4 Ways to Make Your Customers Keep Returning for More

Let’s put a point for debate out in the universe:

Old Customers > New Customers

And while the readers might ponder upon their polar opinions about the above-written statement, let’s list down some statistics.

• Acquiring one new customer can be a 5x bigger investment than retaining a customer.
• Improving customer retention by just 5% can lead to a profit increment of about 20% to 95%. 
• While the success rate of making a sale to a new customer stands between 5-20%, it is about 60-70% for existing customers.

Although there might be a dichotomy between salespeople about the level of importance of new and old customers, we can all agree that customer retention metrics is crucial for any business, big or small. 

Businesses thrive on long-term relations and word-of-mouth marketing and your existing customers are a key to both. 

So when you acquire a new customer, take good care of them to keep them coming back for more.

How? Let’s see. 

1. Assume they will forget about you.

There is a fine line between reminding and badgering, and the key is to never cross it when it comes to customers. 

That being said, if you work with a new customer once, the probability is that you know about them enough to make them a part of your targeted marketing strategies. 

There is a lot of competition in the market and it is possible that the customers who have worked with you once might not remember about you at all for their next project. 

In order to avoid this and gaining the upper hand for the next deal, keep them in the loop. Strategically scheduled personalized emails, newsletters, discounts, and other offers, that you know are relevant for them - there are many ways to keep your business on your customers’ Nice list. 

2. Collaboration goes a long way.

Collaboration can be done in numerous ways, and none of the ways is bad. For instance, 

• If you are creating important video content, then you might ask one of your existing clients to collaborate with you as an SME. This can also be done when you create a client testimonial video. 
• You can team up with them for a social cause. In fact, you can look into your customers’ CSR activities or general beliefs and offer to contribute. 
• You can collaborate with them for eBooks and research papers. 

Recommended: 9 Barriers in Customer Retention and How to Break Them

All of these ideas are focussed upon building a better, stronger, long-term relationships with your customers. 

3. Appreciate them. 

Unconditional appreciation makes a permanent mark on any person, even when it is a big customer. 

So when a client thanks you for your services, instead of ending the conversation with a simple “you’re welcome”, you may do something as modest as sending a personal appreciation note to them thanking them in return for choosing to do business with you. Sometimes, customer service outsourcing can be done to improvise the service.

Furthermore, if you get to know that your client has recommended your services to someone or if you gain a new customer with their recommendation, you can send simple personalized gifts to show your appreciation. This will only make your relationships stronger with them. 

4. Always remember why they chose you in the first place. 

Customers tend to move forward from service companies because the reason they initially liked the company gets “lost in translation” somewhere. 

For good customer experience management, you should always keep up with your clients’ motivation. Whether it was a discount offer at the time, a specific person, the customer service, or any other perks, remember that can be your unique selling proposition. 

However, in cases of discounts and prices, if you are unable to provide them with the same, then being transparent with them is the best policy. If you are raising your prices, let your existing customers know about it beforehand. 

Lastly, 

Customer relations are the roots of every business; in order to grow, taking care of them is vital. 

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