The complete guide to creating a high-performance online store

More than 10,000 new e-commerce sites were created in 2022. That's an increase of over 5% on the previous year. And the good news is that the craze continues into 2023. In the first quarter of 2023, e-commerce grew by 20.2% compared to 2022 (Sources: FEVAD, 2023).

But even if the figures are good, there's a shadow hanging over the horizon: setting up an online store isn't something you can improvise. And without the right support, becoming an e-retailer is an obstacle course.

So where do you start when it comes to setting up an online store? Suppliers, choice of products or services, e-commerce platform, customer acquisition strategy... We explain everything from A to Z. Here's the complete guide to creating an online store that converts: let's get started!

Definition: What is online store ?

An online store (or e-commerce site) is a website where visitors can purchase products or services. The principle is the same as in a physical store, the only difference being that the customer experience and purchase take place on the Internet. And the store's opening hours: an e-commerce site is accessible 24/7!

Online stores are different from showcase sites, where it's impossible to make a purchase. The aim of a showcase site is to present a company, its products or services (like a store window).

It's also important to distinguish between a marketplace and an ecommerce site. On an e-commerce site, the seller is the only one to showcase his or her products and services. A marketplace, on the other hand, is a large digital shopping mall. Each store represents a different seller. These sellers (independents, professionals or individuals) have the opportunity to sell their products, solutions or services. Traffic and visibility are multiplied, security is reinforced and costs are much lower.

Can't decide between the two? Marketplace or e-commerce: find out which model to choose.

What business model should you choose for your online store?

Before embarking on your ecommerce adventure, the first step is to choose the right business model. What type of store do you want to create? Discover the different options available to you:

The single-product store

The concept of the single-product store is simple: you offer a single product for sale on your e-commerce site. Like a coffee machine, a cordless vacuum cleaner or a dog grooming service.

The advantages? This type of ecommerce site is quick to launch and easy to manage. The user experience is simplified: where an e-shop with a large catalog takes longer to display (and longer to navigate)... A single-product site doesn't drive customers away because of the number of products, loading time or complexity of the customer journey.

On the other hand, these online stores do have a few drawbacks. All your revenue is based on a single product. You surely know the risks of putting all your eggs in one basket...

Our advice? Think about upselling, by offering complementary products or services on your website.

The multi-product store

Unlike the single-product site, the multi-product strategy consists of offering several products for sale on an e-commerce site.

Take the example of the Miliboo website: this brand sells designer furniture and home furnishings. On its e-commerce site (or on the Rakuten marketplace), you'll find chairs, sofas, tables, rugs...

By creating a multi-product website, your company can offer customers a wide range of products. Perfect for satisfying everyone's tastes and desires! It's also an ideal strategy for testing different products for sale, before keeping only the best.

But beware: choice can be both an advantage and a disadvantage. Customers can find themselves lost when faced with the numerous products or services on offer online. What's more, this type of website takes longer to create and is more complex to manage. You'll have more work and effort to put in, especially when it comes to after-sales service.

Our advice? Select the e-commerce CMS best suited to your project. And if you're just starting out, leave the website creation to a professional.

The marketplace

The marketplace resembles a large 2.0 shopping mall, where different merchants can sell their products or services.

If you decide to set up a marketplace and welcome other sellers to your platform, you'll be remunerated via a percentage of sales. In some cases, you may also offer paid subscriptions for merchants to take advantage of your marketplace services.

By creating your own marketplace, you gain an advantage over the competition: you offer a larger product catalog. You improve your search engine optimization (SEO) and your visibility on the Internet, by multiplying your strike force thanks to the presence of other sellers. Storage costs are generally lower, and shipping management can be delegated.

However, you will have less control over the level of service offered by other e-tailers. You have the power to collect, but not to control. To manage all sellers, the investment will be more substantial, and the brand less high.

Our advice? Rather than creating your own marketplace... Why not keep things simple (and efficient) and join our marketplace? Rakuten is a digital marketplace with 8,500 professional sellers and over 12 million customers.

The subscription-based e-commerce site

Birchbox, Le Petit Ballon, Quitoque... These three companies have one thing in common: their business model! They are brands that sell products or services on a monthly subscription basis:

• Birchbox offers a subscription to receive a monthly box of beauty products
• Le Petit Ballon sells a monthly subscription to a box of wines
• Quitoque sells a weekly subscription to receive cooking baskets.

