Tag: customers

Mastering eCommerce: 10 Proven Ways to Boost Your ROI

You’re deep in the trenches of eCommerce, juggling inventory, ads, and customer emails while watching every dollar you spend. The goal is simple: get more back than you put in. Boosting your ROI doesn’t come from flashy one-off tactics; it comes from smart, repeatable moves that stack up over time. Whether you’re running a growing store or managing a serious volume operation, these ten strategies have worked for plenty of others, and they can work for you too. Let’s break them down so you can start putting them into action.

1. Get Smarter About Customer Segmentation

Your focus has been on things like reading detailed payment processor reviews and finding the best payment processor, one that will support the company’s growth. Those steps won’t be of help unless you attract more customers. You’re already sitting on a goldmine of data about who’s buying from you. The trick is using it properly. Go beyond age or location and look at how people actually behave: how often they buy, what they spend, which products they love.

Once you’ve grouped your customers this way, everything gets more targeted, including your emails, your ads, and even the recommendations on your site. You stop shouting into the void and start having honest conversations. Shops that nail segmentation routinely see returns 20-30% higher because they spend money on people who are already inclined to buy.

2. Treat Paid Ads Like a Science Experiment

Paid advertising can drain your budget fast if you let it run on autopilot. Instead, turn every campaign into a testing ground. Split-test creatives, headlines, audiences, and landing pages until you know precisely what works.

Keep your eyes on the numbers that matter: cost per acquisition and return on ad spend. Kill what’s losing money quickly and pour fuel on what’s winning. Build lookalike audiences from your best buyers to find more people like them. A lot of store owners double their ad ROI just by being ruthless about cutting losers and scaling winners.

3. Speed Up Your Site and Nail the Mobile Experience

Nothing kills sales faster than a slow-loading page. If your site takes forever, people leave, your conversion rate tanks, and even your ad costs go up because platforms penalize bad experiences.

Shoot for pages that load in under three seconds. Compress images, turn on caching, and use a CDN if you haven’t already. Since most traffic now comes from phones, make sure everything looks and works great on mobile. Fixing these basics often delivers a nice bump in conversions without spending an extra dime on traffic. Additionally, ensure your checkout flow is seamless; a simplified payment gateway can reduce friction significantly during those critical final seconds.

4. Chase Down Abandoned Carts

Approximately 70% of shoppers ditch their carts. That’s a ton of potential revenue walking out the door. You can bring a good chunk of it back with automated recovery emails.

Send the first reminder within an hour, then follow up with a small incentive, such as free shipping or a modest discount, if needed. Add SMS reminders and retargeting ads that show the exact items they left behind. When done right, you can recover 10-15% of those lost sales, and it’s basically free money from traffic you already paid for.

5. Lean Into Reviews and User-Generated Content

People trust other customers more than they trust you, and that’s okay. Make it easy for happy buyers to leave reviews and share photos or videos of your products.

Ask for feedback right after purchase, offer a small incentive if you want, and showcase the best stuff on product pages and social. Products with solid reviews convert way better, and real customer photos build trust faster than any stock image ever could. This costs almost nothing and keeps working for you in the long term.

6. Build a Real Email Marketing Machine

Email still crushes it for ROI, often returning $30–$40 for every dollar spent. The difference between average and exceptional results comes down to how well you nurture your list.

Set up automated flows: welcome series for new subscribers, reminders for items they viewed, and win-back offers for quiet customers. Personalize everything based on what they’ve bought or browsed. Mix in helpful content alongside promotions so your emails stay valuable. Test subject lines and send times like your profits depend on it because they do.

7. Upsell and Cross-Sell Without Being Pushy

Raising your average order value is one of the cleanest ways to improve ROI, since your customer acquisition cost stays the same.

Show relevant add-ons during checkout, like “customers also bought” or personalized bundles based on what’s already in the cart. Follow up after purchase with intelligent recommendations for accessories or refills. Keep it helpful rather than aggressive, and you’ll often see AOV climb 10-20%, dropping straight to your bottom line.

