reliable and predictable and shows merchants how to increase repeat purchase rate. The following app features help build customer loyalty and turn one-time buyers into returning customers.
Post-purchase onboarding
After a customer completes a purchase, a mobile app can guide them through a personalized onboarding experience that highlights product usage tips, complementary items, or account setup features. This keeps the brand top of mind and encourages another purchase, helping merchants increase customer retention.
Example: A customer buys a yoga mat. The app immediately sends a step-by-step guide on stretches and suggests yoga blocks and straps tailored to their level, increasing the chance they return to buy accessories.
Cart reminder push notifications
Apps can send timely push notifications to remind customers of items left in their cart, reaching them while the buying intent is still active. This eliminates the need for customers to remember the product themselves.
Example: A shopper adds a pair of running shoes to their cart but leaves the app. Within a few hours, the app sends a push notification with the exact items and a “complete your order” link. The customer returns and completes the purchase.
Personalized product suggestions
Apps can display recommendations based on past purchases, browsing behavior, or preferences directly in the customer’s feed, making repeat shopping effortless.
Example: A customer previously bought skincare products. The app highlights complementary serums or new arrivals in the same category personalized to their previous purchase, encouraging repeat orders without any extra effort from the customer.
App-only rewards
Offering exclusive rewards or discounts through the app keeps customers returning for benefits they can’t get elsewhere, strengthens loyalty and encourages repeat purchases, increasing customer retention.
Example: A customer earns points for every order placed through the app. When a new product line launches, the app notifies them of a limited-time app-only discount redeemable with their points, prompting another purchase.
Contextual entry points
Apps can present customers with relevant products or offers based on where they are in the app or their lifecycle stage, increasing the likelihood of repeat engagement.
Example: A shopper who frequently buys pet supplies opens the app and sees a banner offering new toys and food bundles designed for their pet type, directly encouraging another order.
Behavior based lifecycle triggers
Apps can automatically trigger notifications or content based on customer behavior, ensuring communication happens at the most relevant moment in the purchase cycle and showing merchants how to increase customer retention rate.
Example: A customer hasn’t purchased in 30 days. The app sends a personalized reminder highlighting products they previously viewed or bought, along with a small incentive like free shipping, leading to a repeat purchase.
Summing It Up – Retention Is About Opting Right Channel (Mobile App) To Execute It
While websites are essential for acquiring new customers, they fall short when it comes to retention. Mobile apps offer the persistent presence and timely engagement needed to turn one-time buyers into loyal customers.
Using both channels together maximizes growth, but relying solely on a website can slow repeat purchases, reduce customer loyalty, and leave opportunities for competitors to capture your customers.
About The Author
I love navigating the world of SaaS with finesse. As an SEO enthusiast and seasoned Copy Writer, I'm here to transform tech-speak into compelling narratives that resonate with online merchants. With a penchant for alliteration and a touch of humor, I bring a unique flair to SaaS content.
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