With a subscription, you can offer attractive prices thanks to large order quantities. Your income is regular and constant, leaving little room for unpleasant surprises. Last but not least, you have a longer customer life and no cash upfront.

Nevertheless, it's more difficult to diversify your offerings with subscription marketing. The redundancy of products received can affect customer satisfaction.

Our advice? Open an e-shop on your monthly subscription site. This will encourage satisfied customers to re-purchase individual products... while boosting your income by diversifying your business through multi-product sales to new target groups.

Dropshipping

Dropshipping is a constantly evolving form of e-commerce. The concept is as follows: you list a product on your website, and your supplier ships it directly to the customer. Without going through you.

As the seller, you're only responsible for marketing and selling the product on your website. The advantage? No stock to manage, no products to ship. And no product-related costs to pay in advance. A practical way to outsource your ecommerce logistics and save money!

However, dropshipping gets a bad press. The lack of control over product quality is often criticized. Delivery times are generally very long, because shipping starts abroad. Finally, consumers question the prices charged by dropshippers (often excessive) and the lack of transparency on store websites, throughout the customer journey.

Our advice? Select your suppliers with care. And be as transparent as possible when it comes to contact information and delivery times.

Once you've chosen the business model for your e-shop, 7 new steps await you. Soon, you'll be able to make a living as an e-tailer. But first, you need to :

1. Follow the administrative formalities: what legal status should you choose to set up your business? How do you protect your domain name? Follow BPIFrance's advice, so you can launch your business in full compliance.
2. Find suppliers: compare domestic and foreign suppliers. You can find them from professional directories, via a Google search or by searching for suppliers based on the NACE code of certain products.
3. Naming your store: naming your store is an essential step in making a lasting impression on your target market and representing your identity. Before making it official on all your marketing materials, test it with a restricted circle (friends, family, colleagues, etc.).
4. Choose the right e-commerce platform: Shopify, Prestashop, Wix... Or perhaps Rakuten, if you opt for a marketplace strategy?
5. Select an online payment gateway: securing your payments is essential. Choose strong authentication and reassure your buyers throughout their customer journey.
6. Organize your e-shop's logistics: who's in charge of stock management, shipping and returns? Is it you, or a service provider? Now's the time to decide.
7. Write content for your store's pages: finally, think about the marketing actions that will attract, seduce and convert. From optimized texts on product pages to the choice of photos, not forgetting (of course) a quality design for the home page... Take care of your website's content!

How to make your first e-commerce sales?

Is your store officially online? Congratulations!

Now that you've created your shop, it's time for an action plan: how do you attract your first online visitors? And how do you convince them to order from your store? Here's our advice on how to make your first sales.

First of all, before thinking about conversion, it's important to understand the stages in the purchasing funnel:

• Discovery
• Interest
• Consideration
• Intention
• Evaluation
• Purchase

To support web users throughout their purchasing journey, start by communicating. You'll not only facilitate discovery, but also interest and consideration for your brand. Here are a few examples of actions you can take online:

• Deploying paid acquisition channels (or paid media): if your budget allows, this strategy involves investing in paid advertising. On social networks, via Google Ads, with advertising in the specialized press, or through influencer marketing... There are many ways to do this. This type of investment can help you get started!
• Focus on content marketing (or owned media): in the long term, one of the most effective strategies is native communication. Communicate on behalf of the brand, using high-quality content to build a community and increase visibility. Here again, there are many ways to do this: creating and animating your social network accounts (Instagram, TikTok etc.), running competitions on social networks, optimizing your SEO content (blog articles, enriched product pages) to improve natural referencing...
• Encourage word-of-mouth (or earned media): your first customers will be your best ambassadors. To encourage them to promote your online store, have you thought about setting up a referral system? Or put special promotions online for the launch, to attract the first buyers, who won't hesitate to pass on the good deal to their friends and family?

