April 5th, 2013

A Customer Retained is a Customer Gained - 10 Essential Tips for Customer Retention

Learn Vital Tips to Improve your Customer Retention Help Automate the Process with High Tech - High Touch Tools

Published by: StellarFuture

10 Essential Tips for Customer Retention

Source: http://www.downsteam.com/10-tips-for-customer-retention/

Customer Retention Essential Tips

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Is Customer Retention Important?

Wow, seems like such a simple question and one with an oh so obvious answer. But first before we get into it lets define our terms. Just what is customer retention? According to the ubiquitous Wikipedia Customer retention think about it. Reduce customer churn and your customer base grows. Eliminate client turn-over and your repeat business grows. Build customer retention or lose your up-sale opportunity. As marketers we are often so intent on gaining new customers that we fail to service and hold onto those we already have. We work so hard on the front end but neglect to maintain that effort and focus on the back end. As quickly as they walk in the front door we lose them out the back door. Attrition. Its a dirty word but often the death knell of a business. Don Downs DownsTeam.com donandvonda@downsteam.com 303-684-9186 So, back to our original (obvious!) question. Of course customer retention is important. Customer retention starts with the pre-sale and ends well, it doesnt end at least not on your part. It only ends if and when the prospect says it does.
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Customer retention is the activity that a selling organization undertakes in order to reduce customer defections. Successful customer retention starts with the first contact an organization has with a customer and continues throughout the entire lifetime of a relationship. A companys ability to attract and retain new customers, is not only related to its product or services, but strongly related to the way it services its existing customers and the reputation it creates within and across the marketplace. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

April 5th, 2013

Published by: StellarFuture

And even that is open for debate and readjustment as we shall see. Customer retention think about it. Reduce customer churn and your customer base grows. Eliminate client turn-over and your repeat business grows. Build customer retention or lose your up-sale opportunity. As marketers we are often so intent on gaining new customers that we fail to service and hold onto those we already have. We work so hard on the front end but neglect to maintain that effort and focus on the back end. As quickly as they walk in the front door we lose them out the back door. Attrition. Its a dirty word but often the death knell of a business. It has been found that, generally speaking, a businesses makes 80% of its revenue from 20% of its customers therefore it is essential that you at least become effective at customer retention with that high revenue producing 20%. As your business improves and perfects its ability to keep existing customers from leaving and going to the competition you will earn more money from each customer you bring in. In light of the truth that the total expense of acquiring new customers is many times that of servicing existing ones it is no wonder that at the core of most business strategy is the essential priority of retaining their current business i.e., customer retention. It is estimated that is costs a business 6 to 7 times more money to acquire a new customer than it does to retain an existing one. Studies also suggest that a salesperson is 4 times more likely to close additional business with an existing client than with a brand new prospect. We all know the well worn adage, People do business with people they know, like and trust. Well surely a current client or customer is much higher on the know, like and trust scale than a new prospect. It is painfully obvious is it not? In fact not only is client retention important it is absolutely vital to almost every business. Consider the fast food king McDonalds. What if every customer that ever walked through their doors never came back but only made that one initial purchase? What if the legendary Sam Walton only managed to bring in his customer to Wal-Mart for just a single shopping visit? Of course the answer is so obvious it neednt even be stated. In fact one of the pervasive truths about these two retail giants is that they have and continue to do so well at bringing their customers back again, and again, and again. But how do you do it? Fantasize? Hope? Wish?

companies realize that its far more expensive to find new customers than keep existing ones, and therefore it has become absolutely mandatory to invest in existing customer relationships and ensure that they keep growing in a mutually-beneficial manner. Experiential marketing attempts to connect consumers with brands in personally relevant and memorable ways.

Your daily activities reflect the value you place on customer retention.
The truth as they say is in the pudding. The evidence speaks loudly I might add for itself. Unfortunately knowing a truth does not necessarily translate into the corresponding action. If merely knowing right and wrong, merely knowing good, bad and better were the only issue the world would be a very different place indeed and doing business, including customer retention, would have gotten a whole lot easier. Alas, there IS more to it. Texting while driving is dangerous but many still do it. Smoking kills but most smokers continue to do so. Living by a personal budget is a good idea. Exercising regularly is a healthy habit. No argument retaining my clients and customers IS really important You might begin by asking yourself the obvious questions about customer retention? How much is a new customer or client worth to me? What is the lifetime value of that customer? How will a continued customer benefit me in terms of:
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repeat business upsale revenues and Referrals

Add up the numbers. Numbers dont lie. So, how much time, how much energy, how much planning, how much execution in your business strategy is targeted at customer retention? So, what are some customer retention ideas? There are of course many aspects to an effective client retention strategy. But lets take a look at these 10 tips.

