Customer loyalty is essential. In fact, we believe that having a loyal customer base is key to future success. We have witnessed businesses that doesn’t understand the value of loyal customers. It’s no surprise that these businesses often fail. Here’s a few reasons why loyal customers are essential to your success.
It’s Easier to Convert an Existing Client
This is quite straightforward. If you have a customer that is impressed with what you do, then they will be more open to try something else. It really doesn’t matter what you’re selling if you have people returning to buy it. Once a customer is sold on one idea, they’re more like to be sold for even more.
Word-of-Mouth Can Go Far
Here at ActionCOACH Bristol, we base our own success on the success of our clients. For if our clients are achieving great results then that reflects well on us. Many of our clients have gone on to refer us to future clients. Loyal customers are more likely to act as brand advocates.
Customer Loyalty Means Growth
Did you know that a 5% increase in customer retention increases business profits by 25-95%? That’s huge. In fact, that alone should tell you just how important customer loyalty is to success.
So that’s a few reasons why customer loyalty is so important. But once you have retained a customer, there are many steps you must take to retain them.
Offer Something Special
This is always effective. A loyalty scheme will encourage people to stay. You only have to look at the Nectar card to see how effective this can be. Many customers can be enticed to stay with the promise of freebies or special deals.
If you are going to offer this, try to be as innovative and creative as possible. For example, don’t just offer the same old products. Offer bigger prizes that clients can work towards. Just be creative with it and make it feel worthwhile. If you already offer a loyalty scheme based on product sales, how about offering one for customer referrals? The beauty of this whole offering is it nurtures and rewards your clients, making them feel valued and special.
Get Feedback
How often do you ask your clients for feedback? For every free event we host, we ask our attendees to leave us feedback. This helps us improve the experience and improve how we can better serve our clients. Consider every possible factor. If there’s food, ask what they thought of the food. Ask what they liked best and ask what they thought of you. In some occasions, people are often very polite but by giving your customers the option to be heard, they will appreciate the value. Most importantly, you also gain first-hand insights on what your clients appreciate or don’t appreciate about your business. Use this data to your advantage to improve their experience.
Don’t Spam Them
This one is key. If you have an email list or an SMS service then make sure you segment your lists. You don’t want to spam your clients with updates about products or services they already get. You’re likely to find your CTR drop and your Unsubscribe list increase. Try to send out targeted correspondence to your customers. Something that tells them how important they are, maybe combine it with your special offer. The key here is to time them well.
There’s a few factors to consider when trying to improve your customer loyalty. Got any strategies that have worked for you? Comment them below. If you are struggling to retain clients, contact us today for a complimentary coaching session. Our team of experienced professionals are equipped to help you handle the whole journey to building a client-base that will stick around.