Setting up an online store: 3 mistakes to avoid

You now have all the tools you need to create your first e-shop. But before you set out to conquer the world of e-commerce, here are a few warnings. To aim for performance, avoid these mistakes:

1- Launching without a business plan: before you launch, you need to check the viability of your business project. This is a non-negotiable step! So, have you carried out a market study? Have you analyzed the competition? Have you set your prices seriously? Have you interviewed potential customers, to better understand your target market? If you get at least one "no", it's still too early to get started.

2- Creating an e-shop that scares buyers away: it's not enough to have a good product to open a good e-shop. The company's offer is not enough. The form and content of your website are also key success factors! Is your website responsive? Have you worked out a quality design? Have all spelling mistakes been corrected? Do pages load quickly? Are there enough photos on every product page? Is the user interface simple to navigate between pages? Once you've accumulated 100% "yes" votes, you're ready to go!

3- Choosing the wrong platform: mastering computer development can be a stumbling block to creating your own online store. To avoid choosing the wrong platform, or making technical mistakes, surround yourself with experts. Or make things easier for yourself, by joining a reliable, secure and well-known marketplace to launch your e-shop.

At Rakuten, we help over 8,500 sellers sell their products or services directly on our marketplace. You don't need a BAC +5 in e-commerce, nor do you need to know how to code. Simply create your store with us.

by Haro Valentin

4 winning strategies for increasing the average customer basket in e-commerce

Good news for e-tailers: over the 1st quarter of 2023, the average value of online purchases (products and services) rose by +10.1%. The average basket is now €68, compared with €62 in the first quarter of 2022 (source: Fevad, 2023).

But beware. To continue to increase the average shopping basket, every online store has a responsibility: to continue to make efforts, and to innovate with winning strategies. In the vast world of e-commerce, maximizing the average customer basket is an essential (and ongoing) quest to increase revenues.

At Rakuten, we've identified 4 strategies to help brands increase their customers' average basket size. To encourage your customers to spend more with every transaction, follow the guide: all our tips are in this article.

Definition: What is an average bassket?

The average basket is the average amount spent by a customer on a transaction. It can refer to a purchase in a physical store, as well as an order placed through a marketplace or e-commerce site.

A company's average basket therefore represents the average of all customer orders. Either overall, or broken down by sales outlet (such as an e-commerce site).

For every company, calculating the average shopping basket is of vital importance. It helps to improve profitability, understand consumer buying preferences and implement the best strategies for boosting growth.

It's easy to calculate: just take the sales figure and divide it by the number of orders. You can do this calculation to evaluate the average basket over a day, a week, a month or a year. The formula remains the same.

Here's an example You have a website selling second-hand goods. If your monthly sales are €20,000 for 312 orders, your average basket is €64.10.

20,000 € / 312 orders = 64.10 €.

So each customer spends an average of €64.10 when they make a purchase on your e-commerce site. That's a good start. But how can you increase this amount, and invite buyers to spend more on your site?

 4 strategies for increasing the average shopping basket

The starting point for boosting the growth of your online sales business is to increase your customers' average shopping basket. And it can't be improvised. Here are 4 strategies we recommend you implement:

Personalize the customer experience

Companies that offer a better customer experience achieve revenues between 4% and 8% higher than their market (source: Bain&Company). And these figures are not insignificant: customer experience is one of the most important purchasing criteria, in the eyes of customers!

It is even estimated that 81% of consumers would be willing to pay more for a better customer experience (source: Oracle). Perfect for boosting the average shopping basket, while increasing buyer satisfaction.

To improve the customer experience, the key strategy is to personalize the e-shop. The more personalized the experience, the more the customer will feel listened to, privileged and understood. The more satisfied they are with their online experience, the more they'll be willing to spend on the products or services you offer.

To offer a personalized experience that will increase the average shopping basket, here are 3 actions to implement:

• Use data such as purchase histories: you'll then know consumers' preferences. Then you can offer them products or services that match their interests!
• Offer predictive targeting, to display a personalized home page. For example, for an international e-commerce site, predictive targeting allows you to target the language spoken by the web user, to adapt the site's content.
• Display suggestions for complementary products or services. For example: "Internet users have also bought..." with suggestions for other offers, directly on product sheets.

Overview of suggestions on a Rakuten France product sheet

Personalizing the customer experience is just as important on your e-commerce site as it is on an application or mobile version. Even if the value of orders on desktop is 91% higher than on mobile, a good customer experience must be omnichannel! (source: ContentSquare).

