Entrepreneurs can be a bit like Casanova: always romancing new customers, and sometimes going to complicated and intricate lengths to draw them in. But that’s what entrepreneurs are supposed to do, right? Well, sort of.
Creating new relationships with customers can help a business grow, but maintaining and building on the bonds you already have will help your business truly succeed. Customer retention is as important as customer acquisition, and the numbers prove it. It costs up to 25 times less to keep a client than to get a replacement. Would you rather spend $100 to make sure your hard-won clients are thrilled or pay $2,500 in search of substitutes?
Small businesses must build long-term customer loyalty and trust programs. But first, they need to understand what could happen if they don’t.
Paying Customers The Right Attention
Your existing customers should feel that they’re working with a trustworthy business that cares about their wants and needs. But if you go off trying to find as many new customers as possible, ignoring the customers you already have, you can be sure of a few things.
First, your existing clients will get restless. You can’t expect good customers to stick with you if you aren’t giving them anything in return. And your competitors will be more than happy to take fleeing clientele off your hands. Once those customers start to leave, your reputation will go with them. Customers talk, and their voices carry. Figures indicate you can increase your business’s profitability by an incredible 75% if you just bump up your customer retention by a measly 5 percent. Not only that, but satisfied customers are more likely to refer new customers to you.
Building Relationships That Last
Since the beginning, we at TWT have focused on our relationships with clients. As we’ve grown, this hasn’t always been easy, but we’ve found a few things that go a long way toward keeping them satisfied. To enjoy the serious benefits of customer retention, adopt measures that keep your audience top of mind and close to your corporate heart:
1. Update your core values.
Does your core value statement include customer experiences? Add a core value about commitment to helping clients. Share it with your teammates so they understand you’re serious about prioritizing customers.
2. Communicate, communicate, communicate.
Your occasional dashed-off emails are not communication. You need real communication: the kind that’s honest and genuine. Meet face-to-face with your clients when you can. Real experiences form shared memories that forge lasting bonds.
3. Make someone responsible.
Define who owns the “happy customer” experience at your company. Is it your top sales professional or maybe the assistant technician down the hall who has a penchant for socializing?
4. Empower your employees.
You hired your employees — now, trust them. Set them free to make client happiness decisions on the basis of core values and parameters. Define in clear terms what they can do. If they need your permission, you’ll become a bottleneck.
Read the full article on Forbes.com: https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2017/05/23/four-ways-to-build-lasting-customer-relationships/
