Repeat customers spend at least 60% more than new customers and it’s up to 10 times more costly to win new customers than to retain existing ones. Whether small or large, it’s essential for every business to prioritize winning customer loyalty and trust. It’s the best way to ensure existing customers are there to stay and incoming customers continue doing business with you.
So, what does it really take to win customer loyalty?
Brands that take customers’ needs to heart know that genuine and creative engagement entices people to be part of your business. Here are five ways to win customer loyalty for the success of your business in the long-term
Be part of your customer’s buying journey
It’s not enough to entice people to visit your site and make a purchase. If you want them to come back, it’s important to make them feel you’re there every step of the way. Delivering a compelling experience at every customer touchpoint and addressing the needs of your buyers without delay will definitely make them happy. Whether they need more information about a product before purchase or have a post-purchase complaint, you should be there to attend to them on time. Are they waiting for you to reply to their email? Do they want to speak to one of your agents? Whichever the case, ensure you act promptly to win their trust.
Consider live engagement with your customers
Customers can engage with your brand in several ways – including email, submitting tickets, phone calls, social media messaging, and live chat. You can personalize their experience in any of these communication channels. In some cases, customers prefer messaging over live engagement. For example, early in the customer journey many buyers are doing research. They’re not ready for a sales pitch and have time to gather information via email.
In other cases, your customer might be ready to make a purchase and time is of the essence to them. The back-and-forth emails or messages that cause delay could be enough to kill the deal for them. With live chat support, customers can interact with your brand in real-time, allowing you to deliver personalized service to each one of them, which builds trust. It’s important to understand your customers’ needs and provide the right level of support at the right time.
Know your customer expectations
It’s important to know what your customers are looking for, their purchase pattern, and what they expect you to deliver. As you try to understand their needs, it’s helpful to know the finer details such as their interests, lifestyle, occupation, and product preferences. You can get such information from their interaction history as well as their purchase history. In that way, you can recommend products that they find relevant and increase your sales conversion rates.
Similarly, by reviewing a customer’s interaction history before reaching out to them, agents can take a personalized approach when doing pre-purchase/post-purchase follow ups. Reaching your customers with the right message at the right time not only builds trust in them but also encourages them to continue doing business with them. Using a Preview Dialer approach is a great way to give agents the information they need to be successful during their outbound call.
Respond to customer feedback
At least 60% of potential customers read reviews about your product before making a purchase. Invest the time to respond to customer complaints promptly to avoid negative reviews as much as you can.
You don’t have to wait until they say something negative about their experience with your brand. Instead, let them tell you how they felt during their interaction with you so that you can improve their experience. For instance, you can request customer feedback at the end of a live chat conversation, after a checkout transaction, or soon after a product demo to address any problem they might have come across.
Most importantly, reach out to your customers after acting on their feedback to let them know something has been done. In that way, they’ll have a reason to come back, knowing that they’ll not experience the same challenge they faced the first time they interacted with you.
Get creative with your marketing tactics
Whether you’re using social media platforms or mass mailing to reach your target audience, you don’t have to make it obvious that you’re marketing your brand. Instead, find ways to make your customers as well as your prospects feel that they need to be part of what you’re doing.
If you’re using email marketing, go for segmented lists to ensure the message is relevant to the recipients. For instance, an email recommending a certain product should only go to those who’ve purchased a similar or related item before. Similarly, if you’re launching a social media campaign about product/service offers it’s important to target the right audience in terms of their age group, location, and their interests.
Customer loyalty is like a game that you must win to get a medal. Given that several brands are competing to attract the attention of customers, you have to work smart to stay on top of the competition. Therefore, equip yourself with the right customer engagement strategies to win your customer loyalty and trust.