Propose bundled offers

Bundled offers correspond to discounts or promotions when a customer buys a set of products. By offering discounts, you encourage the purchase of complementary products (cross-selling). The result? The value of the average basket increases!

For this strategy to be effective, the price of the product package offered must enable the customer to make savings. Don't hesitate to show customers that if they had bought each product separately, they would have paid much more.

In turn, the customer is delighted to have saved money, while benefiting from more products, thanks to the bundled offer. This marketing technique relies on cognitive biases, such as :

• The anchoring effect: we attribute more value to a product by referring to a given starting value. If the price drops thanks to a bundled offer, we keep the higher initial price in mind, and we're delighted to save money!
• The FOMO (or Fear Of Missing Out) effect: if the bundle is only valid for a few days (or a few minutes), the buyer will be afraid of missing out on a good deal. This fear of missing out makes it easier to buy. Set up a loyalty program... Focused on the average basket.

Implementing a loyalty program... Focused on the average basket

To satisfy your customers while improving your sales (and therefore your average basket), here's another winning strategy: the loyalty program!

As you know, loyalty is a lever for growth. Loyalizing a customer can cost up to 5 times less than winning over a new one. But you still need to know how to take care of your best customers, to invite them to buy again... With a better average basket.

To achieve this, have you considered offering exclusive benefits to customers who exceed a certain purchase amount?

For example, if your average basket today is €45, here's an action plan you could put in place: offer a complementary service, a free product or a discount voucher for a future online purchase, for any order over €50.

With this method, you invite your regular customers to spend an extra €5. A great way to increase the average final shopping basket!

Overview of benefits for members of the Rakuten France loyalty program

Overview of benefits for members of the Rakuten France loyalty program

This approach is based on the same logic as the previous tip: offer to customers, to invite them to increase their average basket.

By offering free delivery above a certain amount, you encourage customers to spend more on their orders. This technique is just as effective for loyal customers as it is for new ones.

On average, 62% of e-buyers abandon their shopping baskets because shipping costs are too high (source: Sendcloud study). The absence of free shipping is therefore a major disincentive to purchase.

To avoid driving customers away, the best technique is to define a free shipping threshold. The higher the purchase amount, the less customers will want to pay shipping costs. They'll prefer to add an extra product: take advantage of this to increase your average basket!

Overview of benefits for members of the Rakuten France loyalty program

Top 3 reasons for shipping-related order abandonment ( Sendcloud study, 2023 ):

• 62% delivery charges are too high
• 45% delivery time is too long
• 23% I can't choose my preferred delivery method

How have these 4 methods been deployed at Rakuten France?

At Rakuten, our priority is to help our e-merchants grow their business. On our marketplace, we don't sell our own products. Only sellers' products are featured! So we focus all our efforts on helping you grow your business.

When you join Rakuten, you'll benefit from a host of advantages that will help you increase your average shopping basket (easily and effectively). And boost your revenues.

Here's how we apply the 4 winning strategies presented above:

• Personalized customer experience: Rakuten France collects and analyzes your buyers' data, such as purchase history and preferences. The aim? To recommend relevant products to customers. This personalization encourages Internet users to discover other products on your store. Recommendations that match interests increase the likelihood of further purchases.
• Bundled offers: from our marketplace, customers can buy a bundle of products at a reduced price, rather than an individual purchase at full price. This cross-selling approach encourages the purchase of complementary products, increasing the overall value of the basket.
• Cashback loyalty program: customers of e-tailers present on our marketplace can join Club R. This free program refunds between 5% and 35% of the purchase price throughout the year, and can be combined with all our other available promotions. Over 12 million members receive a percentage of their purchase in the form of credit or real money. Perfect for encouraging customers to spend more, because they know they'll get a financial return.
• Coupon creation and free delivery: Rakuten France enables sellers to create discount coupons, giving customers the chance to benefit from discounts on their purchases. This is complemented by the offer of free delivery above a certain purchase amount. Internet users add more items to their shopping baskets, to avoid charges.

Example of a Rakuten France discount coupon

By combining these different methods, Rakuten France aims to create a memorable shopping experience for customers. The quality of the experience delivered leads to an increase in the average basket: shoppers are encouraged to add more items to their basket and spend more on each transaction.

