BNI Education Slot - Retaining Profitable Customers

Each week one of our Agenda items is the "Education Slot". One of our members will educate us all on a topic that can help us improves our businesses.

A recent education slot covered the topic of "Retaining Profitable Customers"

It costs 5 - 10 times more to acquire a new customer than it does to retain an existing one

Source: www.emarketer.com

The primary focus of BNI is on acquiring new customers through referrals. However it is equally important to retain profitable customers.

Typically a good customer is one that:

Is profitable
Stays with your company for many years
Buys more services that are relevant to their business
Refers you to other people

Here are some thoughts on how you can retain your profitable customers.

Understand what they are buying from you

A solution to a problem (e.g. “I don’t know how to do my tax return”)
Peace of mind
A service to save money or a service to make money
Professional advice
A gift
Something that attracts new clients to their business
Something to make them more productive

Improve the customer experience

Set a deadline for providing your goods and services and stick to that deadline (or if you can’t – tell the customer in plenty of time)
Have the systems in place so that you can fulfil the service
Use the telephone occasionally instead of relying solely on email for communication
Ask for feedback

Create Awareness (And build Loyalty)

Make your customers aware of new products, services and promotions
Tell them the value that you are bringing them (look at what you get not what you pay)
If you don’t tell them then they don’t know!

Communicate Regularly (Most Businesses don't)

Consider a quarterly newsletter?
Or a phone call every year/6 months/month?
Just because you think you are providing a one off service doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty more opportunities for repeat business
Send a Christmas card/birthday card
Ask for a referral!

Do the Unexpected (The "WOW" factor)

Nothing gets customers talking positively about your business than doing something good that they don’t expect
Phone them 9 days, 9 weeks and 9 months after they purchase from you – to make sure they are happy (“I was just thinking about you and…………”)
Send a gift or gimmick
Send them a relevant newspaper cutting about their industry sector
Give them a referral !

Above all remember that “GIVERS GAIN”