Many businesses make the mistake of focusing on attracting new customers while all but ignoring the people who have already shown their interest by making a purchase. This is a huge mistake because, on average, it costs five times as much to attract a new customer than it does to retain an existing one. That means it makes sense to really focus on growing your base of repeat customers. How do you do that? Here are a few ideas.
- Make your products the best they can be
One of the most effective ways of getting repeat business is to ensure that the products and/or services you offer are the best they can possibly be. Whether that means using custom signal conditioning boards in your electronics so that they will perform better or offering unlimited corrections on your web copy services, doing whatever you can to ensure the things you sell are better than the rest will go a long way to convincing your customers to stick with you
- Keep in touch
After you’ve sold something, don’t just leave it up to the customer to come back again, stay in touch with them and give them a reason to stick with you. You could send them money-off vouchers in an email, send out a newsletter showing off some great products or even start a conversation with them on social media – as long as you’re doing something to ensure your business is remembered, you’ll stand a much better chance of getting their repeat custom.
- Start a loyalty program
The people who have made a purchase with your business deserve to be rewarded for their loyalty, so why not set up your own loyalty program, which will allow them to earn points and rewards each time they make an additional purchase? This will make it more worthwhile for them to stick with you when there are so many other alternatives on offer.
- Talk to them
Talking to your existing customers can be extremely fruitful. You can ask them how they feel about their business, what changes they would like to see, and what you can do to keep their custom. Of course, this only works if you then implement their ideas and suggestions because it shows them that you really care about what they want.
- Give back
Giving back to the local community, a national charity or a good cause globally, is a great way to boost your brand’s profile, but it can also be a good way of keeping customers IF you get them involved, Ask them which charities they would like you to support and commit to giving a percentage of the profits from their sales to charity. This is something that even Amazon does, so it must be pretty effective!
- Give them Great deals
Don’t be that company that offers great new deals to new customers while completely ignoring the people who are already supporting you with their custom and ensure that everyone has a fair deal.
Look after your existing customers and you will stand a far better chance of staying in business!