Our sellers, for their part, enjoy sustained growth on their e-shop. Would you like to join them? And benefit from a community of over 12 million buyers who are members of Club R, France's most generous loyalty program? Click here to join:

by Haro Valentin

Click and Collect: the key to omnichannel commerce?

Commerce is becoming increasingly omnichannel. And that's good news. Today, consumers no longer hesitate to order a product online, then opt for in-store collection.

This is known as click and collect. And at Rakuten, adoption is massive: the number of "pickup" orders has risen from 27% in 2019 to 45% in 2023. But do you know how such a service works? What are its benefits, for buyers and sellers alike? And how can you implement it, to improve the customer experience and boost your growth?

Find out in this article.

Definition: What is Click and Collect? 

Click and collect is a service offered by companies, particularly in the retail sector. This omnichannel strategy merges online purchasing (from a website or mobile app) with in-store order collection.

This delivery method combines the best of both worlds: buy online without waiting anywhere, then collect your orders in person. It's a truly omnichannel system, which has been booming since the Covid-19 epidemic: according to a Fevad report, 21% of French people used Click and Collect for the first time during the health crisis and containment!

How does click and collect work?

Click & collect works simply, conveniently and quickly, for sellers and consumers alike. When implementing this system, here's what the user journey looks like:

• Online ordering: customers select their products online, from the product pages of an e-commerce site or marketplace. They add them to their virtual basket.
• Choice of pick-up: the customer chooses the click & collect option, rather than traditional home delivery or delivery to a relay point.
• Payment: after the e-shopping session, the buyer pays for the items online, from the website.
• Order confirmation: the store confirms the order (usually by e-mail).
• Order preparation: sales staff prepare the parcel for collection.
• Order collection: On the same day or within a short time, the customer visits the store to collect the order. They present their order confirmation (usually in the form of a QR code or order number).
• Happy ending: consumers can enjoy their products quickly, without waiting for them to be delivered.

The brand, for its part, offers a simplified shopping experience, and increases its in-store traffic. But these aren't the only benefits!

What are the advantages of click and collect?

More than a third of shoppers (34%) say they would choose click-and-collect delivery. In 2022, click-and-collect delivery attracted just 25% of consumers (source: Retail Economics report (2022)).

The massive adoption of this omnichannel service is also confirmed by retailers. Over 80% of retailers in France, Spain and Italy offer in-store pick-up services. According to Retails Economics (2022), the figure is half that in the USA and Canada.

This in-store collection system is so appealing because it has a number of positive points:

For consumers:

• Savings: delivery costs are lower for customers (or even free, as with our Rakuten marketplace).
• Speed: delivery times are reduced, with no risk of theft or loss.
• Visibility: customers have better visibility of a product's availability, so they can order it remotely without waiting.
• Flexible hours: customers can collect their purchases at the time of their choice, depending on the store's opening hours. No need to wait impatiently for a deliveryman at home!
• Environmental impact: this mode of delivery reduces the carbon footprint associated with deliveries. Orders are grouped together at a single pick-up point. In many cases, the products are already in store: logistics are not only more ecological, but also simplified.
• Control over the order: when picking up a parcel in-store, the buyer can immediately check the condition of the items, and make sure they meet expectations. In the event of a problem, it's easier to return purchases directly to the point of sale.
• Privileged contact: click & collect offers a more human and personalized shopping experience. Contact is encouraged when the order is collected. By opting for click & collect in local shops, consumers are also helping to support the local economy. For 57% of French people, supporting the activity of local merchants is important (Integral Ad Science study, 2021).
• Personal data security: this in-store collection solution limits the sharing of personal data (personal address, digicode, etc.). Perfect for reassuring wary customers.

