Talk to any business owner and ask them what their primary business goal is and the answer will likely be… growth. For many of us, we consider the key to growing our businesses to be acquiring new customers. However, while new customers are great, obtaining them isn’t always the most effective way to grow.
The process of identifying, qualifying, and nurturing prospects through the lead stage to conversion can be costly. However, you already have a pool of high-value, low-effort assets right under your nose… your existing customer base! Depending on your business, gaining a new customer can cost anywhere from 5 to 25 times more than retaining an existing customer.
The Benefits of Customer Retention
Here are some facts to consider:
• 20% of your customers produce 80% of revenue
• Repeat customers spend more on larger transactions
• Repeat customers are satisfied with your service and refer more people
• Reengaging customers save you valuable resources!
5 Best Practices to Boost Customer Retention Rates
- Offer Incentives for Returning Customers – Make it easy for current customers to return by adjusting pricing on products and services they don’t currently buy from you. This will show them your appreciation and keep you top of mind.
- Create a Loyalty Program – This is a great way to build loyalty among existing customers and offer incentives to keep them buying from you. Some dealers keep it very simple and just email their customers a THANK YOU message with a special offer every month.
- Survey Your Customers – Sometimes it’s the problem you don’t know about is the one that can hurt your business the most. Using basic polling or survey software you’d be surprised how easy it is to do and how valuable the feedback is to retain specific customers.
- Connect How and When Your Customers Want – Some customers want to meet with you in person. Others prefer phone, some like email, a text or social media. The key is to understand the medium and the frequency your customers would like to be engaged.
Treating your existing customers with respect and showing them they are valued are great ways to build loyalty and keep their business. While you should never stop looking for new customers, taking the time to nurture the ones you already have is an invaluable investment in the stability of your business!
At ISI we offer hundreds of copier dealers, MSPs and IT VARs the products and tools to keep and win more business! Want to learn more? Give us a call and let’s start the discussion.
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