Businesses automatically focus on acquiring new customers, investing in marketing, and advertising efforts just to garner new customers. But successful businesses know that customer retention can be a greater and quicker profit avenue than attracting new customers. If you want your business to achieve sales success and a wider customer base, take care of your existing customers.
Tip #1: Prioritize excellent customer satisfaction
Want loyal customers for life? Improve your customer’s experience with your business! A study by Zendesk shows that 62% of B2B and 42% of B2C customers purchased more after a good customer service experience. Plus, loyal customers are willing to refer your business to friends and family!
To improve your customer service:
- Provide a frictionless user experience. Customers lose interest when they have to go through several steps to reach checkout. So, remove any hurdles on the checkout process that makes the checkout process tedious.
- Quality service is a must. If customers visit your website, can they easily find what they’re looking for? Do you have chatbots that can answer your customers’ basic questions?
Tip #2: Offer incentives to your customers
Consumers love freebies. You could offer special discounts/freebies based on the frequency of a customer’s visit/purchase. For instance, you could give 50% discount on your service for customers who’ve been doing business with you for the past couple of months.
Offer loyalty programs. Research has shown that people like being a part of a community, so make them feel like they’re a part of yours. It might sound like a big investment, but the returns are double and you gain more loyal customers!
Tip #3: Be active. Announce your business’s presence.
Almost all types of customers are present on the internet, and so should your business. You can engage with your customers online by:
- Getting your customers to like, follow or subscribe to your social media profiles. Social media sites are great networks to build customer relationship. Customers can provide feedback and you can get in touch with previous customers.
- Sending a follow-up email or message. How did they find your product/service? Did it help solve their problems? Do they have any concerns or other questions? You can also provide tips on how to use your product or optimize the effect of your service.
- Engage with customers on social media. Did they post a photo/status about your product/service? Show your appreciation! Consistency is key, but remember to engage with them only when necessary.
Tip #4: Provide value through content
Let your customers know that you’re an expert on your industry. Help them make the most out of your product/service. Informing, helping and engaging with your audience through valuable content helps build your customer-friendly reputation.
Plus, more audience-relevant content can help you increase presence in the search results. That means higher chances to acquire new customers too!
Tip #5: Inform your customers on all products/services you offer.
They might encounter a product/service they never knew they need. Or they can keep your business in mind as reference in case they encounter a situation where they’ll need your product/service. Since they already trust your business, they’re likely to do business with you again in the future.
Retaining customers is easier than acquiring new ones, in terms of revenue making.
Loyalty is rare, especially from customers, so learn to appreciate them. Nurturing your existing customers goes a long way – the more satisfied they are, the more they’re going to refer you. And that means acquiring new customers to satisfy and retain! Your customer base will grow, and so will your business.