10 Customer Retention Tips

1. Increase the frequency and regularity of customer touch. Simply staying in touch more consistently with your customers will help keep you and your business top of mind. When they have a need in your area of expertise, in your niche, do they think of you, your product, and your service first? 2. Make your marketing unique and memorable. Information overload we all get way too much email. How could you package your marketing in a more memorable way? Are you effectively branding yourself and your company or do you just blend in? Differentiating yourself and your business is key. As Brian Tracy has said, Your companys most valuable asset is how it is known to its customers. 3. Keep your customers informed. Do you have a new product or new service? Are you offering a price cut?
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Customer retention is customer relationship maintenance which in the long run produces loyalty.
Pradeep Narasimh writing on the Experiential Marketing Forum says Once the buying decision has been made and a customer has been acquired, a different process begins: relationship maintenance. Customer retention techniques can help ensure that the customer stays loyal to the brand and is not lured away by competitors. Modern

April 5th, 2013

Published by: StellarFuture

Do you have a new incentive? Are they aware of your customer loyalty program? Do you have an upcoming event they might want to know about? Engaged customers are definitely more loyal. 4. Proactively stay in touch. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Head your customers problems off at the pass. Dont wait for the problem to surface and dissatisfaction to mount. Give them the solution before they even encounter the problem. Again as Brian Tracy has so aptly stated, Offer your customers a long-term relationship, then do everything possible to build and maintain it. 5. Befriend your customers by getting personal. This one is hugeNo one wants to be just another number or just another revenue source. Remember your clients and customers in a personal way on their birthday, during the holidays and on any date apropos to your relationship with them perhaps as a Realtor remembering them and keeping in touch with them on the anniversary of their home closing would be a nice personal touch. But dont make it just another marketing piece. Take the time to get personal and express your honest appreciation for them. You will get back what you give. Building personal relationships with your customers can result in fierce loyalty and a steady stream of ongoing business referrals. 6. Provide education & instruction to your clients. Jim Rohn has said, One customer, well taken care of, could be more valuable than $10,000 worth of advertising. Are you taking care of your customers? Are your clients fully aware of how they might implement and utilize your service or product most effectively? The more value they perceive your product or service to offer the more loyal they will be towards continuing to use it. If your product or service has a learning curve shorten it. 7. Re-connect with your lost customers. In many ways a lost customer is more valuable than a hot lead. They know you. Theyve already come through the door. Have you found out what might have gone wrong if anything? Why have you lost them as a customer? Is it something you might easily remedy? Timing is everything and perhaps now IS the time for them but youll never know if you dont try to re-connect. 8. Send a giftand secure their second visit. It is true that there is a huge drop off between a customers first and second visit. Getting them to come back just one more time is often the bridge towards a permanent relationship. Is there a special something you can send them, perhaps a welcome kit, a gift basket, or a coupon? Sending a gift just might provide the impetus to turn your one time visitor into a repeat customer. 9. Campaign your inactive clients. Like a loveless marriage these customers may not have filed the divorce papers but the thrill is definitely gone. Did they leave because they flew into a cost cutting frenzy but now things have improved on their fiscal front? Were they looking for a service or feature you didnt have but now you do? Get back in touch with them. You may find them ready to renew their vows!

10. Implement faithful follow-up. If the average sale is made only after the 7th contact why have you only contacted your prospect 3 times? Often times an unclosed sale is merely a future sale in the incubator. It is coming just not yet. Let your prospect turn their wandering eyes and fickle fancy elsewhere and you will have lost them. So be faithful. Dont give up to soon. As they say, the fortune is in the follow-up.

But Im so busy with everything else how can I effectively and consistently work on customer retention?
As an essential and in fact vital part of your business strategy, you need a commitment to procuring customer retention. Then you need a well-oiled process and plan to ensure it actually happens. If there is any way you can automate the process, any way you can make it more efficient, any way to help effectively accomplish it en mass then that is the way to go. If it is cumbersome, difficult, tedious or mundane it will be done half-heartedly if at all and most likely will eventually just not get done. How many Januarys have come and gone with the simple commitment made and broken to simply send your customers, clients and prospects Thank-You cards on a regular basis? Its not that you dont recognize it to be a good habit. Its not that you dont want to do it. But as always the tyranny of the urgent crowds out this important task especially that of customer retention efforts. Do you have a Customer Retention system in place to help assure you are doing your very best not only to acquire new customers but to retain your existing ones? Ask yourself these client retention questions about you and your company?

