6 Ways to Increase Average Order Value (AOV) TODAY!

We talk a lot at Coursenvy about Ads, Facebook, Google and Paid Media. We don't talk enough about how to squeeze MORE out of each transaction after getting customers to your storefront or website! Here's 8 ideas you can use TODAY to increase revenue per transaction, or AOV.

1. Free Shipping Thresholds: Test this vigorously! This encourages customers to add more items to their carts to meet the threshold, effectively increasing their AOV. Make sure to prominently display this threshold on your website. We had a clothing company that offered Free Shipping all the time and thought they would LOSE customers by changing to a $79 shipping minimum. Not only did their conversion rate stay exactly the same, but they had absolutely NO pushback from customers and they boosted their AOV by +$25 OVERNIGHT. This is a game changer!

2. Bundles 🚀: Create irresistible product bundles or packages that encourage customers to buy complementary items together! Offering a slight discount on the bundled items compared to purchasing them individually can motivate shoppers to add more to their carts. Highlight the savings and benefits they'll enjoy by choosing these bundles! You can build this out easily with an app like Monster Checkout on Shopify.

3. Buy More, Save More: Implement tiered pricing or quantity-based discounts to incentivize larger purchases. For example, "Buy 2, Get 10% Off" or "Spend $50 and Get 20% Off." Clearly communicate these offers on product pages and during the checkout process to capture your customers' attention!

4. Upselling and Cross-Selling: Leverage product recommendations based on customers' browsing and purchase history. Suggest related or complementary products on product pages or during checkout. For instance, if a customer is buying a camera, recommend a compatible lens or camera bag to go with it. Or my personal favorite, recommend "Best-Selling" products! This can be true and you can show the real best selling products, or you can show products you have deep inventory in and need to move.

5. Limited-Time or FREE Offers: Create a sense of urgency by promoting limited-time offers, such as "Buy now and get a free gift" or "Limited stock - Buy before it's gone." These time-sensitive incentives can push customers to add more to their carts before the opportunity disappears. Offering a FREE item is a winning strategy if your product line includes some high margin/low cost items. For instance, an apparel company can giveaway pairs of earrings or necklaces for FREE and the cogs are only $1-3 each on your end for that free item - so you aren't losing much profit and they'll try a lot harder to meet that bigger cart amount!

6. Loyalty Programs: Introduce a loyalty program that rewards customers for spending more. Offer points for every dollar spent or give exclusive discounts and early access to high spenders. Loyalty programs not only increase AOV but also foster long-term customer relationships. I put this last on the list because i've never seen it work effectively.. Customers forget about the rewards, or the tiers seem too high to earn a good discount or free item, or they just don't pay attention at all. Still worth trying, but don't get your hopes up (keeping it honest!)

Remember, the key to success is not just implementing these strategies but also analyzing their effectiveness! Use analytics tools to track the impact of each method on your AOV and adjust your approach accordingly.

I hope these strategies help you supercharge your AOV and take your e-commerce business to new heights!

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Cheers!

Josh @ Coursenvy