7 ways to get “repeat” Business from Marketing to Current Customers – when Growing your Business
“The most Profitable results in business comes from repeat customers – customers that boast about your Products or Service, and bring friends with them”
Marketing Topics: Hire the “right” People, Future, Follow up, top Service, References, Referrals & Testimonials, CRM Database
All wise Founders & Business Owners know that repeat business is roughly half (1/2) the cost of attracting new customers. There are millions of dollars spent every year on Marketing for companies to retain customers. These dollars are typically spent in market research, product development, advertising & other brand-related activities – so that the customer remains impressed with the company.
Customer Retention should be the focuses of your company. If you execute this properly, customers will be happy with your company. So what are the various tactics & strategies you can implement, to get “repeat” business from customers? And how can you continue to retain them with your brand? Here are eight (8) Marketing tactics to get repeat business from customers.
1) Hire the “right” People.
You need people communicating with customers, who are smart at handling challenging customers. At the same time, you need the right people in operations (ie, fulfillment) who can help you meet customer expectations. An excellent front end customer representative, combined with the good work done by the back end, can result in customer satisfaction & even delight – which is the goal you should be aiming for if you want repeat business from customers.
2) Talk about Future requirements during Initial Closing of the first sale.
Always know a client’s present requirement going in. During initial closure, you will probably get an answer of whether the customer can become a repeat customer. Your job now will be to follow up with the customer on time and whenever he had said he will need the next lot of products or future products.
3) Follow up in the “near” Future.
The above step takes us to the next most important point – follow up. Please don’t think that the customer will come to you by himself. It might be that first time service didn’t meet his expectations and is regretting you. Or already the customer has received quotations for the next order from someone else. By being complacent and not following up with customers, you will probably lose very valuable repeat business. You can be one step ahead of your competitors by hiring dedicated people in Sales and emphasize follow up with customers. Good service will lead to further word-of-mouth to other companies which will bring in more new customers.
4) Give “excellent” Service the “first” Time, then “every” Time.
Most of your customers will become “repeat” customers if you give them excellent service the first time. This is because – even tho’ they’re giving you an order – the customer will be cautious about placing order with you. “You never get a 2nd chance to make a 1st Impression.” What if you break his trust? But by giving good service the first time, you are gaining the customers trust. And good or better service that you give each time, will help the customers to trust you more. They then will become a repeat customer for your business. Thus good service first time means repeat business in the future.
5) “Go out of your way” for the User’s Convenience.
Customer loyalty will not be built by being normal or giving just regular service. Customer loyalty is built when you “go out of the way” for the customer and give a really personalized service. Top automobile manufacturer’s realize that they need to go out of the way to satisfy customers. Examples include companies like Mercedes, BMW, Cadillac and others. These companies realize the importance of customization and personalization as tools to make customers happy. And thus they provide the best service to their customer – who come back the next time.
6) Generate References, Referrals & Testimonials thru “existing” Customers.
This is not direct repeat business, but rather a good Marketing technique, because you are increasing the customers “lifetime value” by encouraging them to help you do your selling thru References, Referrals & Testimonials. This will bring in more customers for your company. You can always ask good existing customer for References, Referrals or Testimonials. The existing customer will give references only when he is happy with your service. Therefore, potential users who see or hear these, will have confidence in the credibility. It may be the tipping point in his decision process.
7) Maintain a Database / CRM system
The reason why Domino’s as a Pizza chain was able to prosper is because of its database. Each and every customer is cataloged as per their mobile number. Their last order is maintained in the database. And when you call Domino’s, they already know the delivery address, because that too is stored in the CRM (Customer Relationship Management) database. They can also send out promotions to attract more of you business. So for a company which is into pizza delivery, Domino’s is doing a fantastic job by using the technology of its database to more repeat customers.
Small Business can benefit even more from a CRM system. The more existing clients you have, the more promotions you can do to your limited set of clientele. These clientele can also generate references for you through forwarding your mailers to people they know. Similarly, you can run various other techniques when you have a limited database which will probably ultimately attract more customers and ensure that the existing customers remain repeat customers.
Conclusion: Overall, all of the above points come down to one simple thing – Taking care of your customer. If you take proper care of your customer, give him proper attention and give him excellent & personal service, the customer should ideally remain a “repeat” customer throughout his life – which will give him a good Lifetime Value. Customers who give you repeat business are the most profitable customers for the company, because you don’t have any acquisition cost. Only lower maintenance costs.
Comments: Do you know any other ways to get Repeat Customers?
from Marketing91.com 21 July 17 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4.biz
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