8. Put Real Effort Into Keeping Customers

Getting a new customer costs a lot more than keeping an old one happy. Shift some of your budget toward retention and watch your ROI improve dramatically.

Start a simple loyalty program, such as points for purchases, redeemable for discounts or perks. Give your top spenders better rewards: early access to sales, free fast shipping, and exclusive products. Send personalized birthday offers or “we miss you” deals to inactive buyers. Loyal customers buy more often and spend more over time, giving you returns that compound.

9. Fine-Tune Your Pricing Strategy

Pricing isn’t set-it-and-forget-it. Keep an eye on competitors, but more importantly, test your own prices. Small changes, such as ending prices in .99, bundling products, or running strategic flash sales, can move inventory and lift margins.

Use your analytics to spot which items can handle a price increase and which are super price-sensitive. Even modest tweaks across your catalog can add up to serious profit improvements without driving customers away.

10. Make Data Your Best Friend

All these tactics work better when real numbers guide you. Connect your store to solid analytics tools and build dashboards that show customer lifetime value, acquisition costs, and which channels actually drive profit.

Review the data regularly, spot leaks, and shift budget toward what’s working. Decisions based on data beat gut feelings every time, and they’re what separate stores that scrape by from ones that scale smoothly.

There you have it—ten practical ways to boost your eCommerce ROI that have proven themselves across thousands of stores. You don’t need to tackle everything at once. Pick the two or three areas where you’re losing the most money right now, implement solidly, measure results, and build from there.

The stores that win long-term aren’t the ones chasing the latest trend; they’re the ones executing the fundamentals really well, week after week. Get these strategies working for you, stay disciplined with testing and data, and you’ll start seeing more substantial returns and a healthier business. You’ve got this; now make it happen.

 

Bank of Ireland warns customers of “smishing” scams this Christmas

Bank of Ireland is urging customers to stay alert to ‘Smishing’ scams over the festive season, as fraudsters try to exploit consumer behaviour by sending them fraudulent text messages during the busy shopping period.

With online shopping and parcel deliveries at peak levels, scammers are sending texts that look like they’ve been sent by trusted delivery companies, motorway toll services, utility providers, Government agencies or even from the banks themselves.

These fraudulent messages often include links to fake websites designed to steal card or online banking details or trying to pressure consumers into paying a delivery or customs charge or update bank account details. Other “smishing” texts will contain a fake phone number that, when called, connects you to a fraudster posing as a representative of the company or from your own bank.

Bank of Ireland is also reminding customers that its dedicated fraud support team is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week throughout Christmas and into the New Year. Last year Bank of Ireland’s fraud prevention team received over 10,000 calls from customers during the peak holiday period (23 December to 29 December), with 550 calls received on Christmas day alone.

As part of Bank of Ireland’s four-point plan to prevent fraud, it has called for the introduction of legislation to allow an SMS scam filter to be deployed in Ireland. This filter would help stop SMS fraud attempts before they happen. Ireland is currently out of step with other English-speaking countries in not having an SMS scam filter in place. This filter would operate like the spam filters that are applied to email inboxes by detecting and blocking harmful links or content.

Key advice for consumers:

  • Do not click on links or reply to text messages looking for payment.
  • Remember toll operators, banks, delivery companies, utility providers and Government agencies will never send a text linking to a website that asks for your online banking details or full card details.
  • Check the identity of the sender. Call the company in question using their legitimate phone number.

Nicola Sadlier, Head of Fraud, Bank of Ireland said: “Unfortunately fraudsters see the Christmas holidays as an opportunity to exploit the consumer rush to get all the festive shopping done, and at this time of the year Bank of Ireland’s fraud team always sees a wide range of “smishing” scams impersonating well-known companies.”

“Our advice to consumers remains the same, keep your guard up and treat every unsolicited call, text, or email as a potential fraud attempt. Our dedicated fraud team is working around the clock, even over Christmas and into the New Year, to protect and support our customers. If something feels suspicious, trust your instincts and contact us straight away.

