Every business wants to sell more. In Food, however, there is a question that must come before the next acquisition campaign: how many customers who bought once buy again?
Downloads, registrations, and first purchase are important indicators. But they only count the beginning of the relationship. The most consistent growth appears when the experience is good enough to transform a one-time purchase into a habit.
The first request doesn’t tell the whole story
It is possible to carry out an efficient campaign, win many new users and register a significant volume of first purchases. Still, the outcome may be fragile if few of those customers return.
When the analysis is focused solely on the acquisition, the company risks celebrating the size of the entrance door without realizing that there is a problem with the exit. The customer arrived, tried it, and didn’t find enough reasons to return.
Therefore, the number of new users needs to be analyzed together with indicators such as:
- repurchase rate;
- average time until the second order;
- purchase frequency per customer;
- average value of recurring orders;
- number of active customers after 30, 60, or 90 days.
Why is buying back so important at Food?
The Food customer is not buying just one product. He’s choosing a combination of flavor, price, time, convenience, and trust.
If the first experience requires too much effort, takes longer than promised, or has problems with payment and delivery, the chance of a new purchase decreases. Even if the order has been completed, the final perception may be negative.
The repurchase shows that the transaction was able to consistently deliver value. It also reduces the reliance on permanent campaigns to bring new people to the app or digital channel.
A bad experience can hide the problem
When the repurchase is low, the most common reaction is to re-invest in media, discount, or acquisition. These actions may increase the number of first purchases, but they don’t necessarily solve the reason why customers don’t return.
The problem may lie at different stages of the journey:
Discovery and registration
If the registration is long, asks for too much information, or does not make clear the benefit of creating an account, some of the users abandon before placing the first order.
Choice of products
A confusing menu, incomplete information, or difficulty finding favorite items make shopping more tiring. At Food, convenience is part of the product.
Payment
Payment errors, few options, or an unstable step create insecurity. The customer may even try again on another channel, but trust in the app is compromised.
Delivery and follow-up
The customer needs to know what happened with the order. Lack of updating, delay without communication, and divergence between promise and delivery are experiences that weigh directly on the decision to return.
Post-purchase
The relationship doesn’t end when the order arrives. Service, problem resolution, relevant benefits, and communication at the right time help build the next purchase.
The app needs to facilitate the second purchase
A proper channel should not be evaluated solely by its ability to receive the first order. It needs to reduce the effort of subsequent purchases.
Some resources that contribute to this are:
- quick repetition of a previous order;
- accessible purchase history;
- relevant favorites and recommendations;
- reliable payment methods;
- clear order tracking;
- personalized communication, without excessive messaging;
- benefits that value attendance, and not just the first registration.
None of these features are a substitute for good operation. An app can’t indefinitely compensate for an inconsistent product, a problematic delivery, or a service that doesn’t solve it. Technology must connect and simplify the end-to-end experience.
Repurchase isn’t just a marketing metric
When a company follows the repurchase, it starts to see problems that do not appear in the gross sales volume.
A campaign can bring in a lot of new customers and, at the same time, attract people who buy only once. A promotion may increase revenue over a period but not create a sustainable relationship. An app can accumulate downloads without becoming a relevant channel for the business.
Therefore, the repurchase rate needs to be discussed by marketing, operation, product, service, and technology. It is a shared result, comprised of the entire customer journey.
How to investigate a low rebuy?
The first step is to separate customers by behavior. Instead of just looking at the total number of users, it’s worth comparing groups such as:
- customers who registered but never bought;
- customers who placed only one order;
- customers who returned once;
- returning customers;
- customers who were buying and stopped buying.
The company can then cross these groups with the store, region, time, channel, payment method, order amount, delivery time, and occurrence of problems. This analysis helps to find out if the drop is related to the digital experience, the physical operation, or the combination of the two.
It’s also important to listen to customers. A simple post-order search and careful review of service calls can reveal obstacles that dashboards don’t show alone.
Sustainable growth begins when the company keeps the customer coming back
Winning a new customer will continue to be important. The point is that acquisition should not be used to hide an experience that generates no return.
In Food, real growth occurs when the company manages to make the customer return with less effort, more trust and a clear perception of value. The first purchase opens the relationship. The second shows whether it started working.
To do this, it is necessary to connect strategy, operation, data, and technology. A well-planned own channel can help a company to know its customers better, reduce friction, and build an experience that encourages new purchases.
Alphacode develops platforms and applications for Food operations that need to integrate digital experience, orders, payments, and business evolution. Learn about Alpha Delivery and see how your own channel can be part of this strategy.
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