Every entrepreneur prays for loyal customers because they are pointers that their business is doing something right. Loyal customers are very important as they serve as evangelists, spreading a brand’s message by word of mouth, and keeping business revenue flowing by being repeat buyers.
Smart business owners know that maintaining a good number of loyal customers gives their business a solid base of sales that they can always rely on. So, as a business owner, how do you retain customers, and what are the things to avoid to keep your customers coming back?
Check out these five things that can drive away your loyal customers:
1Â Engaging with your customers only for sales
Don’t make your customers feel like they are being used and that you only care about their money and profit-making. Connecting with your customers only when you want them to buy from you won’t help in keeping them around for long.
Consistently engage them on social media and your website. Send them heartfelt messages on their birthdays or during holidays. Think about how you can educate them on getting more out of your products and services on Instagram Live or Twitter Spaces. Customer education is a great opportunity to demonstrate your expertise and build trust.
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2Â Taking them for granted
The point here is to find ways to continue to nurture relationships with your customers so they can remain loyal. You can’t afford to get complacent upon realizing that you have a good number of loyal customers. There is more to be done so as not to lose them. Appreciate your customers by always providing a good customer service experience. Spend time and resources to train your staff, if you have any, on how best to deal with clients and other business stakeholders in general. Ensure that you always make your customers feel like they are communicating with humans in every transaction and not with a machine via automated messaging. This will show that you genuinely care and that you are always there to listen to them.
READ ALSO: 5 Clever Ways to Educate Your Target Audience
3Â Increase Prices without Adding Value
Unless your pricing is being influenced by inflation, there is no justification for increasing prices without adding more value to your business. You should be comfortable explaining to your customers why the prices of your products or services have gone up – that is how to build trust and loyalty. No one is going to pay more for a product or service that they’ve been using when there is no perceived added value.
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No matter your pricing strategy, customers should always feel that they are getting more with less.
4. No Loyalty Program
Make special offers to your loyal customers to prove that you notice them and appreciate them for sticking with you. This could be an incentive to new customers, motivating them to hold on to your product or service. Special offers or discounts should save loyal customers money. Who doesn’t want to save money?
5. No personalization
Draw customers closer to you and your business through personalization, however, don’t be creepy about it. Successful personalization should make customers feel special and delighted to communicate with you or your customer care representatives. There are arguments that addressing customers by name and being overly friendly in emails and other communication channels slow down transactions, but honestly, the business space is brutally competitive and whatever it takes to provide a good and memorable interaction or experience with your customers should be adopted.
