.How do we maintain our customers? We all know that gaining new customers is important to a successful business. But have you thought about the importance of keeping and maintaining your current customers? Gaining customers is great…but if you’re losing customers then your new customers are simply replacing your old customers!
Implement Top Notch Customer Service – Certainly one of the fastest ways to loose a customer is to have bad customer service (or no customer service). Make sure you respond to all inquiries within 24 hours of receiving them (sooner if possible) even if it’s just a…”I’m checking into this” type of response. When it comes to customer service…the old adage of “treat others they way you want to be treated” certainly rings true.
Create a Community – Customers love to know that we are listening to them and with all of the social media tools at our finger tips it is now super easy to interact with your customers and create a sense of community. Open a Facebook account or a blog. You can ask customers what new scent they would like in a product, what new products they would like to see…really anything! They will love that you are listening to them and providing them with the products they want.
Communication is Key – How easy are you to get a hold of? How fast do you respond? I like to respond to all inquiries within 24 hours of receiving them. By creating a community using Facebook or a blog you’ve just made it even easier to communicate with your customers. You can post sales, events and other announcements immediately!
Incentives, Rewards and Gifts! – These shouldn’t just be for new customers. Nothing irritates me more than a company that “rewards” new customers but doesn’t reward regular customers! So be sure to offer new customers AND regular customers incentives and rewards. Whether it’s a discount on shipping or maybe a $5.00 off coupon on their birthday…customers love being rewarded for their continued support of your business.
Thank Your Customers – Be sure you thank your customers whether in the form of an email or even better…a hand written note in their package!
Original article from Soap Queen April 2011