“Ireland is out of step with other English-speaking countries in not having an SMS scam filter, leaving Irish consumers more exposed to fraud attempts. We would strongly support the introduction of an SMS scam filter in Ireland, which requires legislation, as it would help block many of these fake text messages.”

Bank of Ireland customers can call the Fraud Team 24/7 on the Freephone line 1800 946 764.

An Post achieves 50% CO2 target early

An Post has achieved a 50% reduction in carbon emissions three months ahead of schedule, becoming one of the first national postal organisations in the world to reach this milestone—a rare example of a large semi-state commercial body delivering measurable climate impact while simultaneously growing its business and profits.
An Post’s original target of a 50% CO2 emissions reduction by 2030 was set in 2017; however, in 2021, An Post brought forward this target to the end of 2025, reflecting the urgency of delivering climate action and demonstrating its commitment to pursuing Ireland’s sustainability goals. Today’s announcement demonstrates tangible progress motivated by the 2015 Paris agreement and a 1.5-degree climate change limiting scenario, a key focus for the COP 30 Climate Change summit in Brazil. The transition to EVs and to Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) in HGVs has created a cleaner, quieter and healthier environment for communities nationwide.
Through a €100m investment to decarbonise its operation, more than half of An Post’s delivery routes are now electrified by the nation’s largest electric vehicle fleet. A total of 95% of heavy vehicles have been switched to renewable HVO fuel, with 99% of its buildings now powered with green energy. This 50% milestone has been achieved despite a 300% increase in parcels, from 20 million delivered in 2009 to 78 million this year, representing 1.25 million extra parcels delivered each week.
Speaking at the announcement, David McRedmond, CEO at An Post said:
“At An Post our commitment to sustainability is real. We are building a cleaner, more resilient logistics network for decades to come. Achieving the 50% reduction target early is proof of how serious our commitment is. As the operator of the largest fleet in Ireland, this has required a relentless approach to electrifying the fleet and using renewable fuels. It is a huge credit to the frontline staff in An Post, across every community, that while transforming to a parcel logistics business they have also achieved a world-class standard in sustainability.
“Halving our emissions is a huge step, but it is only part of the journey. The next task is to meet net zero by 2030. Achieving the first of our targets gives us renewed confidence that we will also achieve this goal on time with more EVs, renewable fuel and energy. “We act for the common good, now, and for generations to come” is our promise, and today, thanks to the amazing efforts of An Post staff, our suppliers, and our customers, we can show that we are delivering.”
Commenting on An Post’s achievement of the 50% reduction target, Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport, Patrick O’Donovan TD said:
“I am delighted An Post has reached such a significant milestone and is using its growing electric fleet to drive delivery of parcels, letters and transformative change in environmental sustainability on the path to net zero.”
 
Minister of State with responsibility for Sport and Postal Policy, Charlie McConalogue TD added:
“I warmly welcome An Post’s excellent achievement, and I welcome the ambition to achieve net zero by 2030. I recognise that An Post and the post office network provide an excellent service and value to communities, and An Post is now also creating a cleaner, quieter, and healthier environment.”
Owen Keogh, An Post Head of Sustainability explained that An Post is now one of the largest electric vehicle operators per capita in the world.
“There is currently one EV for every 2,700 people in Ireland, and An Post is ranked amongst the top five global postal companies for sustainability, positioning it as a leader in decarbonised logistics and a model for public-sector transformation.
“Our experience with EVs has been exceptional with 50% fewer breakdowns and reduced mechanical interventions compared to diesel vehicles. An Post expects to extend EV leases to up to seven years from 2026. This year alone, An Post EVs will travel 18 million kilometres emissions-free, keeping Ireland moving with cleaner air for communities”, he added.
€200 million has been invested in An Post’s Green Light Strategy, transforming the business whilst driving both sustainability and strong commercial performance. The company is now halfway to net zero emissions by 2030 with additional EVs and HVO-fuelled trucks as well as more solar energy at buildings planned for the coming years. This 50% milestone demonstrates that sustainability and commercial success can advance together.