For retailers:

• Increased in-store traffic: by deploying a pickup service, brands encourage customers to come and discover their physical store. This is known as "web to store". It's an excellent way of attracting new customers and introducing them to other products during pick-up.
• A boost for additional sales: 70% of in-store parcel collectors make impulse purchases on the spot (Global Data, 2022). Perfect for boosting retailer growth!
• Increased average basket: click&collect is often used to buy products that are heavy, bulky or difficult to manage with traditional delivery. Offering this pick-up option increases the average shopping basket: the value of products picked up in-store is on average 47% higher than the average for products bought online and delivered in the traditional way!
• Lower logistics costs: fewer basket abandonments, no delivery costs or product returns to anticipate, free point-of-sale collection... Click & collect saves you time, while generating higher margins.
• Improving the customer experience: by making purchasing simpler, faster, smoother and more flexible, click&collect boosts customer satisfaction. And loyalty. Personalized interactions between sellers and buyers also have an impact on brand image and customer preference. A real virtuous circle for business and growth.
• Inventory optimization: this "web-to-store" collection method helps stores to manage their inventories in line with actual demand. The result? Fewer risks of overstocking or out-of-stock situations.
• Adapting to new buying habits: click and collect meets the new expectations of modern customers (flexible, fast purchases), helping retailers to remain competitive in the marketplace.

As you can see, click & collect is a win-win option for customers and sales outlets alike. This sales system, already popular with 80% of the population, is easy to set up. We'll tell you how...

How to set up click and collect with Rakuten?

Rakuten is France's 1st omnichannel marketplace. We combine the best of both worlds (physical & digital), to satisfy both buyers and sellers. All thanks to a click&collect service: Rakuten Instore.

Hundreds of retailers and small businesses are taking advantage of this option. The system is simple: customers order products remotely from a seller on our marketplace, then collect them from their store or warehouse. Within two hours. Free of charge.

If you're interested in "phygitalizing" your business, it's easy: activating Rakuten Instore is just a few clicks away. You can choose to activate click&collect for your entire catalog, for a selection of products, or even for several stores. Just follow the guide:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrPY_aQaaKE&ab_channel=RakutenFrance

Enable click and collect on an entire catalog

1. Connect to your Merchant Dashboard.
2. Go to "Inventory" and click on "Category management".
3. Click on "All" and then on "Define shipping costs".
4. Select the "Pick-up on site" delivery method.
5. Enter your zip code and telephone number.
6. Click on "Save". The update may take 2 to 3 minutes, to activate in-store pick-up on the entire catalog.

Would you like to delegate this part? It's perfectly possible. Your E-Commerce Consultant can activate the Rakuten Instore option on your account in just a few minutes. Contact him/her by clicking here.

Activate the option manually on a selection of products

If you prefer to choose your own selection of products to pick up in-store, you can do so in just 3 clicks:

1. Go to "My Account" by clicking here.
2. Click on "All my ads" in the Inventory section.

1. Select the ad of your choice
2. Click on Modify ad.

1. Tick the box "I authorize the buyer to collect it on site".
2. Enter your zip code and telephone number.

How do I activate Rakuten Instore for multiple stores?

You can activate Rakuten Instore for several stores, and link them to the same account if you wish. The stores will then be recommended by geolocation to buyers.

Our teams can help you activate your click & collect and fine-tune your strategy.

Click & collect is not just a trend, but a service that makes all the difference. Your customers have already adopted this option: why shouldn't you?

At Rakuten, France's leading omnichannel marketplace, we can help you implement your web-to-store strategy, thanks to click & collect. Join our 8,500 professional sellers and 6,000 connected physical points of sale.

by Haro Valentin

Cashback: definition, benefits and how does it work?

When asked how to combat inflation, one of the solutions can be summed up in a single word: cashback. While inflation generates a loss of purchasing power for consumers, cashback is a lever that can help increase it. And that's not all!

Cashback is a win-win strategy. Like consumers, sellers benefit from the many positive spin-offs of this model. But do you (really) know what cashback is? How does it work? And how can you effortlessly set up a cashback offer for your customers?

Follow the guide - all the answers are in this article!

Definition: What is cashback ? 

Cashback  enables consumers to recoup part of the amount spent on a purchase. In the form of credits, points or cash. 48% of French people report using at least one cashback program (source: Ipsos study 2024).

Most often, this partial reimbursement model is between 0.5% and 20% of the amount spent. A handsome reward for shoppers. With INSEE forecasting a 2.2% year-on-year increase in consumer prices (as of June 2024), cashback can help combat inflation.

