“Just having satisfied customers isn’t good enough anymore. If you really want a booming business, you have to create raving fans.” – Ken Blanchard
Encouraging new business by helping customers find and fall in love with your small business is crucial. However, it’s loyal, long-term consumers that will deliver the best possible results for your brand.
Loyal customers who appreciate more than just your product are the people who keep revenue flowing. According to studies, the likelihood of selling products to existing customers can range up to 70%.
However, the chances of selling to new customers are much lower (5-20%).
The issue is that figuring out what creates loyalty isn’t always easy. How do you design meaningful moments with your target audience and convince them to stick with you?
We’re going to look more closely at some ways businesses can increase customer loyalty in no time.
#1 Reward existing customers
Customers are always asking, “what’s in it for me?”
Your clients need to know what they get if they commit to sticking with your business, instead of turning to a competitor. One way you can keep your people coming back for more is to reward the customers that give you their loyalty.
VIP programs that give customers gifts, exclusive offers, and discounts are a great way to make sure that they want to keep buying from you. For instance, Starbucks has a loyalty program that allows customers to earn stars for every purchase, with opportunities to double their rewards on certain days.
Research shows that 72% of men and 76% of women are more likely to shop at a business if it offers a loyalty program.
Not only will your rewards programs help to maintain existing customers, but they could provide another opportunity to earn new clients too. Loyal customers can also become advocates, willing to refer people to your business in exchange for extra rewards.
#2 Encourage feedback (and listen to it)
Customer reviews are an essential part of running a successful business today.
If you want your future leads to trust your company, you need more than just good search engine rankings. Instead, you’ll need to think about social proof, which includes everything from five-star ratings on Google, to qualitative feedback.
Remember, the feedback that you earn will improve your chances of selling, by demonstrating how happy your customers are. However, feedback also allows you to improve the experience that you create for your clients too.
Reading the reviews that your customers leave will show you what you need to do to improve their journey. For instance, your clients might love your products, but lament how high your shipping prices are.
If that’s the case, you could consider switching to a new shipping provider, then let your existing customers know you’ve made a change.
#3 Make shopping convenient
eCommerce is a popular business model for a wide number of reasons. First and foremost, we’re living in a digitally connected world, where shopping for products online is as straightforward as possible.
If you want to keep your customers coming back to your store, you need to ensure that the experience you provide is simple.
Update your checkout process and allow customers to save their details so that they can buy their favorite items with just a click of a button. Send out automated emails when your customers might be running out of their favorite products and ask them to stock up.
Listen to your customers and find out how they’re shopping with you, then look for ways to remove any friction points. For instance, could you offer a subscribe and save service? What about creating an app, so it’s easier for your clients to find what they want from their smartphones?
#4 Deliver value beyond your products
Having an excellent selection of products to choose from is an excellent way to make your business thrive. However, your customers are looking for value in more than just product features. If you want to stand out in the current landscape, you need to ensure that you’re creating relevant and personalized content.
Podcasts, videos, and blog posts all provide value to your customers in their own way. They answer critical questions that your audience has about your industry or product. At the same time, they can offer a source of entertainment too.
When you create content, you’re also giving your customers a reason to come back to your website and keep checking up on what you have to offer. That means that it’s more likely that your clients will have various new opportunities to buy whatever you have to sell.
Just remember not to make all your content about your products. This isn’t just an opportunity for sales; it’s a chance to connect with your customers on a deeper level.
#5 Make time for improvement
Finally, remember that the demands and expectations of your customers are constantly changing. As we continue to move forward in this digital world, it’s important to take the time to listen to your audience, examine your marketplace, and even assess your competition.
The problem is that many business owners struggle to keep track of what’s going on from a customer service perspective because they’re too busy looking for ways to build their company.
Often, they’re more focused on finding ways to attract new clients and assign less priority to their existing customer base.
Building relationships with your customers may be time-consuming, but finding the time in your schedule to dedicate to existing customers is a conscious effort that small business owners shouldn’t neglect.
By learning how to organize their time more effectively, and set aside moments for optimizing customer support, small business owners can ensure they’re paving the way for loyal clients.
Every month, find some time to look at your customer reviews, assess your retention rates, and ask yourself what you could be doing to delight your customers more than you already do.
Make your customers love your brand
Ultimately, new customers will always be an essential part of building a business. However, that doesn’t mean that you should forget all about your existing clients.
Focusing on ways to enhance the loyalty of your current audience could mean that you end up with more regular, recurring sales in your company.
Remember, just a 5% improvement in customer retention rates can lead to an up to 100% increase in profits across all industries.
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This blog post was written by this week’s guest blogger Ashley Wilson. Let us know what you think in the comments below!
Ashley Wilson is a content creator, writing about business and tech. She has been known to reference movies in casual conversation and enjoys baking homemade treats for her husband and their two felines, Lady and Gaga. You can get in touch with Ashley via Twitter.
