Increasing your customer retention is a fast track to growth. Statistics show that it’s six times easier and cheaper to make a sale to an existing customer than it is to a new one. Happier customers come back more, they spend more money and, most importantly, they talk to others.
And yet, so many businesses seem more focused on getting more customers. Sure, customers are coming in the door, but they might be exiting just as fast, putting a real handbrake on growth.
What are you doing to delight your customers? Do you know what your customers want? What is your strategy for communicating with customers? Ask yourself these questions and answer honestly.
There are three aspects to every customer experience – product, service, and relationship.
You could employ any number of customer retention strategies to improve on the areas you need to. What you focus on will depend on your business type.
1. Do you need to improve your product?
- Survey customers and ask them what they want
- Acknowledge and address quality concerns
- Put quality control systems in place and train your team
- Under promise and over deliver (UPOD)
2. Do you need to improve your service?
Your product may be great, but the way it’s being delivered to customers may be letting your product down.
- What is the onboarding process like for new customers? Are they wowed?
- Are you delivering on time?
- Is it easy for customers to buy from your website if you have an online store?
- How does your team treat customers?
- How are your top customers being managed?
- What’s your after sales service like?
- Are you following up and making sure your customer had a great experience?
3. Do you need to improve your relationship with customers?
Even if you’re a 100% online business, you still need to build a relationship with your customers.
- Does your business have a great personality? How would you describe it?
- Is your digital presence easy and fun to engage with?
- How do you reward customer loyalty?
- How do you recognise your best customers?
- What are you doing to surprise and delight your customers? Be different. We live in a world of sameness
Looking at your customer experience from the product, service and relationship perspectives helps create a solid customer retention plan.
If you need help setting customer retention goals and measuring their impact on the bottom line, get in contact. We can help you wrap that into your one page Business Plan.
“You are out of business if you don’t have a prospect!” – Zig Ziglar
.
