Business owners often remind themselves that the primary reason that they are in business is to sell their products and services, but that is really just one piece of the overall puzzle in the grand scheme of things. It is a crucial mistake to forget that these four simple imperatives keep you in business:
- Getting more customers to buy from you.
- Getting them to buy more frequently.
- Getting them to spend more with you in each customer engagement with your business.
- Getting them to recommend you to your friends in a B2C environment, and colleagues and associates in a B2B environment.
So why, then, do most businesses concentrate all of their efforts on a SINGLE experience and/or transaction?
What if, instead of ending with a single purchase action by a converted customer, you began with the following actions and, in doing so, focused on 3 primary goals:
- Building solid, ongoing, and authentic relationships with your customers.
- Transforming customers/clients from a singular transaction into returning clients, and ultimately stark raving fans and advocates.
- Leveraging the unstoppable power of direct referrals, recommendations, and word-of-mouth for outreach to other potential customers through social networking. (Remember Know Me-Like Me- Trust Me, Buy From Me!) Referrals, recommendations, and word-of-mouth gives your business and established degree of trust.
What if, by following these rules, you were able to increase your Top Line Growth by 25%-40%? Basically tapping into an existing resource (current customers), and creating a platform for future growth from your existing customer base.
Don’t Forget The 80/20 Rule
20 percent of your customers, likely produces anywhere in the range of 80 percent of your revenue.
Do you know where the majority percentage of your sales are coming from: new or returning customers?
Identify what percentage of your company’s sales come from first-time customers, and what percentage comes from existing customers who make repeat clients/customers, upgrade to higher levels of spending, or refer other clients/customers to your business?
Once you have identified your higher percentages, and where the majority of your sales are coming from; compare and contrast the total amount of money and time you spend on acquiring customers versus maintaining, nurturing and retaining your existing client/customers. You are likely to notice a huge imbalance between the two analyses.
It’s not just that you are likely spending the most amount of money and mis-allocating of resources on the customers that return the least value. What adds insult to injury is that, in doing so, you alienate your business from its most loyal buyers. How do the clients/customers that enjoy your product or service interpret the message that you send when offering new clients/customers extreme discounts and promotions? — They are likely feeling disenfranchised at the least when you are still charging them full price without any bonuses, but yet you offer bonuses and promotions to clients/customers who have never bought from you before.
Time To Stop Losing Customers
Let’s be clear: Losing a single customer is unacceptable. Ever. You need to obsess with customer retention.
- No cable customer should ever have to switch from one provider to another.
- No person should ever have to decide whether or not they need to try a new tooth paste.
- No human being should ever have to switch from Sprint to Verizon – Can You Hear Me Now?
Yet, it happens every day. All too many businesses give their customer base too many reasons to consider an alternative to what they offer. They make it easy in the five following ways:
- Pure Neglect – Lack of caring.
- Horrible Customer Service.
- Losing Touch with their customers. (Not updating their Buyer Persona’s as market demand requires)
- Not using the customer feedback loop to improve the product/service or the buying experience. [EMPHASIS THROUGHOUT] – NOT LISTENING!
- Lack of Innovation.
The Key To Success
Start with “Retention”, rather than as an ending point.
By increasing your ability to maintain and retain clients/customers, you invariably increase your competence in knowing how to retain clients/customers.
This will allow you to decrease your attrition rates, and turn your passive approach into a proactive and actionable approach ; and further allow you to be intentional and strategic in your imperative of growing Top Line Growth.
Lastly, it will allow you to break your addiction to client acquisition as a growth strategy!
Call us Today – 980-221-9377 if you need help!
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