The membership system is an operational strategy at the traffic level. It is a customer screening mechanism that aims to screen out customer groups that are more willing to pay and to extract more benefits from them. Membership operation provides different services to different customers by dividing customers’ consumption levels. Membership operation can improve the activity and retention of members, and can also improve the depth and level of marketing and services.
1. Membership level Membership level is generally divided according to the transaction amount and the number of transaction orders within a certain statistical period. In Alibaba International Station, store members are divided into 3 levels by default: ordinary members, senior members, and VIP members. Ordinary members are customers who have successfully exchanged business cards with merchants and are potential consumer groups. Merchants strengthen their contact with potential customers through the zero-threshold membership method of exchanging business cards, which facilitates active contact and achieves further marketing conversion. Senior members are customers who have already traded with merchants, but the transaction amount is within a certain range. Senior members are in the loyalty transition stage and need further incentives to improve their loyalty. VIP members are customers whose annual transaction amount is greater than a certain amount. The specific amount is determined according to the specific situation of the merchant. VIP members are the merchant’s loyal customer group.
2. Membership Rights
Differentiation of membership rights is an effective way to motivate members to purchase. Rights that are difficult to be copied by competitors are the greatest attraction to customers. The essence of stickiness is the cost of user switching. Common types of membership rights include commodity discount rights, logistics rights, and service rights. Member-exclusive products, prepayment ratios, and free samples are three common ways to effectively motivate members on Alibaba International Station. Member-exclusive products refer to products that are only displayed to designated members. The company’s latest styles, test styles, ultra-low discount styles, and upgraded products of high-end products can be set as member-exclusive products, allowing members to enjoy a sense of exclusiveness. Setting prepayment ratios for different customers can reflect the differences in membership rights. The prepayment ratio should be set comprehensively based on the customer level and the characteristics of the company’s products. The prepayment ratio of customized products is relatively higher than that of regular products.
3. Member recruitment
Displaying membership rights in multiple scenarios such as browsing, purchasing, and receiving goods is conducive to member recruitment. Using content marketing for member recruitment is also an effective way. Member recruitment usually attracts customers to join by using interest points such as new member gift packages and new member exclusive coupons.