Do you and your company need to:

Increase the frequency and regularity of customer touch Make your marketing unique and memorable Keep your customers informed Proactively stay in touch Provide education & instruction to your clients Befriend your customers by getting personal Re-connect with your lost customers Provide education & instruction to your clients Befriend your customers by getting personal Re-connect with your lost customers Send a gift and secure their second visit Campaign your inactive clients Implement faithful follow-up CLICK TO LEARN ABOUT A GREAT CUSTOMER RETENTION TOOL

April 5th, 2013

Published by: StellarFuture

together High tech convenience and automation with High Touch personalization and uniqueness. Click here to learn about a tool and service that will help simplify and automate your customer retention strategy. This system allows you to streamline your customer retention efforts in a cost effective, time saving, unique and memorable way. With this service businesses can automate their client and customer retention efforts towards a single client or to 5,000 customers at the same time at the click of a mouse. Among other features with SendOutCards you can send top quality cards easily and quickly personalized with your photo, company logo, personal handwriting font and personal signature. They will be stuffed, stamped and mailed out for you the very next day, affixed with a first class stamp. Take the advice of the worlds most successful leaders and find a way to connect with your clients both past, present and future. Dont just get by (or worse fail miserably) , excel and become an expert at client and customer retention. And as Paul Rolich, a contributing editor of Tech Decisions magazine smartly notes Never let go. Getting customers in the door is the hardest thing we can do. Consumers are fickle and capricious. They dont always make rational decisions. If using a lizard or a cute girl in your advertising brings customers your way you must be doing something right. But the proof is in retaining that customer. Customer service after the sale is the real measure of success. And that is what keeps great businesses successful. If we can answer any questions or help you in any way please drop us a line by email or give us a call. Wed be happy to help! Contact us at 303-684-9186 or donandvonda@downsteam.com if youd like to know more about SendoutCards or if there are any questions we can answer. We can walk you through what our system has to offer for you and even let you try it out with a free test drive. Don and Vonda Downs downsteam.com 303-684-9186 donandvonda@downsteam.com If you found this article helpful wed love it if you passed it along through some of the social networks below. Also, feel free to leave a comment or submit a review below. If you need help with this all important task of client retention and would like to learn more watch our Free Webinar on Client Retention. Click here to learn the Straight Scoop on SendOutCards

Among various tools and tips hailed as essential to maintaining and improving quality customer retention efforts is the power and simplicity of the personal note or card. Top business persons, thought leaders, coaches, entrepreneurs, trainers and motivational speakers the world over extoll the virtue and power of the written note and card to profoundly influence people and make an impact on them. For 12 straight years, automotive salesperson and eventual author of How To Sell Anything to Anybody, Joe Girard sold more vehicles than any other person in history and garnered a spot in the Guinness Book of World records, 12 times as well as becoming the only salesperson to be inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame. His secret the Greeting card. Harvey Mackay, a successful businessman, New York Times best-selling author, world renowned speaker and civic leader has said, I still value and use hand-written notes. The power of the personal note cannot be underestimated. In my first book, Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive, Lesson 10 is about how Short Notes Yield Long Results. In sales, never underestimate the importance of the personal gesture, and at the top of the list: the handwritten note. Those handwritten Thank-You notes are worth their weight in gold according to Tom Hopkins - Developing the Thank You Note Habit, Copyright 1998 Tom Hopkins International, Inc. The power of a heartfelt card, the genuine thank you, is the power behind Appreciation Marketing. It is the glue and the fabric of what builds strong relationships. And in the business world this in turn creates repeat business and frequent referrals because your recipients have genuinely come to know, like and trust you. You dont need to manipulate or scheme, you need to give. Truly, give and it will be given to you. Think about it. Does your business need to save limited resources while at the same time providing top notch service and products to your customers? Do you desire to reduce consumer turnover and drastically enhance your client loyalty? Do you require a continual, predictable stream of revenue? Would you like to sell your product and service with less effort? Do you strive to obtain more profits out of your existing customers? Is it your goal to considerably enhance your referral business? If any or all of your answers to these questions are yes and I am sure they are then take a look at SendOutCards and what this company can do for you. SendOutCards has brought

April 5th, 2013

Published by: StellarFuture

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