JustTip partners with myPOS to streamline solutions for customers

Irish fintech startup JustTip has announced a strategic partnership with myPOS, the payments platform that powers seamless transactions across Europe. The collaboration integrates JustTip’s award-winning cashless tipping and service charge management technology directly into myPOS card terminals, delivering a powerful, fully compliant solution for the hospitality industry.

The integration allows customers to pay both their bill and a tip directly on a myPOS terminal, with payments routed to the merchant’s account, and tips automatically separated, processed, and distributed through JustTip’s transparent platform. Businesses gain access to real-time reporting, automated allocation, and written distribution policies that support compliance with Irish legislation.

In the first 12 weeks of the partnership, the collaboration, which is being rolled out across Europe, has processed more than €3 million in payments and €350,000 in tips, working with renowned clients including Marco Pierre White, Variety Jones, and Farmer Browns.

“Hospitality is under immense pressure to cut costs while keeping staff motivated and compliant with complex legislation,” said James Fahy, co-founder and CEO of JustTip. “By combining our technology with myPOS’s trusted payment infrastructure, we’re giving businesses a powerful, cost-saving solution that eliminates admin headaches, ensures transparency, and puts more money into staff’s pockets.”

The partnership also helps businesses reduce costs, eliminating the 11.15% PRSI charge on tips, while ensuring compliance with legislation in the UK and Ireland’s amended Payment of Wages (Tips and Gratuities) Act 2022, which requires employers to show complete transparency on all tips as well as provide a breakdown of electronic tips and their distribution.

Founded in 2021 by entrepreneurs James Fahy and Ciara Walsh, JustTip emerged in response to outdated tipping practices that lacked transparency for staff and employers. Today, it is trusted by more than 650 companies across Ireland and the UK and is scaling rapidly into new European markets, bringing its unique blend of cashless tipping and tax-efficient automation to more businesses.

“This partnership is a major milestone for JustTip,” added Fahy. “It shows the appetite across Europe for modern, transparent solutions that not only keep businesses compliant but also strengthen trust between employers, employees, and customers.”

Show Your Customers How Much Their Business Means To You

Doing things to make your customers feel valuable helps maintain loyalty, which empowers your business to flourish, meaning you’ll prevail in the end, handling any challenges that arise and serving as a role model for others. Here are some examples of what excellent customer care looks like.

Send Handwritten Notes

Sending thank you notes is a simple yet effective gesture that fosters stronger relationships with your customers throughout the buying journey. In a world of mass email blasts and tweets, sincerely and personally thanking shoppers illustrates the human side of your brand, establishes good feelings, transforms first-time shoppers into repeat customers, and maximises their lifetime value. You can send handwritten notes to the first 50 customers in a day or to top customers to show appreciation for their business.

Throw In A Free Gift With A Purchase

If you’re already shipping a customer’s order, you might as well take advantage of the opportunity to add some goodies for a surprise. For example, a printed t-shirt suits your brand and your audience’s needs. Naturally, you must think about the type of consumer you’re trying to impress and other factors, namely their age and key interests. Offering a free gift helps build a genuine connection, showing the person they’re more than just a name on your list but rather an invaluable part of your business.

Thank Customers On Social Media

One in three consumers use social networking sites to learn about or discover new products, services, and brands. Those people can become followers, customers, and supporters of your brand, so share content, engage in conversations, respond to inquiries, and gather feedback. Most importantly, snap photos of loyal customers, obviously with their permission, and post them online. It shows authenticity, so take the time to thank those who engage with you most often to build trust and loyalty; they won’t be easily swayed by price or availability, meaning they’ll pay more to enjoy the same product and service they know and love.

