In this, the digital era, there are countless tools and techniques that can help you build a long-lasting client relationship. However, in order to ensure the best results, you must find the most effective ways of achieving this. Although the final decision about your choice of customer-relationship building tools and techniques largely depends on the volume and size of your business, some methods are undeniably more effective than others. To help you make the most productive choice, below are listed some of the effective customer-relationship-management strategies out there.
Newsletters and Blogs
If you are involved in a business that offers frequent add-on products or services such as, for example, smart assistants and compatible gadgets, then it becomes vital for you to stay connected with your customers. This can be done through regular newsletters and blogs, which do not necessarily focus on selling something.
A good approach is to send informative newsletters that pique the interest of your target audience. For example, if you are a SaaS service provider for restaurants, then your newsletter and blogs could focus on catering-industry-related statistics. Likewise, if you sell Fitbits, you might focus on health-related matters and even include effective diet plans. Although your newsletter may not be focused on selling your products or services, it still helps you to stay connected with your customers.
Build a community
With close to 1.5 billion daily active users on Facebook and over one billion users on Instagram and Twitter, it makes sense to reach out to your customers where they are most active. While millennials seem to be more active on Instagram, Gen X are more likely found on Facebook and Twitter. If you are wondering how you can manage all that social media communication, then you might consider the services of a social media expert to handle it for you.
While specific social media tools can help you to schedule posts on various platforms, they are not necessarily the best choice. You need two-way communication — something that only a real person can do, if you wish to build a strong community. By posting informative content that keeps your clients hooked on your page, you build a rapport and stay in their minds. So, there is every chance that when they wish to buy a product or service you sell, they will remain inclined towards the brand they feel ‘connected with’.
Keep your gates open
Because communication can profoundly affect management of your relationships with your customers, you need to provide them with multiple channels for interacting with you. You can do this by letting them email you or even reach out to you with queries as well as feedback. To ease things up, it is recommended that you stick to communicating through one official email ID. Avoid using a free email address, because it looks unprofessional. Once a customer reaches out to you, the email can then be redirected to the relevant staff member.
In the event that someone reaches out to you via a social media platform, make sure that that individual is responded to. You can delegate a staff member to respond to such queries with a comment asking the querist to reach out to your customer care team via email or phone. Most importantly, build customer relationships and make the person providing feedback feel special for helping you in improving your services.
Tell your customers that they are safe
When there is a major cybercrime incident that creates a sense of distrust toward all eCommerce businesses, use that incident to your advantage by connecting with your customers and putting them at ease. If, for example, in the interests of security, your company does not store credit-card and other payment-related details, then what better time to tell your customers about this?
If you do not use the HTTPS to encrypt communication between the client and server, this would be the most appropriate time to purchase the cheapest SSL certificate available and intimate the fact to your customers. Besides improving your online reputation, you also greatly enhance your website’s visibility. When you buy an SSL certificate and install it on the server, you will rank better in organic searches.
Communicate more often, and keep your overheads low
By adopting digital means to communicate with your customers, you cut down the costs associated with the traditional approach, such as mailing and calls. By using the digital tools designed for bulk emailing and social media management, you can open the doors to frequent communication without a spike in your overall expenditure. This allows businesses to reduce their overheads significantly while staying connected with their customer experiences.
Provide great after-sales support
If your social media and PPC campaigns have caused your sales to skyrocket, then what next? Always make it a point to offer great after-sales service by calling up your customers to extend support and to seek feedback. If they have any concerns about how to use the product or service, try to resolve those immediately.
Finally, although businesses vary depending on factors such as volume, turnover, and industry, they all need customer relationships in order to survive. While acquiring customers is much more comfortable, retaining them so as to generate more business in the long run, it is an entirely different matter. It requires well-thought-out customer-retention strategies, and the above listed are just some of the more powerful ones. By adopting these easy-to-implement customer retention measures, businesses can easily stay connected with their customers.
Put yourself in the customer’s shoes
Building customer relationships is really about putting yourself in the customer’s shoes. It means the customer-retention ratio will be higher on your platform, always a good sign. To do this, you need to understand customers’ feedback and their suggestions for improving your products and services. Send them a personalized message, instead of bombarding emails with offers. It is better to do customer analytics in order to understand their point of view, habits, purchasing power, and so on. This will give you a glimpse into many essential points that you can then use in building strategies for customer retention.
Start with a Loyalty Program
It is a good idea to provide loyalty points for every purchase, which can then be converted to a given value when purchasing subsequent products. A monetary or reward-based benefit entices purchasers to stick with the company and to become loyal customers in time. Different types of incentives or loyalty programs to think about might include a commission for friend referrals, a discounted price for low volumes of customers, offering cash incentives for switching providers, or arranging discounts at partner stores. Quite simply, if you save money for your customers, they are more likely to remain loyal to you in the future and to spread the word about you.
Exceed expectations
When you exceed customers’ expectations, they will surely appreciate the fact and will walk away with a positive impression of your store or product. They will not only be more likely to come back to you, but will share their experience with friends and family. This will set you apart from your competitors. Always listen to customers’ issues and suggestions, and try to find quick solutions that will save their valuable time and leave them with a good impression.
Conclusion
When you listen to your bigger customers, they will be satisfied and probably return to you in the near future. If you ignore their requests and issues, they will jump into the arms of your competitors. Only personalized messages can entice them to revisit the same vendor, rather than bulky offer-related messages. Customer retention, as part of your business strategy, will require a proper plan and, yes, a human touch.
