How do you handle existing customers? Do you have customer loyalty strategies? Nowadays, entrepreneurs are focused on acquiring new customers, concerned about competition and ways to attract a larger audience.
However, they often forget that retaining existing customers is a vital business strategy. If customers have a great experience with your company, they can become excellent advocates, sharing their experiences with friends and family.
But what is required for customer loyalty? Why do customers choose a specific brand and remain loyal? What strategies should be employed to keep customers engaged? To delve into the details, let’s continue reading.
The importance of customer loyalty
For those who own a business, they understand the importance of having customers for the success of their venture. More customers mean increased revenue and growth. However, capturing a customer’s attention can be challenging. It involves strategic planning and excellent marketing, especially when introducing a new brand, product, or service to the market.
One strategy for customer loyalty was implemented by Nubank in November 2021, where they offered stocks to employees and customers as a new loyalty initiative, for instance.
Let’s explore some simple actions that can make a significant difference in customer loyalty:
Providing customer service
A well-known strategy is customer service! Whether it’s through phone, chat, social media, or in-person interactions, every customer deserves impeccable service. There are customers who make purchases solely based on the experience of receiving excellent service.
Offering promotions
The customer should always feel special, and one strategy to achieve this is by offering discounts or even gifts on important dates. That’s why some establishments provide loyalty cards to encourage customer return. These cards offer benefits or rewards based on the customer’s repeat business.
Resolving Conflicts
Life isn’t always a bed of roses, is it? Often, customers may need to make returns or exchanges for items they have purchased. At such times, it is crucial to provide full support and maintain a positive and empathetic attitude towards the customer. The manner of treatment should be the same as when they initially made the purchase.
Certainly, customers want to be reassured that if they encounter any unexpected outcomes, they will receive exceptional service and understanding from the employees. The staff should be ready to promptly and effectively resolve the issue. This example applies to both products and services!
Understanding customer preferences
For customer loyalty, it is important to understand not only the customer’s needs but also their preferences, occasions for using your product/service, and what grabs their attention to make a purchase. This can be gathered through surveys and interactions with your customers. Utilizing a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system can be valuable in recording and tracking these details.
Each customer has unique needs, and by discovering and addressing them, you can facilitate business transactions more effectively. It is essential to continuously improve and develop your knowledge and skills, as learning is always beneficial!
Handling feedback
It is extremely important to be open to customer feedback because success is not achieved alone; it is a two-way street. Customers purchase your product/service, and as an entrepreneur, you can receive criticism, compliments, and even recommendations for your brand. Therefore, customer satisfaction always comes first.
According to the scholar Kotler:
Value delivered to the customer is the difference between the total value for the customer and the total cost for the customer. The total value for the customer is the set of benefits that customers expect from a particular product or service.
In this quote, we can understand that customers want to know the advantages of acquiring a product or service and also seek the perception of other customers. That’s why it is crucial to continuously improve and have a strong focus on post-sales support to increase the chances of customer loyalty.
Innovating for customer loyalty
Have you ever considered organizing a business matchmaking event to foster customer loyalty? Some schools are adopting this strategy by bringing parents together in a business matchmaking session. Each parent showcases their own work or represents the company they work for, creating networking opportunities.
Parents recognize the benefits of business matchmaking in both the short and long term, and schools have found a great way to increase the chances of retaining students in their institution. This unique approach is also utilized for attracting new students, isn’t it?
Likewise, business associations also use business matchmaking as a means to enhance member loyalty. You can find more information on this in the following link!
Now, tell us, what customer loyalty strategies do you implement?
To learn more about business matchmaking, download our e-book by clicking on this link. Discover the advantages of our software, which automates 100% of your event. The results go beyond networking, partnerships, and sales. Innovate by organizing business matchmaking sessions and gain greater visibility for yourself and your business.
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