Host Competitions, Raffles, Or Giveaways

What matters most is how one or several winners are selected or drawn. During a contest, prizes are given away, but participation requires a level of skill, so every submission is reviewed and judged based on a strict set of criteria. A raffle is a chance-based competition in which participants buy tickets with numbers on them. The winners are drawn at random. And finally, a giveaway, which can range from a website promotion to a social media contest, offers anything from personalised lighters to real-world experiences. People almost always appreciate weekend getaways.

RETN Awarded Google Verified Gold Peering Partner Status, Simplifying Cloud Connectivity for Customers

As businesses increasingly rely on cloud services for critical operations, highly available internet connectivity becomes essential. RETN, the leading independent global network services provider, is proud to announce its designation as a Google Verified Gold Peering Partner. This recognition, granted to RETN’s Autonomous System (AS9002), underscores the company’s commitment to delivering top-tier connectivity solutions to its customers across Europe and Asia.

The Verified Peering Partner program is designed to enhance connectivity for customers by identifying Internet Service Providers (ISPs) with superior, reliable, and diverse connectivity to Google.

RETN’s achievement of Gold status in this program is a testament to its technical excellence and robust network infrastructure and provides significant advantages for its customers:

Simplified Connectivity: Customers no longer need to meet Google’s peering requirements. RETN, as a Verified Gold Peering Partner, handles the complexities of peering arrangements, allowing customers to spend less time deploying and managing the technical complexities of Direct Peering. By acquiring IP Transit or Dedicated Internet Access from RETN, customers can let RETN manage peering with the highest quality direct connections to Google.

High Availability: The Verified Gold badge signifies that RETN provides metro-level redundant connectivity, ensuring maximum reliability for customers. The Google badge verifies this redundancy, offering peace of mind that connectivity to Google is highly reliable.

Enterprise-Grade Connectivity: RETN provides connectivity to Google through internet products designed for enterprises. Customers can access Google services with or without the need for an autonomous system number (ASN), and work directly with RETN’s account teams.

Dedicated Private Google Connectivity: All connections to Google through RETN are managed via private dedicated and redundant links spanning RETN’s extensive footprint, leveraging the same infrastructure that supports Google’s own services. This ensures robust and secure access to all Google services.

Access to All Google Services: RETN customers can access a wide range of Google services, including Workspace, Cloud APIs, Cloud VPN, Google Public IPs, and more. Any Google service reachable over the internet can be used with RETN as a Verified Peering Provider.

“The Verified Peering Program is a win-win for Google and ISPs. Google customers benefit from improved connectivity and reliability, and RETN gains a competitive advantage. We’re excited to have RETN as a part of this program and look forward to working together to provide a great experience for our mutual customers,” said Dave Schwartz, Senior Product Manager, Google Global Networking.

“This recognition underscores our dedication to providing the highest quality connectivity solutions to our customers – ensuring robust, redundant, and highly available connectivity to essential cloud services is more critical than ever. This partnership not only enhances our service offerings but also assures our customers that they are receiving enterprise-grade, reliable access to Google’s extensive suite of services,” said Andrey Gazizov, Chief Operating Officer of RETN.

Revolut surpasses 2M young customers worldwide on <18 app; bolsters product in bid to put financial power into hands of teens

Revolut, the licensed European bank with more than 40 million customers around the world, has today announced that its <18 app for 6-17 year olds now has more than 2 million young customers worldwide — jumping to a total of 3.5 million worldwide when including guardians. In the last year in Ireland, total customers of the Revolut <18 app — including kids and their guardians — have increased by nearly 35%.

A version of Revolut built especially for Gen-Z and beyond, the <18 app helps young people manage their money in ways that work for them — while providing the right controls to give parents and guardians peace of mind. In line with its growth, Revolut is supercharging its <18 app with a new look and features. These include Analytics to boost financial literacy through budgeting and spending analysis, and Wallpapers to help <18s to help teens express themselves.

