Marcus Richards
A common challenge of any business, whether large or small, is how to win customers that will stay for life. In a competitive marketplace, loyalty takes you one step closer to leading the pack, but just how do you earn and keep loyal consumers? When you start to understand that customers are the biggest assets to your company, followed closely by employees, you realize that your strategy for keeping customers happy has to include your employees. Happy, well-trained employees delivering top-notch customer service will be the “wow” factor that keeps your customers coming back. These strategies will help you win customers for life.
Present the Right Product
Be realistic with your target market. If people aren’t right, the product isn’t going to matter. Build a profile of a good customer, then analyze what that individual would want or what kind of problems they would need your product for. When you have this grasp of their position and their need, you are able to offer the solution. After you have figured out the right product for the market, you need to connect with the right message and through the right channels. Social media and digital ads are highly effective for the younger generation, but older adults still prefer more traditional routes of advertising.
Create a Personal Message
In a world of copycats, become an original. Create a shopping experience or communication experience that is completely personal and stands out from the standard strategies of your competitors. Repeat customers are the ones who are more willing to share positive, enthusiastic reviews about your service or product. Find out how to capitalize on those relationships. Figure out where your customers are coming from, why they are purchasing from you, what they are using your product for, and so on. By tailoring your strategies to these specific needs, you create a subtle but personal message of attention and concern for the target market.
Get Personal With Live Engagement
You can deliver a more personal experience even when the consumer hasn’t set foot in your store or met you in your office. Live engagement tools can help your customers in a way that is personalized, even if you aren’t there. When a consumer visits your website, a live chat service can connect you to answer questions, make recommendations, or assist with the checkout. You can use technology to deliver a tailored service that mimics the personalized help of standing at the customer service counter.
Continually Build Trust
For those who operate solely online, it will be a little bit harder to build trust with clients than those who are able to converse face-to-face in physical locations. However, proactively communicating with customers, asking for feedback through surveys, delivering a customer-centric spirit and attitude when handling complaints, and striving to offer that personalized client service will go a long way to earning more recommendations from happy customers. As mentioned before, your employees need to be completely on board with this vision of exceptional consumer experiences. You may have done everything right, but one wrong interaction with a disgruntled employee could create a chain reaction of customer losses. Continually evaluate how your employees are performing in these trust-building areas, keeping expectations high and making changes as necessary.
Add Automation to Conversations
Though automated phone calls have gotten a bad rap, one survey has said that 67% of consumers will hang up the phone when they aren’t able to reach a customer service representative. With the help of VoiceNation, you can make sure that your customers are given the attention they need, 24/7. However, you can also use chatbots and automation to help keep customers engaged and provide resolution to some of the more common concerns callers have. Chatbots can reduce how many help desk support tickets are open, and they can help streamline callers into ques where the right support agent is waiting. This strategy could be a double-edged sword, so keep a balance between your use of chatbots and human support.
To secure customers for life, your brand needs to have a consistent, memorable presence. Your digital presence should be no different than what a consumer could expect in person, and the delivery of services should be consistent among all employees. Winning customers for life will give your business the edge it needs to lead the market and experience growth.