Although this type of commission also exists in physical stores, cashback is developing mainly on the Internet. On e-commerce sites, marketplaces and specialized platforms linked to partner sites. Purchase after purchase, Internet users save money. Not to be confused with promotions!

What's the difference between cashback and promotion?

In the jargon of online shopping, it's not uncommon to confuse cashback with promotion. But these two strategies are quite different:

• Promotions are fixed before a purchase. Discounts are set by merchants during sales, Black Friday, or at other times of the year. The price of the product is therefore altered, for example by using promo codes.
• Cashback takes place after the purchase. This "return of money" is a refund. It does not alter the price of the product: the customer pays at the posted price, but benefits from a reward after the fact.

In short, cashback is a deferred reward, whereas promotion is an instant reward.

However, you don't have to choose between these two forms of reward. They complement each other. For example, on our Rakuten marketplace, buyers who are part of our loyalty program (Club R) can accumulate both:

• A discount in euros on their first order
• Cashback credited to their customer account, up to 20% reimbursed on every purchase.

Perfect for saving money and (finally) getting your money's worth.

How does cashback work?

71% of French people say they know how online cashback works (source: Webloyalty and Kantar study). What about you?

Cashback works like a promotional offer: the seller defines the percentage he wishes to reward on his various products, with each purchase. Companies can set up the system themselves, or use a network of e-commerce players.

On the consumer side, it's just as simple:

• The customer joins the brand's loyalty program.
• They make a purchase: cashback is mainly developed online, but also works in certain stores. On Rakuten, cashback works on new or second-hand purchases.
• After the purchase, the customer recovers a percentage of the total amount spent.
• This amount is added to the customer's cashback, or in the form of points.
• Customers can then use their cashback to finance future purchases!

Here are a few examples of possible cashback on Rakuten partner sites:

Cashback: what's in it for the customer?

This form of reward offers many advantages to shoppers. Here are just a few of them:

• Saving money: by recovering part of the amount spent, customers reduce the actual cost of their orders. For regular or high spenders, this is a great way to benefit from savings.
• Flexible use of rewards: depending on the site, cashbacks are paid out in the form of credits, points or euros. Internet users are free to choose how to use their rewards.
• Flexibility in obtaining rewards: conversely (and upstream), on some sites like Rakuten, it's possible to accumulate cashback from over 2,000 partner sites! The cashback can then be spent on Rakuten.
• Ease of use: a cashback offer can be activated in just a few clicks. It couldn't be simpler. Forget the days of collecting coupons and hard-to-remember promotional codes! Browser extensions like Rakuten's Club R can also automate cashback with partner sites.
• More thoughtful spending: with cashback, users can compare offers between different merchants before finalizing their purchases. Consumers take their time to think things through, and avoid compulsive shopping.
• Discovery of new sites: 63% of customers are happy to discover new e-commerce sites thanks to cashback (source: Syndicat National du Marketing à la Performance (SNMP) study).
• Increased confidence: when a cashback offer is made, buyers gain confidence in the website they are visiting. For 75% of those surveyed, cashback is a sign of confidence when shopping online! (source: study by the Syndicat National du Marketing à la Performance (SNMP))

Cashback: what are the benefits for merchants?

Cashback is also a virtuous circle for merchants. The benefits are as follows:

• Attracting new customers: as we've just seen, 63% of consumers discover new sellers thanks to cashback. Furthermore, 42% of French people consider cashback as a decisive factor when choosing an online retailer (Ipsos study 2024). When a site offers competitive cashback, it's easier to capture consumers' attention and encourage them to make a purchase, thus boosting sales.
• Retain existing customers: 71% of e-tailers consider cashback to be a powerful tool for acquiring and retaining customers. Rewards keep customers coming back for future orders. Bingo, it's an excellent lever for customer loyalty and retention!
• Improved brand awareness: by relaying cashback offers on platforms or via marketing campaigns, the company attracts attention... And increases its brand awareness and visibility. Perfect for reinforcing brand image in the face of other market players.
• Competitive edge: speaking of market players, cashback rewards are an effective strategy for standing out from the crowd. Competitors who don't offer this type of reward are instantly less attractive!
• Increase in average shopping basket and frequency of purchase: e-retailers who have implemented cashback report a 10-20% increase in their average shopping basket, and a 2-fold increase in frequency of purchase (source: study by the Syndicat National du Marketing à la Performance (SNMP)).
• Increased conversion rate: this increase is around +5% with cashback. A significant lever for growth! (source: SNMP)

For relevant advice on improving your strategy, read our article Marketplace: A practical guide to boost your e-commerce business.