The company is also making features like Pockets to set aside money towards specific goals and Spare Change round-ups available to all <18 app users for free for the first time. In Ireland, some of the top 20 goals for young people already using Pockets through a parent or guardian’s paid plan include:

  • Clothes, specifically from fast fashion site SHEIN;
  • Gadgets, such as mobile phones, PCs, and PlayStation 5s — or even cars;
  • And summer holidays — with London the most sought-after destination.

The addition of this new functionality for all will supercharge young people’s ability to put money aside for the things that matter to them — from the latest tech to events with friends. 

Carlos Spada, Head of Product, Revolut <18 commented: “Our <18 app is built for teens and our goal is to be the ultimate financial companion, growing with young people and their financial needs. The features we’re announcing today will empower young people to take the lead on their finances and practise healthy money habits, all with fun opportunities for personalisation and the right level of parental oversight.

“We’re excited to see more and more young people choosing Revolut as the place to build towards financial independence.”

Revolut’s <18 app is also available in more than 20 markets including the UK, EEA, Australia, Singapore and the US. In Ireland, Revolut has seen an increase in average daily <18 wallet balances — up from €38.92 in March 2023 to €42.34 in March 2024, while average monthly <18 spending has decreased — down from €150.18 in March 2023 to €124.79 in March 2024. Alongside that, Irish kids received an average allowance of €9.71 in March 2024 — down from €10.41 last year.

To help young people grow healthy money habits, parents can try:

  1. Finding everyday moments to talk about financial concepts. From budgeting at the supermarket to comparison shopping for a particular purchase, parents can help their kids understand the real-life value of money. 
  2. Giving kids a regular allowance or pay day. By providing regularity, parents can encourage kids to practise money management basics. 
  3. Getting granular on spending habits. Helping kids make use of spending alerts and analytics to stick to their budget, avoid overspending and think about where they might do things differently next time. 
  4. Helping kids put money aside to reach their goals. Whether your kid is after the latest video game or they’re planning ahead for university, help them set goals and stick to them. 
  5. Remembering financial literacy is lifelong. Stick with them and be consistent while they’re learning. Ensure money chats are positive and encourage questions. 

Tesco Mobile Ireland Celebrates 3 Years of unchanging contracts for new and existing customers

Tesco Mobile Ireland is once again shaking up the market with its commitment to customers as it promises to not to increase prices mid-contract for all new and existing customers, for the third year running.

Effective immediately, all Bill Pay plans will enjoy an unchanging, wallet-friendly rate for the duration of their 24-month contract. Unlike the competition, Tesco Mobile won’t play the price hike game mid-contract, ensuring peace of mind when it comes to mobile phone bills.

Customers with an existing Tesco Mobile bill pay plan don’t have to worry about them changing either, as they won’t face an increase in their bill for the duration of their contract.

Recently crowned Best Customer Service Award for 2024 at the Switcher.ie Mobile Awards, Tesco Mobile’s Waterford-based teams are committed to delivering unbeatable value, fairness, and customer satisfaction.

Ciaran Melia, General Manager of Tesco Mobile Ireland commented, “Right now, people have enough to be worrying about, and that shouldn’t include mobile phone bills. For the third year in a row, Tesco Mobile is the only mobile operator in Ireland to offer unchanging contracts for our new and existing customers. This means that as a Tesco Mobile customer you will pay for exactly what you signed up for, not a cent more. This is us giving certainty to any customer who signs up during 2024 for the duration of their contract.”

But wait, there’s more! As part of its commitment to value, Tesco Clubcard holders get double the points by registering with their Tesco Mobile account. Plus, they can enjoy €15 off their phone bill or top up for every €5 in Clubcard vouchers!

Whether you’re a long-time Tesco Mobile contract holder or interested in shopping around for a new mobile provider ahead of the price increase, keep an eye to Tesco Mobile’s amazing offers and join almost 500,000 Tesco Mobile customers across Ireland already enjoying 99% network coverage.

For more information on the Tesco Mobile Ireland visit in-store or online at  www.tescomobile.ie.