L’Occitane exec: Social sign-in triggers 10pc lift in average order value

NEW YORK – A L'Occitane en Provence executive at the ad:tech New York 2012 conference last week said that through prompting users to socially sign-into its ecommerce site with their Facebook account, the brand is tailoring the experience to drive revenue.

During the “Social Commerce: How to Grow Sales, Increase Loyalty and Improve Customer Service” session, executives discussed how they are revamping their brand’s digital commerce experience to drive online transactions as well as in-store visits. One case study by L’Occitane USA in partnership with user management platform provider Janrain helped to streamline the brand’s ecommerce platform and resulted in an increase in average order value.

“When the customer first signs into the Web site and gives personal data, the first thing that you get from us is an induction to our brand,” said Jill Chernin, digital marketing manager at L’Occitane USA, New York.

“We are very careful not to make this too much of a promotional experience, but an experience to induct them into what we stand for,” she said.

“This is the kind of thing that we like to communicate to our customers first before we send them on the promotional journey.”

L'Occitane is a French skincare brand.

Socialites

Using a L'Occitane product is an experience, per Ms. Chernin.

Translating that experience to digital is difficult for the brand to achieve. For instance, consumers cannot smell a fragrance through social media.

In addition, the brand has many customers who do not have access to its 1,900 retail locations.

Therefore, one of the top priorities when customers arrive at the L'Occitane ecommerce site for the first time is what will make the experience unique and what will attract them to the brand.

The first thing that customers see when they arrive at the site is a social sign-in window. This was created in partnership with Janrain, which helps brands to acquire users through social media, understand who the users are and engage them.

L'Occitane social sign-in

When a user is signed-in, the L'Occitane site shows them tailored banner content.

For instance, if a customer signs-in and he or she is a repeat customer, that user will see different content than a user who has never made a purchase on the site.

Currently, L'Occitane is encouraging social sign-ins through a giveaway of a 30ml Shea Butter Hand Cream to each user.

Also, during the checkout process, if users have not socially signed-in, there is another opportunity for them to do so.

L'Occitane U.S. site 

Replenishment campaign

L'Occitane enacted social sign-ins to replenish its ecommerce experience. It is now a user-targeted experience, per Ms. Chernin.

In fact, the efforts drove revenue for the brand.

There was a 12.05 percent lift in conversion rates since social sign-in was installed as well as a 33.32 lift in average page views.

Also, there was a 10.99 percent lift in average order value.

Social sign-in allows L'Occitane to target the brand message so that it is not promotion, but personal.

For instance, if a user is signed-in and has abandoned his or her cart, there are a variety of personalized ways that the brand triggers abandoned cart promotions.

“Traditional sign-in can be challenging, but if you have a customer who has socially signed-in, you can target them throughout the experience," Ms. Chernin said.

Final Take
Tricia Carr, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York