There are lots of things that will help you build your company into a strong and successful business – from having an excellent product or service to hiring the best employees you can hire. However, it is arguable that customer retention is one of, if not the most important, factors of all. Here’s why:
It’s Cheaper
Obviously, the more customers you can keep, the easier it will be to make sales without having to spend thousands and thousands on marketing. It’s a lot cheaper to sell stuff to a happy customer than it is to convince a new one to come and check out what you have to offer.
It’s a huge myth that in order to make more money, you need to invest in the acquisition side of business above all else. Acquiring new customers is never a bad thing, but according to research, it is not only a little more expensive to acquire new customers (instead of selling to someone with whom you’ve already built a relationship), but it is five times more costly to do so.This makes sense because you have to work on attracting them to your website, get them to stick around for more than five seconds, and have them make a purchase. None of that is easy, and when you’re dealing with an established customer, you only really need to focus on the last step.
Loyal Customers are Your Best Advertisers
Not only that, but customers who are loyal to your brand will actually do some of your marketing for you. They are ambassadors to your brand whether they’re giving you five-star reviews, telling their friends and family about the great service you offer, or showing off the stuff they’ve bought from you.
In these days of social media and the internet, it’s so easy to write a review. It’s even easier for a potential new customer to check out your company’s reputation online. Taking good care of your existing customer will build your credibility and help you bring in new customers.
Achieving High Retention Levels
That brings you to the question, how exactly do you maintain a high level of customer retention? Luckily, it’s pretty easy. Basically, you can offer a high level of customer service like ticketoffices.com, where nothing is too much trouble and your customer service staff is kind and attentive. You can offer incentives for your customers to return like Asos.com does with its rewards program. If you can do those two things, and you can deliver on every promise you make to your customers (or make it right by giving them freebies, if for some reason you cannot), then you will not struggle to retain customers.
To accomplish this, you will need to train your customer service staff to a high degree. This might seem like an unnecessary expense, but remember – it’s five times cheaper to sell to an existing customer. So actually, it’s a great investment.