Example of a cashback program: Rakuten's Club R

At Rakuten, we've made cashback one of our top priorities. To enable consumers to save, and sellers to acquire and build loyalty.

Our cashback program is called "Club R":

• 13 million members
• 900 € purchasing power on average
• 40% higher average shopping basket than non-members

Through this free, no-obligation loyalty program, members receive up to 20% cashback on every purchase... whether on products bought from the Rakuten marketplace or from the network of 2,000 affiliated partners (including Booking.com, Nike, Lego, Apple...).

The cashback is financed by Rakuten, and takes the form of Rakuten Points. According to Fevad (2021), we are the most generous e-commerce program in France!

So, are you convinced by this win-win system for both your brand and your customers? Now all you have to do is implement it.

How to deploy a cashback strategy easily with Rakuten France?

Would you like to invest in cashback, but don't know where to start? Follow the guide:

1. Join the Rakuten marketplace

Start by creating your Rakuten account by filling in this form.

After registering, simply complete these 4 steps to start selling on our platform:

• Activate your Rakuten E-Shop using the code sent to you in your confirmation e-mail, then configure it.
• Import your products onto the platform.
• Customize your shipping costs.
• Activate payment for your sales by completing the KYC procedure.

Then, your ads will be eligible for the 5% cashback, financed by Rakuten. The only exception? Products covered by the Lang law of August 10, 1981, which imposes a single price on new books in order to protect the industry.

2. Create additional cashback campaigns

By becoming a Rakuten seller, you can manage your development strategies on a personalized basis. You can offer up to 20% extra in Rakuten Points, available only on your offers. Feel free to boost your growth!

If you activate additional cashback campaigns, you can offer your customers additional discounts without affecting the face price of your products. Ads with additional Rakuten Points discounts are automatically promoted on the most attractive positions on our platform. Here's an example The high-traffic Rakuten Deals page.

This additional cashback service works on a performance basis. You only spend what you generate. An economical choice for you, and one that your customers appreciate. In fact, shoppers are more interested in offers that multiply the points they earn in their cashback.

Imagine: you offer a 10% discount in points on a day when Rakuten is offering 20%. Your customers (Club R members) benefit from a double advantage and 30% cashback! The results? They take action without hesitation.

3. Calculate your budget

Before rushing into the cashback exercise, don't forget to calculate your budget.

Let's take the previous example. On a Rakuten Day, when Rakuten finances 20% of the platform, you offer an additional 10% commission in points.

A Club R member selecting a €200 product in your store will receive :

• 10% x 200 = €20 thanks to your Rakuten Points campaign
• 20% x 200 = €40 thanks to Rakuten Points financed by Rakuten

Your customer will receive a total discount of €60!

To define your budget, you need to calculate a percentage of business volume that will be generated over a set period. For example, if you set up a 10% points campaign on a selection of products, you'll need to calculate the volume you'll generate and apply 10% to it.

It's up to you to set the discount percentage to suit your budget. You can also adjust it at any time. And if in doubt, ask your E-commerce Consultant for advice: he'll help you define the best budget and strategy to boost your growth.

4. Analyze the performance of cashback campaigns

A cashback strategy doesn't stop when you deploy it. Keep track of the results over time!

In fact, your ads benefiting from additional Rakuten Points are automatically highlighted on the most attractive sites on the Rakuten platform, including the Rakuten Deals page. These ads are also promoted on product sheets, on your e-shop and on our various acquisition levers.

Your mission (if you accept it) is to monitor the performance of these campaigns, on the different sites. Analysis can be done in real time. From your Rakuten seller space, you have everything you need to manage your budgets, identify the most effective offers and optimize your ads.

On your marks, get set... Launch cashback, analyze, optimize, then do it again.

To win over new customers, retain old ones and increase your average shopping baskets, discover Rakuten cashback. Our 13 million Club R members are waiting for you. What are you waiting for?

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